Bristol Temple Meads Station redevelopment

[whole diary]

[chuffed]

I assume the 'male' bike sheds are where you tie it to a pole, the 'female' ones are where you slide it in. I await with bated breath to see the design of the transgender bike sheds.
Wil they be in various shades of skin tone, a range of sizes to acommodate the vertically and circumferencely challenged,  and will they all have a plaque to say they were nothing to do with slavery ?

[TonyK]

NEW BIKE STORAGE AT TEMPLE MEADS BRANDED ‘SEXIST INFRASTRUCTURE’

Anybody whose bike is still locked to the stands inside Bristol Temple Meads has until Sunday to remove it.

The stands next to platforms four and seven are closing both due to renovations and station security, according to Network Rail. Any bikes left on the platforms will be moved to a secure location on Sunday and can be collected until November 6.

Replacement cycle racks being installed outside the station on Friary have already come in for criticism from a city council cabinet member for transport.

[...]

Former cabinet member Mhairi Threlfall... said: “Dear @networkrail why on earth have you opted for these? My bike has very high handle bars so will not fit, I reckon this will be similar for many women let alone the pure weight of my bike means I can never use the top slider, the curved roof is a nonsense. #sexistinfrastructure”

Full article

Source: Bristol 24/7

The obvious answer is for a sign asking gentlemen to make sure they are on top, unless specifically asked by a lady who wants to go on top. I can see problems with that, though.

[Bmblbzzz]

She's not the first person to point out this problem. It's also an issue for the elderly of either sex and of course children. As well as for anyone with a bike (let alone trike) which is in some way non-standard. All these points were made when they were trialling the onboard bike cupboards for the IETs^▸ (Intercity Express Train) (and probably Voyagers too).

[Red Squirrel]

Probably the best thing that can be said for this arrangement is that it is, to use a good old Bristol word, tempry.

[JontyMort]

“...the curved roof is a nonsense”...

Is that the bike shed or the curved roof at Temple Meads? If the latter, a little harsh, surely 🙂

[grahame]

“...the curved roof is a nonsense”...

Is that the bike shed or the curved roof at Temple Meads? If the latter, a little harsh, surely 🙂

Pretty sure it's the bike sheds.  Temple Meads without the high curved roof would either be pointed straight ahead line the original Brunel train shed, to the detriment (removal of) services headed out to the south towards Weston-super-mare, Portishead and Taunton or be an underground 'dungeon' setup like Birmingham New Street, where a rather nice Plaza drops passengers down onto dark, cramped, low-roofed platforms where the trains apologetically come in and out.

The bike sheds each have a curved roof.  They look less than conventional.  But then, it strikes me that they may well work, and they may not have been done that way in the past simply because material and construction methods didn't allow for them.   They have the benefit of a higher rise inside to give space and a lower edge to provide more of a barrier against the wind and rain (help keep things drier), they are double sided (space efficient) and they don't have a roof ridge (easier cleaning from either side, reduced feature to maintain).

[Phantom]

NEW BIKE STORAGE AT TEMPLE MEADS BRANDED ‘SEXIST INFRASTRUCTURE’

Anybody whose bike is still locked to the stands inside Bristol Temple Meads has until Sunday to remove it.

The stands next to platforms four and seven are closing both due to renovations and station security, according to Network Rail. Any bikes left on the platforms will be moved to a secure location on Sunday and can be collected until November 6.

Replacement cycle racks being installed outside the station on Friary have already come in for criticism from a city council cabinet member for transport.

[...]

Former cabinet member Mhairi Threlfall... said: “Dear @networkrail why on earth have you opted for these? My bike has very high handle bars so will not fit, I reckon this will be similar for many women let alone the pure weight of my bike means I can never use the top slider, the curved roof is a nonsense. #sexistinfrastructure”

Full article

Source: Bristol 24/7

Amusing that this new facility is actually not at the station
I'm sure those that use the main entrance or the new entrance on Platform 4 are not too happy about this

[johnneyw]

The Bristol 24/7 article includes the sentence:

Within the shelters is Cyclepods’ Easylift Premium: “a highly convenient gas-assisted two level bicycle parking system” whose manufacturers promise that the lifting system ensures a bicycle can be parked on the top level “effortlessly”.

Perhaps Mhairi Threlfall had not realised this when raising her concerns that women could not use it.  Looking at the demonstration video, it does look a bit of an involved process to use though....but she surely cannot be saying that men would find this easier?

[Red Squirrel]

All seems fairly straightforward to me... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qrBR9341bw

[johnneyw]

All seems fairly straightforward to me... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qrBR9341bw

That demo really does. The one used on the Bristol 24/7 article seemed to make it look rather more complex with various hooks, belts and locks.  Even I could operate the one on the clip above despite sometimes being capable of being confounded by the operation of a pedal bin.

[Bmblbzzz]

If it's like the ones at BPW^» (Bristol Parkway - next trains) then it's not complicated. Takes a bit of strength and height, doesn't move as smoothly as that promo (well, it wouldn't, would it?) but within most adult capabilities. The most annoying aspect is probably the locking possibilities – you can only lock through a wheel, not the frame, which isn't really safe for overnight parking in most urban UK^▸ (United Kingdom) locations. But at least it's not wheel benders...

[Red Squirrel]

Seems like there are two versions: The one in the Bristol 24/7 clip has an additional bracket to allow you to lock your frame to the stand, and also to lock your wheels individually, whereas the other clip shows a simpler version that you might use in a more secure location such as a card-accessed facility.

[Surrey 455]

Former cabinet member Mhairi Threlfall... said: “Dear @networkrail why on earth have you opted for these? My bike has very high handle bars so will not fit, I reckon this will be similar for many women let alone the pure weight of my bike means I can never use the top slider, the curved roof is a nonsense. #sexistinfrastructure”

Do Raleigh still make Choppers then? I presume that is what Mhairi Threlfall is riding.

[Bmblbzzz]

I saw the Temple Meads bike parking yesterday. There is quite a lot of it and there is some provision for locking the frame but it's nowhere near as good as a Sheffield stand from that point of view. It's all between the Cheesegrater Bridge and the bridge across the moat.

[Bmblbzzz]

Former cabinet member Mhairi Threlfall... said: “Dear @networkrail why on earth have you opted for these? My bike has very high handle bars so will not fit, I reckon this will be similar for many women let alone the pure weight of my bike means I can never use the top slider, the curved roof is a nonsense. #sexistinfrastructure”

Do Raleigh still make Choppers then? I presume that is what Mhairi Threlfall is riding.

A retro-Chopper was launched a few years ago to ride the retro wave but somehow I doubt if that's anything like Mhairi Threlfall's bike. She used to have a Bristol Bike but the photo below is from a tweet of hers about it being stolen, so I don't know what she has now.

https://twitter.com/mthrel/status/1184338913386733569