The end is nigh

Not long now. Major changes down at the road works this week. Gone are the safety fences. The kerbs are all in place as is the wall round the parapet. The footpath is prepared. Now we just need the tarmac. Will next week (34) be the last? Tune in next week to find out!

Taking a line

There will be a lot of people who are thinking about using a bike for local journeys but haven't quite got the confidence to start. This is partly what the UK government's £140m cycling program is about, persuading the marginal cyclists out onto the road again or for the first time. A lot of the people considering taking up cycling on public roads will be nervous about the traffic and rightly have concerns for how safe it is.

Over on Jeff's Bike Blog, Jeff highlights a concern on the traffic side of the bike, that is, how close vehicles are as they pass a cyclist. Jeff, impressively, has taken on the local law enforcers and educated them in their state laws regarding a minimum 3 foot clearance applicable where he rides. He has presented evidence gathered using a video camera mounted on his bike. It makes for some interesting reading and is another way that active cyclists can raise awareness of cycling. A number of times I've wished I had a video camera running when someone passing in vehicle has come too close. Luckily motorists in the main stay well clear of cyclists. Just occasionally I wonder if they have seen me, perhaps lazily cutting a corner or rushing to make a right turn. (Don't forget US and continental readers we drive on the left - Ed)


On the other side of the bike, the kerb side, the concern runs to parked cars, opening doors, pedestrians and animals stepping into the road and traffic emerging from side roads. A cyclist has to decide what line to ride in all these circumstances to maximise his own safety. These two pictures here clearly illustrate a good approach to this. When there is no danger kerb side, the cyclist is keeping well in to the left. When approaching a car waiting to enter the road from the left, the cyclist has moved out into the main carriageway to increase his safety margin for this new hazard to allow for problems such as the driver's foot slipping off the clutch. (Yes, most cars are manual in the UK - Ed). The cyclist made this move gently, without swerving, so that traffic approaching from behind had plenty of time to react and slow down, because now the cyclist is dominating his part of the road. This is what differentiates a confident cyclist from one that isn't.


The government funding for local authorities to spend on cycling resources includes scope for provision of local cycle training so those that aren't confident cycling on roads can become confident riders.

Keyhole surgery

Following on from the previous post regarding the pipeline colour theme, you can see the gas pipes being replaced on the A666 near Brownhill. Yellow in colour to signify natural gas. These are being assembled above ground before being pushed down into the ground inside the old gas pipe that is already buried. This saves digging a great long trench. Amazing what you can see from a bike!

Big Brother at Glenfield

Every day recently I've been passing the foundations of a mysterious installation at the junction of Philips Road and Blakewater Road. The purple piping sticking out of the concrete and the four sturdy bolts were a clue. These are just the sort of thing we've seen down the sides of motorways in the UK where traffic information signs have been installed. I could hardly imagine the density of traffic on Philips Road would warrant an information display. If I'd thought about it enough, I should have guessed it would be a camera. In future we will feel safe knowing the area is being watched and lunatic speeding motorists flying up Blakewater Road will be recorded. It won't stop them, but hey.

I found a certain irony that the guy installing the camera didn't look too pleased at having his photograph taken.


As an aside, do readers in other contries have colour schemes for pipes laid underground? Here in the UK we have yellow for gas (see next item), blue for water, purple for electronics and loads of other colour codes I'm not familiar with - all probably covered in a British Standard.

Making molehills out of mountains

Thirty two weeks ago, Philips Road, here in Blackburn, was dug up to get access to repair the culvert that covers the River Blakewater as it flows from Little Harwood on its way to Blackburn. Finally, the earth that was removed over six months ago, is being put back and the place restored to normality.


Bethell the contractors were out in force perparing the ground for re-laying the road. This last week the kerbstones for the road have been put in place over the newly restored culvert, ready for resurfacing Philips road.


In the first picture you can see the blue inspection access tower leading down to the culvert but by the end of the week it was all but covered.


It's not quite over as there is still a small section of culvert over Knusden Brook that needs repairing, but that can't commence until some new road is made available to allow the current single lane working to be shift over to make room. Personally I can't wait as the traffic lights are at a section where I can be doing 30mph but stopping every day spoils the flow of my ride. Not only that but the section of temporary road is so bumpy and worn out it's becoming dangerous.

Roll on the next couple of weeks when it will be all change, hopefully for the better.