“Three miles in a car is naff all”: Angry locals claim bike path works have “escalated” round trips… by minutes; Vingegaard “banging head against wall” on safety; Is cycling “relentlessly promoted”?; Tirreno thriller; Ineos win TTT + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
“Three miles in a car is naff all”: Cyclists baffled as “angry” NIMBY locals claim bike path works have “escalated” round trips… by minutes
Here on the live blog, we’re well accustomed to the ‘fuming residents complain about cycling infrastructure’ genre that pops up on a regular basis in local newspapers (and increasingly, the BBC).
This week’s instalment comes courtesy of the lovely locals of Plymstock in Devon, where residents say construction work on a new active travel route, which will close down one road for 14 months, will leave them “cut off” and force them to undertake a three-mile detour every day. I know, I know, the poor souls.
Colesdown Hill is being closed until next spring as work is carried out to reopen an old railway tunnel, which will extend the 3km Laira Bridge to Saltram Meadow shared path, the Plymstock section of which currently encompasses a rather set of stairs. A crossing over Elburton Road is also being added.
The work is expected to complete a three kilometre “high quality, step free and traffic free” walking and cycling route along the former railway next to Billcombe Road.
However, some residents, disgruntled that the roadworks have apparently been thrust upon them at short notice, recently lodged a petition with the local authority, leading to a public meeting on the issue.
The furore has been picked up, surprise, by local reporters and the BBC, who have spoken to a few seething locals about the plans.
“There is a cycle route already on the main Elburton Road which people will continue to use as it is the quickest route to the city,” Susan Ballantyne told Radio Exe.
“The council basically wants to create a flat offroad section after a group of people complained about a flight of steps. This is not a well-used route, I walk my dog there three times a week and I am lucky to meet one person.
“People want to be listened to and we haven’t been. It’s like it’s being done to us. There is so much anger about how this has been done and how people have been treated. We just want the council to pause so alternatives can be looked at.”
> Environmental activists oppose “problematic” new cycle lane plans due to proposed relocation of trees that survived “chainsaw massacre”
Meanwhile, Robert Hembry criticised the 14-month closure and branded the scheme “pointless”, while another local claimed the diversions would cost her more than £3,000 a year in fuel costs. Fair play to her for bothering to work that out.
This week, Valerie Wells told the BBC that her husband was recently diagnosed with cancer, requiring more frequent trips to the doctor and pharmacy.
“It means now my two-mile round trip has escalated into a five-mile round trip,” she said.
Brian Furse also said he feared the diversion might “put off” the carer who looks after his wife, telling the BBC: “They’re going to try it but they might have to give their notice in, and I don’t know what I’ll do without them. She only gets paid for the time she’s in my house.”
However, following the Beeb’s reporting on the complaints, a few cyclists have taken to social media to question what the fuss is all about – and point out the detours cyclists frequently have to navigate to get anywhere safely by bike.
“Objecting to a road closure to build a footway because ‘my two-mile round trip has escalated into a five-mile round trip’. It doesn’t inconvenience a driver that much to do a couple of extra miles,” said Gaz on BlueSky.
“For 26 years and counting, I have been following a route to work on my bicycle which is four miles longer than it needs to be in both directions because there’s literally zero provision for cyclists on the shorter route and it’s occupied by impatient, useless drivers,” added Jon.
“Eight miles at an average of 15mph (pretty zippy for commuting) is 32 minutes extra time and effort. Three miles in a car along rural roads is naff all, less than five minutes extra time and no effort? They absolutely need to wind their necks in,” said Phil.
“The ‘safer’ (not safe) route for me to Swansea city centre is ELEVEN miles,” added Cycling The Gower.
“Includes about six miles of segregated (but unlit, circuitous) cycle path and a terrible two mile stretch of narrow potholed rat run (unlit).
“The distance by car: 4.7 miles.”
And local cyclist Will, annoyed at all the annoyance, put together this argument laying out that it only seems to be active travel-centric roadworks which have the residents of Plymstock up in arms.
“OK, that story is pure BS, so of course the BBC jumped on it,” he wrote.
“See the area where these people live highlighted on the map snapshot below – it isn’t a great may people impacted. They quite rightly moan about congestion from traffic from Sherford, but also object to this, which’d help alleviate it!
“Now look at the map below, which is zoomed out. When a 2+ year roadworks scheme disrupted people in the looped area to the left, slapping on long delays, and long detours, so people from Plymstock could cross the bridge over the Plym a tiny bit quicker, Bob and co were happy.
“That roadworks issue was enormous, and caused MASSIVE disruption for people living in the Cattedown/Prince Rock parts of Plymouth. All to benefit those from Plymstock, and further afield.
“Now it’s their turn to put up with minimal disruption – we’re talking about a single road being closed – and suddenly they’re crying crocodile tears.
“I knew this was coming for absolute ages. What’s happening is they’re re-opening an old railway tunnel under that lane, and when the current shared path ended at a flight of stairs, the council was clear it was just until they had funding for the tunnel.
“Now that work is finally going ahead. I’ll admit 14 months seems like a long time, and I don’t know why it’d take that long, but if it allows more people living in Sherford to safely cycle, it will reduce the congestion they’re also moaning about.
“Just a blummin’ bunch of NIMBYs!”
And if that statement wasn’t enough for you, Plymouth City Council issued their own: “Plymouth City Council said: “We understand and apologise for the disruption caused by the delivery of this scheme which will replace the existing steps with a level and traffic free route under Colesdown Hill and back across Elburton Road.
“When the previous phase of the scheme was constructed, we received significant criticism from those with disabilities as the current path is not accessible for them. We think that it is important that the path can be used by everyone.
“The diversion route has been assessed as suitable for the relatively low additional flows of traffic.”
“The fetishisation of cycling should not take precedence over cars”: Columnist hits out at government’s bike “obsession” and claims Dublin’s cycle lanes are “empty” – despite cycle trips rising by 50%
One of my favourite anti-cycling media tropes involves the seething columnist who walks around their local town, spots its solitary cycle lane, and starts foaming at the mouth.
‘Ahhh, these blasted cycle lanes are taking over. Just look at it, ruining businesses everywhere and taking up four whole car parking spaces! And that paint is going to damage my Range Rover when I invariably drive into it. It’s woke gone mad!’
Or something to that effect.
Well, this week’s anti-cycling rant comes courtesy of Irish right-wing site Gript and Dublin-based Patrick Vincent, who’s unhappy about the Irish government’s recent claim that 660,000 journeys are avoided every day and replaced with walking and cycling trips.
Last week, we reported that the National Transport Authority’s 2025 Walking and Cycling Index found that 510,000 of those active travel journeys were in Dublin, where the proportion of adults cycling five or more days a week has increased from eight per cent in 2023 to 12 per cent in 2025.
Notably, the number of school journeys cycled is almost double the 2023 figure and commuting journeys were up around a third from 23.2 million in 2023 to 30 million in 2025.
And Mr Vincent isn’t happy about it.
“Perhaps the most bizarre but persistent policy in our current government’s playbook is the relentless promotion of bicycles, particularly in and around Dublin City,” he wrote in his column, titled ‘Can we call out government’s cycling obsession?’
Just in case you’re keeping score, this is the very same government that was, only weeks ago, seriously considering introducing a mandatory hi-vis and helmets law for people on bikes. Until they realised it was daft, of course.
But Patrick won’t let that get in the way of a good rant.
“For the past few years, the government – and many of the smaller councils – have been producing one project after another, labelling them all with the prefix ‘bike’ with the same enthusiasm that Batman feels when naming his utilities,” he continued.
“Of course, this policy stems largely from the climate-activist ideas held by our representatives. Thanks to this policy, we have been blessed with bike paths, bike shelters, bike access points, bike racks, rental bikes, etc., all in the name of saving the environment. Are we any closer to this goal?”
No, the columnist answers, spending an inordinate amount of time trying to determine what a ‘purposeful journey’ is. Even I dozed off for a bit.
Anyway, back to the juicy parts. Anti-cycling bingo cards at the ready, everyone.
“There is a fairly simply observable truth that most people who live in and around Dublin have probably recognised: our bike lanes are empty,” Vincent claims.
“It seems that every week there is a new local project to tear up half of a road to make space for more bikes, and yet – in my experience, and the experience of many others with whom I have spoken on the subject – there never seem to be any bikes in them.
“If this were not bad enough, one it is not uncommon to see a cyclist on the road, or even on the footpath, instead of using the bike lane provided to his (and it usually is his) exclusive use.” Yawn.
According to Vincent, from the “perception of the average person”, the number of cyclists in Dublin using the city’s bike lanes “is so small that it is set completely off balance with the amount of space they take up”.
“Hardly anyone uses these lanes, and yet we are forced to swallow it when an entire lane from a road is sacrificed – often with the result of creating an infuriating one-way system in the area – to make space for more bikes; the same bikes that seem never to fill the lanes they are currently provided with,” he continues, failing to grasp the point of cycling infrastructure entirely.
“The powers that be love bicycles, but the people seem less sure. The simple truth is that there are still many people who have to use a car.”
After arguing that bike lanes won’t make much difference to climate change anyway, so what’s the point of even trying, Vincent concluded: “If you enjoy cycling or walking, or if they are simply convenient to you, that is perfectly fine.
“However, the fetishisation of cycling should not take precedence over the vast majority of the population who rely on cars over bikes or similar vehicles. It is time that we – and more importantly, our government – acknowledge this.”
Well, that was fun. Unsurprisingly, the comments under Gript’s Facebook post sharing the column were a litany of anti-cycling cliches and conspiracy theories. Except for one, which, in my book, completely eviscerated poor Patrick’s entire column.
“A typical rural provincial perspective, cars are choking towns and cities,” wrote Gearóid Ó Broin. “Who needs a Ford Ranger or overblown SUV in Dublin? I have cycled in Dublin since 1971, weather was never an issue, just poor clothing.
“The obsession is motorists pushing hi-vis and helmets, even though they couldn’t give a damn about cyclists’ safety. These are little use if a car door is opened on you and are expected to take the blame.
“Take a look at cities which have revitalised themselves on the continent. Cycling is of course a must for all those maxed out on penalty points.”
Boom. What do the kids say now, ‘cooking’?
“It’s like banging your head against a wall. If we don’t say anything, nothing will happen”: Jonas Vingegaard calls out Paris-Nice safety issues again as he vows to “improve things” – but race organisers insist they have not received “any negative feedback”
Jonas Vingegaard is on a mission at Paris-Nice this week.
As we reported yesterday, the two-time Tour de France winner was highly critical of the Race to the Sun’s first stage around Carrières-sous-Poissy, won by Luke Lamperti, pointing out that the circuit’s last climb and descent, tackled three times, was littered with potholes.
“I don’t think the route was very good today. I don’t think it was worthy of a WorldTour race,” Vingegaard said.
And the Dane, whose 2024 campaign was almost completely derailed by a horrific high-speed crash at the Tour of the Basque Country, doubled down on his outspoken race safety stance in an interview with Italian cycling site TuttoBici, saying he feels a responsibility to be a spokesperson for the peloton.
“Sometimes it’s like banging your head against a wall,” Vingegaard said. “But I’d say that in one way or another, I feel a responsibility to make things better in cycling.
“If we don’t say anything, nothing will happen. I want to be the leader of the peloton, not only for my results but also for safety.”
Nevertheless, while critical of ASO for their route design, Vingegaard acknowledged that safety in the peloton works both ways, urging for more of that seemingly elusive pro cycling creed: respect.
“It’s a matter of reciprocity,” he continued. “It’s clear that we riders also have a huge responsibility, but the same goes for the organisers. We can’t just point the finger at everyone else.
“Yesterday, too, there was a lot of discussion in the peloton about how people behave. In general, we need to have more mutual respect in the peloton.”
Following Vingegaard’s complaints, ASO, who also organise the Tour de France and Paris-Roubaix, said they have not received any “negative feedback” or safety concerns at Paris-Nice.
“We are working closely with the [riders’ union] CPA, with the three riders’ representatives appointed by the CPA for Paris-Nice, and with the commissaires, and we have not received any negative feedback,” ASO said in a brief statement.
“The law doesn’t do a good enough job of dealing with pedestrians hit by electric hire bikes”
Chaos reigns on Tuscany’s wet white roads as Mathieu van der Poel sprints to stage win and super-strong Isaac del Toro lays down ominous GC marker in gravel thriller at Tirreno-Adriatico
Earlier this week, Mathieu van der Poel admitted that he felt a slight pang of regret as he watched Tadej Pogačar solo to yet another Strade Bianche win on Saturday.
But those feelings were at least partially abated this afternoon, as the big Dutchman outsprinted Isaac del Toro and Giulio Pellizzari over the slick paving slaps of San Gimignano in a thrilling miniature edition of the Tuscan classic at Tirreno-Adriatico.
Del Toro, meanwhile, cemented his reputation as a future Strade Bianche winner following his third place on Saturday, navigating the stage’s rain-soaked sector of white road with ease, laying down an ominous marker for the overall as many of his rivals floundered on the gravel.
While Strade Bianche boasts over 60km worth of sterrati very year, today’s Tirreno stage only needed one to blow things apart. That solitary 5km gravel sector, situated just before the rise to the line in San Gimignano’s medieval centre, was complicated further by the rain that began to fall as the peloton reached the finale.
A consummate classics rider, Van der Poel was well positioned entering the tight left-hander that signalled the start of Tirreno’s off-road detour, latching on the brief but vibrant Catherine Wheel that is the modern iteration of Julian Alaphilippe, the Frenchman lighting up the early part of the climb before suddenly disappearing from view.
Alaphilippe extinguished, Van der Poel duly took over at the front, and it was his pace that saw one GC contender, Matteo Jorgenson, come to grief, the American – sitting second wheel behind the Dutch star – slipping on a loose pile of stones on a tight bend and hitting the deck.
💥 Jorgenson is down, and so is Thymen Arensman a bit later 👀
Even Mathieu is slipping on these roads, but he’s in the lead with Pellizzari and Isaac del Toro
Follow #TirrenoAdriatico @CA_Ita on Rai (🇮🇹) and on Eurosport (🌐) pic.twitter.com/fRsG1IKFnf
— Tirreno Adriatico (@TirrenAdriatico) March 10, 2026
While that crash enabled daylight to open to Van der Poel, Del Toro and Pellizzari demonstrated their clear strength, bridging across to the former world champion as the gradient eased.
Del Toro even managed to put Van der Poel under pressure, the Alpecin rider clipping out on a particularly slick corner after briefly losing control of his bike.
Where Van der Poel’s world-class bike handling skills came in handy on that occasion, Thymen Arensman – second on GC and a noted critic of Tirreno’s gravel inclusion – wasn’t so lucky, crashing hard on the same bend seconds later, and losing a minute and a half by the line.
🔻Slippery roads, uphill slopes and exhausted riders. The @continentaltire Last KM had it all!
🔻 Strade scivolose, pendenze severe e corridori esausti. L’ultimo @continentaltire KM ha proposto un menù completo!
Follow #TirrenoAdriatico @CA_Ita on Rai (🇮🇹) and on Eurosport (🌐) pic.twitter.com/TZmhPlsNk3
— Tirreno Adriatico (@TirrenAdriatico) March 10, 2026
The rain-soaked gravel done and (not so) dusted, the leading trio contested a frenetic to-and-fro sprint through San Gimignano’s treacherously slippery medieval streets. For a moment, Pellizzari – a passenger in the break – looked like he’d given his two rivals the slip, until Van der Poel stood up on the pedals and powered ahead.
That burst proved just enough to hold off the fast-finishing Del Toro, who nevertheless moved into the race lead as Filippo Ganna struggled on the gravel. And judging by his performance today, it would take a brave man to bet against the flying Mexican taking the blue jersey all the way to the Adriatic.
Does gravel belong in stage races? Thymen Arensman may not agree, but that was a thriller.
Paris-Nice: Josh Tarling powers Ineos Grenadiers to first team time trial victory in five years – but Kévin Vauquelin misses out on race lead by seconds as Lidl-Trek’s Juan Ayuso takes yellow
When it comes to team time trials, Josh Tarling is a bit of a cheat code, isn’t he?
The big Welshman was simply irresistible along the rolling rural roads of central France this afternoon, powering the Ineos Grenadiers to an impressive team time trial victory at Paris-Nice this afternoon, the British squad’s first TTT for five years.
Tarling’s display also places Ineos’ GC contenders – Oscar Onley and Kevin Vauquelin – in prime position for a tilt at overall victory in Nice, as Jonas Vingegaard’s Visma-Lease a Bike team ceding 15 seconds and Brandon McNulty’s UAE Team Emirates losing a surprisingly substantial 37 seconds.
INEOS Grenadiers win the TTT! 🔥
The team power to Stage 3 victory at Paris–Nice, with Juan Ayuso of Lidl–Trek moving into the GC lead! 👏 pic.twitter.com/sRbLbjdyAu
— Cycling on TNT Sports (@cyclingontnt) March 10, 2026
But while the stage win marks a step up for a team looking to rebuild in 2026, it wasn’t enough to put home favourite Kévin Vauquelin into yellow, the Frenchman missing out by just two seconds to Juan Ayuso.
The performance of Ayuso’s Lidl-Trek team, though pipped by two seconds to the win by Ineos, proved enough to propel him into the lead, as Luke Lamperti signed off on his two days in yellow with a strong showing on the front for EF.
Oscar Onley, meanwhile, now sits in third overall, three seconds behind Ayuso, after wilting slightly as Vauquelin surged for the line following Tarling’s last monstrous pull.
A big boost of confidence, then, for Ineos – but can they roll back the clock and use today’s TTT as a springboard to dominate Paris-Nice, just like the good ol’ days?
How to put your chain back on mid-race, Mathieu van der Poel style
🇳🇱 Caught up in a discussion, Mathieu van der Poel tragically forgets to change gear.
But he’s MVDP, so he’s fine.
Follow #TirrenoAdriatico @CA_Ita on Rai (🇮🇹) and on Eurosport (🌐) pic.twitter.com/oI9oDLwRFw
— Tirreno Adriatico (@TirrenAdriatico) March 10, 2026
“Not carbon, not sorry”
The most expensive middle finger in cycling? Ethan Hayter fined £500 and docked 25 UCI points for rude gesture during Tirreno-Adriatico time trial
It’s fair to say Ethan Hayter didn’t have the most enjoyable opening time trial at Tirreno-Adriatico yesterday.
The British champion – a winner of five races against the clock last year – finished eighth in the 11.5km out and back effort in Lido di Camaiore, 32 seconds down on a rampant Filippo Ganna.
And last night, as he was chilling in his hotel room, Hayter was hit with another blow – in the form of a fine and a UCI points deduction.
Why? Because during the TT, the TV cameras captured the Soudal-QuickStep rider briefly taking one arm off the bars to raise a middle-fingered salute.
Hayter 𝒉𝒂𝒚𝒕𝒆𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒐 al personal 😧
😬 No sabemos ni a quién ni la razón, pero algo no gustó al bueno de Ethan Hayter durante la crono de #TirrenoAdriatico pic.twitter.com/800ZXimPBl
— Eurosport.es (@Eurosport_ES) March 9, 2026
It’s unclear who Hayter was gesturing towards, though the clip suggests it was aimed at the camera motorbike rider to his left, who was certainly travelling at close proximity to the British time triallist, who appeared visibly frustrated by the distraction.
Ironically, it was those very images captured by that motorbike rider which landed Hayter in hot water, the race jury’s report revealing that the 27-year-old was issued a 500 Swiss Francs fine and docked 25 UCI points for “unsportsmanlike conduct”.
Neither Hayter nor Soudal have commented on the incident yet.
Elsewhere in the jury report, Alpecin rider Emiel Verstrynge and his DS Christoph Roodhooft were also both fined 500 Swiss Francs for failing to present his bike 10 minutes before the start of the TT, while Groupama’s Joshua Kench was fined 200 CHF for cropping his race number incorrectly. Fun day for the commissaires, that.
Are you a fan of gravel and team time trials? Well, today’s your perfect day
Cycling’s annual week-long festival of double screen viewing – and complaining on social media that it’s so, so, so difficult to keep up with two races at once – continues today, with two stages capable of shaking up their respective GCs.
And just because Strade Bianche is over for another year, that doesn’t mean the Tuscan gravel fun is done and dusted (see what I did there?).
This afternoon’s second stage of Tirreno-Adriatico features a homage to cycling’s modern/retro classic – and a chance for revenge for anyone who suffered on Saturday – by including a 5.2km stretch of narrow, twisting gravel just before the finish, boasting ramps of 15 per cent.
The gravel follows 200km of mostly flat, sometimes rolling roads through the countryside of Tuscany and starts with just 6.8km to go, with a lung-bursting kilometre-long climb. The survivors from this gravel detour will then climb up towards the medieval walls and towers, and tight corners, of UNESCO-listed San Gimignano – so we can expect a Siena-style battle for the line, too.
Expect Mathieu van der Poel to make up for ducking Strade on Saturday by going all out for the win, though he’ll have his old nemesis Wout van Aert (and Strade third place finisher Isaac del Toro) to contend with.
Meanwhile, over at Paris-Nice, the riders will be treated to a Tour de France dress rehearsal, thanks to a rolling 23.5km team time trial from Cosne-Cours-sur-Loire to Pouilly-sur-Loire.
The TTT will follow the same new-fangled rules as stage one of this year’s Tour in Barcelona, with the first rider across the line setting the time for his team. So it’ll be interesting to see how the likes of Visma, Ineos, and Lidl-Trek approach this one tactically, though the lack of a Montjuic-style finishing climb lessens the comparative aspect somewhat.
In any case, who doesn’t love a team time trial, anyway? And it also means you can switch it on after Tirreno is over and you won’t have missed much. Win-win.
Is this the most pointless cycle rack in the world?
A new contender for our coveted ‘Most Useless Bike Rack 2026’ award has emerged, courtesy of Toronto – and it’s staggeringly pointless.
i just can’t… i fail to can
#BikeTO
— rudy.ca (@rudydotca.bsky.social) March 9, 2026 at 7:54 AM
Wow, just wow.
We really need to track down the designer to invite them to our awards night later this year, because by the looks of things they have quite the useless portfolio:
I think that rack is from the same supplier as this swing… 🤦♂️
— Tiny Beaches (@tinybeaches.bsky.social) March 10, 2026 at 12:31 AM
Giant CEO lobbies Trump administration to lift bike import ban after forced labour allegations
Now that’s what I call Strade Bianche (or at least the Gran Fondo)
Now, if you asked me to list my favourite cycling moments of all time, Cadel Evans’ win in Montalcino at the 2010 Giro d’Italia, his rainbow jersey splattered in mud, would be right up there.
So, it’s always satisfying to see Tuscany’s gravel roads, normally pristine white and dusty when visited by the pros every March, turned brown by the rain – even if it was only for Strade Bianche’s Gran Fondo.
View this post on Instagram
Come on rain gods, do us a favour next year, would you?
“We had doubts… but it’s the right moment to do it”: Vuelta Femenina set to be decided on the fearsome Angliru, as Spanish grand tour completes 2026 trilogy of iconic climbs
I know it’s a bit early to be thinking about the summer, but I have to admit that I’m already very excited for grand tour season – especially in the women’s calendar, where the big three national tours will likely be decided on some of the sport’s most iconic climbs.
The Tour de France Femmes, of course, is heading to Mont Ventoux for the first time in 20 years, while the Giro d’Italia will tackle the gravelly might of the Colle delle Finestre, the scene of Simon Yates’ redemption ride last year.
So, it was up to the Vuelta Femenina to complete the set. And they didn’t disappoint, wheeling out arguably the biggest, steepest, most terrifying gun of them all: the Alto de l’Angliru.
At 13km and a 9.7 per cent average gradient – with slopes constantly touching 20 per cent and more in its second half – the Angliru has established itself as one of the sport’s most fearsome, mythical tests since its introduction in the men’s Vuelta back in 1999.
The Asturian beast has featured 10 times since then and witnessed triumphs by the likes of Roberto Heras, Alberto Contador (twice), Hugh Carthy, Primož Roglič, and Juan José Cobo (who saw off GC rivals Chris Froome and Bradley Wiggins, before later being stripped of the win for doping).
And last September, João Almeida held off red jersey Jonas Vingegaard for the win, as Tom Pidcock battled to save his podium place.
And now it’s the turn of the women’s peloton to tackle the Angliru, which will serve as the last and decisive climb of May’s Vuelta, won the last two years by Demi Vollering. This year’s race, the route of which was unveiled yesterday in Madrid, is based entirely in the north-west of Spain, kicking off with four relatively gentle, but still lumpy and deceptively tricky, stages in Galicia on 3 May.
After a few chances for the sprinters and puncheurs, the Angliru will act as part two of a crucial and ferociously difficult mountainous double header during the race’s final weekend, starting with the not-so-straightforward task of Les Praeres, 4km long with a 13 per cent, averaged, dubbed the ‘mini Angliru’ by Pedro Delgado.
Sounds fun. A race for the pure climbers, then.
View this post on Instagram
Speaking to Cyclingnews, the Vuelta’s technical director Kiko García said the “time is right” for the women’s race to hit the Angliru, but admitted he still had doubts about the climb’s inclusion.
“We always like to be in touch with the teams and with the riders, and until now we have had a few doubts about [whether] to do it or not,” he said.
“Because a few teams say ‘yes, it’s a good idea to do it’ and other ones say ‘maybe it’s too early, maybe just wait a couple of years’, because we were still building women’s cycling.
View this post on Instagram
“We know that the top riders are able to do it, no problem, but it’s important to think about the median level and the bottom of the bunch because we respect everyone, we have a lot of respect for the athletes, and we needed to be sure that everyone was OK doing that.
“So as I said, after many consultations with the teams and with athletes, we considered that it was the right moment to do it.”
“Unexpected item in the cycle lane”
Here’s a new one, even for us…
Unexpected item in the cycle lane
— Andrew Butler (@andrewbutlerphoto.bsky.social) March 9, 2026 at 3:31 PM
“The biggest fear is that we could lose trail access”
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Latest Comments
If you're not trying to escape from wild animals, what would be the advantage of putting a tent on top of a car, rather than setting up a similar tent on the ground? Seems rather unnecessary to me - even if the price was comparable, I would choose a ground-based version.
"you can’t pass a law saying it’s illegal not to have a speedometer if you’re going to go above the speed limit." I don't think this would be a good idea, nor even speed limits (and presumably mandatory speedometers everywhere) ... ... but is there any theoretical legal impediment to that? Or even simply enacting a law that cyclists are not permitted to ride faster on roads than the motor vehicle speed limit (or some other limit) and leaving it up to cyclists how they go about complying with that? (Not a lawyer not a legal theorist though...)
What has KE to do with it? If you are hit by a large object you don't absorb all its KE. Being hit by a car is no better than being hit by a bus at the same speed. What matters is how much acceleration you experience.
@Robert Hardy 20mph isn't as fast as you seem to think, this 57-year-old-not-that-fit rider can easily achieve it on the flat in still conditions and most averagely fit people can on a decent bike. The argument that it wouldn't be a problem to impose speed limits on cyclists because those who can achieve 20mph already have speedometers is an entirely specious one, firstly as I've said a huge number of people can achieve 20mph, not just Garmin-obsessed racers, and secondly you would have to make speedometers compulsory for everyone on a bike, you can't pass a law saying it's illegal not to have a speedometer if you're going to go above the speed limit. How many cycling incidents are caused by supposedly excessive speed? It wasn't a factor in this case, the cyclist would still have hit her if he'd been doing 15mph or even 10mph. Charlie Alliston was under the car speed limit. It's a non-issue and only of interest to those seeking yet another stick with which to beat cyclists.
(Usual reference to speed being the major issue as kinetic energy goes up with the square of velocity / much greater braking distances required etc)
@mdavidford steady on - an 80kg cyclist on a 20kg bike would only need to be doing a little over 89mph to have the same kinetic energy as a 2 ton car at 20mph. So same ballpark, really...
Yes, although it may be telling us as much about decision fixation as it is about the impact of such statements. By asking them about their plans before viewing the adverts, they primed those who said they would consider an SUV to ignore or rationalise away information that pointed against that decision. Ideally, they would have had additional cohorts that were not asked in advance and therefore not committed to a position, for comparison.
"in --substantial-- slight excess of a speed limit considered to offer reasonable safety to vulnerable road users *from two tonne metal boxes*." FTFY
I think we have forgotten that cars do way more damage and we still haven’t got a comprehensive-lasting solution to deal with dangerous drivers
31 thoughts on ““Three miles in a car is naff all”: Angry locals claim bike path works have “escalated” round trips… by minutes; Vingegaard “banging head against wall” on safety; Is cycling “relentlessly promoted”?; Tirreno thriller; Ineos win TTT + more on the live blog”
“… the number of cyclists in Dublin using the city’s bike lanes “is so small that it is set completely off balance with the amount of space they take up”.”
And the same with pavements per pedestrian.
Lets get rid of them too.
“…the same bikes that seem never to fill the lanes they are currently provided with…”
Outside of rush hour and particularly overnight, roads are empty.
As those lanes are thus shown to not be at capacity 24/7, can we get rid of them too?
“The simple truth is that there are still many people who have to use a car.”
And those people’s journeys would be quicker if there were less cars on the road.
But no, if Patrick Vincent wants more cars on the roads presumably he is happy to always sit at the back of a queue of them formed by all the people who might alternatively be cycling…
All valid points. Vincent however, like most drivers one would assume, just doesn’t fancy the perceived personal inconvenience of change.
Quieter roads & less congestion? Yes please!
What? Change my habits & be forced to question my current assumptions and choices?? Well no then… as you were. Something something bloody cyclists.
You wouldn’t believe this – I’ve had a few early starts recently and when I left home the roads near me were empty, deserted – not a vehicle in sight (apart from those parked, some illegally). So using Vincent’s logic, it’s high time we closed them.
For a given volume of traffic (people / unit time) in an urban area, the cycle lane will tend to have /fewer/ apparent users *BECAUSE IT IS MORE EFFICIENT*.
The road clogged with immobile cars may look full, yet can it is moving *fewer* people than the “empty” cycle lane beside it! Cause the cyclists are actually able to move, and move on to where they want to go – not stay stuck and create a jam!
Just leaving this one here again…
Airports are the real waste of space. All that runway room and they only ever have one plane on it at a time.
The Telegraph has been sold to a German publisher – with a bit of luck, their idiotic anti-cycling rants will stop.
Dunno about that.
Makes you wonder if they’ve bought the wrong thing by mistake.
Axel Springer is a right wing media organization with strong historical links to the US. It knows exactly what it has bought, and why. I don’t expect the Telegraph to start campaigning on behalf of cyclists any time soon.
For the record, Axel Springler SE acquired Politico Europe in October 2021 for over $1 billion.
Re The Irish govts obsession with cycling.
I have a lot of sympathy with Patrick Vincent and his incoherent article. He clearly has onset dementia and nobody has the courage to confront him about it.
The same thing seems to be happening to Donald Trump.
If you think there is a bike fetish, wait till you are able to spot the size of the car fetish. It’s so big you just don’t notice it any more.
Car brains have had their view of the world so twisted they think the only modes of transport which are functioning properly are those with lots of congestion. I’m just glad they haven’t noticed that footpaths and railways often appear empty too.
They should have put some hay bales or something along there.
RE: hay bales: shurely “It doesn’t matter how much money you waste on hay or sugar lumps, you won’t see an increase in horses because *people just don’t want to ride*!”
Somewhat literally by the looks of it.
Interesting how the usual incorrect “… hit by a car…” language has translated across for reports about “e-bike” users, instead of the usual “hit by a cyclist”.
“A woman who was hit by an e-bike ….”
“The e‑bike, which was carrying a pillion passenger and described by Dorset Police as an “adapted electrically assisted pedal cycle or mountain bike”, did not stop at the scene.”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cz7g50jr8rgo
Well that does seem unreasonable – what was the council thinking, springing it on them without warning?
Oh.
How well used by motorists would a road be if there was a flight of stairs on it?
Well, there was this driver in Rome.
“We’ve built this lovely swimming pool and now the swimmers are saying they won’t use it unless we put water in it. Waste of money.”
[quote]…another local claimed the diversions would cost her more than £3,000 a year in fuel costs…[quote]
So three extra miles, even if she’s using the round-trip route three times a day every day of the year that’s 3285 miles, so let’s call it a pound a mile, petrol currently about £1.40 a litre so she’s getting 1.4 miles to the litre, or in old money just over 5 mpg. What’s she driving?
I looked at that the other way round, if she’s only getting 30 mpg then she is doing the route 7 times a day 365 days a year, the only good reason for that I could think of is that she is a taxi driver and in that case the meter is running and she is getting paid for it.
Yeah, she’s just pulling a figure out of her arse. 2 minutes with AI produces a cost of under £300 in fuel for a typical car doing 3 miles every day for 14 months.
“The council basically wants to create a flat offroad section after a group of people complained about a flight of steps. This is not a well-used route….”
I wonder why it isn’t well-used?
The refusal to see something from someone else’s viewpoint is both huge and disturbing.
“another local claimed the diversions would cost her more than £3,000 a year in fuel costs”
Average cost to drive 6 miles in an SUV is £1.30. So they’d have to be doing 6-7 return trips a day, every day of the year, in a gas guzzler for it to cost them an extra £3k in fuel.
I’m inclined to disagree that their ‘working out’ on this could be described as ‘fair play’
They are calculating it on the expected prices if the straights of Hormuz remain closed for the next year.
Is Harrogate Spa holding today’s live blogger hostage until the promise to only publish good news items?
“The fetishisation of cycling should not take precedence over cars”
Only one person appears to have a fetish about cycling: Patrick Vincent.
Or perhaps he gets paid lots to write this drivel.
Can’t see an item for this:
man sentenced to 15 months suspended for manslaughter when using ebike and hitting 91 year old
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cg7em14ez01o
Should not have been on the footway.
Claims he did not see the old guy. But at least he stopped and called 999.
Cue bbc moaning about the dangers of ebikes.
I could be on an ordinary bike with a heavy lock and full panniers and be getting on for 100kg.
One of the reasons to avoid shared pathways.
I caught a light wiff of the weirdly tropical gorse on the wind today as I rode home.