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Bikes to be carried on Edinburgh trams for the first time as part of one-month trialEdinburgh Trams.jpg

Bikes to be carried on Edinburgh trams for the first time as part of one-month trial

Campaign group urges 'careful and considerate use' to ensure trial becomes permanent...
by Sarah Barth
Sun, Apr 26, 2015 16:07
9

Bikes will be carried on Edinburgh trams for the first time as part of a trial into joined-up sustainable transport.

Although only available at off-peak times, the one-month trial from May will be a first for UK tram services as a regular part of their service.

Throughout May, all services will carry bikes apart from on weekdays 7.30-9.30am and 16.00-18.30pm.  
There will only be access from the central disabled doors and passengers must hold their bike upright during the journey.

Additional regulations are:

  • On board staff retain the discretion to prevent cyclists from boarding with bikes if they deem a tram to be too busy.
  • Only two bikes will be allowed on each tram and in the specified locations on board during the trial.
  • Passengers with disabilities or those with prams or buggies are to take priority with regards to space.

 
The campaign group Spokes, which lobbied for a five year period for the trial to be held, has urged tram users to take up the offer, while cautioning them to be considerate and careful in their use.

The campaign website notes: “Most importantly, remember this will set a precedent for the whole UK. 

“If the tram staff ask you to wait for the next tram, please do so without argument at the time.

“If you think some rule or action by the staff is unreasonable, keep cool, follow their request, and email the problem to Edinburgh Trams later.”

The campaigners also note: “Of course bike carriage is only one tram issue affecting cyclists.   Whilst we had a big success here (assuming the trial is made permanent) we had a much bigger failure when trying to influence the initial layout of the tram tracks – otherwise a significant proportion of the tramline crashes we have seen could [in our view] have been avoided.”

Last year we reported how a report following an inquiry into cycling in Sheffield urged the city’s council to to appoint a cycling champion and for non-folding bikes to be allowed on the city’s trams outside peak times.

Overturning the ban on non-folding bikes on the city’s trams may be easier said than done.

South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive (SYPTE) continues to oppose bikes being carried on Sheffield’s Supertram system, despite being urged to follow the example of London’s Docklands Light Railway in London, which now allows them outside peak hours.

And in November 2013, Supertram operator Stagecoach highlighted to councillors who oversee SYPTE what it saw as “safety risks” involved with permitting full-size bikes on trams.

Those included the “risk of conflict” between cyclists and other passengers; bikes becoming “projectiles” should a crash happen; and passengers’ clothes getting dirty if they brush against a bicycle.

trams
Edinburgh
joined-up transport
sustainable transport
bikes on trams

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9 comments

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Poptart242 | 9 years ago
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But... the trams in Edinburgh don't go anywhere useful, and they have cycle paths following most of the route. I genuinely can't see what the circumstances would be where I'd want to use them with my bike 7

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A V Lowe replied to Poptart242 | 9 years ago
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If you set off from Edinburgh Airport at same time as a tram on current timetable and cycle in to Edinburgh a few things can be guaranteed.

1) you will be overtaken on the road by at least 1 Airport Bus service 100 which left well after you and the tram.

2) you will pass Haymarket tram stop without sight of the tram the left when you did - unless there is a very serious headwind.

3) you will arrive at the terminus at York Place and the tram will arrive 10-15 minutes later with same caveat as 2)

Still it will be handy getting home at night and to the BMX park at Saughton on bikes which are hard work to ride any distance

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Metaphor | 9 years ago
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I personally consider trams and bikes to offer very similar 'services', probably function overall at similar speeds and cover similar ranges. They are therefore overlapping and I can't see the need to carry bikes on board.

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bikebot replied to Metaphor | 9 years ago
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Ramuz wrote:

I personally consider trams and bikes to offer very similar 'services', probably function overall at similar speeds and cover similar ranges. They are therefore overlapping and I can't see the need to carry bikes on board.

They're not much use as a regular commuting pattern, because the trams would be full anyway at peak times. But they can be handy as another option to get you home if you have a mechanical issue, which for everyday utility cycling makes a difference.

The South London trams still don't allow bicycles at anytime, when you can take them on trains, the DLR, and most tube lines off peak. I don't really see the reason, if they were really concerned about "flying projectiles" they wouldn't allow prams either.

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rnick | 9 years ago
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I was in Minneapolis a few weeks ago & the trams there have racks on the front to carry bikes which seemed a practical solution rather than having to carry it on board. However, these 21st century trams we will get in the UK seem to designed to be super aerodynamic (why?) so sticking a rack on the front might not be possible.

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BigglesMeister replied to rnick | 9 years ago
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rnick wrote:

I was in Minneapolis a few weeks ago & the trams there have racks on the front to carry bikes which seemed a practical solution rather than having to carry it on board. However, these 21st century trams we will get in the UK seem to designed to be super aerodynamic (why?) so sticking a rack on the front might not be possible.

I've also seen fold down racks for bikes on the fronts of buses in parts of Canada and the US.

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A V Lowe replied to BigglesMeister | 9 years ago
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I suggest you download and read TRL 592 which explains whay bikes hung naked on the front of buses will get nowhere in the EU, where pedestrian density, and the fact that an open ended handlebar is perfectly set up to deliver a 'core' wound in any 'victim' standing in front of the bus.

The leading edge of the rack strikes at around knee height and potentially has the weight of the body rotating towards the bikes / front of bus at an amplified speed.

Buses per vehicle per year have the highest hit rate for pedestrians in the UK crash reporting stats.

For such reasons and the fact that Europe seems to place a higher value on pedestrian lives than the US we are unlikely to get front mounted racks, especially as the low floor buses can accommodate bikes inside with a minimum of special fittings, on the vehicles which will by law have to be used 100% after 2020.

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Manchestercyclist | 9 years ago
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When will Manchester follow suit?

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farrell replied to Manchestercyclist | 9 years ago
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GREGJONES wrote:

When will Manchester follow suit?

Ha! Brilliant. The old ones are always the best aren't they?

Seriously though, Manchester would be the only place you'd have a mechanical on your bike, pay about a days wage to use a tram for a few miles, only to end up stranded yet again as the bus replacement service that has had to take over from the broken down tram refuses to load your bike!

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