Bikes are allowed on ALL Metrolink train cars..... (but unfortunately not here !)

Bikes are allowed on ALL Metrolink train cars.... How great that statement would be if it applied to the Metrolink service in Greater Manchester.

Unfortunately, the "Bike on Board. The New Way to Commute" promotion is for the Metrolink services in Southern California, USA. The public transit provider has added Bike Cars to accommodate more bikes on select trains as part of Metrolink's green initiatives program.

According to the guidelines the lower levels of the new Bike Cars are equipped with stalls that are designed to hold three bikes each. Bike Cars are identified by a yellow “Bike Car” decal on the side of the train or bike train wrap. Each train car is designed to hold three bikes.  The special Bike Cars are designed to hold 18 bikes on the lower level.

Contrast the progressive US policy with the current Metrolink guidance on the Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) website.

Despite ongoing campaigning, Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) remains ambivalent (at best) and hostile (at worst) to integrating cycle carriage into the public transport network. Previous blog posts provide some of the detail of earlier (unsuccessful) lobbying campaigns.


So far, Greater Manchester's politicians and transport planners have demonstrated a striking lack of imagination with regards to integrating bicycles and public transport.  TfGM Committee members (local councillors) and officers really do need to catch up with the growing number of European and North American cities who have successfully promoted the (less than revolutionary concept) of enabling people to travel with their bicycles and not just providing bike parking at bus, tram or train stations. What are people supposed to do when they get to their final stop or station and still have one (or more) miles to travel to their final destination ?  Combining bikes and public transport is a really effective solution to the "problem of the last mile."

Other cities are leading the way...... Manchester needs to catch up, fast !

Combining cycling and public transport....

1st April 2011...and with great fanfare the new Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) is launched.  The new transport plan states that:

"A number of transport needs cannot be covered by cycling or public transport alone since neither can offer a sufficiently flexible transport solution on its own. Proposals are set forth in the City Plan 2011 which would make it easier to combine cycling with public transport, thus providing a realistic alternative to private cars.

The Greater Manchester Public Transport Plan (2011-2015) takes a highly favourable view of combining cycling and public transport and targets cyclists as potential customers to a greater extent than in the past. This has resulted in the removal of most restrictions applying to bicycles on commuter trains. There are still some restrictions applying to rush hours. However, the most recent development is that bicycles are now allowed on commuter trains in rush hours when travelling in the opposite direction to the main traffic. As more and more commuter trains of the new type are acquired bicycles will eventually be allowed on the train at all hours of the day. Bicycles will be permitted on the new Metro around the clock."

Well it may be April Fools Day... but this text is from a real Transport Plan,* unfortunately just not the Greater Manchester Plan. (* Have changed the city name and dates but the rest of the text is contained in the City of Copenhagen Cycle Policy 2002-2012 document.)

Unfortunately, in a fairly stark contrast to the Danish policies,  the 'Integration with public transport' section in the GM Local Transport Plan states:

"Combining cycling with public transport provides a viable alternative to the private car for many medium and long-distance journeys. It can both increase public transport patronage by increasing the catchment area of stations, and reduce the demand for car parking around stations. Cycle carriage is permitted on Northern trains (the major operator in Greater Manchester) but overcrowding means that there are serious problems in accommodating more than two bikes on some trains, and conductors have the right to refuse access if the train is crowded. There is, however, no restriction on the number of folding bikes carried. The carriage of bicycles on Metrolink is prohibited under the by-laws due to constraints on space on the existing trams, unless they are folded and fully encased. This policy was recently re-affirmed following a review. Bus operators in Greater Manchester do not permit cycle carriage."

Oh dear... "right to refuse", "prohibited", "do not permit" what a lot of negatives and all this in a Local Transport Plan that is supposedly more pro-cycling than previous LTPs.  Whilst, an increasing number of cities in Europe and worldwide have already started to integrate cycling into their public transport networks, by and large Manchester seems to be stuck with a "cycles are a problem" mentality when it comes to the bus, tram or train network. With its aspirations to be a world-leading City, isn't it time that Manchester started to catch up?  Let's hope that, together with their new name, TfGM can begin to develop the progressive policies to deliver better integratation of cycling and public transport in Greater Manchester.

This blogger would welcome details of how other cities around the world are working to integrate cycles with their public transport  networks. Please leave a comment or a link.  Thanks.