The city of Plymouth, Devon, has a slowly growing network of cycle routes. These vary greatly in terms of quality. Some sections are traffic-free, some are on-road painted cycle lanes, with zero protection from cars, and much is simply on-road, without even paint.
To use the network, you need to have local knowledge, as signage is often poor, or non-existent. Without local knowledge, or some form of digital navigation, it is often impossible to follow a specific route. Obviously, that’s not helpful for especially new cyclists, or people new to the area.
PlymCycle
I call this network of routes PlymCycle, because they are cycle routes in Plymouth. The city council has a cycle map, but I wish you luck if you try to navigate using that. Equally, try to give a cyclists not familiar with the city’s cycle routes directions, and you’ll soon realise the scale of the problem.
Because of that, and other reasons, I designed a network of routes, mostly using existing infrastructure, and called it PlymCycle.
Signage
There’s a national cycle network in the UK, with routes marked with small blue and white signs (usually stickers). While it’s far from perfect, it’s better than what Plymouth has in most places, and copying that makes sense.
However, the route markers also need to be visually distinctive from and different to the NCN markers. As Plymouth’s colour is green, and I wanted to include a bright yellow, to make the signs stand out, I opted for green and yellow. The image above is an example of such a route number sign, and it will be accompanied with a directional arrow sticker.
The web address on the stickers is purely so people unfamiliar with it can find the page for the network, and learn how the numbering works. They’d also be able to download GPX files for each route.
Route numbering
For the PlymCycle network, I was inspired by the USA’s interstate route numbering. Odd-numbered routes run north to south, while even-numbered routes run east to west. Where a route splits in two, and merges back into one again afterwards, both routes keep the same name, but with E or W, or perhaps N or S appended, depending on the circumstance.
For north-south routes, the lowest-numbered route begins in the west. For east-west routes, the lowest numbered route is in the south.
Minor routes that spur off the main routes, and later reconnect with the same main route has an even numbered appended to the main route. For example, a loop that departs from P-3, and later reconnects to it, might be numbered P-32. Routes that spur off a main one, but doesn’t reconnect later, are prefixed with an odd number. Using the same example, such a route might be numbered as P-31.
Why?
That’s simple to answer: to allow people to easily navigate (mostly) safe and quiet cycle routes through Plymouth, without needing advanced knowledge of the routes.
Why I’m doing this? I suggested the idea in the Plymouth Cycling Campaign’s Facebook group, where it went down like a lead balloon. I was told there’s no need (confident cyclists self-identifying there, and showcasing their lack of consideration for others) and the campaign group didn’t even bother to formally respond in any way. I was told it’d be too expensive, so I’m funding this by myself. Someone even told me it wasn’t needed, as cyclists could simply follow road signs for drivers. That person completely missed the point!
I’m doing this, because to get more people to cycle, people need help and support. Back in my days as a Sky Ride Leader, I often had people say things like “I lived in this city all my life and never knew this path was here”. When people first start cycling for transport, they think they need to follow the same routes as when driving. This network of routes will make it easier for people to get away from that thinking.
I’m doing this, because someone needs to, and nobody else wanted to.
The PlymCycle routes
The routes as shown below are provisional, and subject to change, once I’ve been able to ride them all. I’m painfully aware there’s huge room for improvement, and many routes, or route spurs, remain to be added. Obviously, I’m inviting feedback on the routes, so please feel free to suggest changes or additions.
Once each route is finalised, I will go add stickers in lots of places, so all you’ll need to do is follow the stickers. The routes are a compromise. In an ideal world, these would all be Dutch-standard, segregated routes, but the reality is hugely different. In places, these routes will be ignored by confident cyclists, but such cyclists already know which routes they prefer.
This map shows all the routes at once, but to see details of individual (provisional) routes, you’ll need to scroll down. Later, each route will have an individual route guide, clearly graded (mostly using the same system I use for my DayCycle route guides) that will show the quality of the route surface, whether or not there are barriers along the route, and more.
P-1
The P-1 route runs, as the number indicates, from north to south, connecting the Tamar Bridge with Devonport.
P-2
P-2 runs east-west, starting at the Torpoint ferry, and ending by the Elburton Hotel roundabout.
P-22
P-22 is, as the name suggests, a loop that leaves, then later rejoins the P-2 route. It follows the waterfront route. The map will soon follow.
P-3
P-3 runs from the Plessis roundabout, at the far north of Plymouth, to the Hoe.
P-4
This route starts near the Deep Lane junction, and mostly follows the same route as NCN 2, all the way to Marsh Mills, then along the Embankment.
P-5
The P5 route connects Laira bridge with the George Junction Park & Ride
P-6
The P-6 route starts at the bottom of Platinum Parkway end finishes at the Tamar bridge.
More routes
If you’re looking for more, and mainly traffic-free cycle routes, all over the UK, simply click here.
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