Cyclists have been warned not to use the nearly-finished new cycle lane on Madeira Drive after reports its green surface is slippery.
The new lane, which will replace the pavement cycle lane to give pedestrians more room, has been installed along the seafront road over the last few weeks.
It’s just been covered in a green coating, which Brighton and Hove News understands is methyl methacrylate (MMA), a hard-wearing marking made with resin and powder peroxide and chosen for its durability.
But after yesterday’s rainfall, water started pooling in places, and both pedestrians and cyclists were seen skidding on the surface.
Chris Williams of Bricycles said: “We’re really pleased about the new cycle track as it gives pavement-users more space and keeps them properly separate from people cycling, which is safer for everyone.
“We’re confident that if there are problems with the surfacing, they will be dealt with by the time the track is open.”
A council spokesperson said: “We would like to remind cyclists that the new cycle lane on Madeira Drive is not ready for public use yet and is barriered off.
“We will be carrying out final tests, including skid resistance, on the new cycle lane before we open it.
“Please do not use it until then.”
A total c*ck up. The cycle lane is currently unuseable when it is wet, (thank god it’s not cold enough for ice). Why on earth did they paint it green? Utter waste of money with the road and cycle lane clearly separated. My bet is that certain cycling groups asked for this ‘painting’ – utterly unnecessary and ridiculous.
The responsibility lies firmly with whoever is in charge. They should have adhered to producing a cycle lane of the same materials and standards as other proven cycle lanes. Perhaps those in London. I can’t imagine this would be allowed to happen when building a new road. If there aren’t any regulatory standards for cycle lanes then get some.
Why do they need a high durability surface for (yet another) temporary cycle lane that has still to be debated in June after the farcically biased anti-motorist pro-cycling consultation?
Could this also be (yet another) permanent scheme implemented via an Experimental Traffic Order to avoid public debate in advance, with no monitoring of effects on traffic, no pre-defined success criteria, and the council can ignore negative feedback during th 18 month “experiment”?
Interesting that Chris Williams from Bricycles, and an anonymous council spokesperson, are defending yet another poorly designed scheme, rather than Green Councillor Amy Heley who is chair of the ETS committee in charge of transport planning, or charity Sustrans who has, apparently been designing these schemes.
“Cycle track”? Do that in Preston park not a public highway
There are – or were – two green colours traditionally used on our city seafront, and now the children running the council have introduced a third.
This new cycle lane colour is shockingly garish and totally out of place.
It’s then made worse by the addition of yellow lines.
Yellow and green? I don’t think so. Have they no visual sense whatsoever ever?
The new road layout is also chaotic, and now it turns out the cycle lane surface is actually rubbish for cycling on.
So we’ve already seen the city’s traffic infrastructure ruined with deliberately created tailbacks and extra pollution, and there’s plastic clutter added everywhere.
And now they make Madeira Drive look like a creche. Except it’s an unsafe creche.
Has the council been taken over by nut-job lobbying groups, or has the chain of communication broken down? Is anyone actually in charge – or are they just stupid or incompetent?
This is a really useful addition to the cycle network, before the pandemic I commuted by bike to work in the Marina and back, I would have really appreciated this. The previous cycle path on Madeira Drive was/is a bit of nightmare at busy times, and near misses with pedestrians not realizing they were about to walk into a cycle lane were common. I just wanted to add this to balance the unhappy tone of previous comments.
“The previous cycle path on Madeira Drive was/is a bit of nightmare at busy times, and near misses with pedestrians not realizing they were about to walk into a cycle lane were common.”
Please note that you’re supposed to give way to pedestrians – slow down and you would avoid the near misses!!!
Could we not have a ‘family 10 mph limit’ on the cycle lane. This would stop the latex commandos who think they’re on the Tour de France from terrorising pedestrians. Maybe the Yellow jacket Covid Marshalls could do something useful.
Kemp Town Resident