You might think that this cycle lane is barely long enough to park a bike, but that’s just the foreshortening effect of the camera. In reality it’s a full 4.2 metres long. Just think of the speeds you could hit. Just imagine.
Truly, it offers the freedom of the open road.
Tim Clayfield sent the photo to us, saying: “The finishing touches have just been put to this lane on a side road leading to the Abthorpe roundabout of the A43 in Northamptonshire near Towcester, including a “cyclists dismount” sign at the end… £7m spent on cars. How much on cycling?”
Confusion around Chesterfield junctions as to whether motorists or cyclists have priority
Probably a few grand.
This three metre cycle lane was installed in Brockenhurst, Hampshire last year at a cost of £6,253.
21 thoughts on “Behold! A majestic 4.2-metre long cycle lane”
Somebody deserves a trip to
Somebody deserves a trip to the dole office for that…
Maybe it’s a refuge that
Maybe it’s a refuge that cyclists can use to wait in to turn right rather than being in the middle of the road and very vulnerable? Don’t think we have the whole picture here!
mikepridmorewood wrote:
I get your thinking but I wonder how long they have to wait there and what they have to emerge into?
If the roundabout is that busy or dangerous then I would just consider another route than dice with death.
mikepridmorewood wrote:
If it’s quite a busy road would it not be more of a hinderence to be waiting off the side of the road rather than in the middle and forcing cars to stop?
RobD wrote:
Unfortunately, that’s the issue. Eventually someone will be waiting and they won’t stop. I know of a few people that are no longer here for just that reason……….
mikepridmorewood wrote:
Perhaps the refuge for turning right, should be on the, err, right, maybe?
If it’s so busy/dangerous, maybe it’s simpler/quicker to go around the roundabout to come back the other way and then turn left?
mikepridmorewood wrote:
That^^^^ or its part of a bigger scheme which can only be developed in bit as S106 agreements/ developers cash becomes available.
Lovely foundation for a bus
Lovely foundation for a bus stop! Seriously tho’, couldn’t anyone have seen how ridiculous and a complete waste of money that is? I’m pretty sure Ray Charles and Stevie Wonder could have seen that it was a stupid idea…
What he says. There’s a few
What he says. (Mikepride that is )There’s a few of them up my way. Some helpful others not mainly due to being on a blind bend.
I think the signage is wrong
I think the signage is wrong – I think mikecassie is right and this is actually intended to be a bus stop.
brooksby wrote:
Surely a bus stop would have had a raised kerb, not a dropped one?
LastBoyScout wrote:
Erm, OK: maybe they’re going to pull down a section of that hedge to reveal a shiny new cycle path on the other side…
that’s luxury – even a
that’s luxury – even a helpful signage telling you to dismount before hitting that patch of earth and cone.
If the A43 is 75 miles long
If the A43 is 75 miles long in Northamptonshire this probably now qualifies as 75 miles of road with a cycle lane and means that they don’t have to build any more for a while.
I am sure there must be a box that this ticks whether or not it is of any practical use.
Who’s got KOM on the Strava
Who’s got KOM on the Strava segment?
Do the council people who
Do the council people who sign off this kind of thing realise how fucking stupid it makes them look? Genuinely puzzled.
I like the idea of the refuge
I like the idea of the refuge for turning right, but I thought the A43 near Towcester is a dual carriageway with a central reservation (so no turning right). Unless it’s a bit further away than I’m thinking.
The A43 is dual. I think
The A43 is dual. I think this might be near the Macdonalds junction as one road does head off to Abthorpe, but I cant picture where this might be. Its possible its opposite the Macdonalds turn on the Abthorpe road and it might be as said a refuge for turning right into the macDonalds and services. However if it is, then its not going to get much use as opposed to the other side with Towcester as the amount of cycle traffic coming this way to Macdonalds is limited if any ( not a good argument for putting it down, but I would have thought putting a cycle lane down the old A34 past the secondary school there would have been a better use of the money ). The pedestrian crossing there is horrible, its just after the dual carrige exit from the roundabout. Lots of accidents due to traffic lights not being expected just after the roundabout etc.
Towcester cycle lane: It’s
Towcester cycle lane: It’s actually a bay for fly-tipping…
The cynic in me says that the
The cynic in me says that the council can now fill-in ’25 miles’ into a box on a form somewhere which says ‘what length of road has a cyclepath ?’ when actually it’s 4.2m of cyclepath on a 25 mile road…
We can all giggle about this,
We can all giggle about this, then we realise that it is our taxes that are paying for it.