Sustrans - are they evil?

[Phil H]

You know, the people who manage the National Cycle Network of routes that take you from where you aren't to where you don't want to go. Many of their routes now being navigable on a cross bike rather than a full-suss MTB.

Anyway, last Sunday me and Tom were following NCN route 3 South from Bude. After Widemouth Bay where it turned off onto a minor route along the coast. I'd got the O/S map so had checked the contours but we soon came across some people who hadn't. We were going up the 3rd double chevron climb - signed at 30% - and passed a Dutch family (think so - guessing by accent) with the father & son on a tandem with trailer, the mother with the daughter on a tag-along all with full panniers. Yes, they were pushing rather than riding.

I wonder if they thought the little blue signs were some evil British practical joke.

[Dan_K]

Agree! Some of their routes are plain daft!
They offer little in the way of explaining their routes on the website too. I picked up a Sirrus hybrid at the weekend ant thought the Sustrans routes could be a good way to get out with the family but they're not that straightforward to navigate.
In Germany, they have these brilliant little maps at tourist offices that tell you all of the local routes, plus have an elevation chart and show the chevrons on the map so it makes route planning very simple.

[Amy]

According to the papers today, Bude is one of the more unusual places to have a picnic...

Yes, agree that Sustrans or any cycle path is mostly evil - sometimes useful but mostly taking you off at a tangent at best to where you want to be...

[Andrew G]

Good ideas but need a bit of classifying so you know that by the symbol next to the sign what it is / isn't suitable for.

There's a bridleway that goes between Farleigh and next to the White Bear pub at the end of Featherbed Lane. It's a great blast on the mountain bike but is a very steep narrow off road (including packed and loose mud and stones of various sizes) track that drops like a ravine and then climbs up immediately at the same gradient on the other side. Belting fun on a MTB but it's signed just like any normal cycle path with the blue arrow!

Having just come up it on the MTB one day I found a couple of German students with their hybrid bikes with luggage on looking at a map, then the sign, then the bridleway. I could imagine what they thought so directed them via the lanes to get them where they wanted to go without them having to turn their nice touring ride in the English countryside in to some sort of assault course.

They could easily change the maps to show with say a green triangle those routes / sections that were only suitable for off road bikes. Similarly add in a caution triangle for roads like Phil's.

[kieran]

Hi Andrew, I remember that, also some of the LCN paths take you to areas you wouldn't go unless fully kitted out in body armour, parts of south London.