Severn Beach New Cycle Shed

[sleepy_hollow]

New bike shed at Severn Beach station:



Probably the only occasion on which it will see a bicycle parked in it.

Apart from which, given the height and lack of sidewalls the roof must provide very little shelter, any shelter coming from the wall being to the west.

So why? Does it herald a push towards the travel model where, rather than take your bicycle on the train, you leave your bicycle at the station and travel to the other end of your journey where, as a commuter, you have your second commuting bicycle?

 

[Benjwri]

Does it herald a push towards the travel model where, rather than take your bicycle on the train, you leave your bicycle at the station and travel to the other end of your journey where, as a commuter, you have your second commuting bicycle?

A large level of commuters taking bikes on trains has never, and will never be feasible. You’d have to devote half the trains to the bike!

The idea is you cycle to the station and then public transport to your work. I suspect the list of workplaces you can’t get to, especially typical office jobs, by public transport is rather small.

 

[fandroid]

All very fine, but there's been a lot of publicity recently about bike theft gangs who slice through any conventional locks with little trouble. That looks to be a perfect site for their operation. I worry about leaving mine in any open urban bike rack. Luckily my station has sheltered bike parking inside the ticket barriers and out of sight of anyone not in the station.

 

[sleepy_hollow]

All very fine, but there's been a lot of publicity recently about bike theft gangs who slice through any conventional locks with little trouble. That looks to be a perfect site for their operation. I worry about leaving mine in any open urban bike rack. Luckily my station has sheltered bike parking inside the ticket barriers and out of sight of anyone not in the station.

Exactly, the bike stands outside Temple Meads are notorious for theft. I understand those inside the barriers are not so bad. And the bike stands on the unstaffed Severn Beach line stations were installed against the recommendations of cycling organisations and I have only seen a bicycle in one once, at Sea Mills. It disappeared slowly, part by part, over about a fortnight, until only the frame, locked to a lamppost, was left. Distinctly eerie.

I have only once seen a bicycle in the existing Severn Beach bike, the model here is very much that commuters bring their bicycle on the train, and then cycle to the very spread out, public transport free, industrial estates. I doubt they are suddenly about to start leaving bicycles in an unguarded stand, so why this expenditure now? There is a similar new stand at Avonmouth.

As you may deduce from my bicycle, parked in the rack, my interest is not commuting but days out, so taking the train to where I left a bike yesterday is not relevant, but I could be badly affected if GWR have decided that that is how things are to be done.