A quirky comic from Steve Patrick Adams, exaggerated vent of a road cyclists situation.

http://stevepatrickadams.com/if-roads-were-like-bike-lanes/

Pragmatic Section

Pragmatic Plan

Pragmatic Response| SHARE THE ROAD

With the way that the road is currently painted and the change in level at the curb it is easy to assume that cars own the road. But should they?

Hamillton-Baille Associates, leading experts in the development of shared space suggest that the conventional division of the space of our streets is no longer valid. Bombarding the driver with traffic signals removes the need to think. By introducing ambiguity into the streetscape where zones are less clearly defined, the speed of traffic is reduced. Baille states that, ‘Treating streets as merely corridors or sewers for moving people and vehicles about ignores the real purpose of cities and of public space.’ (http://www.hamilton-baillie.co.uk/, 2014)

Promoting a shared space approach with one level of road surface and less aggressive zoning will allow for everyone to have equal right to the road and for cyclist to feel safer in amongst the traffic.

'I see no need to separate or segregate urban traffic from other aspects of civic space.' 

Ben Hamilton Baillie

Take a Ride around our Cycling City!

Sustrans has already established a cycling network in Bristol. However we think there room for improvement. Park Street is a popular and well used connection from Clifton and Whiteladies to the centre, however currently cars and other motorised vehicles seems to dominate this tough hill climb. We have suggested that this as well as a few other carefully chosen locations around Bristol could be developed to give the bicycle a place on the road and encourage Bristol into a more accessible cycling city. 

The map below highlights existing cycle routes (orange, on road)(Green, traffic free) and also highlights our suggested additions to the cycling network. 

For more information on Bristols cycling routes visit: www.sustrans.org.uk 

BiketoBasics Explained

The concept of BiketoBasics comes from the idea of the bike being a simple mode of transport. It does not require a complex engine like a car, all it requires is you to power it, to put in some energy to turn the pedals. There is no need to buy fuel, no air pollution created by you using it and no noise pollution it is just you and the pedals. 

We are proposing the idea to people, why not go back to the basics of the bike? Why waste money on an expensive car that then costs a lot to keep running? Why waste time sitting in traffic jams when a bicycle can squeeze through those gaps? Why sit behind a wheel everyday when it is a lot healthier for you and our planet to get on the saddle instead? 

BiketoBasics wants to investigate what it is that makes the car so many peoples choice over the bicycle in Bristol. As well as the basics of a bicycling itself we are researching the basics of town planning to encourage cyclists in the city. How can we adapt Bristols streets to give cyclists just as prominent role on the roads as the cars, busses and lorries? What is it that discourages people from the saddle and how can we adapt our city to push this cycling revolution forward? 

In the words of 

J F Kennedy:

'Nothing compares to the simple pleasure of a bike ride.'

A video to get the gears cranking!

Trailer for what looks to be a very interesting movie! Can cars and bikes ride in harmony? Check out the page: www.bikes-vs-cars.com/home

On yer bike! (Check out this Cycling Avenue!)

Road Chatter

'I use my bicycle to get to and from work each day. Cycling in Bristol is fun when you are in the quieter back streets of the city where there are less cars and you feel a bit safer, however as you come onto a main street or road it kind of feels like you are in a battle with the cars. I feel cars find cyclists a nuisance, that we are taking up THEIR road and wasting their time. The road isn’t something they want to share with us cyclists. I live in Clifton and my cycle home is relatively easy until you get to Park Street at the end of my journey after a long days work the last thing I want to do is cycle the long steep climb of Park Street. Sometimes I get off and walk up. There is no way around, no easier route to take.'

Emily Williams, 25

Here we are! What are we doing? Why are we doing it?

When the spirits are low, when the day appears dark, when work becomes monotonous, when hope hardly seems worth having, just mount a bicycle and go out for a spin down the road, without thought on anything but the ride you are taking.

~Arthur Conan Doyle

We are a nation that is proud of its cycling, with recent successes in the 2012 Olympics, Tour de France and Road World Championships. A country where a cycling revolution is building; where more and more commuters are choosing to get on their bikes rather than behind the wheel; where even in the largest of cities, a short cycle ride will take you out to the most beautiful of landscapes. Cycling is a mode of transport, a form of leisure, a serious sport, and for many people an easy way to exercise. Cycling cannot be replaced by the motorized vehicle, it is vital in our community to our health, to ease our congested roads and to reduce the impact transport has on the pollution of our planet.

We are a collaboration of Architectural students in Bristol. Cycling City 2008-2011 and Green City 2015 Bristol is a place of opportunity and innovative intervention to lead the rest of the UK and world. There has been a push for cycling in the City of Bristol over the past few years with money being invested into its promotion. Bristol has seen an almost doubling of commuters cycling each day over the past 10 years (16,000 people commute everyday by bicycle in Bristol). However what is next? How do we continue to encourage more and more people to ditch the 4 wheels for the 2? What is it that puts so many people off cycling?