In the past year or so, the city centre has had a lot more roadworks than usual. Many of the streets affected are in the Avenues project. These seem to all come at once after delays due to Covid-19, procurement issues and extra consultation.

However, other events have made the situation worse. Obviously, the Union St fire next to Glasgow Central station has closed the junction and Gordon St. The M8 viaduct works had already affected Garscube Rd and the Underline (New City Rd). Works on a collapsed sewer on Cathedral St and a burst water main on Cowcaddens Rd have just added to the pain.

Despite all that, new protected lanes are appearing. Glasgow City Council has an Avenues dashboard to update on progress. The following photos were taken in March/April as a snapshot of some of the current projects.

St George’s Road

Works started: 17 March 2025 (St George’s Rd article).
Progress: Part of Connecting Woodside programme. Works have been progressing north from Charing Cross with a mostly complete 2-way lane. Also, further work was underway around Clarendon Pl and Woodside Library heading north-east.
Connections: Charing Cross/Sauchiehall St at southern end. Northern end links to Garscube Rd.
Completion due: Was early 2026?

Cowcaddens Road/Dobbies Loan

Works started: 18 February 2025. (Cowcaddens Rd/Dobbies Loan article).
Progress: Avenues Plus project in ‘Block S’. Lane and planting beds mostly installed (complete with trees!). Each has had lane closures and 1-ways during works.
Connections: N Hanover St/Kyle St to east (and Sighthill Bridge beyond).
Completion due: Was meant to be April 2026 (but sinkhole repairs did delay work on Cowcaddens Rd). Revised to May 2026.

Argyle Street (West)

Works started: 13 May 2024 (Argyle St W article).
Progress: Last year I wrote: “Large parts of it are in place but unfinished, apart from the earlier phase in front of the JPMorgan Chase building.” Overall that’s still true but the western end, past Kentigern House, is much more complete. Work has moved a lot further east but there’s still a closed section of Argyle St around the Radisson Hotel. Apparently this is to do with water getting into the Low Level tunnels near Glasgow Central.
Connections: Crossings at western end to path under Kingston Bridge (link to Clyde Walkway/NCN7 and major developments near Daily Record building). Eastern end will link to Argyle St East (plans were in a recent TRO).
Completion due: It was December 2025 – revised to March and then May 2026.

George Square

Works started: May 2025 (was originally meant to be January – George Sq article).
Progress: Boards have closed off the square for a while. Statues were removed and the column has scaffolding. Road closures on the north side of the square for major roadworks (causing disruption for bus routes and access to Queen St station).
Connections: Avenue on N Hanover St. Protected lanes going in at north side should eventually link to George St Avenue (but it was put back by City Deal spending review).
Completion due: Still meant to be August 2026 (just after the Commonwealth Games).

North Hanover Street/Kyle Street 

Works started: 26 May 2025 (N Hanover St/Kyle St article).
Progress: Most work seems to have been on pavements – not much on the road so far.
Connections: George Sq at south, Dobbie’s Loan/Cowcaddens Rd to west and Sighthill Bridge off Kyle St at northern end.
Completion due: November 2026.

South Portland Street

Works started: January 2025.
Progress: Lots of fencing and diversions but some lane kerbs visible and planting beds emerging (hopefully for trees to return).
Connections: At north onto suspension bridge to Clyde Walkway. South into Govanhill.
Completion due: Was May, now July 2026.

Duke Street/John Knox St/‘Barras North’

Works started: January 2025 (Duke St article).
Progress: Another Avenues Plus project. Large parts of Duke St northern pavement has been resurfaced but not completely finished. Duke St has been closed westbound at Bellgrove St for works to add cycle tracks and planting on southern side. Some work has started on John Knox St too. ‘Barras North’ works on Sydney St are mostly done except a few bits of snagging.
Connections: At east, path through future development of Meat Market sheds (off Duke St/Melbourne St). At the western end, future High St and George St Avenues. 
Completion due: Was April 2026! However, now September 2026.

Dumbreck Road

Works started: December 2025 (following Shields Rd works, according to councillor).
Progress: A former Spaces for People cycle lane between Pollok Country Park and Bellahouston Park being made permanent. Areas fenced off at southern end with new crossing added. Looks like works will be moving north from there.
Connections: Southern end at the current South West City Way on St Andrews Dr. To north, the recently proposed Connecting Greater Govan Route 1.
Completion due: July 2026.

Completion

Shortly after last year’s update both George V bridge and Pitt St were completed with Sauchiehall Precinct mostly done a bit later. So, there has been new infrastructure to use.

Also, these photos were taken in March/April so there will have been some progress since then. They don’t even cover all works in the city (Byres Rd North and Yorkhill/Kelvingrove for example).

However, the overall theme is obviously a lot of delays and potential overruns. Duke St/John Knox St won’t be ready for the summer as originally planned. Probably not surprising based on recent experience and the scale of works overall (probably the most ambitious in Scotland).

However, the Commonwealth Games are only a few months away – there will need to be a big push to get the city into shape for hosting. If things go down to the wire the grumbling at the council is going to get an awful lot louder.

This frustration also increases the pressure for the new infra to deliver on what was promised; especially the Avenues project. Its price tag of £100+ million of City Deal investment also raises the stakes. So, usage figures could be under a lot of scrutiny. Many of us will want to have a look at the new lanes but it’s important we get more people to try cycling in the city centre.

One bright spot is the popularity of the Voi e-bikes. After the Union St fire, Voi had a surge of new customers using them as a stop gap for public transport. Let’s hope the Games can inspire similar usage levels to boost the city centre.

The installation of 120 new units – each with space for six cycles, marks a significant growth of the popular cycle storage scheme, which over the next five years will provide up to 3,000 additional safe, secure storage spaces for people who live in tenement flats.

Following a successful trial in 2021, the residential on-street storage scheme – delivered by Cyclehoop – now offers over 1,400 secure spaces across more than 235 units citywide.

Demand for these units has been high, with typically 97% of spaces occupied and almost 3,000 residents registering for a new cycle storage space.

Convenient and secure on-street cycle storage is a key part of the city’s plans to encourage residents living in flats to view cycling as practical option for everyday journeys.

Many people in older tenement buildings are discouraged from cycling regularly due to a lack of indoor storage space. Fire safety regulations can prevent bikes from being stored in stairwells, and theft from these communal areas can also be a concern.

Cyclehoop secured a five-year contract worth up to £2.5m last year following an open tendering process and a decision by the council’s Contracts and Property Committee.

Read more…

Source: Glasgow City Council news page

Cargo bikes have the potential to revolutionise how we transport goods. This latest research in Scotland looks at the barriers preventing widespread use of cargo bikes – and what can be done to overcome them.

Why cargo bikes matter 

Scotland has ambitious goals for cutting carbon emissions, and as a major contributor, the transport sector will need to undergo significant change. 

With the emissions from light goods vehicles, such as vans, increasing in Scotland by up to 25% in recent years, it is thought that cargo bikes (and their electric counterparts, e-cargo bikes) offer an elegant solution to cutting emissions in the transportation of freight.  

However, despite their potential, uptake by both businesses and the public remains slow.  

The barriers 

Whilst all interviewees shared positive experiences of using cargo bikes, they also highlighted key barriers.  

• 1. Cost and funding
• 2. Infrastructure
• 3. Training and awareness
• 4. Storage and security
• 5. Insurance and maintenance 

Source: https://www.sustrans.org.uk/our-blog/research/cargo-bikes-in-scotland-the-barriers-to-a-local-logistics-revolution/

Snapshot of progress

The following is a snapshot of active travel works in and around the city centre during May/June 2025.

Most of these are part of the Avenues Project (or Avenues Plus). Not all projects include segregated cycle lanes, for example: Holland St and Sauchiehall Precinct (but the latter has removed raised platforms so there’s more space for cycling). The photos give an idea of how things are taking shape. 

St George’s Road

Works started: 17 March 2025 (St George’s Rd article).
Progress: An earlier phase is complete at Charing Cross so works are moving north from there. There are already some improvements to side road junctions.
Connections: Charing Cross/Sauchiehall St at southern end. Northern end links to Garscube Rd as part of Connecting Woodside programme.
Completion due: Early 2026.

Sauchiehall Precinct/Cambridge Street

Works started: 27 September 2023 (Sauchiehall Precinct article).
Progress: Long-running works – western part of Sauchiehall Precinct (Rose St end) is finished with platform removed and new trees. Work still going at eastern end around W Nile St. Cambridge St also has finished sections but road still fenced off at Sauchiehall St.
Connections: Sauchiehall St, Buchanan St and underpasses to Cowcaddens Subway and Garscube Rd. In future, due to link to W Nile St Avenue.
Completion due: Originally summer 2024, should happen summer 2025!?

Pitt Street/Holland Street

Works started: Late March 2024 (Pitt St/Holland St article).
Progress: Most of Holland St is done – despite the name, it doesn’t have bike lanes. Protected cycleway is on Pitt St – mostly complete but fenced off. Slightly twisty crossing from Waterloo St (maybe designed to slow southbound riders?). Gradient doesn’t look too bad there but maybe a bit steeper up to W George St (by St Vincent St church – see main image, above). Lanes seem wider to accommodate faster descent. Works still ongoing either side of Bath St. 
Connections: Sauchiehall St to north and Waterloo St at south (West City Way/Connect2 bridge over M8).
Completion due: Was May 2025 but still bits to finish – hopefully not long. UPDATE: Pitt St lanes seem to be open.

Argyle Street (West)

Works started: 13 May 2024 (Argyle St W article).
Progress: Large parts of it are in place but unfinished, apart from the earlier phase in front of the JPMorgan Chase building.
Connections: Crossings at western end to path under Kingston Bridge from Clyde Walkway/NCN7. Also, to major developments near Daily Record building, like Platform (confusingly, the third place in Glasgow with that name – after the Arches event and venue in Easterhouse). Eastern end will link to Argyle St East (currently being designed).
Completion due: December 2025.

George V Bridge/Broomielaw

Works started: 24 March 2025 (George V Bridge article).
Progress: Mostly complete at southern end and lanes on bridge itself. Work still to do to link new protected bike lanes to existing Broomielaw route (may include installing bike-specific traffic lights?).
Connections: Clyde Walkway/NCN7 at north and Barclays campus/Clyde Place at south.
Completion due: End of June 2025. UPDATE: the lanes seemed to be open mid-June.

George Square

Works started: May 2025 (was originally meant to be January – George Sq article).
Progress: Boards have gone up around former parking lanes. The Spaces for People planters seem to have been relocated to southern side of road. Not clear if it’s intended for pedestrians or cycling (with ‘bus boarder’ ramps onto pavement in front of bus stop). Slightly narrowed lanes in new arrangement seems like they could cause conflict for the next year and a half. Statues have been removed for maintenance.
Connections: Avenue on N Hanover St. Protected lanes going in at north side should eventually link to George St Avenue (but it was put back by City Deal spending review).
Completion due: August 2026. 

North Hanover Street/Kyle Street 

Works started: 26 May 2025 (N Hanover St/Kyle St article).
Progress: Just started on N Hanover St where bus diversion will cause a lot of disruption. Kyle St has some areas fenced off and a closure on a side street.
Connections: George Sq at south, Dobbie’s Loan/Cowcaddens Rd to west and Sighthill Bridge off Kyle St at northern end.
Completion due: April 2027.

Cowcaddens Road/Dobbies Loan

Works started: 18 February 2025. (Cowcaddens Rd/Dobbies Loan article).
Progress: Avenues Plus route on Cowcaddens Rd had to have a sinkhole repaired by Scottish Water.  On Dobbie’s Loan work has started on the southern pavement. 
Connections: N Hanover St/Kyle St to east (and Sighthill Bridge beyond).
Completion due: April 2026.

Duke Street/‘Barras North’

Works started: January 2025 (Duke St article).
Progress: Another Avenues Plus project – works to replace northern pavement on Duke St are nearly there. The protected bike lanes will go on the southern side of the road (and John Knox St works will follow). The ‘Barras North’ project between Barrack St and Bellgrove St has new speed tables and widened pavements, with a protected bike lane near completion on Melbourne St. Also, there’s been work on a crossing at Bellgrove St near the station.
Connections: At east, path through future ‘linear park’ and sheds development at Meat Market, off Duke St/Melbourne St. At the western end, future High St and George St Avenues. 
Completion due: April 2026.

Make or break

While not every detail will be perfect, and works can drag on, it’s clear there’s a lot happening. Once these are complete there will be the bones of a network of segregated cycleways around much of the city centre. We’ll still need to look at the gaps but there are further plans in the pipeline. It’s good to reflect on progress every so often and give credit where it’s due.

There’s a lot riding on the success of the Avenues project for active travel and the city in general. The disruption and pricetag mean there will be plenty of criticism (much of it from people who live outside the city). If we want more Avenues, and wider projects in the City Network, then healthy usage numbers from the above will really help the cause. And the more we (as individuals and as a group) can explain the difference they make to citizens, the better.

The 184-metre, twin-leaf bridge has been built as part of the £1.3bn Glasgow City Region City Deal. It swings open to allow river traffic such as the PS Waverley to move freely along the River Clyde. The opening was also reported on the STV News and the BBC News

The bridge forms part of a newly opened 5km active travel route connecting Yoker and Clydebank to Pailsy town centre.

You can check when the bridge will be open to river traffic and therefore unavailable to pedestrians, cyclists and motor traffic on the dedicated webpage https://www.renfrewshire.gov.uk/renfrew-bridge

Photo source: Colin Mearns Clydebank Post https://www.clydebankpost.co.uk/news/25149275.renfrew-bridge-welcomes-public-across-glasgows-river-clyde/

Ten of us set off this Sunday morning and cycled the intricate route shown on the map above, and what a variety of infrastructure we saw.

We cycled along Kelvin Way, which we hope will remain as an active travel route, we made our way over University Avenue – very disappointing that despite GoBike’s campaigning we didn’t get cycle lanes there and then on to Byres Road. This is work in progress, but we cycled along the new lanes, where we could.

Then it was on to Highburgh Road and Clarence Drive, both, along with University Avenue, part of the “Colleges Cycle Route”, once our City Council’s flagship route. Highburgh Road still has a faint green cycle lane painted on but it’s too narrow and too close to the parked cars to be practical. Presumably, for the safety of people cycling, bollards have been put in down Clarence Drive, but the cycle lane remaining is so, so narrow.

We entered Kelvinside and then Kirklee, where the roads are wider, though still with so many parked cars and on to Doune Gardens, blocked off to through motor traffic (so handy for parking the car!) but with cycle filter gaps. Great! But there were not wide enough for a tricycle or cargo bike – so tricky if taking the wee ones to school or nursery on a bike.

Next place of interest was Garscube Road with its newish cycle lanes and we safely negotiated the right turn into St George’s Road, for the start of what will be a cycle lane right down to Charing Cross – but not yet.
At Charing Cross we made our way across the almost-finished junction and on to the pleasant Sauchiehall Street cycle lanes.
Cambridge Street is looking good, but again not yet finished.

Why, oh why have chicanes been put into the route under the M8? How awkward they are, but we got through and struggled up the zig-zag path to the canal and a short break at Speirs Wharf

Next it was on to the superb cycle lanes on Pinkston Road, before pressing on to the smart new bridge over the M8 and down to cross Baird Street and through Townhead to North Hanover Street.

A surprise awaited us in George Square – no, there are no cycle lanes yet, but there was a dragon! A belated celebration of the Chinese New Year on 29 January.

We continued south to the curious lanes on King Street and Bridgegate, eventually getting through the traffic lights at the Clutha junction and cycled south on the South City Way, which is a useful route before turning left just after the Citizen’s to get to the rather poor and dilapidated cycle lane along the south side of the Clyde.

The Suspension Bridge brought us back over the Clyde into Glasgow Green from where we cycled west to the George V Bridge. The shared path on the eastern side of the bridge is adequate – though there has been a recent consultation about the bridge so cycle provision might improve.
We made our way along the cycle lanes, which are good, to the Kingston Bridge, crossing under the bridge and making our way to what just couldn’t be worse – the Kinning Park Footbridge – see the photo at the top!
Fortunately there’s another bridge not too far along, which we used before crossing over Paisley Road west and on to the cycle lane round Festival Park which was littered with debris from Storm Eowyn. Then it was over the Clyde Arc Bridge to end our ride.

Conclusion: some good, some not so good, and some just not good enough.

PS: the group photo is so good, I put it in twice!

For our themed December ride, we will be taking a spiral tour of Glasgow, taking in a number of new, rebuilt, and other modern bridges. These include new cycle bridges, railway bridges, motorway bridges, and river and canal bridges.

So expect there to be variety to the ride. Some will be big bridges, others small. Along the way we will use the South West City Way and Byres Road cycleways, and visit several parks. The finish will be around lunchtime in Townhead.
18 miles, with occasional climbs along the way.

We meet, as usual, at 10am, at the north end of Bell’s Bridge, Congress Road, Glasgow, just near the Armadillo.

We will start by heading to the bridge at Yorkhill Quay and cross to Govan, though it’s unlikely to be as busy as it was the opening weekend!

We will then follow a series of sections of cycle route to the riverside at Renfrew, and then go and check up on progress on the Renfrew to Paisley cycle route, before returning to Glasgow via Barshaw Park. We’ll end up back at the Govan Bridge around lunchtime.
15 miles, and note that the date of this ride coincides with that of the Great Scottish Run. While our ride avoids its routes, this event may affect your journey to our starting point.

We meet at the north end of Bell’s Bridge, just on the city side at 10:00.

For more information on GoBike rides, see here.

Parents and children from Shawlands Bike Bus and campaigners from GoBike have presented a jumbo “Thank You” card to staff at a bike lane consultation in Pollokshaws Burgh Hall.

Glasgow City Council is consulting on an ambitious plan to build 57km of new bike lanes in the Inner North and South of the city. This is the first phase of the planned 270km City Network of safe active travel routes.

“We started our bike bus because our children can’t safely cycle to school without it. Some people have described a bike bus as a human bike lane and it works well, but it is dependent on the voluntary efforts of many people and can also be difficult for some to access. What we need is a proper network of cycle lanes that are accessible to everyone, including school children, at all times. From the plans we’ve seen to date the city network looks really promising so we wanted to come and pay our appreciation to the design team.”
Parent, Shawlands Bike Bus

“We’re extremely excited about the ambition of the council’s plans. Cities like London and Paris are showing that when cycling is safe, it becomes one of the most popular forms of transport. A city-wide cycle network will give the people of Glasgow access to a cheap, healthy form of transport. It will help the city get to net zero. And because bikes are so space-efficient, it will even improve congestion.”
Spokesperson, GoBike

Cycling has been growing rapidly in Glasgow as new cycle lanes have been built. Crowds of cyclists are now a common site on the South City Way at rush hour, and a survey found that more than 1 in 4 vehicles on Victoria Road are now bicycles.

Glasgow City Council describes the City Network as providing “an accessible, safe, coherent and direct active travel network across Glasgow. To be delivered by 2031, the City Network will connect key amenities and drivers of travel such as education, business, retail and culture.”

Our ask to you

The consultation is open till October 20. Please check out the plans for the Inner North and South networks and complete the short consultation.

About the organisations:

Shawlands Bike Bus is a group of parents and children who cycle together to Shawlands Primary School. It is a part of the rapidly-growing global bike bus movement. It is equipped with an “Ultra Smart Cycle System” that allows the bike bus leader to temporarily control the traffic lights at Shawlands Cross – this won ‘Exemplary Approach to Active Travel and Public Space’ at the National Transport Awards in 2023.

GoBike is a campaign for safe cycling infrastructure across Strathclyde. Originally founded in the 1980s, the all-volunteer group has recently had success securing cycle lanes on Glasgow’s Byres Road.

The morning route will be largely following NCN route 7 through Dumbarton to Balloch, and then after lunch, we will head over to the Gare Loch via Glen Fruin. There will be plenty of views to be seen along the way, and the return to Glasgow will be by train from Helensburgh.
40 miles, with the hills all after lunch.

See further details on the GoBike rides page.

Meet at 10:00 am on Sunday at the north end of Bell’s Bridge at the SEC.