“Waste of money” cycle lane slammed, as some locals call for more space for drivers – “because that’s the majority”

The latest phase of a massive active travel scheme – the first part of which was branded “Britain’s biggest bike lane” by the Daily Mail and motorists unhappy at the infrastructure’s width – has come under fire from some locals, who claim that the project does not represent “value for money”, that “not enough” cyclists are using them, and that more road space should be allocated to drivers because they are “the majority”.

However, the scheme has not been immune to criticism from cyclists, who say the lanes are often covered in “twigs and stones”, making riding on them “dangerous”.

The new two-mile cycle lane on Wimborne Road East in Ferndown, opened earlier this year, forms part of Dorset Council’s plan to create “a safe, sustainable transport link between residential areas, local schools, and centres of employment” in the area, while also adding another section to the active travel route that connects Ferndown, Wimborne, and Poole.

Once complete, the road will feature 4.3 miles of “uninterrupted accessibility improvements” from Wimborne to Trickett’s Cross, linking residential areas with Dorset’s largest employment area.

This latest section, which stretches from Trickett’s Cross to Canford Bottom, includes new wide paths for pedestrians and cyclists with priority over adjoining roads, improved crossings with smart phasing technology, and new bus stops. The road’s speed limit has also been lowered from 40mph to 30mph.

The third and final phase of the project, which is set to be completed at the end of 2024, was funded by Active Travel England, while the phase completed earlier this year used money from the Transforming Cities Fund.

> MailOnline takes aim at cyclists for not using “rollercoaster” bike lane... that is “littered with stones” and “stops and starts all the way along”

According to a Freedom of Information request by the Daily Echo, the last two-mile section of the active travel lanes on Wimborne Road East is expected to cost £7.9m once complete – prompting calls from some disgruntled residents that the scheme fails to represent value for money.

Retired shop fitter Graham Barber told the Echo that the government-funded costs of the cycle lanes cannot be justified “because there are not enough cyclists using them”.

“We can see the cycle lane from our lounge and the amount of cyclists that we see going up and down it is so little,” 73-year-old Graham said.

“I’m originally from London and I have spoken to a lot of people back there about the cycle lane here and all of them cannot believe the costs for them here.

“But the problem is the design of it – there’s a foot-wide bit against the kerb and cycleway that is just earth, and they can’t put a machine there to tidy it and nothing is ever done about it.”

Meanwhile, Tony Johnson – like many others before him when it comes to cycle lanes in Dorset – criticised the lane’s width, arguing that there should be more space for car drivers “because that’s the majority”.

“You hardly ever see any cyclists using it, sometimes you see them using the road, so what’s the point in the council putting all this money into the cycle lanes?” Tony asked.

> Row over Dorset cycle lane that drivers claim is “too wide”

However, it’s not just motorists criticising the newly installed scheme. Cyclist Elle, who lives on the road, said the lanes need to be more effectively maintained if they are to encourage cyclists to use them.

“They need to be regularly swept because twigs and leaves and stones get left on them and it can make cycling dangerous,” she said. 

Nevertheless, Elle added that the lane’s installation is a positive step for local cyclists, thanks to the intimidating and “dangerous and aggressive” nature of some motorists.

 “There have been times when I’ve been cycling and had people shouting at me,” she added. “I’m usually quite tough and ignore it, but sometimes it does get to you.”

Responding to the criticisms, a spokesperson for Dorset Council said: “The work in Wimborne Road East is funded by central government.

“It is not only a route for cyclists, but provides a safe route for pedestrians, including children getting to a from school, and users of mobility aids.”

> Council under fire for 'Britain's biggest bike lane': 11 ft-wide Dorset cycle lane is too much for some

As noted above, this isn’t the first time that Dorset’s ambitious cycling and active travel projects have come in for criticism from drivers and cyclists alike.

In 2021, Dorset Council and Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) Council attracted the ire of the national press for giving the green light to an 11ft-wide cycle lane on Wimborne Road West, dubbed “Britain’s biggest bike lane” by the Daily Telegraph and “shambolic” by the Mail, who also claimed that motorists were now afforded less space on the road than cyclists and “forced to pull over to avoid a crash” thanks to the lane.

Later that year, another new cycle lane in Poole – this time nine and a half feet wide – was branded “unsightly and a mess” by some locals, who also questioned the number of cyclists using the dedicated infrastructure.

And in 2023, the Wimborne cycle lane once again made headlines, as the Mail published a photo of a female cyclist “caught on camera brazenly ignoring Britain's widest cycling lane as she rides in lane dedicated to other traffic instead… In order to get around her, a van has to pull into the opposite lane.”

However, several local cyclists pointed out that the cycle lane was in fact closed at the time of the photo due to construction work and that, in any case, the lane in question is “so littered with stones you're almost guaranteed a puncture”.