Where to keep your bike.

 You might have bought a bike to cycle to work, school or the shops, or just to keep fit, but where do you keep it? You may also be thinking of buying bikes for your children for Christmas. 

 Many households in Devizes live in flats, narrow boats or terrace houses with limited space. 

 

Some places, such as Bath, provide bike storage hangars. These have a secure lid, and racks inside to which your bike can be locked. Users pay a small annual charge, and can unlock the hangar with an app or a key. 

You can see how they work on Youtube.

 

 

 

 

Cycle Friendly Devizes is working with the Council to set up a bike hangar in the town but we need to get an idea of how many cyclists would use this facility. It would be really helpful if you could fill in a very short questionnaire, this can be reached by clicking on the picture, or directly to the survey.

 

Cycle routes to Devizes from the South.

There will be growing numbers of residents to the South of Devizes as houses are built off Marshall Road. There will also be some people wanting to reach Devizes South from other parts of town, whether to visit the allotments, the skateboard park or the Treatment Centre.

 

The pavements along Marshall Road are shared between walkers and cyclists, and generally traffic is slow and sparse.

 

 

 

 

You can reach the rest of Devizes through the bus gate at the old Roundway Hospital site, this takes you to Wick Lane and Pans Lane.

 

 

You can also cut through the traffic free link to Brickley Lane.
 

 

 

 

 

Bypassing the fuel pumps, North East Devizes.

More cycle routes to travel round Devizes without using expensive petrol or diesel.

 

If you live to the East of the London Road you may be (rightly) concerned about using the painted cycle lanes on the main road. However there are alternatives. 

 

There is a network of paths radiating from the East end of Brickham Bridge, and a light controlled crossing which gives a safe connection to Roundway Park. To get into the town centre you can then go via Quakers Walk.  

 

 

The other way is to cycle down Spitalcroft Road, Meadow Drive and Brickley Lane. You can then use Church Walk, the light controlled crossing and the shared path across the Green to reach Devizes School or the Leisure Centre.

 

If you follow the paths to Windsor Drive you then reach the shared pavement route to B&Q, Lidl and the Hopton Trading Estate. This also arrives at the new Coate Lane houses, and the Walk, Wheel, Cycle Route 4, that eventually leads to London.
 

Bypassing the fuel pumps.

 

With uncomfortable increases in the price of fuel, some may be looking at cycling into town to work, school, shop or meet friends.

 The roads can be a bit intimidating at first, but there are some low traffic routes and short cuts that may help. This first post might be useful if you live to the North of the town, future posts will look in other directions. When cycling on these routes you need to take care, stay slow and use a bell, the shared paths are well used by walkers, often with dogs or children. 

 

The path to the East of Quakers Walk is shared by walkers and cyclists and gives access to the homes on Keepers Road, Winchcombe Avenue and the roads between. 

 

 

 

 

 

This can lead to the Market Place through contraflows on Couch Lane & Snuff Street, allowing cyclists to ride both in and out of town. There are bike racks close to the Pelican and near the fountain. The ones by the island bus shelter may be fenced off until the shelter is repaired. 

  

Bike Hangar Survey

 

Many households in Devizes live in flats, mid-terraced houses or canal boats; without easy, safe bike storage. In many places, such as Bath, lockable bike storage hangars are provided for residents, and we are encouraging the council to provide these in Devizes.

 

To get an idea of how many local people would like to use a hangar, and to encourage the council to provide them, we'd be very grateful if you could fill in a brief survey. This can be reached by clicking on the picture to the left or by following this link Hangar Survey

This hangar in Bath is a typical example. They usually take 6 bikes, and there is a small annual charge. Access is with a key or by an app, and stands are inside to allow bikes to be securely locked. 

You can see how they work on youtube.

 

This is worth a read if you drive, walk, cycle or live in Wiltshire.

 Wiltshire County Council's Local Transport Plan is being rewritten.

The last plan, LTP3, runs until 2026, and its replacement LPT4, will cover up to 2038.

There is an online consultation, open until the 24th January 2025. The link can be found on this page.
https://www.wiltshire.gov.uk/localtransportplan .
https://wiltshireltp.commonplace.ishttps://wiltshireltp.commonplace.is

"The draft LTP4 documents will aim to set the policy direction for transport in Wiltshire for the coming years, and set out how our transport policy relates to other key areas, such as:

• decarbonisation
• health
• safety and wellbeing
• sustainability
• network resilience
• the economy"

This will set the priorities of the council. These are not always the words they use, but can include the space they share and the money they spend. It can affect whether you can catch a bus to town, or cycle safely to school or work.  

The Lovehoop.

 The cycle parking company, Cyclehoop, produced a bike parking hoop in association with the British Heart Foundation. These distinctive hearts can be seen in various places, in this case outside of the Victoria & Albert Museum.