May Critical Mass - no registration required...

The good news is that PedalMCR will be opening soon







The ride finished in Platt Fields Park and a group then continued on to visit The Camp at the End of the Runway.

poolfreak has posted a short video




And another video from nacnacosworth

Nice Bike!

One of the most pleasurable things about moving to Manchester is the way in which total strangers interact. Today, as I walked home, a young woman rode round the corner infront of me on a wonderful new pink lowrider. The look on my face (along the lines of nice bike, I just wish I had a camera in my hand) was met with a big broad grin. Somehow I can't imagine that happening in Croydon!

Still, here are some nice bikes I have managed to photograph...

Shared Use Pavement - with cars...

At the junction of Mauldeth Road West and Princess Road there is a short section of shared use pavement. Pedestrians have to share the pavement with the occasional bicycle and several parked cars.



One wonders if you can get lessons in pavement driving as well...




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Cycle Response Unit

Manchester City Centre last Sunday.

Sky Ride Manchester 2011

This year's Skyride Manchester has been announced today.

Sunday 7th August 2011 at 10.00am

This kind of corporate takeover of cycling, closing the roads to traffic for just one single day of the year, is a nasty con trick which we need to confront, but how?



Compare and contrast Skyride with the city's monthly Critical Mass (photo above).

"Form two lanes when cycle lane is not in use"

Sharp Edge Trip has written a great post about the crap road signs which have appeared on the A57, encouraging drivers to use the new cycle lanes...


Image by Sharp Edge Trip

At least after the anti-cycling comments from the local councillir and former leader of the LibDem group on Manchester City Council he didn't get re-elected.

About Face

It's nice to see the care and attention given to cycle lanes...



Here the ever useful "END" word and bike sign have been painted upside down from the point of view of anyone using the lane.



Not that the average person on a bike takes any notice of the lane.


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Tree Hugging in Chorlton

A classic piece of crap cycle "infrastructure" in Chorlton on Manchester Road. Just direct the bicycles onto the rather poor piece of pavement that is narrowed by trees.

Going South...



Going North...!



Notice how northbound you are directed into the tree. One wonders whether that was the intention of the route designer or whether (s)he couldn't care less.

In between the two trees going south is also the start of a cycle lane on the road...

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Update: Sharp Edge Trip wrote this rather more comprehensive report last August about the same spot, with a better photo, and links to this article in the South Manchester Reporter

Residents have hit out after pavements on a busy high street were turned into cycle paths.

Signs appeared indicating that walkways on Manchester Road in Chorlton had to be shared with bike users.

But residents claim the move has made the pavements a hazard, saying there is not enough room for pedestrians and cyclists to share the pavements.

One mystery person has even taken the law into their own hands and sprayed over the markings with black paint, which has since been cleaned off by council staff.

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P.S. On the Manchester Cycling Map this section is marked as "Traffic-free routes with a good surface that can be used in all weathers". A case of lies on the map....

Cyclecraft

Practical advice on how to survive the UK's roads on a bicycle.

Crap cycling in East Lancashire

A posting from A Grim North reveals yet more anti cycling measures on nearby Sustrans routes. This one is NCN route 92...

Just north of Whitworth I picked up route 92 again, but only stuck with it for about 1 mile before returning to the road. Too circuitous and far too many obstructions – I think there were 6 kissing gates in 1 mile! For me this is a footpath, not a cycle path – I certainly didn’t get on wheels to stop every few minutes to lift my bike over an obstacle!

I really do wonder how Sustrans can take pride in their work when they are installing such blatent anti-cycling measures.

"Rethink over bike trail steps"

On page 22 of Monday's MEN is a story about the TPT steps.

It says that TfGM has made two new proposals, widening the bridge or putting in a separate tunnel to the side.

Keith Whitmore, chairman of TfGM... said: "These are new ideas and we will need further discussion so we get it right. Having the Metrolink is a positive thing but shouldn't be at the expence of the Trans Pennine Trail."

For some reason the online version of this story is somewhat different and appears under the headline "Tram stop victory for action group".


Cllr Keith Whitmore (libdem) - right
Picture from TfGM web site

One has to wonder if he ever rides a bicycle...