New cycling infrastructure - a noteworthy obstacle is cyclists themselves, apparently.

[mjr]

First of all Standish is barely a hamlet with a tiny population, so why it needs an active travel link to Stonehouse is beyond me.

Surely all villages should be linked to their local towns? It's not what I'd've chosen to do next, but it'll need doing and maybe an opportunity arose.

Another 500m up the road from the end of the current MUP is a narrow hump back railway bridge barely wide enough for two way traffic let alone the addition of a cycle lane.

What are you on about? That's a perfectly ordinary bridge, but an S bend across it. It ain't narrow. If anyone driving something smaller than a box van crosses the center line there without a really good excuse, take their licence away!

Not sure how they plan on getting cyclists, walkers and horse riders across the railway tracks?

Me neither. It wouldn't be the first rail bridge to get a cycleway bridge tied to the side, though.

But there's worse: Coming from the Gloucester direction on the main road they are putting up signs telling cyclists to turn right off the main road to get onto the MUP - yeah right, like anyone on a bike is going to sit in the middle of the main road waiting to join the MUP when it's much safer just to do the 400m on the main road. Even worse is the fact that the main road at this 'junction' is the only straight bit of road for several miles heading to Gloucester and a popular place for overtaking before the twisty bits.

I really don't know who comes up with this stuff - reckless spending of tax payers money just to tick some boxes I reckon. </Engage rant mode>

Yeah, that's not great but traffic is rarely heavy so usually you'd be able to pull right off, non-stop. For the rest, as you note, it's not far to the roundabout at the town end, where you can turn right easily if needed. If it's going to be extended, the north end access may keep moving north anyway.

 

[ktmbiker58]

Surely all villages should be linked to their local towns? It's not what I'd've chosen to do next, but it'll need doing and maybe an opportunity arose.


What are you on about? That's a perfectly ordinary bridge, but an S bend across it. It ain't narrow. If anyone driving something smaller than a box van crosses the center line there without a really good excuse, take their licence away!


Me neither. It wouldn't be the first rail bridge to get a cycleway bridge tied to the side, though.


Yeah, that's not great but traffic is rarely heavy so usually you'd be able to pull right off, non-stop. For the rest, as you note, it's not far to the roundabout at the town end, where you can turn right easily if needed. If it's going to be extended, the north end access may keep moving north anyway.

The elephant in the room is the fact that what is being built will not only not make an active transport path from Stonehouse to Standish (it's way short of that) but the link from the north is far more likely to head down the side of the A38 where there is an existing cycle lane that could easily be widened and no rail crossing to contend with and where it can easily link to the network of canal towpaths that go all the way south to Sharpness and east to Stroud.

Regarding turning right off the main road, simple risk assesment, keep going straight for 400m or : turn right off a main road to enter MUP then in 400m exit the MUP by crossing the main road to rejoin the southbound traffic.

I imagine active travel is folk going to school or work rather than recreational cycling and the traffic on the B4008 is quite heavy at rush hour as it's a cut through for Stroud and Stonehouse folk to get to J12 of the M5 rather than using J13

Just my thoughts but I have been using these roads for 50 years !

 

[Ming the Merciless]

traffic on the B4008 is quite heavy at rush hour as it's a cut through for Stroud and Stonehouse folk to get to J12 of the M5 rather than using J13

Sounds like they need to be blocked from using it as a cut through. Cut out the unnecessary traffic.

 

[ktmbiker58]

Sounds like they need to be blocked from using it as a cut through. Cut out the unnecessary traffic.

Problem is that it is necessary traffic. There's a huge incinerator and industrial park at Moreton Valence which is north of Standish on the B4008. Plus it is the natural route for folk that want to travel north on the M5, the alternative is a longer route on an already overloaded road to J13.

Bottom line is the creaking road network is inadequate for the volumes of traffic particularly since the Stroud area, like many areas, has seen massive housing developments with no thought as to how these new residents will move around.

The local coucil have permitted large developments which would've generated huge CIL (Community Infrastructure Levy) for example they gave permission for a 1200 house development to the west of Stonehouse (Westend) that has almost reached Stonehouse where a 100m MUP would have made an excellent traffic free link to the town (and schools in Stonehouse) but the only cycling infrastructure that was put in were a couple of useless short sections where cycles are allowed on the foot way - total investment in cycling infrastructure one tin of paint!

Stroud District Council got a hefty CIL payment from the developers, for 2023-24 the council received £1.2million in CIL payments, £1m is being spent on the Standish MUP, in my opinion this could've been much better used to provide a MUP from Westend to Stonehouse

Option 1:- 100m of MUP to join 1200 properties to the local town

Option 2:- make 300m of a 3km route to Standish offroad, Standish is a dispersed community of 160 properties spread over 10 square km.

I note that horse riders are specifically mentioned in the MUP plans - the MUP that is being built does provide a very covenient off road connection between the bridleways to the east of Stonehouse and those to the north west - maybe time to trade the bicycle in for a horse