12 years of Popup Bikes

It is now over 12 years since Popup Bikes first opened its doors. I visited it within a couple of months of the opening and wrote a post about it. The place started out aiming at coffee and cycle parking with some bike repair and has evolved into a thriving bike repair operation with coffee. Unlike many mainstream cycle shops in Manchester, Popup has not only survived lockdown it has flourished with a workshop that is busier than ever.

 The workshop soon grew in size and moved down to the far end of the arch.

 The slope now accommodates stock, customer bike parking and the latest acquisition, a mobile workshop in an electrically assisted trailer

There is not just freshly made coffee and snacks now, there is also ground coffee for sale.

 And the cafe area has been improved, though sadly the lawnmower has gone...

I can thoroughly recommend Popup Bikes. Three of my machines have been serviced there and that included a major rebuild of my touring bike and they always do a really good job. May the place thrive for another 12 years!

Deansgate Cycle Slalom

 Deansgate is famous for it's on-street sports events and Manchester City Council seem hell bent on inventing a new one, cycle slalom.

The new northbound cycle lane weaves it's way between pavement and a forest of bollards with priority being given to vehicle parking, loading bays and traffic coming out of side streets.

What's wrong with building cycle lanes that actually go in a straight line along a straight road?

Southbound you are running with the traffic negotiating badly designed bus gates before you are suddenly directed to cross the traffic onto the opposite side of the road only to be dumped back into the traffic just before the end.

Tempted to call it a load of bollards...

Deansgate Closed for Cycling

 Manchester City Council have allowed contractors to close Deansgate northbound for cycling for electrical works.

 #cyclistsdismount

Liverpool Street Popup Cycle Crap

There has been plenty of bullshit around popup cycle facilities in this area.

However, the reality on the ground is pretty dreadful.

Even before I got to Liverpool Street today, this shit blocked the cycle track.



Like many of the dreadful private hire drivers in the area this one has registered their vehicle as a private hire in Wolverhampton...



Mind you once I reached Liverpool Street, a local post person blocked the cycle lane with their van.



After that was the proof, if needed, that temporary cycle facilities, are just that, temporary.

Easily damaged, in this case it looks like a motor vehicle had hit the plastic barriers and blocked the cycle lane.



Salford council clearly couldn't care less about this facility. It is shit. There has been no effort to repair the dreadful road surface.

This is just not good enough!

Boycott Ridelow Manchester

This is so utterly disgusting.

From the Independent:-

A British businessman has been slammed on Twitter after applying to trademark the expressions "Black Lives Matter" and "I Can't Breathe".

Georgios Demetriou made applications on 6 June to trademark the phrases associated with the vast protest movement following the killing of George Floyd in police custody last month.

Georgios Demetriou is the founder of License to Thrill — which has operated the online bicycle store Ridelow in Manchester since May 2000.

Oxford Road Cycle Track Closure

A whole section of the Oxford Road cycle track, southbound from Charles Street to Brancaster Road has been closed overnight.



It seems that the building work on the old BBC site has been given permission to take over the whole of the pavement and the cycle track.



So the only safe way to cycle along here is to take the centre of the lane to prevent unsafe overtaking.



My bet is they will now simply use the extra space to park vans & cars...



So much for, so called, popup cycle lanes and new infrastructure.

Oxford Street Popup Cycle Lane Closure Signs...

Here's a sorry tale of anti-cycling measures that ends well for a change.

Whilst the executive member of the council appearing on TV extolling the virtues of cycling and walking, the council officers, who are much less enthusiastic about cycling, were making plans to close the cycle lanes on Oxford Street in Central Manchester.

I first noticed the markings on the road...



Then the signs appeared...



However, it turns out that the executive member had seen the plans and blocked them, so words have been had and the signs have been removed.



I know these cycle lanes are pretty crap, but they are better than having a queue of buses up your backside!