Angry residents have called for the removal of ‘nightmare’ cycling wands installed outside their homes – as emergency workers and delivery drivers fumed they have nowhere now to stop their vehicles but in the middle of the road.
The 2ft tall posts were installed along Wimborne Road in Poole, Dorset, to protect cyclists using a brand-new bike lane that has been laid between a row of houses and the road.
They are also intended to stop cars parking on the freshly-laid cycle path.
But the posts have made it difficult for several homeowners to access their drives, while the wands have created issues for larger vehicles.
Emergency vehicles such as fire engines have to stop in the middle of the road and hold up traffic to deal with an incident.
And lorries and large delivery vans are unable to pull in next to properties, so they also have to park on the road leaving it gridlocked.
Local councillor Gavin Wright, speaking on behalf of angry homeowners, challenged the council’s cycling supremo on where lorries and delivery vehicles are now meant to stop.
But Andy Hadley, cabinet member responsible for the roads at BCP Council, could not give an answer and instead said he would have to ‘consult with council officers’.
Angry residents have called for the removal of ‘nightmare’ cycling wands installed outside their homes along Wimborne Road in Poole, Dorset
The 2ft tall posts were installed along Wimborne Road in Poole, Dorset, to protect cyclists using a brand-new bike lane that has been laid between a row of houses and the road
Emergency vehicles now have to stop in the middle of the road and hold up traffic to deal with an incident
Mr Wright, a retired firefighter, said: ‘There’s now no room to stop on the highway as it’s too narrow so that packages from cars, vans and lorries can’t be safely delivered.
‘Are delivery vehicles supposed to negotiate their way down the cycle lane which they wouldn’t be able to do because the bollards are too close together?
‘Or are they supposed to stop in the driving lane which would block it completely on one side?
‘This is a particular problem for building materials as has been mentioned by a couple of residents as they’re delivered by lorry mounted cranes.
‘They can’t reach over the cycle lane and path to their houses and probably shouldn’t be parking on the cycle lane.
‘It would seem that these bollards have not been sufficiently thought through and should be removed and replaced with white lines or cats eyes.’
Mr Wright added: ‘The wands are a nightmare. To have them outside people’s homes is absolutely ridiculous.
‘I’m a retired firefighter and if there is a fire engine or police car then unless cars go on the cycle lane, the emergency services can’t split the traffic and go down the middle.
Lorries and large delivery vans are unable to pull in next to properties, so they also have to park on the road leaving it gridlocked
BCP Council and neighbouring Dorset Council have been given £120million to build almost 50 miles of new cycle lanes in south east Dorset
Local councillor Gavin Wright, speaking on behalf of angry homeowners, challenged the council’s cycling supremo on where lorries and delivery vehicles are now meant to stop
‘Delivery companies have contacted me asking what are they supposed to do as parking in the cycle lane is illegal but on the road they will block traffic.
‘I’m still waiting for an answer.
‘I’m not against cycle lanes but you need to think about traffic and commerce.’
Delivery driver Ryan Godfrey posted on Facebook: ‘It’s getting ridiculous now with the cycle lanes I deliver shopping for a job and it’s a nightmare trying to park outside peoples houses to deliver.’
The cycle lane and the wands are all part on the government’s Transforming Cities Fund.
BCP Council and neighbouring Dorset Council have been given £120million to build almost 50 miles of new cycle lanes in south east Dorset.
Both local authorities have declared ‘climate emergencies’ and say the project will make travel more sustainable and reduce congestion on the roads.
But many local residents say the prolonged scheme is a waste of taxpayers’ money and that the cycle lanes that have already been laid are hardy used.
The 2ft tall posts have created discontent among homeowners and drivers of large vehicle
Some residents have complained that the cycling lane and posts are just outside their drives, making it more difficult to enter and exit
Residents believe the cycling ‘wands’ might have made the situation ‘more dangerous’ as drivers struggle their way around the posts
The residents on Wimborne Road said their lives had become a ‘nightmare’ since the council installed the cycle wands.
Debbie Woodcocks, 50, a carer, has two wands in front of her drive.
She said: ‘It’s a nightmare trying to get out. I’m just infuriated by it.
‘At least before you could reverse out with some more haste but now you’ve got to navigate those things which force you to reverse into the other side of the road.
‘It’s made things more dangerous for cyclists and drivers, and I think an accident is more likely now.
‘The thing is you only see maybe 10 cyclists a day so it is a waste of money.
‘If an ambulance or fire engine is trying to get passed now how is that going to work, when they’ve made the road so much narrower.
‘I almost wonder if they’ve done it out of spite.’
Andy Hadley, cabinet member responsible for the roads at BCP Council, said the wands were there to ‘stop illegal parking and protect schoolchildren’
Mr Hadley said the wands were there to ‘stop illegal parking and protect schoolchildren’.
He also said that the cycle lane had ‘reduced flooding risks’ and said the wands were justified as ‘cars are getting wider’.
He said: ‘The design was adjusted to reduce the risk of flooding into residents gardens and homes.
‘A few people continue to park inside the wands, across the cycleway and pavement. This is illegal.
‘Double yellow line restrictions apply to the back of the highway boundary.
‘Given the increasing width of vehicles, and the manner of driving by some, the use of measures like wands to protect schoolchildren in particular, is an important tool, and where officers recommended their use, they will form part of the consultation process on future schemes.’
Cllr Hadley previously said: ‘We are committed to creating safe, sustainable and active ways for people, including schoolchildren, to travel locally to and from Poole town centre along this busy road.
‘To encourage people to cycle they must feel confident that they are safe.
‘These wands are intended to give them that confidence, by alerting both people cycling and those driving vehicles to the presence of the cycle route, affording a degree of separation from moving traffic and preventing vehicles from blocking the cycle lane.’
