Bike lane cyclo-cross training or proof active travel is stuck in the mud?; Jeremy Vine & MGIF taxi driver; Going for a run? Remember you helmet; 10/10 new cycle lane; Vuelta route; Bollard brilliance; Pro rider retirement + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
Stuck in the mud cyclo-cross bike lane (+ a quick history lesson about Chorley New Road)
Good job they removed the orcas from Chorley New Road. As the council leaders said, they’d never have been able to keep it so clean with those in the way. pic.twitter.com/IruR45SOli
— Bicycle-Riding Motorist (@MrHappyCyclist) December 16, 2021
Back in March the orcas creating a somewhat segregated cycle lane on the Chorley New Road near Bolton were removed. Then, in September, it was confirmed they would not be reinstated, with councillors claiming people disliked the look of them (it’s a conservation area don’t you know) “but also because of the congestion they caused.”
One of the reported benefits, according to Mr Happy Cyclist (his name, not mine) above, was apparently the council claiming it would mean the cycle lane could be better cleaned. Or maybe they’re being considerate and giving the commuters of Bolton a chance to practice their cyclo-cross skills en route to the office…
In July, the council decided not to reinstate the wand orcas, which were removed ahead of an IRONMAN event, until the end of its Active Travel Consultation. The council said, “This is to avoid any unnecessary expenditure should the council decide not to make them a permanent fixture.”
This all followed information from Transport for Greater Manchester’s on-street sensor technology showing that cycle journeys on Chorley New Road increased by 167 per cent during lockdown. You could say some councils are stuck in the mud when it comes to active travel…
Going for a run? Remember your helmet
Went for a run this afternoon, and realised about 50m up the road that as I’d left the house via the bike-store door, out of sheer habit I’d put my bike helmet on. I can’t be the first person ever to do this, but it sure as hell felt like it.
— Michael Hutchinson (@Doctor_Hutch) December 16, 2021
If you don’t go for a run you never have this problem…
2022 Vuelta a España route: summit finish at 2,500m + lots of TT kilometres
An interesting, intriguing Vuelta a España route has been announced for 2022. As we already knew, the race will begin in Utrecht in the Netherlands, and the team time trial is back on the menu. The teams will face a pan flat 23km test against the clock to get things underway before two easy looking sprint stages.
An early rest day after stage three will allow the race back into Spain ahead of a series of hilly stages, culminating with the first summit finish of the race on stage six. Back-to-back summit finishes follow on stages eight and nine.
After the rest day we have the second TT of the race, a long and very flat 31km individual effort. The second week alternates between summit finishes and some flatter days for either a breakaway or any of the fast men brave enough to rack up the demanding late season miles.
Stage 16 is the most eye-catching day on paper — a summit finish at Sierra Nevada, 2,500m above sea level. For context, that’s only 100m below the Galibier, or 200m off the Stelvio.
The final week features a series of hilly and medium mountain days, likely designed to set up a late ambush for position by anyone willing to risk it all. The race returns to Madrid for the stage 21 finale, where we should see a sprint between whoever’s left by this point in the season.
Bollard brilliance + but cyclists rolled into one...
Absolutely brutal from the cyclist.#WorldBollardAssociation pic.twitter.com/vDXT1hSGZX
— World Bollard Association™ (@WorldBollard) December 11, 2021
Clearly what happened here is that nasty bike jumped a red light, forcing the car to hit a bollard instead…
Welsh rider Scott Davies retires from professional cycling at 26
— Scott Davies (@scottdavies95) December 16, 2021
After a year hindered by a hip injury, Scott Davies has not been offered a contract extension by Bahrain Victorious. Instead, the 26-year-old has decided to retire from professional cycling.
“After a challenging 18 months with injury, surgery, and rehab, I’ve had to come to the difficult decision to retire early from professional cycling,” Davies said in a statement shared on social media. “A decision I’d hoped wouldn’t come so soon, but one that comes at the end of a journey I’ll be forever grateful for.”
Davies came through the British domestic scene with Madison Genesis and Team Wiggins before earning a WorldTour contract at Dimension Data in 2018. At the start of 2020 he moved to Bahrain Victorious, riding the Vuelta at the end of his first season, however the Welsh rider was only able to compete twice this year due to his injury problems.
Cross-city protected cycleways
A new day dawns for cycling in Hammersmith today!!!#C9isHERE 🌅🥳✨🚲 pic.twitter.com/xXBb4f3Wj0
— Leo Murray (@crisortunity) December 17, 2021
What do the people of Bolton have to do to get one of these on Chorley New Road?
News editor Simon tells me the video starts at the bit of C9 opened a year ago and finishes outside the Lyric Theatre, where the route opened from today. It means excluding Kensington High Street there is a protected cycleway from Turnham Green in the west to Tower Hill in the east, 8 miles away according to Strava.
Jeremy Vine and a MGIF taxi driver
The cab driver who thinks it’s his road. And more than that, blasts his horn at me several times and then executes a dangerous, intimidating close pass to drive the point home. Needs points on his licence and a fine for this. pic.twitter.com/yWFbiFZtvB
— Jeremy Vine (@theJeremyVine) December 17, 2021
Coroner rules injuries sustained in a bicycle crash 30 years ago contributed to Pennsylvania man's death
A coroner in Pennsylvania has ruled injuries sustained in a cycling crash in 1986 contributed to the death of a man decades later.
WFMZ reports Leath Hixon Jr, 71, died on Thursday morning at Lehigh Valley Hospice from complications to a traumatic brain injury suffered more than 30 years ago.
Hixon was riding a bike when he was hit by a driver, his death was ruled an accident.
Cycling past a traffic jam
‘Cycling past a traffic jam is the best feeling in the world’ you say! Last month I was stuck in a car in a ghastly jam, thoroughly jealous of the cyclists whizzing by. Yesterday I was at the same spot on my bike. And lo, a jam! See how it was… and sound on for Donna Summer!! 👌🏻 https://t.co/hWjz6WPLd5 pic.twitter.com/j1Sxg4y3U3
— Carla Francome (@carlafrancome) December 17, 2021
Returning sons Vincenzo Nibali and Miguel Ángel López to ride Giro-Tour double for Astana
Both Vincenzo Nibali and Miguel Ángel López will ride the Giro d’Italia and Tour de France next season on their return to the team where both arguably achieved their greatest success.
Nibali won two Giro crowns and the Tour de France while with Astana between 2013 and 2016, while Lopez raced with the team for six years before his year at Movistar ended in tears.
The Shark of Messina will begin his campaign in Spain before returning to his homeland for Tirreno-Adriatico and Milan-San Remo. López will lead the team at the Italian Grand Tour, but will also be on the start line for the Tour de France in an undefined role.
Alexey Lutsenko is set to be the team leader in France, aiming for a podium place having achieved a career-best seventh place this year.
"I don’t want to have to wait for an accident before measures are taken to make it safer": Dad calls for change over speeding drivers
A father warned Somerset Live about drivers clocking “terrifying” speeds on roads close to a school in Bath. Jim Edmunds told the news website his sons use the Gloucester Road to cycle to school, and despite the 40mph limit, some drivers exceed it.
“It used to be the old main road into Bath so lots of people use it as a rat run and the pavements are quite narrow. You’ve got around 60 people, including parents and children, cycling or walking up there every day and coming back down again.
“When I take my own boys up there, I have to ride in the middle of the lane so everyone can see us. There are always a few wobbles when they’re going up the hill and it terrifies me that I keep seeing all these cars whizzing past.”
Jim said a cycle lane would help and wishes the area had been selected under the liveable neighbourhood scheme.
“It’s an ideal road to turn into a cycle lane as it’s very wide with plenty of space for pavement as well. If you had a 20mph limit and a cycle lane on the uphill stretch, it would improve a lot. This is one of the best ways out of the north of Bath because it’s not as steep as the others, so it could help leisure cyclists access the countryside.”
"Eddy Merckx was unique and only Tadej Pogačar can perhaps equal his success": Ernesto Colnago talks up Tour champ's chances of becoming GOAT
Ernesto Colnago had some very nice things to say about Tadej Pogačar, notably that the double Tour champ is the only rider to have a shot at matching Eddy Merckx’s legacy. Call me cynical, but it probably helps that Pogačar promotes Colnago bikes in the best way possible — dominating the Tour de France on one.
But we reckon Tadej’s talent has more to do with the praise than just the fact he rides Ernesto’s bikes. “Eddy Merckx was unique and only Tadej Pogačar can perhaps equal his success,” Colnago told Gazzetta. “That’s because we don’t yet know real limits and his real ability. He’s talented but also humble, with his feet on the ground and a good guy. I love him like a son and he wins on a Colnago too!”
17 December 2021, 08:08
17 December 2021, 08:08
17 December 2021, 08:08
17 December 2021, 08:08
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Latest Comments
@Rendel Harris I get close-passed by more riders than cars in Richmond Park. Maybe I should ride faster.
@perce I'm normally a big fan of your excellent posts perce but I must take issue with this one. The idea that Lord Khan of Tooting would ever, in any circumstances, have been friends with Nigel is surely beyond the bounds of even your fertile imagination?
Not to downplay the seriousness of bikejacking, but Mr.Taylor might want to consider that fact that many riders have been put off using the park at weekends due to the aggressive, intimidatory behaviour of members of his own club, who are notorious for riding as if the park is a private training facility just for themselves, and that's a pretty sad state of affairs as well.
In Wiggle/CR's absence, what are people using nowadays? I've been out of it for a while, but now returned.
I did a multi-day ride many years ago with someone who was a better cyclist than me by every conceivable measure but this one. I remember watching them up ahead on a quiet road trying to teach themselves - snatching brief seconds with their hands off the bars before losing balance and grabbing on again. 'Watch this' I said to the rest of my group, before I accelerated to catch them, then nonchalantly sailed past them uphill riding no hands. Very satisfying. I've been able to ride most of mine hands-free, but had a Specialized Allez that really didn't cooperate. Haven't been brave enough to try it on a Brompton or cargo bike though. And still can't do a wheelie, or any of the other things on Jo's palmares.
@Hamster now that is an exciting development. I do remove/amend signs but reporting them for flyposting is much more satisfying.
@Slartibartfast If the sign-maker can be caught in the act then the council Environmental Health can get a report for littering/fly-tipping. Hours of endless fun for that person trying to explain away a conviction. Don't report unless you're prepared to go to court though. Or remove the litter and put in the nearest bin with a sticker explaining how littering is a crime.
What would make driving safer for motorists is if they stopped driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol and driving faster than the speed limit.
Some good ideas there. One point tho. Whilst I love those Wera Allen keys for steel bolt heads, they can be risky on alloy socket screws. Not ideal, IMO, for Rochshox fork axles as they eat into the alloy and lock into the socket. Play soon results. The hex+ system seems to be based on an inside out adaptation of the Snap On “Flank Drive” spanner or socket - and that’s a great idea, but sadly the design seems to overstress alloy socket head screws. Could it be that the profiled section on the end of the tool doesn’t have enough penetration on a fork axle? Maybe. All I can say is my axles last a lot longer using a regular Allen hex key. (Ideally on a torque wrench I guess). Ooh and ChrisA is right - a “Vernier Caliper” relies an a sliding scale more like a slide tile. Digital is way easier, but battery dependent.
@Rendel Harris - ginger ale can be alcoholic when it's traditionally brewed. Not nearly as strong as mead, though.
51 thoughts on “Bike lane cyclo-cross training or proof active travel is stuck in the mud?; Jeremy Vine & MGIF taxi driver; Going for a run? Remember you helmet; 10/10 new cycle lane; Vuelta route; Bollard brilliance; Pro rider retirement + more on the live blog”
Bristol City Council has put
Bristol City Council has put ‘permanent’ wands up along Park Row!!!
(It looks like they sneaked them in overnight…)
brooksby wrote:
I’m waiting for your follow-up post about someone chopping them down with an angle grinder
Bloody cyclists.
Bloody cyclists.
Any pics ?
Any pics ?
Sorry, I was going the other
Sorry, I was going the other way at lunchtime (ie. during daylight!).
Unless road.cc send a staffer to take photos I’ll try and get some on Monday.
(Unless they have indeed all been chopped down/dug up by then…)
The wands on cnr were no
The wands on cnr were no great loss anyway, as they were well enough spaced that people could (and did) park their enormous Chelsea tractors between them. If anything, it’s now easier to pull out around the parked vehicles. Ho hum.
One of the tabloids is
One of the tabloids is claiming this morning that Sherrilyn Speid, the woman who “nudged” (???) Insulate Britain protesters with her SUV, has been summoned to court accused of assault and dangerous driving.
brooksby wrote:
Good
brooksby wrote:
So no charge for possession of an offensive weapon (because a vehicle (and any object) is an offensive weapon when used as one)? Or driving without insurance (because lack of MOT would surely invalidate any insurance that she may have had)?
jh2727 wrote:
did she lack an MOT? I thought the car in question was less than 3 years old and so wouldn’t have needed one.
JV clearly had it all wrong.
JV clearly had it all wrong. He should have stopped, dismounted, and prostrated himself before his Great Motoring Overlord…
brooksby wrote:
I can’t believe how disrespectful he was. Insubordinate wretch…..
Absolutely no “consideration”
Absolutely no “consideration”
ktache wrote:
#share-the-road
Curious exchange they have
Curious exchange they have based on the video weve seen, why does the driver trigger so quickly into to thinking JV is “in the wrong” for that ?
He’s got a fare !
He’s got a fare !
I note that many of the twitter comments show lack of awarness of the door zone and that JV should have know their route so he could give way in advance of whether they might go left, right or straight on !
hirsute wrote:
TFTFY
hirsute wrote:
If I was in the back I’d have told him to stop the cab. I’d have got out and walked. He can stick the fare up his arrogant ar5e.
Regardless as to whether he
Regardless as to whether he thinks JV is the wrong the ‘professional’ driver confesses on film to a punishment pass. I trust that he will find out that vigilantism is not mitigation.
Only possible reason is that
Only possible reason is that JV filters up the left while the driver is waiting at the crossing, then gets the jump on him at the crossing while the taxi is still impeded by pedestrians. (check video 4-6 seconds)
He could just as easily have followed the taxi through the crossing and drafted him up the road.
However once in front there is no safe space fo the taxi to pass, and beeping the horn does not change this.
and right at the end the BOLAs on the second parked van probably cause him to be further to the right than he would have otherwise
wycombewheeler wrote:
I don’t think he filtered (happy to be proved wrong). I think he came from the the opposing lane. It looks like the taxi driver came from the left (looking from teh crossing) where the road is one way with a right and a straight on filter.
JV I think came from the right which (I think) is 2 way. So the cabbie and JV occupied adjacent lanes. JV moved off after giving way to the ped (rightly natch). At this point the ped is still in front of the cabbie.
JV didn’t so much get the jump on London’s Finest, he was naturally in front and so had priority.
……
and right at the end the BOLAs on the second parked van …..— wycombewheeler
Woohoo!
My assumption is it was like
My assumption is it was like Wycombewheeler says, there was some JV filtering we didnt see in the vidx which the cabbie didnt like as it’s that while queue etiquette thing us Brits like to fume about alot, even though its perfectly valid move to ride, so not criticism of JV.
As even for a cabbie its fairly crazy on London roads to get that het up just because a cyclist is in front of you.
We shall wait and see what the Met do with it
I think the Cap’n has it
I think the Cap’n has it right – it looked something like this. It’s just the weird effect of the 3D camera perspective and the fisheying that initially makes it look like they’ve been travelling alongside each other.
mdavidford wrote:
Fantastic infographic – you work for the BBC and I claim my £5
yes, that’s exactly my conclusion
mdavidford wrote:
so is he doing a wheelie while crossing up his front wheel here
That division line isn’t very
That division line isn’t very helpful, because it isn’t straight down the centre – it’s part of the wibbly-wobbly (technical term) lines leading to the crossing, and they split either side of the island. I think a better guide is the angle of his helmet in relation to the island kerb.
It looks to me like he’s come round on the far right hand side of what becomes the left lane (and is possibly just moving away after stopping by the island for the people on the crossing).
The angle of his front wheel may just be because he hasn’t yet straightened up after moving off, or he may have intentionally swung away from the taxi, having been able to see, from it’s angle of approach, that it was about to try to crash his lane.
mdavidford wrote:
Actually the left of the two lines is pretty straight down the centre, aligned with the point of the triangle, as we see here.
mdavidford wrote:
Also
zig zags, not wibbly wobblies
wycombewheeler wrote:
Or has he endoed his rear wheel to the other side of the island?
sarc in teh off position, it’s really hard to see which, we would need to see more footage.
However, what follows is that JV is progressing across teh zebra before the taxi start to move – the ped is still in front. No matter what has happened before, at this point the cabbie is behind, and has no reason to expect to force past.
I just think if he’d ridden
I just think if he’d ridden in from the bottom on your picture, the natural line youd take is a left turn arc that puts you near the pavement on the left and your bike pointing towards the centre line right side pavement, because that’s roughly where you are going next.
But in the video when the jazzy 90s graphics peel away regardless of fish eye distortion of the surroundings, his bike is positioned within the centre line markings of the road already, and pointing towards the left pavement.
Which is exactly where youd be if youd ridden a natural right hand arc from the top of your picture.
And I think that extra lane of this T style junction lane merge,is a cycle lane which runs down the side of the street from top to bottom.
But it only really matters in so far as trying to work out why the cabbie got so irate over completely nothing.
Possible that he moved right
Possible that he moved right on the approach due to people on the crossing on that arm, and then the right side kerb was the most convenient place to stop until the second crossing cleared.
By astonishing coincidence,
By astonishing coincidence, that’s exactly the same diagram that was used to explain my prostate to me (different labels).
GMBasix wrote:
Reminds me of my last exam –
Doctor: “Now it’s perfectly normal to get an erection Mr Jones”
Mr: “My name’s not Mr Jones”
Doctor: “That’s me – talking to myself again”
hawkinspeter wrote:
you had you exam from doctor jones?
did he have a fedora and a whip?
wycombewheeler wrote:
Awavey wrote:
Awavey wrote:
whatever the rights and wrongs of Jeremy’s actions and whether he did filter or not, I’ve seen far worse driving not get prosecuted, the pass at the end is pretty close though so we shall see, but Jeremey does extend the danger by holding a conversation through the window of a moving taxi, which suggests he was not too intimidated.
Captain Badger wrote:
I think here we can see that JV comes from the one way road feeding into the right lane
Note we can see the front wheel crossing the division between the two lanes, while he is turning right
Quite hard to say with that
Quite hard to say with that camera whether it is left or right he is turning.
Need a few more seconds before the start to say.
I think that is his intention
I think that is his intention with starting the video here.
But, I don’t see how he could reach the position shown above (as the page turns back) if he is coming from the 2 way road that feeds into the left lane, why would he take such a wide line in the absence of any other vehicles in that lane?
this follows which shoiws the direction of travel is clearly into the left lane, not along the left lane.
If he hasn’t filtered then he has come across the island after crossing the road.
You take a wide line to avoid
You take a wide line to avoid pedestrians crossing or when they are suffciently over that you can pass behind them.
That said, I am still wonderinig about the chosen start time of the video. Although what road it is would be useful then we could see in normal mode what the layout is.
this is the junction
the location is the junction of thayer street and george street in marylebone, I can’t get a google maps link to work
looking at the junction from thayer street, Even the off side of the left turning hyundai in front of the streetview car heading for the right lane on goegre street does not reach the same extreme position as the bikes front wheel.
If I had come from the other road to the taxi and I was posting the video I would include a few more seconds to prove this, I think it’s telling the video starts where it is unclear where he came from.
Regardless of where he has come from, as he goes across the crossing, he is in the left lane while the taxi is in the right lane and he is ahead, the taxi needs to use both lanes because parking convenience trumps safe traffic flow, while the bike only needs the left lane he is already in. So there is no reason for the taxi to have piority in passing.
Here’s the link for the image
Here’s the link for the image
https://goo.gl/maps/S4G11iN9u4tBDk8j8
on balance I think they were both turning right but it is unclear how they got there and who was first. I think I would have let the driver go first and then overtaken him !
wycombewheeler wrote:
I’ll accept that JV-approaching-from-the-oposing-lane hypothesis is merely that at the moment. Overall though, I don’t believe it makes a difference on what follows
On JVs part its completely
On JVs part its completely irrelevant, filtering is totally permissible and almost a necessity for riding in London, so nothing wrong with it at all.
It’s just we know,via experience,that filtering can trigger some drivers more than others in these situations and if we are using these as a teaching aid to help new riders, thats detail worth knowing, as opposed to cabbie goes a bit road ragey just because you happen to be in front of them.
I don’t live in London, but
I don’t live in London, but next time I drive there i shall behave impeccably, as JV and Cycling Mikey seem to be everywhere with their pesky cameras and their oh so superior cyclist ways 😉 !!
Good. Although you do know
Good. Although you do know there are pesky cameras all over the place now ? Amazingly lots of cars have them too.
Today’s MGIF.
Today’s MGIF.
Camera is a bit misty but it’s at a mini roundabout where cars have not cleared turning right and there is a wankpanzer waiting to turn.
Driver actually bailed out in the hatched area instead of knocking me off.
Here is where I think it is
Here is where I think it is for JV
He could have been in front of the cab but over to the left as he was waiting for the peds.
Doesn’t seem the sort of place to do an undertake, but it can’t be ruled out.
Re: Bath school run. Even one
Re: Bath school run. Even one of the least steep routes in Bath has something called an ‘Anchor Post’ hidden in the bushes!
Re: traffic jam. While the
Re: traffic jam. While the cycling lane lends itself to aiding sailing by unimpeded. It becomes even sweeter when one filters between unmoving vehicles in both directions smug in the knowledge that there is absolutely no cycling infra within 5 miles. And that the frustrated motorists cannot accuse you (or infra) for causing the dilemma that they have driven into except for themselves and all the other solo motorists that have chosen to saturate the area to drive the half mile to the corner shop.
The only spanner in the works is when a solo cyclist is approaching from the opposite direction on the same line. I suppose you could just stop for a chat as no one is going anywhere anyway.