It was a lovely summers morning. I set off from the house at 6am. Which way to go? I decided to go via Peckham Rye. I didn’t fancy the horrible roadworks on the A202/A202 which have caused me grief on more than one occasion.
As I entered Clapham Common I saw the launch tent for the Cycle Superhighways. For today is the day when the first two of Boris’s babies go live. I should have stopped because I learnt afterwards that they were giving away free bidons. I’m always up for a freebie you know.
I’m not sure what to make of these Superhighways or as some cynics have called them Superficial Highways. I think they could be a good starting point. Hopefully lessons learnt from these will improve subsequent implementations. On the face of it they really do seem just to be painted blue lines on the road. Yes, they have created more ASL’s and also enlarged those existing ones. Yes, signage is improved. Yes they have provided led rides and training and yes, cycle parking along the routes has been installed.
Where Tfl have missed a trick is the re-engineering of junctions. A case in point is shown here. No re-engineering here, no priority lights, no new cycle only filter lane. Nada. It seems strange to me. The idea is to encourage people to cycle into town by providing safe and continuous routes. A newbie cyclist would be terrified if greeted with a disappearing blue lane and multiple lanes of traffic. As for continuous, the blue lane is broken at various points by bus lanes and parking spaces(what the…???).
I think Tfl should have spent more money on the actual infrastructure and got it right first time. Why didn’t this happen? If I was to be cynical about the whole project I would guess that the reason is that here in the UK the car is king. The idea of slightly inconveniencing the motorist is unthinkable. Look how many people got hot under the collar about closing the roads for the Skyride for one day. One day in 365. People argue that there simply isn’t enough space for everyone to get what they want. It appears to me that the motorist gets exactly want they want, other road users less so. I look around the Superhighway routes and I see wide pavements. Why couldn’t these be narrowed slightly. This would free up space to provide separate lanes. Is it cost or is it politics?
For these reasons I am afraid we are stuck with substandard cycle lanes which amount to a new lick of paint on the road. I can only hope that the next wave of superhighways get it right, but I won’t be holding my breath. However it is not all doom and gloom. For novice riders these Cycle Superhighways may hold an attraction and if enough people use them, the the critical mass effect will come into play, making it safer for all concerned. Certainly, the high profile nature of the Superhighways and the press the pilot routes have garnered, good and bad, has raised the profile of cycling in London a great deal. This is no bad thing.