why loads of cyclists in some cities and hardly any in others?

[nigelnorris]

Tell me about it - moving from Birmingham to Bristol was a shocker.

Some cities quite simply lend themselves to cycling a lot more. This is not just about infrastructure but also culture (i.e. lots of students, hippies) and congestion. Cities like Birmingham, Glasgow, Milton Keynes, Wolverhampton, Leeds and so on are just so car oriented compared to traditional cycling cities (think London, Oxford, York, Hull) that it's highly unlikely that anyone but the really dedicated will cycle. Car use is deeply ingrained in people's psyche in these places.

There's no shortage of cyclists around Brum at the moment. I went out last Saturday and literally couldn't find anywhere to lock my bike. All the purpose built racks and suitably sized lamp posts etc already had bikes shackled all around them. Loads of us about there were.

 

[Over The Hill]

Distinct lack of cyclist in Basingstoke.
Town centre in mostly pedestrian and bans them. Almost no cycle paths so you are forced onto the busy ring road with the cars (again with no lanes or any facilities for cyclists).
Where there is an odd cycle lane it stops just before a huge and fast roundabout and kicks you back onto the road instead of being able to use the peds underpass (that is big enough to get a car through).
So even as a bike rider I take my car into town. All the bike stands are empty and you never see a bike. My mate fell off his bike in ice on a roundabout and the cars did not even stop - just drove round him in the middle of a 3 lane roundabout.
Cars are not used to bikes and just cut them up on roundabouts. If you go round in primary they cut past on one side or the other as there seems to be a local law requiring you to go round a roundabout at a minimum speed of 40mph.

 

[simon_brooke]

Tell me about it - moving from Birmingham to Bristol was a shocker.

Some cities quite simply lend themselves to cycling a lot more. This is not just about infrastructure but also culture (i.e. lots of students, hippies) and congestion. Cities like Birmingham, Glasgow, Milton Keynes, Wolverhampton, Leeds and so on are just so car oriented compared to traditional cycling cities (think London, Oxford, York, Hull) that it's highly unlikely that anyone but the really dedicated will cycle. Car use is deeply ingrained in people's psyche in these places.

I simply don't believe that. There's nothing inherently more bike friendly about Edinburgh than Glasgow, and yet cyclists in Edinburgh outnumber cyclists in Glasgow about ten to one. East Kilbride (where I work every other week) is virtually flat and has excellent cycling farcilities virtually everywhere. Bare. Empty. Deserted. Unused. There are no damn cyclists! And why not, when it's so obviously cycle-friendly? I don't understand it. It does not compute.

 

[summerdays]

I've made this point to a few people - there's are serious barriers to cycling to the east and south of the city which I don't think are being addressed in any big way by the council's £20M+ cycle city funding.

It's the ring road to the south and east, plus the M32 to the east that are the main problems.

I must admit that there are only a few places to cross the M32 - and large motorway rab's must put off some people and subways put off others, and the river is a definite barrier (well to be precise the floating harbour then parrellel to it the river), mean there are only a couple of points where I cross going southwards.

 

[GrahamG]

I simply don't believe that. There's nothing inherently more bike friendly about Edinburgh than Glasgow, and yet cyclists in Edinburgh outnumber cyclists in Glasgow about ten to one. East Kilbride (where I work every other week) is virtually flat and has excellent cycling farcilities virtually everywhere. Bare. Empty. Deserted. Unused. There are no damn cyclists! And why not, when it's so obviously cycle-friendly? I don't understand it. It does not compute.

I know exactly what you're saying - this is where it comes down more to cultural differences and attitudes. I.e. is cycling viewed as a bit more 'normal' in Edinburgh whilst most Glasweigans think anyone on two wheels is nuts?

 

[User169]

Distinct lack of cyclist in Basingstoke.
Town centre in mostly pedestrian and bans them. Almost no cycle paths so you are forced onto the busy ring road with the cars (again with no lanes or any facilities for cyclists).
Where there is an odd cycle lane it stops just before a huge and fast roundabout and kicks you back onto the road instead of being able to use the peds underpass (that is big enough to get a car through).
So even as a bike rider I take my car into town. All the bike stands are empty and you never see a bike. My mate fell off his bike in ice on a roundabout and the cars did not even stop - just drove round him in the middle of a 3 lane roundabout.
Cars are not used to bikes and just cut them up on roundabouts. If you go round in primary they cut past on one side or the other as there seems to be a local law requiring you to go round a roundabout at a minimum speed of 40mph.

Yes - terrible place for cycling. I lived in Oakley and probably only cycled into Bas three or four times. I did have a summer job once which I cycled to and which required a short cycle on the B3400 - never really used to enjoy that. Really nice gentle cycling away from basingstoke itself though heading down toward winchester.

 

[Joe24]

Not a fan of Mansfield and the surrounding areas.
My GF lives sort of close to Mansfield and its abit of a crap hole.
Nottingham centre isnt much better mind.

 

[cisamcgu]

I think it's very important; Sheffield has a huge student population with the two Unis, and it has the reputation of being one of the places that most students stay on afterwards to work and live. That gives you a more middle-class population (and probably a more green/alternative population) and that will usually lead to more cyclists (whether they are shopping, commuting or just weekenders). There must be something, as it's bloody hilly!

Liverpool is a very similar city to Sheffield in many ways - 700,000 people, HUGE student population, multiple universities, and therefore should be even more condusive to cycling since it it pretty much flat - however the opposite it true, cyclists are relatively rare ... and I don't know why !

 

[Piemaster]

Hull has Universities and 6th form collages. Geography must also be a factor - it's flat, the city sits on the bank of the Humber so no access from the south at all. Most people probably live within a 2 mile raduis of the city centre too, and though it should be better the efforts of the Council to improve road safety have to be recognised.
The local newspaper reprints old photos every night. I get the impression there has always been some sort of cycling culture. Real cyclists using a bike for getting to work, shopping, etc.
Backed up with reasonable bus services I wouldn't regard it as somewhere car ownership is vital for getting about.

 

[Arch]

Hull has Universities and 6th form collages.

Are they like primary school collages, only using better paper and more grown up glue...?

I think compactness must be an issue. I can ride right across York in half and hour or less, and I've never lived more than a 10 min ride from the centre. A big sprawling city with lots of suburbs is probably less conducive...

 

[marinyork]

For going anywhere in the city it's an issue. Thinking of I could go to Acomb or Strensall or whatever within a certain time frame is certainly conducive to mass travelling by bike, a very big plus. But York for it's population size is very, very sprawling though. It just feels different because you can construct an axis in York that isn't very far apart (New/Old Fulford with any non strensall or haxby). Feel being a big part of it. Same thing is true in Sheffield though. One of the big commuter areas is pretty hilly but it's very close to town and "feels" pleasant doing that journey. So I think perceived compactness and pleasantness are issues. In in similar vein Meadowhall and all the crap that goes on in the east end isn't actually very far from town at all, it just feels like a million miles when you cycle it, even though it's not and is pretty flat in Sheffield terms.

Hull has Universities and 6th form collages. Geography must also be a factor - it's flat, the city sits on the bank of the Humber so no access from the south at all. Most people probably live within a 2 mile raduis of the city centre too, and though it should be better the efforts of the Council to improve road safety have to be recognised.
...

I was really impressed when I cycled through Hull on a CC ride. Feels really good.

 

[markg0vbr]

I live and work in rotherham and drive all over the district all day. I think the car drivers hardly ever seeing a bike on the road might be the problem they just don't know what to do when you ride on to a roundabout in the right lane for Turing right, they often try to under take you as your pulling off, then give you abuse. tale gating and revving engine is a special favourite of mine on the narrow lane near me, driving along with hand on horn shouting get off the f***ing road is another. until we get lots of people on bikes riding around things will not improve, putting all the cyclists dismount signs on the roundabouts will not help. I ride 20 to 30 miles every day after work and have had road rage directed at me nearly every time, not to mention all the near head on crashes i see, when over taken on blind bends ect.

 

[Over The Hill]

I live and work in rotherham and drive all over the district all day. I think the car drivers hardly ever seeing a bike on the road might be the problem they just don't know what to do when you ride on to a roundabout in the right lane for Turing right, they often try to under take you as your pulling off, then give you abuse. tale gating and revving engine is a special favourite of mine on the narrow lane near me, driving along with hand on horn shouting get off the f***ing road is another. until we get lots of people on bikes riding around things will not improve, putting all the cyclists dismount signs on the roundabouts will not help. I ride 20 to 30 miles every day after work and have had road rage directed at me nearly every time, not to mention all the near head on crashes i see, when over taken on blind bends ect.

This thread is bringing up the issue of areas where bikes are seen less they seem to get more abuse and bad car drivers. Certainly when I have driven in Oxford (full of bikes) the cars seem more aware of bikes and give then a bit of space.

Also it is an issue that we cycle along, get confronted with ten yards of bike lane with a dismount and or give way sign at the end of it and so we choose not to bother using the useless waste of space which then opens us up to more abuse.

All bike lanes seem to do is slow the cyclist down. Is there any town with a decent cycle network that gets the bike seperate from the traffic and speeds the rider to his destination on a nice priority route?

 

[Deleted member 1258]

Been cycling around the Coventry area since about 1980, lived for most of that time in the Earlsdon area, plenty of cyclists about and driving standard okish. Moved to the Holbrooks area about 18 months ago and noticed that there aren't as many cyclists, apart from the kids playing after school, we live near a school, as in Earlsdon and the driving standard is lower. As has been said it seems that car drivers that don't see many cyclists don't seem to know how to drive safely when they are around them.

 

[D4VOW]

I know exactly what you're saying Bonj, I hardly ever see any cyclists while I'm out, just the odd one here and there. There does appear to be quite a few commuting on nice days between Huthwaite and Sutton though. At least it's a start