Cycling UK Forum

Mick F wrote:It was discussed only half an hour ago on Today Radio4.
The sooner they build it, the better.

Cornwall and South Devon are basically a long branch-line at the moment, without any versatility. The line up from Plymouth/Horrabridge/Tavistock/Lydford/Okehampton is all available except for a short stretch just outside Tavistock where it crossed the A390. They'll need to put some bridges back where it crosses the A386 and the A390.
https://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=Tavist ... m&t=h&z=17
I think there's only one house on the railbed here at Tavy. You can see the course of the railway.

The rest of the railbed, including the tunnel and viaduct at Shillamill south of Tavy is all good and clear.

The stations enroute are private homes now, but it's chicken feed. The Tavistock Station area has housing and council offices on the site.

The route from Okehampton to Exeter is already in use.

Granite Way cycle track? - get rid of it and reinstate the railway.

Pete Owens wrote:

Mark1978 wrote:It depends which roads you are talking about.

Should this road have a parallel cycle path https://www.google.co.uk/maps/preview#! ... !2e0&fid=5 hell no; it's a perfect cycling road as it is.

That road could certainly be improved a great deal for cycling - remove the centre line impose a 40mph limit - give it a more country lane feel.
The sort of treatment you see in the Peak District or New Forest.

But really, it has no significance whatsoever for utility cycling - it is simply to far from where anyone lives or works.
And as for a "perfect cycling road" that all looks a bit hard work to me - it maybe OK for the young and fit hardened cyclists who think nothing of climbing 500m Northumberland hills into a headwind - but not for the 4 year olds - or the timid old ladies that are repeatedly claimed to justify the need for segregation.
w that is a place where a segregated route could be built. There is plenty of cheap land available and virtually no junctions

Should this road have a cycle path? https://www.google.co.uk/maps/preview#! ... !2e0&fid=5 yes! There's lots of fast moving and industrial traffic and there's already sufficient space it just needs using.

And generally, roads like that will now come complete with segregated paths - eg:
https://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=alderl ... .66,,0,3.5
Complete with the usual lethal arrangements round the huge cycle hostile roundabouts at either end.

However, this road is again irrelevant to utility (or even leisure) cycling. The road you show is a by-pass. For motorists it is worth choosing a route 50% longer if they can drive at twice the speed. Cyclists will choose the more direct route:
https://maps.google.co.uk/maps?saddr=Un ... 5&t=m&z=15
The way to improve conditions for cyclists in this case is not to build a cycle path following a long detour, but to use the fact that through traffic has been removed from Leadgate to downgrade (from a motoring perspective) the streets within the village.

Mark1978 wrote:Hmm quite so. No idea how that works in practice tbh. Would it be suitable for a moorland road such as the one I linked to?

Another view https://www.google.co.uk/maps/preview#! ... !2e0&fid=5