Towpath Cycling

The subject of towpath cycling is raised at all our meetings, whether it is on the agenda or not.
It is also cited as a major reason why a lot of vulnerable people keep away from the canal, even during daylight hours.

Cycling can provide opportunities as well as threats. The canal is a safer place when there is a constant flow of slow moving traffic, and in recent years restrictions on cyclists have been lifted. But when individuals abuse their privileges and ride inconsiderately they can turn the towpath into a no-go zone for countless others.

To date, nobody in authority has offered a solution to this problem. It appears that Transport for London want to encourage cycling on the towpath and they have worked closely with British Waterways to educate cyclists. But nobody has offered resources to tackle the anti-social riders, and there are very few signs advising or instructing cyclists to dismount at narrow points.

A good starting point would be to agree a definition of inconsiderate cycling. Opinions vary widely on what is acceptable, but if we measure good and bad cycling in terms of speed, clearance and lines of sight then we can start compiling some guidelines and statistics. On the road, cyclists expect cars to allow a 3 feet passing distance (http://3feetplease.org.uk) when overtaking them, so it follows naturally that pedestrians should be entitled to a similar clearance on the towpath.

Another factor is speed. This is not an issue on an empty towpath, assuming that there are no ropes or fishing rods in the way, but if there are pedestrians within 6 feet of a cyclist then anything above 4mph is questionable.

Various articles and letters have been published on this topic and certain guidelines have been produced by British Waterways and Sustrans. Some of these will be attached to this webpage in due course. If you want to submit any comments of your own then please send an e-mail to friendsregentscanal@gmail.com.

Click here to see articles and letters in the local press.