The official completion date of Leeds’ multi-million pound CityConnect cycle superhighway has been revealed as Friday, April 29.
It’s understood there will be a series of events around the opening of the £29 million scheme, which links East Leeds through to Bradford. We’ll bring you more details when we have them.
CityConnect is funded through the Department for Transport’s Cycle City Ambition Grant. This fund is ringfenced for spend on cycling improvements.
It’s hoped the cycle superhighway will bring about increased levels of cycling and walking through improvements to local infrastructure and activity to enable more people to access to a bike.
Meanwhile, a special breakfast event is being held on Tuesday, March 22, at Cafe 53 on Stanningley Road, Armley.
A CityConnect spokesperson said on Facebook:
“The Cycle Superhighway is almost finished and we’d like to invite you along to Café 53, which is slap bang on the route, for a free bike breakfast. Simply arrive by bike and enjoy a drink and a bite to eat on us.
“We’ll be on hand to answer any questions, and to offer advice as to how you can get involved. Don’t worry, if your bike’s feeling a little unloved, we’ll also have Dr Bike on hand to sort out any little niggles. We hope to see you there.”
Free coffee and a bite to eat anyone? We've got a Bike Breakfast coming up @Cafe53Leeds, why not pay us a visit? https://t.co/lPikMZTDow
— CityConnect (@CityConnect1) March 1, 2016
More details here on Facebook.
“improvements to local infrastructure”
… more accurately …
“exponentially more dangerous for road users”
We have an urban clearway (including a 4 lane bypass) between two major cities that now, thanks to this unwanted white elephant scheme, is often reduced to one single lane
Not one lane each way – no – one SINGLE lane – there are parts of old stanningley road near the Wagon & Horses pub, where now if you get an 18 wheeler coming one way, and a coach load of children coming the other, one MUST STOP or there will be a loss of life
Brilliant. Well done. A textbook example of non-improvements to the detriment of the majority, again
‘Ringfenced’ money does not HAVE to ALL be spent, but to spend it ALL you were determined. Shall we put a coloured lane with rumble strips, like in Holland – probably cost 5 million – NO, let’s build a second footpath, in some places almost 7 feet wide (wide enough for responder vehicles to drive down, as they now HAVE TO outside my house)
Let’s remove the parking from outside hundreds of businesses & create a profit centre by fining those who still do
Only those paid to administer the scheme, the recipients of the 25 million and a handful of evangelical shill cyclists, think this is a good idea
Shame on everyone, EVERYONE involved – & yes, that includes the guys actually doing the civils who don’t have the balls to stand back & say “you know what, I can’t sign off on this, it will cost lives, & when I read about the inevitable accidents, I will KNOW I played a part in the lunacy that killed those kids & didn’t speak up, I just kept my head down & kept on diggin”
“thanks to this unwanted white elephant scheme”
Unwanted by you, perhaps. I think you’ll find that outside of the letters page of the YEP or news sites comments sections, people are generally in favour of the scheme (or at worst, indifferent). Particularly when so many households in Leeds don’t even own a car (32% as of the last Census).
“there are parts of old stanningley road near the Wagon & Horses pub, where now if you get an 18 wheeler coming one way, and a coach load of children coming the other, one MUST STOP or there will be a loss of life”
What?? You mean one vehicle will have to pause and give way to another vehicle? The horror…
“Shall we put a coloured lane with rumble strips, like in Holland”
That’s not what they do in Holland. I suggest you have another look. We’ve tried painted cycle lanes in this country. All that happens is selfish motorists ignore them, park in them and just generally treat them as a bonus part of the road. They don’t make people on bikes feel any safer and that’s why they have a negligible affect on the number of people cycling.
“let’s build a second footpath, in some places almost 7 feet wide (wide enough for responder vehicles to drive down, as they now HAVE TO outside my house)”
What’s wrong with emergency vehicles moving into the cycle path if they need to? I doubt you’ll get many people on bikes complaining about it.
“Only those paid to administer the scheme, the recipients of the 25 million and a handful of evangelical shill cyclists, think this is a good idea”
Again, completely wrong. Recent research shows that there’s a large number of people who would like to cycle more but don’t feel safe. Segregated cycle infrastructure always tops the list of things that would change that. The scheme isn’t perfect, in fact in some places it’s downright atrocious, but this is mostly due to the Council insisting that precious road capacity for motorists remains largely unscathed. The roads are there for everyone who pays income tax since as that’s how they’re funded (not through the mythical “road tax”). It’s time drivers learned how to share.
“Selfish Motorists”
“Segregated cycle infrastructure”
“It’s time drivers learned how to share”
Like I said – “apart from a handful of evangelical shill cyclists”
… That’s you Paul BTW
“Recent research shows that there’s a large number of people who would like to cycle more but don’t feel safe”
Oh, well if ‘Recent research’ shows, have at it. I’m sure a second footpath that still bisects every single road end will make the timid a whole lot braver. Of course, recent research also shows less than 1% of drivers would ever give up their cars
Lovin all the ‘recent research’ Juju
Sorry Paul, but no amount of fan boy rhetoric, ‘recent research’ or wordsmithing will change the FACT that everyone who actually lives or runs a business along the entire scheme considers it a disaster
Not only the businesses and people living near it, cyclists like myself who actively use the route (not the cycle lane, as it is not yet open) consider it to be completely ridiculous.
Thoughts so far on my blog: http://urbanwanderings.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/the-cycle-super-highway.html
Where has it been announced that it will be completed by April 29th? I can’t see any mention of this date on the City Connect web site. The most recent news article on that site is from January 29th.
It hasn’t been announced on their website. We asked.
Well March is long gone and we’re almost at the end of June now with this huge urban folly still causing chaos. Just when is all this chaos going to end?