Great Western Coffee Shop

Mr Farage has found the latest thing to "boost" his new/reformed party
https://inews.co.uk/news/uk/nigel-farage-vows-reform-party-oppose-government-green-transport-schemes-grant-shappsboris-johnson-784845 (https://inews.co.uk/news/uk/nigel-farage-vows-reform-party-oppose-government-green-transport-schemes-grant-shappsboris-johnson-784845)

Be intersting to see if his vote reflects

I was listening to R4 World at One today who were reporting some pushback by motoring groups against Low Traffic Neighbourhood schemes in Oxford, particularly those like taxi drivers, delivery drivers and building contractors who physically have to take their vehicles with them. There were also a few, unsurprisingly, who quite liked the Low Traffic Neighbourhood that they lived in but took a dim view about having to drive around those introduced for other people...

At times of change it is inevitable that some will seek to oppose it. I can remember the days in my teens when some people were outraged (apparently) about pedestrianising Broadmead in Bristol

Whether the anti-brigade will win is another matter of course, and my gut feeling is they will win a couple of battles but not the war.

It has to be said that in the recent COVID-related rush to introduce some of these new schemes some mistakes have been made, and it may well be that some of the worst examples will be removed in due course. That of course does not mean that the whole process is flawed.

And as regards His Nigeness, I wouldn?t worry too much about him. A lot of bluster and no substance, and too much of a Marmite character. If the referendum had been left to him we?d still be in the EU

He's never sober enough to cycle or drive anyway

Unfortunately, Farage has a point.

I have seen good cycling lanes (in Reading) that have assisted both cyclists (me) and motorists (also me).

Where there are problems are where necessary high traffic volumes are forced into too few lanes, often with a distinct lack of cyclists. Would we like the GWML reduced to 2 tracks, East of Didcot?

All transport, even by road using IC engines is vital to life in an advanced economy.

As a pedestrian (also me) I would appreciate other cyclists (not me) actually using the new lanes rather than continuing to ride "furiously and recklessly" on footpaths and pavements, immune apparently from the road traffic acts.

OTC

In their rush to develop schemes quickly (to qualify for government funding), some councils without doubt made mistakes. But when Farage talks of 'madness' and causing 'untold misery to millions', he could be better describing the impact the private motor car has had on cities and towns.

...he could be talking about his own policies...

I dont think that Mr Farage is very keen on greeness in general.
ISTR opposition to wind turbines as well as dislike of cycling lanes.

I'm no fan of onshore windfarms, but still cycle from time to time. But I haven't been out much of late, and I reckon Bristol's cycle path revolution will have come and gone by the time I go there again.

I think I would prefer a windfarm in the back garden to Farage on the doorstep, though.

Slough seems to have introduced the most dangerous cyclye lanes in the country. On the A4 from the M4 Jn 7 towards Slough, Previously it was two lanes in each direction without central reservation. Now the inner lane has a cycle lane white line taking half the lane. It still seem to be 4 lanes of traffic but i don't know what happens if you're in the inside lane and meet a cyclist using the lane.  Most cyclist seem to using the footpaths and i don't blame them

That's actually quite a good compromise if I'm understanding it right; must check it out some time.  When there are no cyclists the lane can be used by motor vehicles in the normal way, but when there are any it sends a message that motorists shouldn't try to squeeze past but need to give the cyclist the marked amount of space and pull over into the other main traffic lane (so if they can't they need to wait!). Far better than cycle lanes elsewhere in Slough that are no more than a metre wide and tell cyclists that they belong in the gutter so motorists can squeeze past without pulling out at all.  That really is dangerous.