More meetings mean less pictures!

The end must really be nigh for the completion of the Cambridge Guided Busway (CGB) - it surely can't go on much longer. At least judging from the increase in Press on the CGB. Apparently "Buses set to run on Busway for Final Traffic Signal Checks", according to the Cambridge Country Council (CCC), BAM Nuttall will be running Buses on the 16th December to check out the traffic signal sensors. Apparently they will make use of a guideway gritter if we getting more freezing weather. Which is the current forecast.

This is what the maintenance path/ice skating rink looked like near St Ives earlier this year.

The losers in all of this are really the public, who are paying for it (through taxes) and the Bus Companies who invested in the CGB Buses only for the completion to be a couple of years late. Unlike the CCC they "Missed out on a penalty clause". There is also concern that the first stage of the Northstowe development has still not seen a planning application submitted as a significant amount of the bus usage was expected from the development.

As seems to be the case this week I was out in Cambridge again, from 11.30am through to around 10pm. The sun was shining on my way there. I was not running late, but I was not quite sure where I would be able to park my bicycle when I got there. Fortunately the excellent www.cyclestreets.net website has a map showing cycling infrastructure which meant I could have a look at the area from the comfort of my desktop and see photographs of the actual cycle parking facilities. In the end I parked my bike against the fencing alongside some wheel-breaker bicycle stands. (In case you are wondering here is a link to pictures of such stands at Durham University - pictures 3 and 4!.)

I didn't take many pictures on my way and it was dark on the way back. I did take this picture from the pedestrian/cycle bridge over the Cam by the Fort St George pub. Good cycling weather - not much wind. The bridge in the picture is the Victoria Avenue Bridge built in 1980 to provide the good residents (and the bad ones as well) easy access to Cambridge. It was re-built in 1992 - but I can't remember that far back.

T have been feeling just a tad under the weather for the last few days - not enough to stop me cycling, but enough for it to take ages for me to warm up on my return. So I did not take a roundabout route home - although it was very still and although cold not too unpleasant. Mind you whilst most people wore suits to the meeting I wore a pair cords and a jumper - warmer for cycling. Substance over style matters when cycling I think. My new front light was fantastic. The cycle paths had gained a layer of frost, but the light illuminated a safe path. I only passed four other cyclists out - they were either still in the pub or perhaps it was too cold for cycling.

And finally - there are going to be extra coaches on the various trains from King's Cross to Cambridge and an improved timetable!