Views wanted on Bristol to Bath Railway path

Council planners want to hear views from cyclists, pedestrians and local residents on how to deal with a key crunch point on Railway Path

Planners at Bristol City Council (BCC) want to hear views from cyclists, pedestrians and local residents on how to deal with a key crunch point on the Bristol to Bath Railway Path.

About 5,000 cyclists and pedestrians use the path every day, with particular pressure on space getting worse during the morning rush hour between 8 and 9am.

One particular spot has been generating concern more than most, at a crossing near a school in Easton.

Children and parents need to cross the railway path between Bruce Road and Johnson Road in Greenbank during the busy morning rush hour, to get to Whitehall Primary School.

There has been concern at perceived danger for children crossing at this point, and having to look out for the fastest cyclists travelling down the path towards the city.

Views are now wanted on how to deal with these concerns, with planners looking at ways to slow cyclists along that stretch.

The consultation comes after a study by a University of the West of England (UWE) academic last month found more than half of railway path users are frustrated by the actions of other predestrians and cyclists.

Speaking at the Easton and Lawrence Hill Neighbourhood Forum, Nick Pates from BCC’s highways team said it was “sad the way some cyclists are treating the path”.

“The railway path is a victim of its own success,” he said. “We are seeing problems between high-speed cyclists and children and parents crossing the path to get to Whitehall Primary School in the morning.

“We plan to widen the path at this point and change the layout to slow cyclists down.”

According to government guidelines, conflict between pedestrians and cyclists on shared paths is rare, and so segregation of paths is generally avoided – as is the case in many areas of continental Europe in which space is often shared between motorists, cyclists and pedestrians.

Mr Pates suggested segregation of the path would have been considered if the path had been built from new now.

But residents in the area at the meeting said they did not want the debate framed as a “conflict” between those on two wheels and those on two legs.

Ted Fowler, who ran his own survey into path users’ views, said there were concerns about speed, and a lack of awareness and consideration for other path users.

But he said the community wanted to see more people using the path and “to be able to express our opinions on the future of the path, rather than individual groups using angry lobbying”.

His view was backed by another resident who added: “I want to be able to hear the views of commuters who go past me on the path so fast you can barely see their lycra.”

Others said segregation should not be introduced as this would create more conflict between cyclists and pedestrians, with each group getting “territorial” about their part of the path and slower cyclists becoming more intimidated by faster ones.

To have your say, email Nick Pates at [email protected]