Out for a Sunday constitutional walk to Richmond, I spotted strange looking metal channels running up the sides of the various flights of stairs around Barnes Railway Bridge
Initially I was a little baffled as to what they were for, but as you can guess from the title I found out that these are “bike channels” to help people wheel their bikes up and down the bridge and to the station platform.
Ingenious solution? I think they are, not just because it means not having to carry your bike up the stairs with the attendant risks of getting mucky.
In the bigger picture of managing the flow of people around the bridge, it means bicycles become far less of an obstacle as they flow up one side rather than being moving obstacles that get in the way of other people. Now some of you might bridle at this suggestion but, let’s face it, no one likes having to negotiate their way round a cyclist lugging their bike up stairs.
It’s also good to see a local authority working towards solutions rather than ignoring an issue, so well done the Hounslow!
