Cycle story in the local rag...

On Tue, 20 Jan 2004 11:12:30 +0000, in
<[email protected]>, Bob
<[email protected]> wrote:

>http://w3.cambridge-news.co.uk/news/cambridge/story.asp?StoryID=46645

From webpage: "We realise Charlotte has concerns about this and we would invite her to come to see a
gritter and see what we do and put her questions to our highways people. Or if her school agrees we
may be able to bring a gritter along for her and her class to learn about what we do."

My comment: Bloody stupid idea. I think she *knows* what a gritter does and is a bit ****** off
about the fact that it didn't.

--
I remember when the internet was only in black & white. It only had a few pages but at least they
all worked. Email: Put only the word "richard" before the @ sign.

"The 12-year-old said: "As I was cycling to school I fell off my bike after having to break suddenly
on an icy surface"

Unintended irony or ignorant FLJS?

--

Dave Larrington - http://www.legslarry.beerdrinkers.co.uk/
===========================================================
Editor - British Human Power Club Newsletter
http://www.bhpc.org.uk/
===========================================================

"Richard Bates" <[email protected]> wrote in
message news:[email protected]...
> On Tue, 20 Jan 2004 11:12:30 +0000, in <[email protected]>, Bob
> <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> >http://w3.cambridge-news.co.uk/news/cambridge/story.asp?StoryID=46645
>
> From webpage: "We realise Charlotte has concerns about this and we would invite her to come to see
> a gritter and see what we do and put her questions to our highways people. Or if her school agrees
> we may be able to bring a gritter along for her and her class to learn about what we do."
>

Oh FFS. What kind of stupid response is that?

> My comment: Bloody stupid idea. I think she *knows* what a gritter does and is a bit ****** off
> about the fact that it didn't.
>

Absolutely.

Another Rich

"Richard Goodman" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...

> > "We realise Charlotte has concerns about this and we would invite her to come to see a gritter
> > and see what we do and put her questions to our highways people. Or if her school agrees we may
> > be able to bring a gritter along for her and her class to learn about what we do."

> Oh FFS. What kind of stupid response is that?

Maybe a tactful way of saying "how the f--- are we supposed to get one of those bastards on a
psychlepath!?!" - just guessing.

--
Guy
===

WARNING: may contain traces of irony. Contents may settle after posting.
http://chapmancentral.demon.co.uk

On Tue, 20 Jan 2004 13:31:03 GMT someone who may be "Richard
Goodman" <[email protected]> wrote this:-

>> "We realise Charlotte has concerns about this and we would invite her to come to see a gritter
>> and see what we do and put her questions to our highways people. Or if her school agrees we may
>> be able to bring a gritter along for her and her class to learn about what we do."
>>
>
>Oh FFS. What kind of stupid response is that?

A stupid response, but typical of the attitude council officials tend to display.

--
David Hansen, Edinburgh | PGP email preferred-key number F566DA0E I will always explain revoked
keys, unless the UK government prevents me using the RIP Act 2000.

On Tue, 20 Jan 2004 14:46:20 -0000, Just zis Guy, you know?
<[email protected]> wrote:

> "Richard Goodman" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
>
>> > "We realise Charlotte has concerns about this and we would invite her to come to see a gritter
>> > and see what we do and put her questions to our highways people. Or if her school agrees we may
>> > be able to bring a gritter along for her and her class to learn about what we do."
>
>> Oh FFS. What kind of stupid response is that?
>
>
> Maybe a tactful way of saying "how the f--- are we supposed to get one of those bastards on a
> psychlepath!?!" - just guessing.

The whole article sounds like a good reason why cycling on the road is safer, even for 12 year olds---
though I would advocate thinking twice before cycling out onto ice on any road or path.
Alternatively maybe there's work to be had out there for a recumbent trike fitted with a gritter.

On a point of query: I always understood that 'grit' worked by having heavy traffic grind it
repeatedly into the snow and ice. Would grit, therefore, be of any use on an off road cycle path or
even a cycle lane unless it was used in large quantities?

Colin
--

On Tue, 20 Jan 2004 14:46:20 -0000, in
<[email protected]>, "Just zis Guy, you know?"
<[email protected]> wrote:

>"Richard Goodman" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>news:[email protected]...
>
>> > "We realise Charlotte has concerns about this and we would invite her to come to see a gritter
>> > and see what we do and put her questions to our highways people. Or if her school agrees we may
>> > be able to bring a gritter along for her and her class to learn about what we do."
>
>> Oh FFS. What kind of stupid response is that?
>
>
>Maybe a tactful way of saying "how the f--- are we supposed to get one of those bastards on a
>psychlepath!?!" - just guessing.

"Charlotte Coe was on her way to St Mary's School in Bateman Street, Trumpington when she came off
her bike on an untreated cycle path in Barton Road, Newnham." ...

combined with

... "Her mother Deryn Coe, of Gough Way, Newnham, said Charlotte was on a designated cycle way on
the footpath when she skidded off on Thursday."

Makes me assume that she was on a path that ran parallel with a road. Gritting the road would have
gritted the path too.
--
I remember when the internet was only in black & white. It only had a few pages but at least they
all worked. Email: Put only the word "richard" before the @ sign.

On Tue, 20 Jan 2004 14:46:20 -0000, Just zis Guy, you know? scrawled: ) Maybe a tactful way of
saying "how the f--- are we supposed to get one of ) those bastards on a psychlepath!?!"

It used to be you could say "if they can get a man on the moon" at this point, but recent beagling
about has rather spoiled all that. More pertinently, if they can spray a car's windows with grit
then they should certainly be able to aim it on the majority of cycle paths. If we were in charge
ect. ect. ect. ad nossiham.

J-P
--
there are doors that lock and doors that don't

"Colin Blackburn" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news[email protected]...

>
> On a point of query: I always understood that 'grit' worked by having heavy traffic grind it
> repeatedly into the snow and ice. Would grit, therefore, be of any use on an off road cycle path
> or even a cycle lane unless it was used in large quantities?
>

Isn't there any salt in the grit? Doesn't salt react to melt the ice - I seem to have vague
recollections an issue around salts getting washed off the road and into the land from gritting in
an article I once read? At any rate, pavements are also gritted (occasionally) by shovelling it on
so I don't think it needs heavy motorvehicle traffic to work. I'm sure gritting cycle paths would
help for those that use them.

Rich

> On a point of query: I always understood that 'grit' worked by having heavy traffic grind it
> repeatedly into the snow and ice. Would grit, therefore, be of any use on an off road cycle path
> or even a cycle lane unless it was used in large quantities?

I was always told it had salt in it which lowered the freezing point of water.

Richard Bates wrote:

> Makes me assume that she was on a path that ran parallel with a road. Gritting the road would have
> gritted the path too.

I'm not familiar with this part of the world, but there are shared-use farcilities in my neck of the
woods which are separated from the road by flower beds, the "footpath" section of the path, bus
stops, etc. They're too far away from the road for flying grit to reach; they require the services
of a Little Man with a shovel. Which, natch, they don't get.

Yet another reason to have nothing whatsoever to do with them.

--

Dave Larrington - http://www.legslarry.beerdrinkers.co.uk/
===========================================================
Editor - British Human Power Club Newsletter
http://www.bhpc.org.uk/
===========================================================

On Tue, 20 Jan 2004 15:55:23 -0000, Mark Thompson
<[email protected] (change warm for hot)> wrote:

>> On a point of query: I always understood that 'grit' worked by having heavy traffic grind it
>> repeatedly into the snow and ice. Would grit, therefore, be of any use on an off road cycle path
>> or even a cycle lane unless it was used in large quantities?
>
> I was always told it had salt in it which lowered the freezing point of water.

It certanly does that---I was looking at the small spots of unfrozen road around each particle on
our road the other day when Durham was a bit snowy. What it doesn't do in normal quantities is
create large areas of clear road. I have been told that vehicles are needed to drive over the road
to complete the job, I don't think a bicycle is an adequate vehicle for this.

Colin
--

On Tue, 20 Jan 2004 14:46:20 -0000 someone who may be "Just zis Guy,
you know?" <[email protected]> wrote this:-

>Maybe a tactful way of saying "how the f--- are we supposed to get one of those bastards on a
>psychlepath!?!" - just guessing.

Tactful perhaps, but still indicating a lack of fresh thinking. It is perfectly possible to operate
a fleet of cycle based gritters.

--
David Hansen, Edinburgh | PGP email preferred-key number F566DA0E I will always explain revoked
keys, unless the UK government prevents me using the RIP Act 2000.

On Tue, 20 Jan 2004 14:56:40 -0000, Colin Blackburn
<[email protected]> wrote:

>On a point of query: I always understood that 'grit' worked by having heavy traffic grind it
>repeatedly into the snow and ice. Would grit, therefore, be of any use on an off road cycle path or
>even a cycle lane unless it was used in large quantities?

That's why I thought the council's response was a particularly good one. I am sure there are very
good reasons why a gritter cannot grit many of Cambridge's cycle paths, and a practical explaination
with a visit to the local school would be a good learning experience for any twelve year old.

At the age of 12 I'd have loved it - and paid particular attention - had a gritter turned up for me
to clamber over in the school playground. Good grief, I could work a whole term's worth of Design
Technology around the problem of gritting cycle lanes. We could start of with your idea of a
gritting recumbent.

On Tue, 20 Jan 2004 11:12:30 +0000, Bob <[email protected]> wrote:

>http://w3.cambridge-news.co.uk/news/cambridge/story.asp?StoryID=46645
>
>Cheers,

It's +ve to see that someone has gone to the paper on this and also that the paper has
reported on it.

On Tue, 20 Jan 2004, Dave Larrington wrote:

> Richard Bates wrote:
>
> > Makes me assume that she was on a path that ran parallel with a road. Gritting the road would
> > have gritted the path too.
>
> I'm not familiar with this part of the world, but there are shared-use farcilities in my neck of
> the woods which are separated from the road by flower beds, the "footpath" section of the path,
> bus stops, etc. They're too far away from the road for flying grit to reach; they require the
> services of a Little Man with a shovel. Which, natch, they don't get.

If my memory is correct, at least part of the road in question matches your description exactly and
there are grass verges along side. There are lots of left-hand junctions too.

--
Daniel Auger

Please remove "_nospam" from address to reply.

On Tue, 20 Jan 2004 18:37:49 +0000, in
<[email protected]>, Gonzalez
<[email protected]> wrote:

>On Tue, 20 Jan 2004 14:56:40 -0000, Colin Blackburn <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>>On a point of query: I always understood that 'grit' worked by having heavy traffic grind it
>>repeatedly into the snow and ice. Would grit, therefore, be of any use on an off road cycle path
>>or even a cycle lane unless it was used in large quantities?

Nowadays, for "grit" read "salt". Needs to be applied in advance of the snow/ice but doesn't need to
be ground in.

--
I remember when the internet was only in black & white. It only had a few pages but at least they
all worked. Email: Put only the word "richard" before the @ sign.

On Tue, 20 Jan 2004 18:37:49 +0000, Gonzalez
<[email protected]> wrote:

> That's why I thought the council's response was a particularly good one. I am sure there are very
> good reasons why a gritter cannot grit many of Cambridge's cycle paths, and a practical
> explaination with a visit to the local school would be a good learning experience for any twelve
> year old.
>
> At the age of 12 I'd have loved it - and paid particular attention - had a gritter turned up for
> me to clamber over in the school playground. Good grief, I could work a whole term's worth of
> Design Technology around the problem of gritting cycle lanes. We could start of with your idea of
> a gritting recumbent.

Some sort of rotating spreader connecting to the transmission line, mmm...

Colin
--

"Gonzalez" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...

> At the age of 12 I'd have loved it - and paid particular attention - had a gritter turned up for
> me to clamber over in the school playground.

Sometimes, health and safety, plus risk assessment forms start to make sense.

Can you really imagine the chaos and carnage of loads of kids arsing about on a gritter?