... while excusing the quality of the photography.







Whenever the subject is raised in Blogland, it tends to provoke an extremely polarised response. Normally mild-mannered bloggers can become incandescent with rage when faced with the issue and slanging matches can ensue. So it is with some trepidation that I present a topic which has been troubling me for some time, but especially so since starting to walk to work.

I walk through a park on my way to work. It's the same park where I saw the legendary bootee. It's a park I walk and run through regularly, as it provides a traffic free alternative to getting into and out of town.

At the opposite end of the park, there is a narrow footbridge (there's a clue in the name) which crosses the river at the weir. Where the path narrows towards the footbridge, there is a sign. It shows a picture of a bicycle on a white background in a circle with a red border. If you were in any doubt as to what this sign means, there's a helpful sign underneath, stating "NO CYCLING".

On only one or two occasions (out of probably hundreds) have I seen a cyclist dismount and walk across the bridge. They do not even have the courtesy to use their bell to alert pedestrians on the bridge to their presence. Like I say, it's a narrow bridge, crossing a dangerous stretch of river. This is presumably the reason why someone decided that it was safer for all concerned for cyclists to dismount for this short stretch. Would it really be such a chore to add a few seconds on to their journey?

I remain both puzzled and disgruntled.