Cycle paths adjacent to main roads

[steveindenmark]

I live in Denmark and there is estimated to be 30,000km of shared cycle paths here. After riding here over 20 years, I find it almost impossible to find fault with them. The Danes have been doing it for years. They build cycle paths at hell of a rate. They put them where they need to be and they are very well maintained with their own maintenence teams. They are not an after thought and are an integral part of the infrastructure.

I can leave my house and ride on a quiet country road for 4km and hang a left. I now have a dedicated cycle path for 40km to Germany. If I turn right I have a dedicated cycle paths and eurovelo routes, all the way to the North of Denmark.

There is no fanfare when they build another section of cycle path. I often turn up in places where another 10km of cycle path has been added and I had no idea it was being built.

They will add a section of cycle path in a place where nobody rides and you think it is odd. Then quite quickly, cyclists and pedestrians start using it. Its like watching Sym City.

I think the mentality of the people plays a big part in how well shared paths work. In Denmark we all know we share the paths with cyclists, pedestrians, prams, dog walkers and mopeds. We accept that nobody has priority and we act accordingly. People slow down when approaching other people, dogs get wound in, we make space for each other.

There is even a dedicated cycle roundabout a couple of km from my house😁

I think any UK council who are going to put cycle paths in, need to send a study group to Denmark first.

 

[roubaixtuesday]

There's a couple of decent ones near us, but most are crap, generally forcing cyclists to give way at multiple side roads, walk up steps (yes, really), suffer awful surfaces, wait at lights etc etc.

Motorists wouldn't use special car lanes which suffered these drawbacks...

 

[Drago]

I think any UK council who are going to put cycle paths in, need to send a study group to Denmark first.

The UK can send who they want where the want - it won't make any difference.

What works elsewhere rarely translates well to the UK. Half the problem here is part ignorance and part idiocy, people walking about HUA and providing a nice and unpredictable mobile obstacle. Chuck in a media driven culture of anti cycling nastiness, indifferent maintenance, car drivers who'll see it as a car parking opportunity, weak laws and non existence enforcement, and we could have the best shared paths in the world and they'd still be deadly.

 

[steveindenmark]

The UK can send who they want where the want - it won't make any difference.

What works elsewhere rarely translates well to the UK. Half the problem here is part ignorance and part idiocy, people walking about HUA and providing a nice and unpredictable mobile obstacle. Chuck in a media driven culture of anti cycling nastiness, indifferent maintenance, car drivers who'll see it as a car parking opportunity, weak laws and non existence enforcement, and we could have the best shared paths in the world and they'd still be deadly.

I totally agree.

There is far more to it than just putting good paths in the right places. But its a good place to start.

The thing with Denmark is that from the guy drawing up the plans to the guy laying the tarmac. They are all linked to cycling. They cycle or someone in the family cycles, a mate cycles. There are more bikes than cars. We do not have this car v bike mentality. Probably because we spend a lot of time away from the traffic. But not on some second rate cycle path. I would far rather be on a cycle path than a road. Its a no brainer.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

We had a VERY expensive cycle path built out of town last year (or the year before, time flies) but sadly it doesn't go very far.

If you think it is expensive take a look at the amount spent on upgrading roads or building short bypasses. It will make the cost of the cycle track look like spare change. As for not going very far, this is part of the problem. Often they also ask you to give way at side roads every 200m or so. Sometimes they cross from one side of road to the other with a long wait at traffic lights prioritised for motor vehicles. Even where something is generally quite good, if you are not local, you don't know that, and will hesitate to join them. If they built roads in the same way, car drivers would be up in arms.

We had a fairly good new cycle track built around town here. Its about 2m wide and stays on same side of road. But there’s simple things they missed. Like a lane comes in from the local villages. Its popular with those cycling. Yet there is no dropped kerb onto the wonder cycleway opposite where this lane comes in. Thus you have to join a busy road then stop and wait in traffic to join a dropped kerb they put in 100m away that does not line up with any incoming lane.

There is a new bit of A41 bypass near Aylesbury. Built as part of the HS2 works. Previously a lane used go straight across the A41 and made a good connection for quiet cycling loops. Now it has been cut at the new bypass. You have to join a 2m path alongside, cross at next roundabout, then join old A41 to get to continuation of lane. An extra km of riding. They could have kept the old bit of lane just for cyclists, pedestrians and horse riders. But of course their plans did not consider users of the lane, other than the motorised kind.

 

[raleighnut]

Cycle paths are for children, cyclists belong on the roads .......................cycles were around before cars were invented

 

[T4tomo]

I live in Denmark and there is estimated to be 30,000km of shared cycle paths here. After riding here over 20 years, I find it almost impossible to find fault with them. The Danes have been doing it for years. They build cycle paths at hell of a rate. They put them where they need to be and they are very well maintained with their own maintenence teams. They are not an after thought and are an integral part of the infrastructure.

I can leave my house and ride on a quiet country road for 4km and hang a left. I now have a dedicated cycle path for 40km to Germany. If I turn right I have a dedicated cycle paths and eurovelo routes, all the way to the North of Denmark.

There is no fanfare when they build another section of cycle path. I often turn up in places where another 10km of cycle path has been added and I had no idea it was being built.

They will add a section of cycle path in a place where nobody rides and you think it is odd. Then quite quickly, cyclists and pedestrians start using it. Its like watching Sym City.

I think the mentality of the people plays a big part in how well shared paths work. In Denmark we all know we share the paths with cyclists, pedestrians, prams, dog walkers and mopeds. We accept that nobody has priority and we act accordingly. People slow down when approaching other people, dogs get wound in, we make space for each other.

There is even a dedicated cycle roundabout a couple of km from my house😁

I think any UK council who are going to put cycle paths in, need to send a study group to Denmark first.

View attachment 801098

that's awesome but i think I'd want tops of the exit tunnels colour coded or something so remember which to take, as once you're in the sunken roundabout there aren't many landmarks to see!

 

[steveindenmark]

that's awesome but i think I'd want tops of the exit tunnels colour coded or something so remember which to take, as once you're in the sunken roundabout there aren't many landmarks to see!

The Danes are not as dumb as the Brits. Exits are well signposted 😁😁

 

[steveindenmark]

Cycle paths are for children, cyclists belong on the roads .......................cycles were around before cars were invented

That is one of the dumbest comments I have ever read on here, so I hope you are joking.

But if your not it is the type of comment I would not be suprised to see from someone from the UK who has never ridden on a good cycle network. Either that or someone with a death wish.

Yes cycles were around before cars were invented. Then someone realised cars and bikes do not mix well and provided cycle paths and cycle paths with benches, tool stops, air pumps, lighting etc. That is called progress. Not only does it make it safer. It speeds up traffic and gets rid of the animosity between cyclists and motor vehicles.

 

[Drago]

IThere is far more to it than just putting good paths in the right places. But its a good place to park.

I've translated your words for British readers.

 

[steveindenmark]

I've translated your words for British readers.

Tak 😁😁

 

[Oldhippy]

I have Route 1 near me and have used it to go to London in the past some bits are great but huge stretches are unusable due to being overgrown and strewn with rubbish. We are decades behind in the UK as I've mentioned on other threads. If the cycling advocacy groups were as outspoken as the car lobbies along with some political will we would stand a chance of changing the car is king mentality. Not holding my breath though.

 

[Drago]

But if your not it is the type of comment I would not be suprised to see from someone from the UK who has never ridden on a good cycle network. Either that or someone with a death wish.

Why would he have a death wish? As aforementioned up thread, in the UK the casualty rate is lower for riding on the road than it is for dedicated cycling infrastructure. That being the case the road is liable to be the safer option here.

Not only that, the chances of an early death through road riding are, statistically, well outweighed by the improved life expectancy of regular exercise.

Mr Nut is simply being a realist, addressing the situation as it happens to be in the UK. Lovely infrastructure of the sort found in North Utopia is a wondrous thing, but for the most part we don't have it and we likely never will in our lifetimes, or probably even that of our children. It just ain't happening. Its easy to be smug when you live there, but we dont so have no choice but to face a different reality.

That being the case the alternatives we face are a) assert our lawful right to use the road in safety as best we can, or b) start driving everywhere like the rest of them. There is no third way available to us.

Denmark cycling infrastructure;

British cycling infrastructure;

That is why the roads tend to be the lesser of two evils here in Blighty.

 

[Drago]

I did not know that. Is there a source for the figures?

The CUK chipwrapper going back something like 15 or mor years.

 

[BrumJim]

https://tinyurl.com/58z6tmd7

Yes, this is a cycle route (I have ridden it) with no protection other than a kerb from a very busy 70 mile/h dual carriageway carrying a significant number of heavy lorries