oldredeyes
Well-Known Member
- Location
- Roundhay, Leeds
For those who know Leeds, it's the new cycle lane at the bottom of Roundhay Road. For those who don't, it's a two lane main road heading into Leeds and earlier this year, the city council turned the left hand bus lane into a 2+ high occupancy lane with a marked-out cycle lane. As it nears the end, where there are traffic lights which favour the 2+ lane against the other lane, the cycle lane is forced onto the pavement as a shared use (with pedestrians) lane, then back onto the road after the lights. Unfortunately, Google Maps hasn't updated this area, which would have explained the above a bit better.
I complained to the council when it opened, suggesting that the layout was potentially dangerous, as there is a bus stop next to the shared use pavement; it's a sloping road so it's easy to get some speed going. A report in the local paper recently stated the same from a pedestrian's point of view after some guy nearly got flattened after stepping off a bus.
This morning, at 7.50, I was heading down the road, mindful of the icy weather but the road seemed fine; I also dropped my speed considerably. As I mounted the pavement, I could immediately see that it was covered in ice and hoped for the best, but got the worst. The bike gave way and I hit the pavement using my left hip, then shoulder then head to break my fall and slid along for a few yards. The two women who stopped (one a nurse, which was handy) said the fall was "spectacular". After ten years commuting, I now count myself as a proper cyclist as my first words were "how's the bike?".
The nurse insisted I lay still as I had pain in my hip, upper back and neck. When the rapid response ambulance came, the paramedic got out, stepped onto the pavement and fell on his backside. As he knelt down next to me, we heard a shout of "Oh f*ck" as another cyclist went down. In the 45 minutes I was on the floor, four cyclists in total came off. A policewoman who stopped put some cones out (she saw two of the others come off); she very kindly put my bike in her car and has just dropped it off.
Anyway, the good news is that there are no broken bones except for a couple of cracked ribs, just severe bruising to my hip and shoulder,although it's pretty painful to walk. My helmet is pretty battered at the back (let's not start that debate...). The bad news is that my (new) front wheel seems to have twisted around a few times. Then again, my firm's cycle to work window opens up next week!
When I feel a bit more lucid, I'll contact the council; until then, I'm off for a hot bath if I can get up the stairs.
I complained to the council when it opened, suggesting that the layout was potentially dangerous, as there is a bus stop next to the shared use pavement; it's a sloping road so it's easy to get some speed going. A report in the local paper recently stated the same from a pedestrian's point of view after some guy nearly got flattened after stepping off a bus.
This morning, at 7.50, I was heading down the road, mindful of the icy weather but the road seemed fine; I also dropped my speed considerably. As I mounted the pavement, I could immediately see that it was covered in ice and hoped for the best, but got the worst. The bike gave way and I hit the pavement using my left hip, then shoulder then head to break my fall and slid along for a few yards. The two women who stopped (one a nurse, which was handy) said the fall was "spectacular". After ten years commuting, I now count myself as a proper cyclist as my first words were "how's the bike?".
The nurse insisted I lay still as I had pain in my hip, upper back and neck. When the rapid response ambulance came, the paramedic got out, stepped onto the pavement and fell on his backside. As he knelt down next to me, we heard a shout of "Oh f*ck" as another cyclist went down. In the 45 minutes I was on the floor, four cyclists in total came off. A policewoman who stopped put some cones out (she saw two of the others come off); she very kindly put my bike in her car and has just dropped it off.
Anyway, the good news is that there are no broken bones except for a couple of cracked ribs, just severe bruising to my hip and shoulder,although it's pretty painful to walk. My helmet is pretty battered at the back (let's not start that debate...). The bad news is that my (new) front wheel seems to have twisted around a few times. Then again, my firm's cycle to work window opens up next week!
When I feel a bit more lucid, I'll contact the council; until then, I'm off for a hot bath if I can get up the stairs.
