tom shields Cycling in the city
The good news is that workers are out in force resurfacing Glasgow streets and fixing potholes. The bad news is that it seems to apply only to 14 kilometres of the city's roads which are to be used next month in a bike race. For the rest of the thoroughfares it is business as usual: a mixture of Mariana Trench and moonscape.
It is not just any bike race. It is the British Cycling Elite Men's and Women's National Road Race Championships. It will be a dry (apart from the inevitable rain) run for the cycle road races at next year's Commonwealth Games.
Olympic gold medal and Tour de France winner Sir Bilbo Baggins will be in attendance. As will loads of media. Glasgow will look fantastic on the telly. It will be like watching Taggart with sightings of fabulous architecture and parkland. The west end will have a starring role this time.
In Taggart mode, there may be blood as the cyclists whiz down steep hills and navigate sharp corners. There would be a lot more blood had the council not found cash for fixing the 14 kilometres of potholes.
Normally I would complain about expenditure on sports events while other walks of life face cuts. It was ever thus. No budget for writers and philosophers to cross the road to study the human condition but a sports reporter will be sent to cover an under-19s football play-off somewhere in Alpha Centauri.
Since a number of roads in my barrio are being given a makeover for the occasion, I warmly welcome this Tour de Glesca. What Glasgow needs is many more high-profile cycle races. The Giro de Possil would be eagerly anticipated.
I must say Glasgow would not be my first choice as a place to go a bike. There are too many hills. Too many drivers who care little about the safety of cyclists. Not enough bike lanes. And awful weather.
I do cycle a lot in Barcelona where the council provides a bike on demand using a Bicing smart card that costs little more than 10p a day. There are bike lanes aplenty and broad pavements to go off-road.
There are not too many hills or potholes. The weather is good. And there is the blessing of the 30-minute rule. The council bikes are for transport not leisure so each journey is meant to last less than half-an-hour before you return the bike to the nearest Bicing stand. There is the 10-minute rule which means you have to sit at a café and have a refreshment before taking out another bike to continue the journey.
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