Sustrans routes

[Bigtallfatbloke]

I have been looking at this map:
http://www.sustrans.co.uk/webfiles/general/sustrans_2008_ncn_map.pdf

What I dont undrstand is why these lines on a map are any different from any other lines on a map that I might choose to ride? Why are they called cycle routes? It isnt like they are like the German routes which are all traffic free and proper cycle 'roads'. Seems to me that following a sustrans route isnt going to get me to where I want to go in a traffic free zone...I may as well just plan my own routes, these are just somebody elses idea of which roads I should ride on right?

Clearly I am missing something here, so why should I ride on sustrans routes...all I need is an AA atlas I'd get there quicker right?

 

[sheddy]

Sustrans would have chosen the least busy route, but possibly the least useful. Better suited to families

 

[John Ponting]

Many SUSTRANS routes, or sections of a route, are off road completely. These are often on reclaimed railway routes or similar. Often the routes are on quiet roads.

They are called cycle routes because they help people avoid busy roads more easily. This can be appealing to riders with inexperience and/or younger riders in their group. The routes are generally fairly well signed (another good point for the inexperienced) and do not require a bag of maps or a satnav.

They may or may not be the shortest route between your A and B points but they can be fun. They can be used in part with a self planned route; they can be used to join with another SUSTRANS route (network?).

You have become, in maybe 12 months, an experienced inter continental cycle tourist. You can now seen how cycling should be and how routes can be designed and built. How did the routes in France compare with those in Germany or did you mainly use roads ?

 

[vernon]

I have been looking at this map:
http://www.sustrans.co.uk/webfiles/general/sustrans_2008_ncn_map.pdf

What I dont undrstand is why these lines on a map are any different from any other lines on a map that I might choose to ride? Why are they called cycle routes? It isnt like they are like the German routes which are all traffic free and proper cycle 'roads'. Seems to me that following a sustrans route isnt going to get me to where I want to go in a traffic free zone...I may as well just plan my own routes, these are just somebody elses idea of which roads I should ride on right?

Clearly I am missing something here, so why should I ride on sustrans routes...all I need is an AA atlas I'd get there quicker right?

Sustrans routes are a mixed bag of roads, byeways, disused railway trackbeds, permissive access bridle paths and the like put together to creat a network of leisure routes with as little use of high traffic roads as possible.

The routes come about through the co-operation of local authorities, landowners and others. Sustrans I think assembles and negotiates the access rights to the routes and their meanderings can sometimes be contrived because of lack of access to certain stretches of track beds etc.

You are not compelled to ride on any of the Sustrans routes and they should, at best, be regarded as advisory routes. Having said that I have ridden the majority of designated route on the following Sustrans rides and found them enjoyable and scenic - they were also almost traffic free - very appealing to the less confident cyclist. When plotting your own routes - you have to make a guess whether or not a road will be busy and it isn't always easy to tell by its designation.

Coast to Coast
Walney to Wear
Coast and Castles
Hadrians Cycle Route
Lon Las Cymru North
Lon Las Cymru South

Folk will ride all or part of any Sustrans use for pleasure and, when it's suitably located, for commuting/utility cycling.

chacun à son goût

 

[Cathryn]

The C2C route was fantastic - very well signposted and with a surprising amount off-road. I was hugely impressed.

 

[summerdays]

Having use the Devon Coast to Coast route as our first tour, I found it useful that I didn't have to sit down in advance and plan the whole route. It was nice to arrive at a junction and see a small sticker pointing which way I should go, rather than getting out a map each time.

To get to the start of the route I had do a bit of route planning myself, and to be honest I choose a route with more hills and almost gave up before I got to the start.

I'm quite happy map reading (love them), but it was nice to have it sort of done for me. You don't have to slavishly follow the whole route. However it did vary in how well it was signed, and what the road/surface conditions were.

 

[Bigtallfatbloke]

How did the routes in France compare with those in Germany or did you mainly use roads ?

Well in France I didnt use any designated cycle routes (not knowingly anyway!) I just took the roads that went in th edirection I wanted to go. For th emostpart the out of town roads offered perfect road surfaces, low traffic use (except in the very south) and nice things to see as well...the main difference in germnay is that the cycle paths there are just that CYCLE paths and cars are not allowed on them.

I can see the attraction in some of the Sustrans routes for inexperienced riders perhaps, and for those who drive to a location and ride around and back etc...but from where I live (which may be the issue) I see no useful routes...say from Essex south tot he coast or west & around london etc
For me it's easier just to highlight a 'B'road route on a road atlas map I think.

Just how well signposted are the routes anyway? Can you really rely on the signs being there (vandals) ...dunno, I am not knocking the system but to me it's just alittle to ...whats the word...'restrictive'

 

[summerdays]

They have stickers that I think the volunteers can put on road signs at junctions, as well as putting up proper signs/arms on some junctions. Its amazing how good you get at spotting the little blue and red(?) sticker. Why not try cycling to one and see for yourself.?

 

[marinyork]

Signposting varies dramatically and some bits are small and fiddly, rather like walking and looking for a public footpath you haven't used before. Some of the signs are proper etched signs but the fixings become loose and get blown round to the wrong angle or people bend them for pranks.

Some off road sections can also have few joining points. One section near me suffers from this and so is barely used at all because it's pretty pointless.

 

[Bigtallfatbloke]

Why not try cycling to one and see for yourself.?

..this is my plan...when it stops raining

I want to be able to set off on a trip from my front door and not have to get on a train to the start etc...so stuff like th ecoast to coast just doesnt float my boat a sI would have to train it up north and back and that would probably mean getting through london on the underground with my bike...which isnt going to happen.

Actually it seems that sustrans have an anticipated route in waiting that goes almost right past my front door, which kind of makes my point I suppose as that is th eroute I would have taken most likely had it been called sustrans or not.

I think th esustrans routes provide a good 'idea' for a tour ...so if you want to ride to enjoy th eride thats fine, but if you want to get to a specific objective (say a non touristy place) then they arnt all that much use....wekk they are if used when appropriate, but for the most part I dont see it makes all that much difference...a road is a road, regardless of whether sustrans 'claim' it or not.

 

[dragon72]

I tried following the Gatwick to Greenwich route recently. I shouldn't have bothered.

At one stage it took me across a golf club terrace bar past bewildered fatties weilding 3-irons and up a rocky and boggy bridleway up a 20% hill just inside the M25. I lost the route several times and probably all-in-all cost me an extra 10 miles trying to find the route again.

Not friendly for the seasoned tourer nor the family outing IMHO.

Go out of your way to avoid the Sustrans routes because they'll piss you off more than finding your own way.

Grrr. Rant over.

 

[Bigtallfatbloke]

hello Dragon72...I noticed you are in Brighton which is on my destination list (wel worthing actually)...the simple plan is to get the tilbury ferry and head down to Brighton...via east grinsted, slaugham etc then down the river into shoreham/worthing. Seems simple to me...is there a better route you might know of? I know there is a big hill at Handcross which I hav enothing against riding DOWN...but would like to go around if possible....I see nothing on sustrans that would do this.

 

[John Ponting]

How do you know where the roads are ???

You either buy a map, or a satnav or a guide of some form. Sustrans is "a guide of some form".

 

[marinyork]

The problem is as maps go, sustrans maps I've seen are highly politicised and seem to go with extreme opinions rather than more balanced ones.

 

[sadjack]

A Sustran route is only a suggestion. You can ride as much or as little of it that you want. Personally I have found they take you to some areas that perhaps you would have visited otherwise.

If your in a hurry and want to be more direct, do so.

I think the principal of having a waymarked route, on traffic free or quiet lanes/roads is a great one. I dont always want to ride direct and a meander along country lanes is rather pleasant