Leeds Cycle Lanes

[Heathrowflyer]

Dear all
If you have time and agree would you consider signing this petition about Leeds City Council and ill thought through cycle lanes?

Can you spare a minute to help nadeem s s?

Stop creating cycle lanes by sacrificing usable Road space

chng.it

Sheepscar interchange is currently having a lane removed to make way for a cycle lane ( which is now causing massive congestion and tailbacks) to create a cycle lane. It's one of the busiest intersections in Leeds. No doubt Armley Gyratory and Dawson's corner will be next when they get 'upgraded', with a lane taken out for cycles.

I'm not against cycles but arbitrarily taking out these lanes on the busiest routes in Leeds is madness and I fear it reflects the Council's environmental downer on any form of useful transport eg cars and planes. In terms of volume of users I'd have thought it was more progressive to use these cycle lanes for trams (sadly it seems not) or buses if they were going to be taken from car users.

 

[Seasider]

My son is a keen cyclist and he never uses cycle lanes. He uses quiet roads and lanes as the cycle lanes are often more hazardous.

 

[LBA4EVER]

I just give up with LCC, there a waste of air!

 

[Aviador]

Dear all
If you have time and agree would you consider signing this petition about Leeds City Council and ill thought through cycle lanes?

Can you spare a minute to help nadeem s s?

Stop creating cycle lanes by sacrificing usable Road space

chng.it

Sheepscar interchange is currently having a lane removed to make way for a cycle lane ( which is now causing massive congestion and tailbacks) to create a cycle lane. It's one of the busiest intersections in Leeds. No doubt Armley Gyratory and Dawson's corner will be next when they get 'upgraded', with a lane taken out for cycles.

I'm not against cycles but arbitrarily taking out these lanes on the busiest routes in Leeds is madness and I fear it reflects the Council's environmental downer on any form of useful transport eg cars and planes. In terms of volume of users I'd have thought it was more progressive to use these cycle lanes for trams (sadly it seems not) or buses if they were going to be taken from car users.

Signed!

You need to read Twitter user @PaulChatterton9 - the bane of my life. Obsessive compulsive anti airport pro cycling fanatic and a Leeds Uni professor who has just gained millions to preach his agenda to the masses. Expect many more cycle lanes over the coming years. As well as being a LCC policy it is now also government policy. It's completely ridiculous without adequate alternative public transport options.

 

[Statto]

Signed!

You need to read Twitter user @PaulChatterton9 - the bane of my life. Obsessive compulsive anti airport pro cycling fanatic and a Leeds Uni professor who has just gained millions to preach his agenda to the masses. Expect many more cycle lanes over the coming years. As well as being a LCC policy it is now also government policy. It's completely ridiculous without adequate alternative public transport options.

20% of the revenues at Leeds Uni come from non-EU students. Or put another way, 20% of the salaries of Leeds Uni professors are paid for by non-EU students. I wonder how these students get from their homes overseas to the uni, if not via airports. Maybe a question to ask the prof and see what he says

 

[JRP]

Have signed that petition

I have nothing against cycle lanes but as people have said, the way LCC have gone about it is so stupid, it seems no actual though has gone into it, take Stanningjey Road, dies the cycle lane really need to be on both sides of the road, can they not make them slightly wider and have them on one side with markings on, surely this could have saved money and the extra money could have gone towards another project
I think with LCC money burns holes in there pockets and it’s legs slender it all with no thought
I have wrote to my local LCC councillors about this in the past but I must be blacklisted as I never get a response, just like my emails about LBA new terminal

 

[airforced]

Me too for what good it will do. If they have decided it fits their Green agenda then it will happen. Defeatist - no. Realistic - yes.

 

[LBAYORKIE]

The Stanningley Road cycle lane is a bit all over the place as is the one on Canal Road in Bradford so not pleasurable to use. I can understand the need for quality cycle lanes in inner Leeds as this is where all the lanes from the outskirts converge. Sheepscar is a nightmare in a car, never mind on a bike. However I would have thought sharing bus lanes would be good enough, no need for a separate bike lane.

My main concern is that motorists throw litter and glass bottles out of their car windows. Cycle lanes are strewn with broken glass so I don't blame cyclists for not using them. They need to be swept regularly. Having said that I nearly always use them.

Furthermore I always adhere to the rules of the road, which I accept many cyclists don't and I always thank motorists if they have to hold back if they can get past- most wave back in acknowledgement.

 

[LBA4EVER]

Its terrible what LCC are doing to our roads by building these cycle lanes, roads that were once wide and spacious are now too narrow and cluttered in places. You have the road and sometimes the marked out area for parking, a raised kerb between the road and cycle lane and a second raised kerb between the cycle lane and the pavement. Often these raised kerbs stick out in places and you get areas where the road surface is coloured norm where a junc is. They give such a cluttered feel to the road and all the grey concrete makes them look un attractive, and all it takes is say a bus to pull in at a bus stop or a HGV try to turn and everything just stops!
Whats wrong with just a white line like cycle lanes once were, its clean on the eye and clearly identifies where the cyclist and motor vehicles should be, and in my view actually make our roads look more attractive! As a driving instructor I can tell you now just a white line is far safer too than bloody kerbs sticking out all over the place, a white line and of course the centre line keeps a driver in more of a straight line as you focus more ahead. LCC, What a joke!

 

[TheLocalYokel]

Its terrible what LCC are doing to our roads by building these cycle lanes, roads that were once wide and spacious are now too narrow and cluttered in places. You have the road and sometimes the marked out area for parking, a raised kerb between the road and cycle lane and a second raised kerb between the cycle lane and the pavement. Often these raised kerbs stick out in places and you get areas where the road surface is coloured norm where a junc is. They give such a cluttered feel to the road and all the grey concrete makes them look un attractive, and all it takes is say a bus to pull in at a bus stop or a HGV try to turn and everything just stops!
Whats wrong with just a white line like cycle lanes once were, its clean on the eye and clearly identifies where the cyclist and motor vehicles should be, and in my view actually make our roads look more attractive! As a driving instructor I can tell you now just a white line is far safer too than bloody kerbs sticking out all over the place, a white line and of course the centre line keeps a driver in more of a straight line as you focus more ahead. LCC, What a joke!

It's not just Leeds - it's much of the country. Twelve years ago the DfT named Bristol as the country's first cycling city and the council is still narrowing or closing roads for the benefit of cyclists, something particularly perverse in such a hilly city.

I write as someone who used to be quite a serious cyclist but one who obeyed traffic laws including stopping at red lights and not riding on pavements. These days it's almost de regueur for cyclists to ignore road traffic laws.

 

[LBAYORKIE]

Not sure what you mean, most cycle lanes are marked by a solid or intermittent white line arent they?

 

[LBA4EVER]

Not sure what you mean, most cycle lanes are marked by a solid or intermittent white line arent they?

we are talking about these new style cycle lanes where you have a kerb between the road and cycle lane. yes there are still many older cycle lanes about with the intermittent white line but many are been replaced with the new ones

 

[LBAYORKIE]

OK, are these definitely a 'new' style or are they just being used in specific locations where there is a lot of traffic? I'm thinking just now of the Burley in Wharfedale by-pass,I cant see them installing the raised kerb on all of that. I can see a role for raised kerbs around busy junctions though. Something which I notice frequently is motorists occupying the red area at traffic lights which they should not do unless they've been trapped there by the lights changing,so motorists are not squeaky clean by any means.

 

[ls27]

The cycle lanes are government policy not LCC

 

[LBAYORKIE]

Government policy but implementation the responsibility of the city or county Council depending where the road is I assume.

 

[JENNYJET]

Cycle lanes may become acceptable if the users paid for them and for the disruption caused by their construction. Cyclists do not help themselves by having a cavalier attitude, better than the rest etc. I remember clipping or being clipped by cyclists when driving in London simply due to the anarchy displayed, and rarely seen with any protective gear! Seen plenty chuntering on their phones whilst at speed through junctions.

 

[TheLocalYokel]

Cycle lanes may become acceptable if the users paid for them and for the disruption caused by their construction. Cyclists do not help themselves by having a cavalier attitude, better than the rest etc. I remember clipping or being clipped by cyclists when driving in London simply due to the anarchy displayed, and rarely seen with any protective gear! Seen plenty chuntering on their phones whilst at speed through junctions.

I agree that a lot of cyclists ignore red traffic lights, ride on footways (pavements), weave in and out of traffic and generally make themselves a nuisance to other road users. I used to do some semi-serious cycling until about ten years ago and I hope that I rode responsibly, as many cyclists still do. I have also been driving since the early 1960s - first on motorcycles - so I see things from both the cyclist and motorist viewpoint.

Many cyclists are cavalier in their outlook as JENNYJET rightly says but so are many drivers of cars and other motorvehicles who block junctions including box junctions, drive in bus lanes, exceed speed limits, use mobile phones whilst driving and drive onto pavements to park.

In my local city (Bristol) which has been in the van of cycling developments (first British DfT cycling city and the home of Sustrans that started life as Cyclebag 40 years ago) involving taking road space for cyclists for most of this century.

There seems to be a perpetual conflict between cyclists and road motor vehicle drivers which is strange because many people are both. I wonder if the same person screams at cyclists when wearing his/her motorist's hat and berates car drivers when cycling.

 

[Aviador]

Jeremy Vine on Radio 2 was discussing towns and cities where traffic was being banned and replaced with cycle lanes due to environmental concerns.

One listener phoned in and said, it's no wonder our city shops and restaurants are dying. Ban traffic and people will just stay at home and order on Amazon. He summed up my thoughts on the matter nicely.

Leeds has actively detered cars for many years. Initially I supported it as it made the shopping areas pleasant and easier to navigate. They've taken it too far now and to the point where people are actively discouraged from travelling to the city centre.

Public transport options in Leeds are abysmal and there is no real alternative.

The pandemic has fast-tracked what was already happening to our town and city centres. It is clear, staying at home kills our inner city and town centre shops and businesses. As usual no foresight has been given to reducing road traffic.

The car replaced the horse and cart but they want cyclists and walking to replace the car. A backwards step too far and one that won't work without an entire economic reset that will cause years of pain and hardship for more people than it's worth.

 

[JENNYJET]

City Centres and shopping districts are out of bounds to me because I can no longer walk in safety with other humans rushing about with sharp elbows etc. and unruly kids not paying attention. I now am dependent upon Amazon's truly amazing services and the occasional updates on this forum about our cities developments. I hope someday to visit the city of my birth and catch up with what remains from my youth and marvel at the new towers.

 

[Aviador]

Our dear friend and environmentalist Paul Chatterton, anti airport, anti cars extraordinaire has been busy once again. He's in the West Leeds Dispatch preaching to the many. Interestingly our Leeds Central MP Hilary Benn is a firm believer and supporter of Mr Chatterton and his green "initiatives". Unfortunately, getting "everyone walking and cycling" or even using "public transport" is not a one size fits all solution to road congestion if Mr Chatterton gets his way. Mr Chatterton a Leeds university professor failed to comment when asked sometime ago about the number of foreign students Leeds university encourage to come to the city, many whom arrive by air.