How South Gloucestershire Council Has Made The Cycle Path More Exciting

In order to make life more interesting for cyclists, South Gloucestershire Council have diverted the Bristol to Bath Cycle Path. I guess the theory is that by making the journey take a lot longer, cyclists will obtain proportionally more enjoyment. They have attempted to reduce cyclists speeds by diverting them around a tortuous route involving lots of bends and gradients. Both of the pictures below are of the same bend, but taken from two directions.

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Riders could easily reach speeds of 25 mph plus here. But this is not recommended due to various blind bends. This is not the sharpest bend, but it is certainly the most dangerous because it occurs on the fastest point for riders travelling in either direction. To make life more interesting riders are dazzled by the sun, and visibility around the corner is obscured by trees. As a bonus the path will be covered by slippery wet leaves in the autumn.

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As you can see the path narrows significantly here, at the point where the path crosses a stream. The bridge is quite low, so this is likely to flood in the winter. Bicycle brakes are notoriously inefficient in the rain, so many riders will over run the corner in these conditions. To prevent these riders going into the stream South Gloucestershire have thoughtfully provided a heavy duty scaffolding barrier. (ouch!).

The astute reader will immediately understand that this is destined to become an accident black spot. In all probability South Gloucestershire Council will eventually absolve themselves of responsibility for the carnage by erecting a 'warning dangerous bend' sign.

Nigel Jones Scoop Photography

Photography by Nigel Jones March 2000