People going to work on bikes.

[RootsBooster 24]

12 minutes ago, makapaka said:

I wouldn't cycle around roads in the city centre - nor most parts of the suburbs  - for a golden pig.  It's madness.

 

Totally outdated form of transport for a city. I understand it ticks boxes for health and the environment but involves transport by balancing on metal spindles with zero protection on dangerous, busy roads.

 

In an ideal world yes but realistically - no ta.

The dangerous, busy roads in the city centre tend to have relatively slow moving traffic. I feel safer cycling through town than I do on the country roads nearer to where I live.

[Guest makapaka]

46 minutes ago, RootsBooster said:

The dangerous, busy roads in the city centre tend to have relatively slow moving traffic. I feel safer cycling through town than I do on the country roads nearer to where I live.

 Maybe so - doesn’t make the roads in the city any  safer though.

Edited May 14, 2019 by makapaka

[RootsBooster 24]

7 minutes ago, makapaka said:

 Maybe so - doesn’t make the roads in the city any  safer though.

How so?

Slower moving traffic means they have more time to see you and if you are hit at lower speeds you are less likely to sustain serious injury.

Edited May 14, 2019 by RootsBooster

[ads36 214]

2 hours ago, makapaka said:

I wouldn't cycle around roads in the city centre - nor most parts of the suburbs  - for a golden pig.  It's madness.

 

In an ideal world yes but realistically - no ta.

in an ideal world, or, the Netherlands.

 

"Totally outdated form of transport for a city"

 

it's cheap, clean, small, fast, safe, healthy, fun, reliable, accessible, etc.

 

sounds very suitable for a city. it's cars that are out of place.

Edited May 14, 2019 by ads36

[Robin-H 11]

2 hours ago, makapaka said:

 Maybe so - doesn’t make the roads in the city any  safer though.

Rural A roads do have much higher casualty rates compared to urban roads. 

 

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/ras30-reported-casualties-in-road-accidents

[Guest makapaka]

3 hours ago, RootsBooster said:

How so?

Slower moving traffic means they have more time to see you and if you are hit at lower speeds you are less likely to sustain serious injury.

Of course but potentially being hit by a slow car or a fast car isn’t really good either way is it. 

2 hours ago, ads36 said:

in an ideal world, or, the Netherlands.

 

"Totally outdated form of transport for a city"

 

it's cheap, clean, small, fast, safe, healthy, fun, reliable, accessible, etc.

 

sounds very suitable for a city. it's cars that are out of place.

I wasn’t talking about the Netherlands I was talking about English towns and cities and in particular Sheffield.

[Annie Bynnol 611]

On ‎13‎/‎05‎/‎2019 at 17:01, Longcol said:

Also presumably outside but part of Sheffield - High Green, Chapeltown, Oughtibridge, Wharncliffe Side, Deepcar /Stocksbridge, Worrall /Bradfield, Middlewood.

 

Plus of course loads of commuters from Dronfield and North Derbys, Worksop and North Notts, Brinsworth / Rotherham, Hope Valley  - as well as those already mentioned by Cyclone.

The Sheffield City Region does need far better links but the provision of one bike per tram at off peak times goes nowhere near solving anything.

 

High Green, Chapeltown, Dronfield, North Derbyshire, Worksop and North Notts, Rotherham, Hope Valley  - are already served by train services which carry booked bikes.

[Cyclone 10]

19 hours ago, makapaka said:

I wouldn't cycle around roads in the city centre - nor most parts of the suburbs  - for a golden pig.  It's madness.

 

Totally outdated form of transport for a city. I understand it ticks boxes for health and the environment but involves transport by balancing on metal spindles with zero protection on dangerous, busy roads.

 

In an ideal world yes but realistically - no ta.

Well, my "outdated" form of transport gets me to the office quicker than any other form available (unless you have a jetpack I can borrow).

It gets me 40 minutes of exercise a day instead of wasting 50-60 minutes sat down in a vehicle contributing to pollution.

The roads could be safer, that's true, it would take a moderate investment to make them so and that would encourage more cyclists.

They're not particularly busy though, being free to pass through Hillsborough corner and with quite a few pelican crossings that allow bikes to cross I can avoid the busiest roads, which also happens to make my journey slightly shorter.

18 hours ago, RootsBooster said:

How so?

Slower moving traffic means they have more time to see you and if you are hit at lower speeds you are less likely to sustain serious injury.

Quote

Maybe so - doesn’t make the roads in the city any  safer though.

It literally does make them safer.

 

14 hours ago, makapaka said:

Of course but potentially being hit by a slow car or a fast car isn’t really good either way is it. 

Being hit by a meteorite isn't good either, but if the risk of being hit is lower then that's literally safer.

 

There are many urban areas with higher levels of cycle usage, take cambridge for example, fairly famous for the high level of cycling in the UK.

Edited May 15, 2019 by Cyclone

[Halibut 12]

18 hours ago, makapaka said:

 Maybe so - doesn’t make the roads in the city any  safer though.

It completely and utterly does though.

[Cyclone 10]

On 13/05/2019 at 13:39, RootsBooster said:

I've been cycling across the city centre (most week days) for the best part of a year now, my input on a few of the subjects in this thread...

 

The hills- In the city centre there's nothing much of a challenge, coming out of it and into the suburbs there are some chuffs though. I think if you have a decent bike with decent gearing, it isn't all that bad.

 

The tram- Having been on the tram at peak times quite often, I doubt it would be possible to get a bike on there even if it were allowed, wheelchair users and parents with prams struggle enough as it is. The times when I've caught a tram in the morning, I've been stood almost cheek to cheek with the people around me, I wouldn't have been able to board with a bike. I like the idea of an external cycle rack though.

 

Hazards- I ride mostly on the cycle paths/lanes, so I'm mainly at risk of oblivious pedestrians and other cyclists. It's surprising how many pedestrians walk in the cycle paths/lanes and don't appear to realise what it is intended for (they also have a habit of not keeping in a straight line when staring down at their phones, adding a fun game of chance on your approach). With other cyclists I find that the 'inertia addicts' on two wheels are particularly dangerous when entering/exiting the underpasses without slowing down. The other regular problem is from bewildered -looking cyclists who don't know which side to move over to when approaching oncoming cycle-traffic (I always assume you should keep to your left, similar to road traffic flow).

I've only had one near miss with a car in the city centre, although when cycling out in the suburbs the cars tend to be the most common threat.

 

Weather- I find the weather doesn't matter too much, unless it's raining heavily. Light showers don't bother me.

 

There are a few hills that might give novice cyclists pause.  Up from Shalesmoor to the uni is a bit of a slog for example.  And to be fair, up from Shalesmoor to the city centre is also a considerable clime. 

 

I totally agree about pedestrians in cycle paths, I only use one cycle path, but it's a rare day that I don't find a pedestrian around a blind corner on it, bumbling along oblivious to the pedestrian pavement just 2 feet away (it's not shared space, they seem to be attracted to the slightly raised pink section painted with bike symbols instead of the boring tarmac coloured bit they should be on).

 

Spending a bit more time on the road, and following the tram track, I still find the greatest actual danger to be motorists.  A minority overtake with no care or attention, a very small number will overtake you and then immediately turn left, twice in 7 years I've had to take emergency evasive action to avoid being hit by someone doing that.  And once someone ran into the rear of my bike as we went through a Primrose view tram stop heading out of town.  They failed to stop and the police took so long to investigate that the CCTV on the tram coming the other way had been recycled.

[Guest makapaka]

30 minutes ago, Cyclone said:

Well, my "outdated" form of transport gets me to the office quicker than any other form available (unless you have a jetpack I can borrow).

It gets me 40 minutes of exercise a day instead of wasting 50-60 minutes sat down in a vehicle contributing to pollution.

The roads could be safer, that's true, it would take a moderate investment to make them so and that would encourage more cyclists.

They're not particularly busy though, being free to pass through Hillsborough corner and with quite a few pelican crossings that allow bikes to cross I can avoid the busiest roads, which also happens to make my journey slightly shorter.

It literally does make them safer.

 

Being hit by a meteorite isn't good either, but if the risk of being hit is lower then that's literally safer.

 

There are many urban areas with higher levels of cycle usage, take cambridge for example, fairly famous for the high level of cycling in the UK.

Ok crack on.

 

You seem to have taken my post personally - do what you want - I only said I wouldn’t do it because I wouldn’t feel safe.

29 minutes ago, Halibut said:

It completely and utterly does though.

The point I was making is that saying the cities roads are safer than rural roads wouldn’t make me feel any safer cycling around a busy city. 

 

Maybe i should have worded that better - apologies.

[Cyclone 10]

11 minutes ago, makapaka said:

I only said I wouldn’t do it because I wouldn’t feel safe.

 

You didn't though did you.

20 hours ago, makapaka said:

It's madness.

 

Totally outdated form of transport for a city.

That's what you actually said.

So anyone who cycles, you've just called mad.  You've also told them that what they're doing is outdated, with the implication being that they should catch up with the times and get in the much more up to date car presumably.

 

So, I didn't take it personally, I thought I'd just explain to you why it was neither outdated, nor madness.

 

And the feeling of it being unsafe, that's exactly what we've been talking about, address that problem through dedicated infrastructure that separates cycles from motor traffic (and ideally from pedestrians as well) and even someone like you might give it a try.

Edited May 15, 2019 by Cyclone