Carbon based industries

Along the main road to town there are many small businesses. Many are typical of the parlous state of retail at the moment. One business that recently changed hands is the site of an old petrol station. Years ago the Shell garage closed down and the site remained empty for a long time. Then came a van rental shop. It seemed a strange location for that sort of business and, not before long, it also closed. This week it has become Norths Motors, a car retail business. Don't they realise what we really need is a sustainable transport emporium, also known as the local bike shop?

Blakewater culvert, Philips Road update, week 13

December started more wintry than November (kind of what one should expect but then when was the weather predictable!). We had lots of rain last week with some torrential downpours and wind with it. Not the sort of conditions you want to be working outside on construction or riding a bike for that matter.

Personally, I got wet a couple of times as there was no way to avoid the rain. The building site on Philips road looked like a quagmire but work continued regardless.


The next section of culvert got its roof.


Now the site is getting tight for room as there is so much excavated material in the way of continuing upstream.


This is the section where Knusden Brook joins from under the remaining single-file bit of Philips Road on the right.

I need a flasher -'sorry' is not enough

I take my visibility seriously, since in the dark it can make the difference between a safe journey home and one with an unthinkable outcome. However, you never really know how visible you are to others. The only clues are the way traffic and pedestrians react. Sometimes I get the feeling that my visibility is not sufficient when, for example, someone reacts late to my presence. Yesterday I got a stark reminder as a driver I suspected might not see me easily, clearly had not. A car was waiting to pull away from the kerb. He waited as the car in front of me passed and I approached. Luckily there was no car alongside, so I took a deliberately wide line just in case he didn't see me. He didn't, and set off into my path. I narrowly missed his driver's door as I swerved to avoid him and ended up in the path of the oncoming traffic, which luckily was approaching cautiously and slowed to a halt. As I looked down into the driver's window, the driver looked up at my stricken face - I think the scream of expletives might have alerted him to a cyclist alongside. He apologised and waved his hand, but still set off to make his getaway since I hadn't actually collided with him. I regained my composure and returned to the correct side of the road.

In a moment's anger I almost wished I'd thumped into the side of his car because, at the time, I felt it was little more than he deserved. Sorry just isn't enough in that situation and driving off only compounded the problem. I thought through the experience on the remainder of my journey. Whacking into the side of his car would have only put me in more danger as I would probably have ended up on the ground in the middle of a busy wet road at night. I concluded that I'd probably taken the correct course of action, but what happened still nagged away at me.

I was thinking if there was more that I could have done to avoid it. Highly reflective clothing really doesn't provide any advantage in this situation. The driver is looking either over his shoulder or through his door mirror and there is little light to reflect from that angle. I tried to think what he might have seen. There would have been multiple light sources with car headlights and streetlights and my front light in there too. My light must not have been obvious enough or he would have seen it. I have a high wattage halogen on the front and have always considered it to be well visible. It is much brighter than most bike lights I see, but it is static and I can guess how it might have got lost in all the other lights, which to be honest, are always going to be much brighter than mine. On the back I have another static light but I have added a high brightness LED light, which I always use in flashing mode. It didn't cost much, but I'm convinced using it alerts drivers quicker to the presence of a cyclist. I concluded what I need to prevent this event happening again is to add a high brightness white LED flasher at the front.

Beware the buggy 2

One of my first posts showed a small electric buggy trundling down the road. My thoughts then were that anyone who drives one of those must either be brave or stupid. Approaching the shortest day of the year, I have had my cycle lights on both in the morning and evening as daylight doesn't seem to fully arrive some days and other days it just appears for a couple of hours in the middle of the day. Being seen on your commute is a given and lights are essential for drivers to be able to see you in the gloom. I saw the buggy driver again this morning - that's only the second time in six months. I'm glad to see he's still going, but have to conclude he must be stupid. I knew he was there but still found him barely discernible in the gloom that was a poor apology for daylight breaking. Many drivers would not see him at all.

(Three) Monthly update

December is already upon us and has started in similar style to November. Luckily Saturday stayed fine for a 4hour walk, but since then it's rained heavily on and off. Today on the bike, I managed to just about dodge the showers but but have to admit to being a tad damp on arriving back tonight.

I remember thinking on my first commute of November, it was a contrast to October, when I had stated it isn't often I ride in the wet. For three journeys, I was sure I'd have to eat my words, but then November although cold, dark and sometimes damp, turned out OK for commuting. In fact it was only those three journeys that were wet. There were plenty of rainy days but usually it was fine by the time it came to get on the bike. I did at least 17 days by cycle, which is quite good in a month. The other days I needed to be somewhere else so couldn't use the bike.

It's also three months since the roadworks kicked off on Philips Road. Last week the downstream end of the culvert got a concrete roof and it looked this morning that railings have appeared. The light wasn't good so I can't really tell from my blurred shot.

The preparation is under way for the next section but it looks like there is little room on the site for the earth, machinery and the culvert. That fact, and the poor light, make it difficult to tell what's happening. I'm intrigued to know how the restoration to the bit of culvert on the opposite side of the road (Knusden Brook, seen here) will join up with the main culvert.