Sunday 06 August: GoBike cycle to Dumbarton

Join us on Sunday when we will head out of Glasgow along the Loch Lomond Railway Path, but only as far as Dumbarton. After the lunch stop at the café in the park there will be a tour around the Dumbarton area to see some of the local attractions, including views up and down the River Clyde, looking over towards the castle, and passing by Strathleven House, before rejoining the cycle route to return to Glasgow.

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GoBike November cycle ride, Sunday 06 November

A relatively short ride, 18 miles with next to no hills, and travelling over an award-winning bridge!

To celebrate the opening of the new Stockingfield Bridge over the Forth & Clyde Canal in Maryhill, which was due to open in September, we will have a tour of the areas around the canal, including the Claypits Nature Reserve and Ruchill, before using the bridge. We will then head to Clydebank along the towpath, to view the Titan Crane, then return into Glasgow along the Loch Lomond cycle path, ending up at Kelvingrove.
18 miles, largely on the flat – so what’s not to like?

We meet at 10:00 hours at the north end of Bell’s Bridge, at the SEC in Glasgow

It’s worth noting that :

The Stockingfield Bridge project has won the 2022 ICE People’s Choice Award.

The annual award, from the Institution of Civil Engineers, recognises civil engineering projects that have made a positive impact on their local communities.

The £14m two-way spanning, cable-stayed pedestrian and cycling bridge at Stockingfield project took 21 months to complete.

It connects communities on either side of the Forth & Clyde Canal for the first time since 1790.

Consultation Digest (Local) Issue 111, 26 May 2022

Visualisation showing redevelopment phase 1, now up to 7 storeys

Building back up…

The Digest returns after an extended break for the local council elections (and some tech issues – apologies). The people in charge of a council have a big say in what gets done so it’s worth noting what has (and hasn’t) changed.

Glasgow City Council continues in minority SNP control, with added support from the Greens. However, Anna Richardson has stepped down from her Sustainability role. Instead, the convenor of the Environment, Sustainability and Carbon Reduction City Policy Committee is Elaine McSporran (Cardonald).

Elsewhere, many neighbouring councils have changed hands:

Continue reading “Consultation Digest (Local) Issue 111, 26 May 2022”

Consultation Digest (Local) Issue 110, 14 April 2022

Plans for segregated cycletracks on Cornwall St/Churchill Ave, East Kilbride

Consultation resurrection?

Happy Easter! Things are a bit dead, before numbers rise again after the election, so it’s a chance to bring back consultations that slipped through the net in the last few months. The 12 local authorities in the Strathclyde area don’t always let us know what they’re up to!

This issue features East Ayrshire and West Dunbartonshire for the first time in a while. North Ayrshire and Inverclyde still have consultations open. Also, regulars like Glasgow, East Renfrewshire and South Lanarkshire. The latter had a consultation that fell between Digest issues (see featured image, above) and sent a new update on NCN74.

Also, ahead of the local elections, check out Walk, Wheel, Cycle, Vote and consider a trip to Edinburgh for Pedal on Parliament‘s new route on 23 April (just after Earth Day).

Continue reading “Consultation Digest (Local) Issue 110, 14 April 2022”

An introduction from one of our new Co-Convenors – Dave Brennan

In the first of two blog posts we would like to introduce one of our new Co-Convenors – Dave Brennan. As you may know, GoBike is undergoing a change in convenorship, as Trisha has decided to take a small step back after many hardworking and fruitful years as Convenor. We are deeply thankful that she has agreed to continue working on the ‘Consultations’ side of GoBike, and look forward to new horizons with her still on board. David, it’s over to you:

Photo: Iona Shepherd

“When I am talking to someone in my cycle campaigning capacity I often find myself saying, ‘Current cyclists cycle despite the conditions, not because of them’. With a small adjustment that saying accurately describes the world of cycle campaigning up until very recently:

Many campaigners have campaigned for better cycle infrastructure, despite the political conditions, certainly not because of them!

For many years the ‘political will’ has not existed for the changes required to bring active travel to the masses. Many politicians in the past have given short shrift to the idea of adjusting the balance of the environment, away from the motor vehicle and towards more sustainable transport. The car has very much been the king in Glasgow and the surrounding areas for many years with the M8 being the greatest monument to the cause.

Despite a very unfavourable environment, campaign groups like GoBike have worked tirelessly over the years to try and improve the lot of those who chose alternative forms of transport. It’s been tough, and whilst the victories haven’t been widespread, there have been victories.

When I helped to set up the Pedal on Parliament campaign back in 2012, I got a taste of that environment, having attended a meeting where a transport minister almost shouted at us for not praising his pitiful attempts at ‘driver education’, and another meeting where a Glasgow councillor stated that he would never set a percentage of the transport budget aside for active travel, as long as he was in post.

However, even back in 2012, the environment was changing. The Times were actively campaigning for better infrastructure, City of Edinburgh Council were starting to talk about a big change in policy. The political environment was changing, all be it slowly.

Fast forward to today and we find ourselves in a very different situation. We have an Environment Minister who not only talks a good game, but actually puts his money where his mouth is. We have the council in Edinburgh spending 10% of its transport budget on active travel, and we have a Glasgow council that actually rates active travel and the local environment high up on its priority list.

Things are far from rosy of course. Edinburgh is still making significant design mistakes in its proposals, ‘Bikelash’ is a very real thing (I know this personally from East Dunbartonshire and Bears Way), and there are still areas where paint is seen as an adequate solution. However, the debate has well and truly moved on, with the vast majority of new cycle lane design proposals including segregated infrastructure. That just did not happen 10 years ago.

The  campaign discussion itself has also moved on, and more and more we are talking about ‘place’ and ‘people friendly’, rather than focusing on just the cycle infrastructure. It’s not about catering for cyclists, its about catering for people and enabling people to make their own decisions on which mode of transport suits a particular journey, and making sure that that mode is catered for.

Personally I’ve been lucky with my timing. Pedal on Parliament was a great achievement and all of us involved should be proud of what we achieved, but that only happened because there were also improvements in the political environment. It also feels like I am lucky in my timing for being accepted as Co-Convener of GoBike along with Iona. Glasgow is in a great position to make big strides over the next few years. Those that came before us have not been so lucky.

Thus, I think it is entirely appropriate to say that Iona and I, ‘stand on the shoulders of campaigning giants’. We are truly thankful to Tricia and all those who have been working hard in GoBike for many years, who have helped bring us to this point today.

We must not, though, be complacent. As demonstrated in Bears Way, something I will be revisiting in the future, there will be trouble along the way and we must prepare for that. As well as being willing to criticise the bad, we must be willing to praise the good, and to help our politicians to make the difficult decisions. We must also understand that not every decision will be exactly what we want, and we must accept that there will be a compromise or two along the way.

However, I am excited to be jointly at the helm of GoBike at what is undoubtedly an exciting time. I am particularly excited to be working with Iona, who I worked with in organising PoP Glasgow. Iona is full of fantastic ideas (far more then me!) and has the drive to take them forward. Along with Iona, and of course the rest of the GoBike team, I will strive to work with councillors and council officers to ensure that we get the best value for our money and the highest quality possible in Glasgow and the surrounding areas. I also aim to encourage more hyperlocal campaigns such as Friends of Bears Way, which will benefit from the backing of GoBike.

How are we going to achieve this? With your help. GoBike is only as good as its membership, so if you care about anything I’ve written about above, join us. Join as a member , join the conversation on Slack (drop us an email at convenor at gobike dot org to ask for a Slack invite) and spread the word to cyclist and non-cyclist alike, that Glasgow has the potential to be so much greater than it is already.

Together we can help to put people and people friendly environments back at the heart of our communities.”

Ride out to Dumbarton Rock with GoBike! Sunday 05 November

 

Sunday 5 November – Dumbarton Rock
On this ride we shall follow the Loch Lomond Cycle Path out through Clydebank and Bowling to visit Dumbarton Rock. At Bowling we will see the latest developments at the Bowling Bridge. After lunch in the town centre we’ll take a tour up to Overtoun House before returning to Glasgow. Note that there will be a couple of short sections on main roads, plus a tricky main road crossing, on this ride.
Meet 10am Bell’s Bridge, Congress Road, Glasgow.
Ride on paths Ride on quiet roads Ride on canal towpaths Ride on busy roads Significant hill climbing
Rated: Go Bike star rating Go Bike star rating
 Go Bike star rating

For further details of GoBike cycle rides see the Cycle Rides page on our website.

Connecting Clydebank Consultation – Tuesday 12 September, Clydebank Town Hall

 

We have been sent this invitation.  Please get yourself along if you live or work in Clydebank or travel along the affected route:

Hello,

You have received this email as you might be interested in the proposed changes to the A814 Glasgow Road/ Dumbarton Road in Clydebank. This area is included within the  Connecting Clydebank project. Further details on the project can be found on the Council’s website – http://www.west-dunbarton.gov.uk/business/regeneration/clydebank-town-centre-projects/connecting-clydebank/

Following a public consultation on the sketch design in December 2016 and the feedback received from the community, the Council together with Sustrans have been progressing the design. A Final Draft Design has now been produced and we want to share this with all stakeholders and get your views on the proposals.

You are therefore invited to a drop-in consultation event to be held on Tuesday, 12th September 2017 between 3pm and 8pm in Clydebank Town Hall. Just come to the venue at any time between 3.00pm and 8.00pm – officers will be on hand to discuss the project and answer any questions you may have and get your feedback on the proposals.

Details of the event are on the attached flyer. Leaflet Sept Consultation Final Please share this within your wider network of contacts.

I hope you can make it along.

Regards, Davina

Davina Lavery, Regeneration Officer

Regeneration, Environment and Growth, Council Offices, Garshake Road, Dumbarton G82 3PU,     01389 737597 or 07815 705755,  davina.lavery@west-dunbarton.gov.uk