Cycle Paths, Foot Paths & Wildlife Corridors

11 October 2006

Cycle Paths & Foot Paths

Roads should be specifically for cars.
There should be a dedicated cycle & foot path beside all roads (space allowing).

Holland have excellent foot / cycle paths everywhere. The paths are wide and often separated from the road by a line of trees and sometimes a ditch too.

People in Holland can cycle to work or the shops without ever having to going on the road. The Dutch cycle a lot.

Walking or cycling on the roads in the UK is dangerous. There are rarely any foot paths between villages, let alone cycle paths.

Wildlife Corridors

It a pretty stupid sounding name, but it's an important concept. Animals need a) places to live, and b) they need to be able to get around without getting squashed.

Our wildlife is diappearing - because it doesn't have anywhere to live.

30 years ago, England had a lot of hedges surrounding the fields. They were an important part of the ecology of the country, and many birds and insects relied on that habitat for their existence.

Some very pooly thought-out legislation gave farmers a subsidy to remove the hedges, and our country has become impoverished both in aesthetics, and also in wildlife since that ignorant decision was made.

Once again, we're seeing the same theme emerging: Politicians are total muppets...

My Cycle Path Design

This is my design for the standard cycle-path layout...

Cyclists and pedestrians are well separated from the road - the trees provide shade, some soundproofing, and a safety barrier. The ditch is for run-off from the road, and also provides protection for the non-motorists too.

The widlife corridor is just a wild bit full of trees and bushes. A thick hedge. The trees in the hedge should be fruits, nuts & natives and they should be planted with a view to using some of the trees for fuel or timber.

Some of the trees must be left to age, die, and rot naturally because this is an important ecological niche which must be supported.

This would result in a network of very pleasant, tree & hedge lined avenues for cycling and walking across the entire countryside...

It would mean that if you wanted to go out for a walk or bike ride - almost anywhere in the country - there would be lots of purpose-built, tree-lined avenues to do it in. You could go anywhere without having to go on the roads...

Perhaps we're so fat because there's nowhere nice to go to excercise...

The UK is officially the FATTY of Europe... Obese Britons outnumber Italians, three to one according to the news today.

The UK should have a lot more leisure centers, and travelling by foot or bike should be just as well supported as traveling by car is! Perhaps then the British wouldn't be such a bunch of lardy couch-potatoes.

I used to cycle 5 miles to work every day - it was great - but the only reason that was enjoyable was because I could stay off the main roads for most of the journey. If the paths hadn't been there - I wouldn't have cycled. These days I live 3 miles from the nearest town, but I'd never cycle there because it involves going on a main road where the heavy traffic does 60mph... Fuck that!

I'd go to the local pool and gym if they were nicer and less expensive too..

Benefits of subsidising proper paths and hedges

• A network of very pleasant, tree & hedge lined avenues for cycling and walking across the entire countryside.
• People would be able to walk, run or cycle to work without having to use the roads.
• People would be healthier.
• Cars would no longer be obstructed by bicycles.
• There would be less pollution from traffic.
• Walking for pleasure would be possible almost everywhere in the country.
• Wildlife would return to our countryside, and we might even save some of our currently threatened species.

Disadvantages

• We would lose some agricultural land.
• It would take investment...

How much would it cost?

I don't know. But I do know it would alleviate some of these problems which apparently cost billions every year:

• Obesity and poor fitness
• Traffic congestion
• Pollution & Global Warming

I think there's a good chance it'd pay for itself in a year or two. The benefits definitely outweigh the disadvantages as far as I can see...

Comments

This is a sporadically moderated blog. I am not responsible for anything below!

cycle paths

Whilst i do agree this in an idealistic world. It ain\'t gonna happen! I have spent some time in Holland, and i agree the system they have setup over there is fantastic, not just the cycle paths, but the whole external setup with the power lines all below ground. One of the reasons this works though is Holland is so flat! I cycled to work for a couple of weeks once. It was only two miles down the road but it was exhausting, there were as many hills as there were downs! Okay, that was in Wales, but even so, not all of our countryside would be suitable, it is just too hilly!! Also, realistically this would cost millions to do nationally, and at the end of the day some people just aint gonna walk or cycle. The people you talk about on the other pages such as \'social security\'?? Don\'t think so... We often just live too far from work - something else that needs sorting i might add. Why can\'t we all work from home!!

By Jo Hearn on 04 June 2007

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