Cycle Lanes

Cycle lanes are often a waste of paint on the UK's roads. There, I've said something that's probably very shocking to some. It gets worse though, as I believe that many cycling facilities actively encourage poor cycling habits and put cyclists at risk. Now I imagine that some of you are thinking that this is crazy, cycle lanes are supposed to make it safer on the roads to help you stay apart from all the dangerous traffic, right?

Unfortunately the reverse is true. Cycle lanes tend to reduce the perception of danger, whilst actually increasing the danger itself. This is because all they protect against, and then to a very limited degree, is being hit from behind, which is one of the least common types of "accident". Far more common are accidents at junctions, and this is where cycle lanes turn into a complete nightmare. There are many other problems with cycle lanes, and yet relatively few advantages.

The Law

Quite a few people believe that it’s law that cyclists have to use a cycle lane where present. This is not true, and anyone telling you this is talking out of their hat.  Many drivers either drive in or park in cycle lanes, regardless of whether they are advisory (with a white dashed boundary line) or mandatory (with a solid line), and such offences are rarely if ever punished.  I should also point out that the mandatory cycle lane is only mandatory for car drivers not to enter, rather than for cyclists to use.

Supporting evidence? The recent highway code update was altered thanks to campaigning by the CTC and other groups, and now states: “Use of cycle lanes is not compulsory and will depend on your experience and skills, but they can make your journey safer.” (Rule 63).  The Highway Code never previously stated that cyclists had to use cycle lanes, but this latest update helped to clarify the issue.  Of course quite a few cyclists would dispute the make your journey safer part of that rule, because many make your journey more dangerous than riding as part of the traffic.

The Daniel Cadden case: Won on appeal, I believe this case  left the police involved looking rather foolish and brought a large amount of publicity to the issue. Essentially the police in Telford pulled Daniel over for cycling on the road and “forcing” drivers to illegally overtake him by crossing double white lines. http://www.lcc.org.uk/index.asp?PageID=786

Cycle Lanes Petition to the Government

Government reply to a petition complaining about the poorness of cycle facilities, and requesting the government to force all road designers to cycle on the cycle lanes they plan: “The use of cycle lanes is not compulsory for cyclists. They can choose to ignore them and use the remainder of the carriageway if they prefer to do so. “. http://www.pm.gov.uk/output/Page10784.asp

Being inconsiderate to drivers?

Many drivers might feel cyclists are being inconsiderate when not using a cycle lane, and that roads are for cars. I hope this article will show that cyclists have their own safety in mind when not using cycle facilities, and that they have an equal right to use the road for their journeys.  I know that when I cycle I try not to hold up faster traffic, and for example, I often pull in on narrow roads with parked cars along both sides to allow a vehicle behind me to pass. I also often slow down and allow buses to pull out, as well as not always going to the front of the queue at traffic lights if the vehicles ahead of me are going to make swift progress after the junction.

On the other hand, when there’s a conflict between my safety and the convenience of a driver, there’s simply no contest. This is why I don’t ride in the door zone, and instead take the lane in the above narrow road example, as well as the middle of the lane through pinch points and junctions.

Good points for cycle lanes

Cycle lanes are not all bad, and do have some advantages. One of the big points is that they make it much easier for people to do some pleasant leisure cycling, particularly with the whole family.

Types of Cycle lanes/paths/facilities

There are many different types of cycle facilities; I’ve discussed the problems with a few of the more common ones below:

On-road cycle lanes, no separation

These are cycle lanes painted onto the edge of the road. Effectively they are like bus lanes, or another car lane, but they have plenty of disadvantages:

• Too narrow, almost always less than the recommended width of 2m, and often below the minimum recommendation of 1.5.
• They tend to start and stop unexpectedly.
• Debris causing loss of control and punctures
• Encourage close overtaking by vehicles

On road cycle lanes, with a physical divider

More common in Europe, there are some in the UK. These do prevent cars from coming too close to cyclists where there is the divider, but they retain the problems of often being too narrow. They also accumulate considerably more debris because they are rarely swept by councils, and motor vehicles cannot stray into them occasionally as happens with painted on road cycle lanes. They also retain the same problems as on road cycle lanes at junctions, which is the most serious set of problems.

The divider adds an additional problem, especially where the lane is too narrow. Touch the divider with a wheel whilst riding along, and you’re almost certainly going to crash.

Shared use pavement, next to the road

Because so many of the UK’s roads are narrow, one compromise has been to put cycle lanes onto pavements, and sharing this with pedestrians. In my opinion, these are the worst and most dangerous cycle lanes of all, and can only be used at low speed and with extreme care. The problems include:

• Debris, causing potential loss of control and punctures
• Uneven surfaces when crossing driveways and pedestrian crossings with ridges or blind-man bobbles.
• Going right past or even through bus stops (yes, really!)
• No priority over driveways and side crossings.
• Mixed riding with pedestrians.
• Unpredictable behavior from many path users, both pedestrians and cyclists.

Off road cycle paths

Some of these can be included amongst the most successful and popular of all cycle facilities. For the most part, they are leisure cycling routes for quiet family use away from the traffic. One good example is the Bristol-Bath cycle route, a common commuter route.

These paths do still have their problems, but provided you’re willing to keep to a lower speed they are perhaps the best of all the facilities in the UK.

Problems with cycle lanes

Here’s a selection of problems with cycle lanes. These are generic, and some will not apply to each and every facility. After this section, I’ve placed a separate section detailing the different types of cycle lane and how these problems particularly apply to them.

Junction complexity

This is the single biggest issue with cycle lanes, and the one that is perhaps the biggest safety concern. Here’s a standard road junction, each road being two-way with a give way, and no cycle lanes. Note how the junction is relatively simple.

Now notice the cycle lanes added in, and how they hugely complicate matters. From a single junction, there are now nine separate junctions, each of which requires vehicle drivers/riders to check priority and then whether it is safe to proceed.

Sadly cycle lanes can’t avoid this sort of problem because they are a parallel of the road network and thus need to go most places the roads go. Without over or underpasses, or staying at a different level to the road network, these types of junctions can’t be avoided.

Too Narrow

Most of the time they are too narrow, and squeezed into a road that is too narrow to start with. I’ve seen only a very few examples that meet the standard for cycle lane width, which is 2m. Many are narrower than the recommended 1.5m.

• http://www.camcycle.org.uk/resources/cyclelanewidths/

• John Franklin: “Cyclists need at least 2m clear width for comfort and safety.”

• http://www.camcycle.org.uk/campaigning/letters/2004/C04002TRLVehiclesNearNarrowCycleLanes.pdf

Passing too closely

It seems that many drivers will pass cyclists more closely when there is a cycle lane on a road, than when there isn’t one. The effect of cycle lanes on how drivers pass cyclists - http://homepage.ntlworld.com/pete.meg/wcc/report/cycle-lanes.pdf

Priority failures

Priority around cycle lanes is often confused. Often car drivers simply assume that all cyclists are less important than motor vehicles, and expect them to automatically give way to cars. It’s also often not clear who should give way when a cycle lane intersects with a road.

The situation is considerably better in the Netherlands, where most points where cycle lanes cross roads are marked with appropriate give way triangles. This isn’t always the case, and some of my Dutch friends have noted how car drivers don’t always properly give way at these junctions.

Being encouraged to ride in the gutter

By their very nature and location, cycle lanes tend to encourage cyclists to ride well to the left. This is a BAD THING, and is because it encourages cyclists to filter up the left hand side of heavy goods vehicles, particularly where there is a feeder lane into an ASL (advanced stopping line).

Being on the left of a left-turning heavy goods vehicle is the single biggest killer of cyclists in London. From this point of view, cycle lanes on the left of the road could be considered as a painted warning on the road not to ride there. See this link on Heavy Goods Vehicles and cyclists for more detail.

A number of cyclists have commented that cycle lanes painted on the road are a good indication of where it is not safe to ride. Being held to the left in a cycle lane and through a junction is particularly stupid, as most junctions should be crossed whilst in the middle of your lane, primary position.

Debris

There is also the problem that debris tends to cover them because cars no longer drive in the cycle lane as often. Car tyres have a very useful sweeping effect that clears normal roads of glass, stripped tyre treads and wire, etc. These items are a particular hazard to all two wheeled vehicles because of the small contact area their tyres have.

Bad surfaces

Many cycle lanes have very poor quality surfaces because they are not built to the same standard as roads. Whilst not a problem at low speeds on a wide-tyred bike, this quickly prevents cyclists from using such poor quality lanes at ordinary cycling speeds.

Indiscipline of users

Users of off-road facilities such as cycle paths and shared pavements are notoriously unpredictable. This includes pedestrians walking in the cycling section, cyclists riding on the wrong side of the path, etc., and leads to extra caution being required.

Pedestrians require the most respect and care of all road users as they are the most vulnerable. They also don’t expect cyclists on the pavement, and quite often and understandably get angry with pavement riders, not seeing the difference between standard pavements where cyclists are banned, and shared use pavements which also have a cycle path.

Unsuitable for travelling distances at speed

The Department for Transport themselves recommend that if a cyclist wants to travel at 18mph or faster, they should use the roads. Now 18mph on a bicycle may sound fast, but most people can do this sort of speed very easily over short distances, and considerably more down hills.

http://www.dft.gov.uk/consultations/archive/2004/ltnwc/annexdcodeofconductnoticefor1688

I feel that 18mph is too fast for many of the cycle lanes I’ve seen, and would normally go much slower than this from a safety point of view. A good example is the shared use path in a park I often travel through on my way to work. I like this particular path because it’s quiet and through a lovely green area, but it has numerous pedestrians and dog walkers who have an equal right to enjoy the park. This means I ride slowly through here, and if I’m in a rush and need to get to work quickly, then I’ll take an alternative route using the roads so I can cruise at a much higher speed.

Often don’t go where cyclists want to go

Because there are such limited numbers of cycle lanes, stopping and starting randomly, they often don’t go where a cyclist needs to go. The road network, however, does, which is one reason so many cyclists don’t use cycle paths.

Cycle lanes start and stop unexpectedly

They tend to start and stop unexpectedly with nowhere to go for cyclists using them. For example across bus stops and when going through road narrowings (pinch points), leaving the cyclist marooned, too far to the left and with nowhere to go at the very moment they are about to approach a hazard.

Some quotes from other cyclists

I thought you might enjoy some of these:

“CYCLE LANE. Separate but unequal facility constructed more out of guilt than a sincere desire to be helpful. By law such lanes must end wherever they become the slightest bit inconvenient to other road users. Often confused by motorists as emergency parking for a quick nip into the shop.”
Bicycle, 1999

“Cycle paths are bad in every possible way. Use the real road wherever it is practicable.” Dondare.

Response to motorist wrongly telling a cyclist to “Use the cycle lane”. “Naaw, YOU is de cycle lane”. An alternative is to tell them to “Get on the motorway”, or that “Cycle paths are just there to encourage motorists like you who are too scared to cycle amongst drivers like yourselves. The rest of us are quite happy on the roads, thanks.”

Conclusion

I’d take things a step further and say that in my opinion, cycle lanes are simply a method of getting bicycles out of the way of motor vehicles, and that for the most part they provide little or no benefit to cyclists.  I’m sorry if this makes painful reading for any council and highway engineers. There’s something very wrong with what is being done in the name of cyclists.  I think I speak for many cyclists when I say that my expectations are not being met, not by a long way.

I also hate how cycle lanes tend to encourage some drivers to expect cyclists to use them.  This leads some bad drivers to shout at cyclists for not using them, or worse, try to teach them a lesson by cutting them up.  Cycle lanes almost never go where I want to go, but the roads do.

I’m a fan of John Franklin’s approach to cycling, which involves riding on the road amongst the traffic. It’s safer, faster and a really nice way to get around the UK, but it does require some learning and practice to get the full benefit of the approach.  Riding as part of the traffic is intimidating to some, especially when it comes to busy roads and complex traffic junctions, but there are a few things you can do to make yourself a better and safer rider, and to give yourself the confidence to ride well and actually enjoy these situations.

• Read Cyclecraft by John Franklin
• Take some National Standards cycling lessons
• Video some of your cycling and discuss with other experienced cyclists.  This is particularly useful when learning how to deal with a particular junction.

If you're already an experienced driver or cyclist, this might seem a little like being told how to walk, but it's worth persisting.  Even as an experienced driver, cyclist, and motorcyclist, I found I gained a great deal from the cyclists viewpoint and changed my riding quite significantly, to the extent that my commute in London used to be slightly stressful, and now is relaxing and fun.  Of course my riding is far from perfect now, but it's much improved.  Before this I never realised quite how much my own actions influenced those of drivers around me in the traffic.

Links

John Franklin’s digest on cycle path research:

http://www.cyclecraft.co.uk/digest/research.html

“Safety problems of two-way cycle tracks at junctions almost insuperable.”
“Cycle paths as traditionally built do not guarantee a reduction in casualties.”
“Conventional cycle tracks increase cyclists' risk at junctions”
“In Helsinki, using a road-side cycle path is nearly 2.5 times likely to result in injury than cycling on the carriageway with traffic. At junctions the relative risk rises to more than 3 times”

Warrington Cycle Campaign – Facility of the Month

Click through the Facility of the Month pages on this website, and you’ll be entertained for hours with 80 images of some of the worst cycling facilities in the UK. The sad thing is that this sort of rubbish isn’t even uncommon, it seems to be the norm.

http://homepage.ntlworld.com/pete.meg/wcc/facility-of-the-month/index.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bicycle_facilities#The_safety_of_segregated_cycle_facilities

Some Cycle Lane Examples

Three bad cycle lanes in York

Going over Vauxhall Bridge

Notice how I don't use the cycle lane?  I avoid using it because I've had my elbow brushed by buses before.  Now that I ride further out, I get far more space when being passed, and I avoid getting punctures from the debris in the cycle lane.  I used to get quite a few riding in there!  Of course you do get the occasional driver beeping you for not being in the cycle lane, but that's simple impatience on their part, and can also be interpreted as a sign that they've seen you.

A cycle lane around the outside of a roundabout in West Wickham.  I think this is an incredibly dangerous design because it puts cyclists right where motorists are not looking, and where are likely to drive through the cyclist.  See Cyclecraft for the proper way to negotiate a roundabout, which essentially involves taking the lane as a driver would.  Note also the dangerous debris in the cycle lane.

Further on from this same roundabout, this advisory cycle lane is full of puncture inducing debris that may cause you to take a spill.  It also disappears for the bus stop - what is a cyclist supposed to do here?  Teleport across the gap?  Lastly of course are the vehicles parked quite legally in the cycle lane, though cyclists need to negotiate out into the traffic stream to pass them.  One of the only good things about this cycle lane is that it's one of the very few I've seen that are actually just wide enough.  Given the other failings, however, the council may as well remove the paint from the road surface because this cycle lane is pointless and doesn't add any benefit for cyclists.

Inline skating lessons :: About us :: Disclaimer :: Press Page

All material on this website is © Copyright 2000-2007 LondonSkaters.com, contributors, and associates. Please do not reproduce anything without permission.  If you wish to use photos or other material from this website, please contact me first.