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Forum topic: Along Green Lanes by bike - the movie

Along Green Lanes by bike - the movie

Basil Clarke

30 Oct 2014 13:12 #482

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A new film with footage of Palmers Green is now out - and Talkies hasn't yet shown it.

cycling along green lanes oct 2014The film is a little wobbly - understandably, since the cameraman, Paul Smith, was filming while riding a bike from Enfield Town to Harringay along one of the proposed new improved cycle routes included in the "Mini-Holland/Cycle Enfield" scheme, to get a better idea of whether or not the proposed new cycle lanes are needed.

His verdict?  "A route with great potential for cyclists if the Enfield council has the guts to bite the bullet and get stuck in. In the past, Enfield Council has given back monies intended to improve cycling in the ,but let’s keep the pressure on and ensure they don’t do so again."

However, Mr Smith's views are not shared by the Chairman of the Green Lanes Business Association, Costas Georgiou, who according to the Enfield Gazette, is adamant that there is no need to radically alter Green Lanes. He is quoted as saying "I have spoken to many cyclists who do not understand why you would not cycle on the secondary streets that run parallel to Green Lanes,” he told the Advertiser. “For instance, Fox Lane has no speed bumps on it whatsoever – so it is ideal for cycling.”  Rather strange logic on two counts:  first, Fox Lanes goes in a completely different direction from Green Lanes, and second, the absence of speed bumps encourages drivers to go too fast along this hilly and bendy residential street, making it less safe for cyclists.

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Along Green Lanes by bike - the movie

Colin Younger

02 Nov 2014 19:55 #483

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The film clip would certainly put me off cycling along the A105!
Of course this is a commentary taking the view of a cyclist, but the issue is how to take in to account the needs of all road users, bicycles, motorbikes, cars, vans, lorries and buses and pedestrians who need to cross the flow of all these vehicles.
Paul stresses how wide the A105 is, and some sections are fairly wide, but others such as in Palmers Green are naturally narrow. In addition, some sections the road have been narrowed for particular reasons, and in these locations cycle lanes of the width being proposed are to say the least problematic.
A key problem for cyclists which the film shows is in having to pull out from the nearside lane to pass parked vehicles and buses waiting at stops. At first glance cycle lanes may seem to be the answer to this. However….
I may have misunderstood Paul’s point, but I don't follow the argument which is that cycle lanes allow cyclists using them to slip alongside buses at bus stops. Surely buses are stopped to let passengers on/off? Passengers need direct access to the pavement, not to have to dodge cyclists as they get on or off the bus. Is the plan to have all bus stops inset into the pavement line to allow buses to stop to the left of the cycle lane? If so it’s not obvious from the outline plans I have seen.
There is a suggestion (again as I heard it) for cars to park only on one side of the road. But that clears the road in only one direction, and, given the need for “displaced” passengers and drivers to cross the road to their preferred side this runs the risk of increasing pedestrian accidents. People crossing roads will simply not walk along to the nearest controlled crossing unless it’s within a few yards of where they are parked.
The comment about wider traffic islands squeezing cars/buses etc and cyclists together is OK as far as it goes. However, I assume that these are deliberately made wider to accommodate pedestrians with shopping trolleys and pushchairs eg outside Sainsbury’s and other shopping areas, or where large numbers congregate to cross, eg near schools. How will this conflict be managed?
The run down to the A406 where there is a bus lane seems to show that the cycle lanes will result in a continuous queue of cars/vans/buses along much of the A105. In effect under the proposals it becomes a single lane north/south, with no or fewer left/right filters and turning lanes.
I can't see how this conundrum can easily be solved, but there may be a clue in the references to Poynton, which I still think is a better solution for the shopping areas, but don’t ask me how this can be done!

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