Thursday 21 December 2006

Wednesday 20 December 2006

Jewson unloads


Jewson unloads
Originally uploaded by fred pipes.
The new [New England Quarter] station site's system of roadways is fully cycle-laned, and they do make excellent loading bays!

Tuesday 12 December 2006

Could Manchester bollards be a solution to Brighton's traffic problem?

North Street Quadrant


North Street Quadrant
Originally uploaded by fred pipes.
This is the North Street Quadrant, bone of contention with Bricycles and the council. It was once a road and nifty short cut for cyclists to Queens Road, now blocked off by 'the developers' (not the council!).

Monday 11 December 2006

3 Million Cycling Fund Wasted On Goody Bags (from The Argus): my letter to the Argus.

When Brighton and Hove City Council was given £3 million to spend on developing a cycling demonstration town, I prayed it wouldn't all be frittered away on audits, consultants, feasibility studies and fact-finding missions.

However, it has found new and ingenious ways of spending money in the name of improving and encouraging urban cycling in west Brighton and Hove.

Instead of handing out goody bags to the people of Portslade (Council wasting £3m cycle fund', The Argus, December 7), it could have made a start on joining up the existing fragmented cycle routes.

Advertisement continued...

In contrast, the council has been busy making it even more difficult to get from A to B by bicycle in Brighton, not only closing off the North Street Quadrant to cyclists, a safe and convenient short cut by the Clock Tower, but also installing "tank traps" made from rows of granite cobbles to knobble the unwary cyclist along what is designated a blue "official cycle route" according to the Council's latest cycle map.

Elder Place and Providence Place, parallel to London Road, once a quiet route from Preston Circus to North Laine, has become an obstacle course more suited to mountain bikes.

The council seems more intent on scoring brownie points and winning spurious awards over other demonstration towns than giving ordinary citizens practical help to abandon their gas guzzlers and get on their bikes.

Alan (Fred) Pipes, Gerard Street, Brighton
12:32pm today

Thursday 7 December 2006

Wednesday 29 November 2006

Cycle lane parking


Cycle lane parking
Originally uploaded by fred pipes.
The contra-flow cycle lane on York Hill makes an ideal place to park! On my way back I spotted a van and 2 cars on there but couldn't be bothered photographing them! Parking on contra-flows is particularly dangerous because the cyclist has to pull out to face oncoming traffic.

New Road


New Road
Originally uploaded by fred pipes.
New Road is Brighton's Euro-style experiment of getting cars, taxis, cycles and pedestrians sharing the same space, with no road markings or signs. I hope they don't leave that fearsome step up onto the new blocks!

Tuesday 28 November 2006

Cobblers


cobbles2
Originally uploaded by fred pipes.
Rows of cobbles designed to knobble the unwary cyclist seem to be springing up all over the place. On Providence Place, just by St Barts church, our council has laid these cobbles. What are they for? They clearly don't calm cars, but are a hazard to cyclists using this as a quiet route from Preston Circus to the North Laine. Ironically, because of the road camber, the middle section where the cars go is relatively lower! They are also to be found on Ann Street.

Friday 22 September 2006

Bicycle Ballet


Bicycle Ballet
Originally uploaded by fred pipes.
Car free day! Shame nobody told the motorists. Those two drivers who crashed head-on outside the Phoenix gallery would have been a lot safer on bikes! I spotted the mayhem as I was on my way to watch the Bicycle Ballet, which was actually quite entertaining (apart from the smelly coloured smoke!) from my high-level vantage point. It was pissing down earlier on, but the sun came out just in time. Spotted Nick Sayers amongst the 'dancers' - with clothes on!

Saturday 29 July 2006

Critical Mass cuts crime


Critical Mass cuts crime
Originally uploaded by fred pipes.
Have you ever wondered where the coppers are when you need one? One concerned citizen couldn't believe his luck when he spotted this month's critical mass accompanied by its usual huge number of cycle bobbies and their van. He'd just witnessed a couple of dodgy looking geezers half-inch a bag from a marquee in Brunswick Square. Immediately six of our cycle bobbies sped off on their Smith and Wesson police bikes in pursuit. As we looped back onto the seafront we saw the alleged thieves helping the police with their enquiries. Tip to would be criminals – avoid Brighton seafront on the last Friday of each month between 6.30pm and 8pm.

Tuesday 18 July 2006

YouTube - World Naked Bike Ride Brighton: my 3 minute video of the Brighton naked bike ride!
BBC - Radio 4 - The Fall and Rise of the Bicycle: Mark Stephen discovers the importance of the bicycle as a global barometer of social, economic and environmental change.
Lets Talk: cycling: Emily Thornberry MP made a short film for Channel Four on the joys and benefits of cycling in the city.

Thursday 29 June 2006

Cyclists win police court battle: "London's cyclists have won a legal contest against the police who wanted to make a monthly bike event unlawful."

Tuesday 27 June 2006

My weird cycle lane website gets a mention in Pikle - Brighton Cross - 31 - Of cycling and lanes (long and weird), of bowling (mixed), and a rainbow of huts - a fascinating piece of psychogeography, a walk east to west through Brighton and Hove.

Tuesday 20 June 2006

City gridlocked after bike ride: "Hundreds of motorists were stuck for hours in traffic as the annual London to Brighton Bike Ride once again left roads gridlocked ... Roads were plunged into chaos, renewing calls for a park-and-ride scheme and complaints that rail companies would not take bikes on trains during the event." Well, what did they expect? Bring back the slam-door trains!

Wednesday 14 June 2006

Tuesday 13 June 2006

Cyclists bare all for greener living: an account from The Argus of the World Naked Bike Ride in Brighton last Saturday.

Saturday 10 June 2006

And another from Mock Duck: World Naked Bike Ride
Another great set of photos of the World Naked Bike Ride 2006 in Brighton.

Brighton Naked Bike Ride


Brighton Naked Bike Ride
Originally uploaded by fred pipes.
The Brighton leg of the World Naked Bike Ride set off from The Level around 10.15am after much body painting and disguising of 'naughty and rude bits' under the supervision of a handful of police bobbies (far fewer than on the average Critical Mass). It was a scorcher of a morning and about 160 people cycled down to the seafront, west to Hove, through the North Laine, into Kemp Town and finally to the nudist beach where they could get dressed again. Some were off to London for the rally in the Big City. More photos on Flickr tho none of the ride itself cos I was too busy videoing it.

Friday 9 June 2006

York Hill


York Hill
Originally uploaded by fred pipes.
Hoorah for the council for legalising my short cut from Town to home via Preston Circus with this short but sweet contra-flow cycle lane. But there was a missed opportunity on Cheapside where they've made a cycle lane go with the one-way traffic instead of creating another contra-flow. And on London Road more cycling obstacles have been appearing - see the main Weird Cycle Lanes website for more.

Les Cyclistes


Les Cyclistes
Originally uploaded by fred pipes.
Les Cyclistes, devised by David Furnham, is a play of two halves: Danny Schlesinger opens with an amiable Jacques Tati-type mime based around his Brompton with a flat front tyre, improvising with all the weird and wonderful tools that come with a puncture-repair kit! Then Simon Hedger, dressed as a hard-core cyclist takes over and does a Reg-type monotonous monologue about his Audax exploits as he brews a cup of tea in the cyclists' kitchen. There's quite a bit of Clarion interest - first thing he does is shout Boots! to the audience (I replied Spurs! which identifies me as a Clarionnette). Great entertainment - and it's all free - on Hove Lawns by the Peace statue. There's also several films on the go, in the marquee and in the Citroen van next door, including hilarious archive Pathe footage and the company's own film Allez, Allez, Alllez. There's also an interactive bike taking you on a dicey ride around some suburban streets. It's on until 18 June (not Mondays) from 10am until 6pm. Shame the sunshine is proving to be a bigger draw!

Thursday 8 June 2006

the cool hunter - BIKE PARKING: I think this makes the point!
Riders cover up 'rude bits': "Cyclists planning to take part in a naked bike ride will cover up their modesty with fig leaves after being warned they could be arrested if they expose any 'rude bits'. Up to 100 people are expected to strip on Saturday for a World Naked Bike Ride through the streets of Brighton and Hove."

Thursday 25 May 2006

Cyclist in bike ride court battle: "A cyclist has launched a High Court challenge against police claims that a long-running monthly cycle ride through London is unlawful."

Tuesday 25 April 2006

Cyclists strip for a naked protest: "Nude cyclists will be riding through Brighton and Hove as the city hosts its first World Naked Bike Ride. Brighton and Hove will be among 40 cities around the world joining the June event, which will also be a celebration of the human body. Wearing just a pair of flip-flops and a cycle helmet, Nick Sayers, 33, from Hove, was part of the 250-strong protest in London last year."

Tuesday 28 March 2006

U-turn on cycle parking spaces: "A victory has been won by cyclists who were told they were not welcome at Brighton's £14 million eco-friendly Jubilee Library. Dozens of cyclists felt snubbed when managers of the land on which the library was built made it clear their vision for the area 'does not include bike racks'. But in a surprise turnaround, cyclists will now get 42 cycle parking spaces. They say this will be a major boost not only to the library but to the whole area as cyclists would be encouraged to visit." Last time I looked, there were no racks on Jubilee Street and I presume the 22 new ones will be with the others by the swimming pool.

Thursday 16 March 2006

BBC NEWS: Crazy cycle lanes: some great citizen witness photos on the BBC website

Saturday 11 March 2006

No cycle parking?


jubilee_racks2
Originally uploaded by fred pipes.
And then there were none! Where have the Sheffield cycle racks outside Brighton's Jubilee Library gone?

Where is the cycle parking?


jubilee_racks1
Originally uploaded by fred pipes.
Only one left! Where have the Sheffield cycle racks outside Brighton's Jubilee Library gone?

Dr Bike


dr_bike
Originally uploaded by fred pipes.
Dr Bike, alias Ian Davey, does a free postcoding and Dr Bike session outside Brighton Town Hall

Monday 27 February 2006

Library racks


Library racks
Originally uploaded by fred pipes.
On Saturday, I noticed that the cycle rack with missing Sheffields at the Jubilee library now had barriers round them, which provided a bit more to chain bikes to, but why? One theory is that someone is stealing the nuts and hence these types of rack have to be replaced...

Friday 24 February 2006

Thursday 23 February 2006

Missing Sheffields


Missing Sheffields
Originally uploaded by fred pipes.
Cycle parking outside Brighton's new Jubilee Library has just been halved! Three Sheffield stands have been removed... Well, they were a bit close together! Maybe too many cyclists were using the library?

Thursday 16 February 2006

Wednesday 15 February 2006

Mock Duck - mockduck saves the world, again: some positive ideas about Brighton's cycle lanes.

Tuesday 31 January 2006

Brighton & Hove City Council - cycling conference: "The 'Cycling and the Urban Realm' conference to be held at Hove Town Hall, launches the three year 'cycling demonstration town' project, awarded to Brighton & Hove last autumn. The project will attract £3 million of funding over three years." Council press release for the conference held on Friday 27 January.

Monday 30 January 2006

no_cycling


no_cycling
Originally uploaded by fred pipes.
Make your mind up! Presumably it was NO CYCLES at first than someone had a change of heart and allowed them in - but not being ridden!

Saturday 28 January 2006

ebay_cyclelane


Ebay cyclelane
Originally uploaded by fred pipes.
Not one of mine! This is the cycle lane in Cornwall for sale on Ebay! There were no takers at a starting price of 99p. See below for description.

Better by bike


bike1
Originally uploaded by fred pipes.
Yes, we know it is! This story is about the Cycling and Urban Realm conference at Hove Town Hall, and about the £3million Brighton has received as Cycling Demonstration Town. I do so hope it won't be frittered away in red tape and beaurocracy - and jollies for council officials to visit Denmark!

Meanwhile, on the last friday of January (and every month) about 60 brave souls plus a handful of cycle bobbies and a CCTV van (to prevent multiple rotations of roundabouts) cycled around Brighton's snowy roads in the latest Critical Mass, taking a small detour through the railway station to see if we could get our bikes onto rush hour trains. Not possible I'm afraid!

bike3


Tuesday 24 January 2006

eBay.co.uk: Cycle Lane (item 7213485137 end time 28-Jan-06 11:54:08 GMT): this link won't be here for ever so I'll rescue the photo and text!

http://static.flickr.com/15/92098960_b21805fc20_o.jpg

This auction is for an extremely useful cycle lane. Developed by Cornwall County Council at a cost of £123,014 grab yourself a bargain with no reserve starting at 99p.

Practicalities

At 12.32 metres in length, any cyclist, however fit, will never be able to gain sufficient speed to incur a serious accident. In pre-consumer trials I did try a standing fall and grazed my elbow.

Can be used for cycle lane training. Indicate left, pull into cycle lane, brake, check that nothing is coming, pull out and continue. Use it with your children to ensure correct cycle lane entry and exit technique.

I am currently working on a scheme to create a fold up version that could be slotted into panniers; this I think could prove very especially useful in city centres where taxis have no respect for cyclists. Pedestrians may be frustrated.

I am open to any other suggestions.

A forum will be set up at Cornwall County Council to assess strategic environmental benefit contingencies. A raft of cycle lane policy pre-implementation documents will be forwarded to the home office and a purple paper delivered to the offices of DEFRA for personal perusal by John Prescott to cross reference with his current transport initiative.

History

This lane was designed by a health and safety committee working to exacting European regulations. The committee presented proposals for a draught consultation exercise in October 1987, this was reviewed and a 20th scale model produced by a team of experts flown in from Seattle. On approval of the planning committee representatives from friends of the earth decided that the tar content of the bitumen element of the surface might introduce fatigue in the localities hump back toad population and so recommended the use of a synthetic compound subsequently imported from Nicaragua.

Councillor Imap Eddling added 'we here at CCC spare no expense looking after the safety of our environmentally aware commuters'.

Any funds raised will be donated to MENCAP

Please check out other useful devices on this site.

Wednesday 18 January 2006

Cyclists try to put a spoke in rush-hour train ban: "Dozens of cyclists staged a protest to mark the first day of a bicycle ban on trains. Southern trains is turning away bikes to create more space on its overcrowded rush-hour trains between London and Brighton."

Tuesday 17 January 2006

Cyclists unite to protest bike ban: "Cyclist Richard Bates, a Mid-Sussex district councillor, has called for decommissioned carriages to be brought back into service as bike wagons, which could also be used for special events such as the London to Brighton Ride."

Thursday 12 January 2006

Cycle Train Commuter Group: The sole reason for providing this site is to co-ordinate efforts to try and get Southern to rethink their cycle carrying policies on peak time trains running from the South Coast to London Victoria.