Occupy M32: year 40

A group of protestors are camped on college green, but apart from the "whiners corner" of the Evening Post, not having much effect.

A greater group of protesters have decided to come out in numbers and bring the city to its knees. Here they are on the M32

Their protest demonstration goes all the way up to Eastville junction.

Yet the mainstream media completely ignores this, even though these protestors include BMW and Mercedes drivers -the nearly-but-not-quite-1%, whose journeys in from the suburbs are crippled by the excessive fuel taxes the state is charging in order to keep the banks afloat.

The residents of the areas near the M32 are aware of this ongoing protest against the capitalist economy, and have been spraying signs of support against the M32 itself.

If there is one criticism, this protest has been going on for about forty years, and yet it has had little effect.

cycling city: removing pavement space from motorists

One thing that Cllr Gollop -the Official Bristol Traffic approved councillor - raised in his Bikelash speech is the space taken from important road users by cycling facilities. What's been taken away? Pavement parking opportunities

This pickup, Y66TAN, whose passenger is in buying something at Quiznos on Stapelton Road is forced to carefully squeeze between the new bike racks and the railings on the other side.

Those are the railings of the large empty car park for both Quizno's and the supermarket. Yes, the pickup could have driven in there, but that would have taken more time, and the thing about important people is this: they are in a hurry, and their time is more valuable than pedestrians, cyclists or bus passengers. After all, these are the slow ways to get around. Nobody in a hurry would use them.

Shocking scenes from the BB Railway Path

Central government have recently provided enough funding for the WoEP to look at some ongoing work, such as the BRT to Ashton Gate and the A38 to A370 road.

But not to what the city really needs: buses on the railway path. Because three years ago this month, the Campaign to Save the Railway path was founded.

We sent our van over there to see what was lost. Look at it. On a weekday morning, people are cycling along without helmets or hi viz.

The one person who is has a yellow top on has one that says "police", but even they said "hello" to us as they went past, instead of the usual greeting "are you the driver of this van, sir?"

We filmed the path for a few minutes, and noted nothing happening at all. One or two people trickling down.

At one person every 20 seconds, that's three people a minute, 45 people every fifteen minutes. Which, co-incidentally is the number of people a 60 seater BRT bus would have if running at 75% capacity on the fifteen minute schedule originally planned.

You could say, therefore, that these people cycling and walking here the same traffic capacity as the BRT system. But look at them. They are not important people, -they are people that live in the inner city, not the nice suburbs. They aren't revenue earners, they are people who either through lack of money or willingness have chosen to not live in a nice pleasant suburbs where pedestrians walking are something to complain to the council about.

The West of England Partnership weren't just thinking of people like themselves, who live in the suburbs, they were thinking of the environment, especially the newts. Look at this sign

PLEASE TAKE CARE
NEWTS CROSSING

Now 45 two wheeled bicycles every 15 minutes, that's 90 wheels, in an hour 360 wheels. But four buses an hour, what's that, 4x4=16 wheels? Newts would have been exposed to far less risk if this had been made a bus route.

These people who use this path, they talk about the environment and nature, but do they care about the wellbeing of the newts and the WoEP's plans to save them? We think not. Only South Gloucester and North Somerset do, by doing their best to discourage walking and cycling in their parts of the ex-Avon county.

But even there, we hear of opposition.

Zen & the art of motorcycle parking

Use the pavement. Easy, really. It makes for some interesting street art that blind,partially sighted and mothers with pushchairs can appreciate as they squeeze past.