“Even Tadej Pogačar will have difficulty beating him”: Eddy Merckx “completely in awe” of Remco Evenepoel, predicts “exceptional” Olympic champion will beat Tour winner at World Championships; £15m road project with no bike lanes + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
"Motorists aren't losing out in any way, the compromise is losses all for cyclists": Major £15m road project branded "disappointing" as no main road cycle lane included... because it costs too much and there is "insufficient space"
[Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council]
A major road upgrade project, costing £15m, has been criticised by local politicians for lacking any cycling infrastructure on a busy main road that the scheme is centred around, the council claiming including the construction of such cycle lanes would make the cost “colossal” and arguing there is “insufficient space”.
The scheme includes east-west cycle routes with crossing options but will not provide cyclists infrastructure to use on the A6, a Green Party councillor pointing out that the painted cycle lane currently on the busy main road [pictured above] will go too and arguing that the “compromise scheme” is in fact just “losses all for cyclists”.
Gary Lawson told the Manchester Evening News: “I find it a very disappointing scheme. It’s referred to as a compromise scheme, but in a compromise everybody gives a little. Motorists are not losing out in any way here, buses are benefiting, the compromise is the losses are all for cyclists.
“We have a cycle lane at the moment along the A6 but that will go as I understand it, and cyclists will be sent here, there and everywhere. Most cyclists want the most direct route and the safest route, and that would be a segregated cycle route along the A6.”
The council admits that “a number” of people have asked for cycle lanes on the A6 to be included in the £15m project, that is expected to take two years to implement and is using funding from the Greater Manchester City Region Transport Settlement.
However, the local authority has claimed there is “insufficient space” for protected cycle lanes on the A6 and that they would cost a figure that is “absolutely colossal” and “beyond the budget or timetable”.
A spokesperson said: “We have looked at this, I don’t have a cost for what it would cost, because a large part of it would have to move every single kerb line on the A6 along the entire length of the scheme,” a council officer told the local newspaper. The cost in terms of stats diversions [utility services] could be absolutely colossal. It would require third party land to do it.
“That would almost certainly require a CPO [compulsory purchase order] process, because every time you get to a bus stop or junction you run out of space. The northern section of the corridor is actually narrower, so you have definitely run out of space.
“It would require a very large number of land acquisitions to do it, and it’s not just the cost, it’s the time, there is no way we could deliver this project in the timetable if we were to go along that route. It would be a completely different scheme, it would be considerably more expensive, and it would take a much longer period of time to build.”
Active travel group Walk Ride Greater Manchester wrote to councillors last week urging the local authority to avoid making the scheme about “cycles vs buses” and saying that the A6 is “inaccessible to many” without protected cycle lanes. A second councillor, James Frizzell, has also expressed concerns that sending cyclists along quieter side streets would force people to make journeys on “lonely passageways at night” with “personal safety” risks.
As planned, the scheme will see new bus lanes with “improved junctions, enhanced crossings and better bus stops”, two ‘Western and Eastern’ cycle routes, and the introduction of 20mph speed limits on some residential streets.
Weekend round-up: Remco lands historic Olympic double; Kristen Faulkner springs a surprise; 20mph speed limit collision figures; An exclusive interview with Peter Sagan + more
There’s only one place to start for the weekend round-up…
This was the men’s road race that also saw Norwegian pro Søren Wærenskjold face “a long walk home” after crashing, breaking his fork, only for the team car to completely miss him. Ouch…
There was something of a surprise in the women’s race, Kristen Faulkner’s late solo move earning gold ahead of Marianne Vos and Lotte Kopecky. We’ll have more of the best snaps on what was a photographer’s dreamland (+ a bit more on Nils Politt’s brasserie-invading toilet stop) later on.
Elsewhere on the website this weekend, Ryan sat down with Peter Sagan to discuss his glittering career and life after cycling, while our Tech of the Week features a shiny new groupset from SRAM, “the lightest folding bike in the world” and much more. Check it out…
We’ve also had some Reynolds AR 25 disc brake wheels in for review, while I took a look at the newly released casualty statistics from Wales, the data giving us a first look at the situation on Welsh roads since the widespread introduction of a default 20mph speed limit.
Was the Olympic Games road race the most photogenic bike race ever?
Kudos to Alex Whitehead, Zac Williams and Ed Sykes from SWpix.com for their shots from the weekend’s road races, a Parisian photography paradise…
Claude Monet, 1878. pic.twitter.com/iHCSHdEtOU
— NO CONTEXT OLYMPICS (@OlympicsContext) August 4, 2024
A look inside Gare du Nord's 1,600-space cycle parking
road.cc contributor Laura Laker has shared this video of a newly built cycle parking facility at Paris’ Gare du Nord station, a space built for the Games and that was, you’d imagine, slightly quieter when she visited a month ago compared with today. It’s got solar panels, includes cargo bike parking, has a vending machine for spares, a repair station and pump. What’s more, it’s manned by an employee, presumably making it a fair bit more secure than the station bike parking we ‘enjoy’ here in the UK.
Paris has installed this *huge*, 1600-space cycle parking station by Gare du Nord station ahead of the Olympics. It’s open 5am to 1am, covered with solar panels, includes cargo bike parking, as well as a *vending machine* for spares, a repair station and pump 😍 check it out pic.twitter.com/CTvH8Oz1UL
— Laura Laker (@laura_laker) August 2, 2024
Discussion around A6 plans continues, as mayor Andy Burnham says he will ask Stockport's council leader to "look again" at proposal
The Manchester Evening News has been all over this story in the past week, the area’s mayor Andy Burnham reportedly telling BBC Radio Manchester that he will speak with the council’s leader to “look again” at the proposals for the “critical route”. These comments come after the council’s transport leader had told the public the local authority has “undertaken some significant design work over the course of the past 12 months to arrive at an agreed scheme that will now move to the outline business case stage of the funding process”.
Another councillor Asa Caton told the local newspaper that there are concerns that the west-east and east-west cycle routes proposed will send cyclists to “an area that is overrun with heavy-goods vehicles, delivery vehicles, industrial units, an abattoir”.
“You could make any number of improvements to that area and it would not be used for walking and cycling,” the local politician argued. “You would still see people using the A6 [where there will not be any protected cycling infrastructure]. It just makes me shudder, the fact that we are trying to push people to use that route.”
This one seems like it’s going to rumble on into this week and beyond…
Happy International Traffic Light Day
How could we possibly go without mentioning the most important day of the year? Apparently in honour of the world’s first electric traffic signal, installed in Chicago on… you guessed it… 5 August 1914.
"Best Parisian driver detected": Olympic silver medallist Anna Henderson collides with Shimano neutral service car during road race, as Lizzie Deignan reveals "medial emergency" and night in hospital days before strong Team GB showing
Former Ineos Grenadiers boss Fran Millar joins Rapha as CEO in "significant milestone" for British brand
Just how fast was Kristen Faulkner finishing the Olympic Games road race?
Track cycling gets underway... and GB's women break a world record already
Take a bow… Katy Marchant, Sophie Capewell and Emma Finucane. No medals won yet, but one qualification run down and the team sprint trio have set a new world record. It’s expected to be a huge week on the track for GB, especially the women… and that is some way to start.
NEW WORLD RECORD 🇬🇧@TeamGB‘s Katy Marchant, Sophie Capewell and Emma Finucane have set a record in the women’s team sprint QUALIFICATION!#BBCOlympics #Paris2024 #Olympics pic.twitter.com/R0xvP6kZSS
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) August 5, 2024
First GB track cycling medal of the Olympics — women's team sprint break world record THREE TIMES, including in the final
Gold medal winning brilliance from @TeamGB‘s women’s team sprint! 🥇
Katy Marchant, Sophie Capewell and Emma Finucane set a third new world record at #Paris2024.#BBCOlympics #Olympics pic.twitter.com/oM5aJe44QU
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) August 5, 2024
Three rides, three world records, three GB track cyclists with a gold medal in the bank on day one of the velodrome action. The men have qualified second fastest in the team pursuit, behind a flying Australian team, however tonight’s all about the sprinters…
“WE DID IT!” ❤️
Katy Marchant, Sophie Capewell and Emma Finucane reacted to winning gold in the women’s team sprint 🇬🇧🥇#BBCOlympics #Olympics #Paris2024 pic.twitter.com/h1OcKvmaah
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) August 5, 2024
"Even Tadej Pogačar will have difficulty beating him": Eddy Merckx "completely in awe" of Remco Evenepoel, predicts "exceptional" Olympic champion will beat Tour winner at World Championships
It wouldn’t be a Belgian superstar taking a monumental cycling victory without THE Belgian cyclist Eddy Merckx giving his assessment of the achievement, in this case The Cannibal declaring his compatriot’s win “exceptional” and that “on Saturday, Remco Evenepoel was stronger than me”.
Merckx also had some headline-grabbing predictions for the World Championships road race in Zurich, a rainbow jersey to be decided on a very hilly course, the five-time Tour de France winner stating that he believes Evenepoel will get the better of Tadej Pogačar.
“I don’t see what could prevent him from achieving the double at the World Championships in Zurich on a course that suits him,” Merckx told Dernière Heure/Les Sports. “If he’s in the same shape as today, even Tadej Pogačar will have difficulty beating him.
“On Saturday, Remco Evenepoel was stronger than me. What he achieved is exceptional. What he did was simply historic. I was jumping up and down in my chair. I was like an ordinary fan, completely in awe of his performance. When he came out of the Tour de France, I expected him to shine at these Olympic Games. But he managed to surprise me. Physically, Remco is way above the rest
“When he attacks 35 kilometres from the finish and takes a few riders with him, I understand that he is going to win. They were all flat out on his wheel, unable to take over. And then, you saw how easily he managed to leave Valentin Madouas behind. They weren’t even on a climb. No, really, on Saturday, he was stronger than me.”
What do you reckon? Is there a bit of recency bias going on without Pogačar at this Olympics? Or, in a one-day race, does Remco have what it takes to dispatch cycling’s biggest star and take the rainbow jersey in September?
Top respect between rivals 🤝
Pogačar congratulated Remco after he completed a historic double at the Olympic Games 🥇🥇
📸 Getty Images pic.twitter.com/GERKYNz1ll
— Velon CC (@VelonCC) August 5, 2024
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I see quite a few MAAP items out in the Surrey Hills. The new shop has a cafe and they're from Melbourne so the coffee should be good: I'm looking forward to visiting.
@chrisonabike Mercedes was acceptable, but the second one (old Toyota people carrier/ex-taxi) was a prosecutable offence.
I wasn't saying that nor talking about people who say that. I said it was silly to claim that wearing a helmet indicates acceptance of dangerous driving and poor infrastructure. I choose to wear a helmet; I also regularly report dangerous driving to the police and correspond with councils and road authorities about ways infrastructure could be improved for cyclists. I rather doubt I'm the only helmet wearer who does so.
@JamieT (a pedant writes) she's a London Assembly member, not an MP.
@Rendel Harris ".....but the claim that wearing one is somehow to be accepting dangerous driving and poor infrastructure is silly." Not that silly. Demanding that cyclists wear a helmet is seen by many people as 'the answer' to cycling safety, so there's no need to put in infrastructure. The difference between infrastructure and helmets is that infrastructure works. Helmets are a distraction from what really works, and the more time we spend talking about them, the less time we spend on things that do work. Helmets should be consigned to the dustbin of history as a failed experiment, and we should cease even mentioning them.
@Mr Blackbird Hats off to George Hall My hat's not coming off- despite this touch of cycleway-washing, Hall still bears the Mark of Cain, until he repudiates his party altogether
Perhaps an article showing a) what is available in the uk as cargo bikes and) comments from real life scenarios from those already using bikes or cargo bikes as one gentleman has done in the comments. Perhaps road.cc could follow up with this. Even the London Assembly member said not every business should use cargo bikes but suggested a more nuanced approach suitable for certain trades or companies....
9 thoughts on ““Even Tadej Pogačar will have difficulty beating him”: Eddy Merckx “completely in awe” of Remco Evenepoel, predicts “exceptional” Olympic champion will beat Tour winner at World Championships; £15m road project with no bike lanes + more on the live blog”
Stockport Council are
Stockport Council are institutionally fully against protected cycle lanes on any roads. They absolutely will not consider anything other than off-road routes, or shared footways. Have a look around on Streetview – anything on a road is a shared footway. And even their flagship scheme on Dean Lane dips down at every single driveway, so if you ride it at 10mph you’re bounced up and down in the saddle – all for the comfort of motorists.
Their highways officers are motorheads. They do not cycle, they don’t like cycling, and they don’t care about anyone who might want to cycle. They expect people to take dark, quiet, lonely routes past an actual abattoir rather than the straight, convenient A6.
They want bus lanes on the A6 but THEY WON’T EVEN MAKE THEM 24/7.
They need to be replaced by young, progressive and competent highways engineers.
It’s a problem across the
It’s a problem across the country. Whole areas are held back because those who make day to day decisions, and collate the reports and make the proposals, are fixated on motorised transport and can’t move beyond thinking of that as normal, and think of cycling as a fringe issue – if they think of it at all. I’m normally a fan of localism, but we need minimum standards imposed.
At least if the bus lanes were 24/7 then cyclists would have that option at quieter times instead of the poorly lit, lonely circuitous back streets.
It’s different in GM because
It’s different in GM because there’s literally a pot of cash to pay for these things, and a Mayor and team who want them. Councils like Salford, Trafford, Rochdale, Wigan – they get it. Even Manchester is waking up. But Stockport? Firmly stuck in the past along with a couple of other councils. Rochdale pushed past significant online criticism of Castleton (an excellent scheme) and are about to deliver its next phase. While Stockport are hiding behind “there’s not enough room” to fail to deliver safe cycle routes on one of the widest roads in the area.
https://www.theguardian.com
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/aug/05/rfk-jr-kennedy-bear-story-central-park-new-york
I think I missed the original story – I’m sure I would have remembered it
The Grauniad has a paid
The Grauniad has a paid-content collection section of articles today about cycling and why cycling is brilliant.
Sponsored by Kettle Chips (??)
AAAAAAAAAAAh. I accidentally
AAAAAAAAAAAh. I accidentally turned on notifications from this site and now I get full page adverts for the Post Office every ten seconds. How do you turn them off? Seems to be Google ads but I can’t find a way to turn them off.
Stockport “…..the local
Stockport “…..the local authority has claimed there is “insufficient space” for protected cycle lanes on the A6….”
Plenty of space in their heads though.
“We have looked at this, I don’t have a cost for what it would cost, because a large part of it would have to move every single kerb line on the A6 along the entire length of the scheme,”
Or in plain English “No way were we going to have anything for those pita cyclists, so we had to find a reason, and this is the best we could find. Yes, we know it’s crap, but it’s a reason.”
Being more positive – I’m
Being more positive – I’m loving the new cycle parking at Gard du Nord, and especially like the vending machine to go with the repair station.
Traffic light day you say?
Traffic light day you say? Need a suitable image for Happy Traffic Light Day cards?
… and here’s to them (largely) not applying to cyclists:
http://www.aviewfromthecyclepath.com/2014/02/every-traffic-light-in-assen.html