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The campaign to reopen Queensbury railway tunnel, between Halifax and Bradford, for cyclists has received a boost. Robert Goodwill, Minister for Cycling, has agreed to visit the tunnel and speak to local campaigners. The decision on the future of the tunnel will be made by the Highways Agency, and the Queensbury Community Heritage & Action Partnership hope that Robert Goodwill will be able to instruct them to provide for cyclists.
It’s been a good week for rural cycleways in Scotland and here’s another one. A new two-mile path is being constructed between Strathyre and Balquhidder in the Trossachs, a journey which currently involves a long detour. The new path will follow the former Callander & Oban railway trackbed.
Work started at the beginning of April and should be complete at the end of June. It forms part of National Cycle Network route 7, which is largely traffic-free in this area on railway paths and forest tracks. The route links Glasgow and Inverness.
The path is being funded by Transport Scotland. John Lauder, director of Sustrans Scotland, said: “We envisage that it will prove popular with tourists from both home and abroad, especially given that this is such a scenic part of Scotland.”
A driver has been given five points on his licence, and fined £600, after deliberately ramming a cyclist – but the points were for failing to stop, not for the attack. According to the Richmond & Twickenham Times, “while driving his Jaguar X-type in Sawyer’s Hill, driver Jon Weale pulled up alongside a cyclist and his passenger shouted abuse about who had right of way”. Weale then subsequently drove his car at the cyclist.
The ‘Rules’ of road cycling, set by an anonymous collective called the Velominati, have become infamous in cycling folklore and have even inspired a book. Now cycling clothing brand Vulpine has set about them with delight, calling them “ridiculous”, “rather stupid”, and “buttock-clenchingly anal”. Instead they propose just two rules: “1: Enjoy your ride. 2: Don’t mess it up for anyone else.” We can get with that.
Cyclists could be enjoying a spectacular new touring route from Oban to Inverness as soon as 2015 – and construction is now underway on one of the crucial ‘missing links’.
Dubbed the Caledonia Way, the new route (National Cycle Network route 78) is set to become the most popular cycle challenge in Scotland. For the really dedicated cyclist, there’ll be 228 miles of route altogether, from Campbeltown (on the Kintyre Peninsula) to Oban and on to Inverness.
Since 2007, Sustrans has been working on a cycle path between Oban and Ballachulish, 32 miles along Loch Linnhe which are currently dominated by the busy A828. Now, construction teams have moved in on the crucial Kentallan–Lagnaha stretch (pictured), connecting two existing sections of cycle route. Part of the new path follows an old railway trackbed, while the rest crosses the hillside with spectacular views over the loch. When this is complete, only a couple of short stretches further south will remain to be finished.
Quiet lanes, ferry crossings, and the Caledonian Canal towpath will complete the route up to Inverness via Fort William. In the long term, Sustrans is hoping that Transport Scotland will extend the traffic-free path from Ballachulish on to Fort William beside the A82 trunk road, which it runs. For now, cyclists are encouraged to use the ferry to cross onto the quiet road on the western side of the loch.
The Oban–Ballachulish route will also improve the ‘Road to the Isles’ for cyclists, making it easier to cycle to Skye – though 19 miles of busy road remain along the A830.
As well as being a cycling challenge in itself, the new route will be useful for Land’s End to John O’Groats cyclists, and for local residents and holidaymakers in the area.
Check out the currently open sections of route from Oban to Fort William on our map and journey-planner.
Made in the Cotswolds. Published by Éditions Système D Ltd.
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