???? ‘Can Bee Bikes make me fall in love with cycling again?’

By Damon Wilkinson

Hello

After a fairly rocky start Bee Bikes are now a common and distinctive sight on our roads. A crucial part of Greater Manchester’s public transport ambitions, it’s hoped the bright yellow hire bikes will help usher in a new era of cycling in the region.

But are they any good? Local democracy reporter Ethan Davies has spent the last month using Bee Bikes to get around town.

He hoped ditching the car, bus and tram in favour of the ￡3-an-hour bikes would make him fall in love with cycling again. But, as with most affairs of the heart, it wasn’t quite that simple.?

“Have I started cycling again? The short answer is no,” says Ethan. “But it’s not a no forever.

“There’s a lot to like about Bee Bikes. They can give you the joy of cycling: freedom to travel where you please and when you want, faster journeys than cars in snarled-up traffic jams, and kinship one can feel with a bike.

“I felt those things because when Bee Bikes work, they’re brilliant. Too often, however, things don’t work.

“I began to dread locking issues and any potential fines. I became worried about unexpectedly closed cycle lanes. I was inconvenienced by availability issues. And I was frustrated that stations weren’t where I expected, in major Mancunian landmarks.

“I crave transport freedom, and Manchester’s current public transport doesn't offer that yet, while traffic prohibits that in a car. Cycling, therefore, seems like the next-best option. Maybe, next spring, I’ll give it another try.”

That’s a coincidence

Staying on two wheels for a moment, we’ll head to Castleton in Rochdale where a row over a new cycle lane continues to rumble on. Yesterday Paralympian Dame Sarah Storey launched a passionate defence of the controversial new route amid claims it had ‘killed’ the village and ‘trade’ trade.

Appearing on BBC Radio Manchester, Dame Sarah, the region’s ‘active transport representative’, responded to Gary, a Castleton resident, who claimed that the building process had all but ‘closed off the road for two years’.

But Dame Sarah argued that other factors had caused the village’s recent economic dip. “It’s a coincidence, not an unexpected consequence,” she said.“The timing [of construction] in Castleton was really challenging, with the cost of living crisis and coming out of the pandemic. A bike lane doesn’t close a village.

It opens it up and enables more people to choose to move. Not everybody can drive, not everybody owns a car and they’re now connected to a train station and soon to the town centre through the extension.”? Charlotte Hall has more here

Behind bars

The shocking conditions inside Strangeways have been laid bare in a scathing new report. Describing the crumbling Victorian jail as 'the most violent' in the UK, inspectors said organised crime gangs and the supply of drugs were 'clearly undermining every aspect of prison life'.

In a catalogue of disturbing findings, HM Chief Inspector of Prisons Charlie Taylor said HMP Manchester has the highest rate of serious assaults of any prison in the country. Strangeways, he added, was 'fundamentally not safe' - both for prisoners and staff working there? Paul Britton reports

Binned off??

Bin stories are the bread and butter of local journalism. And there’s a good ‘un here from Bolton.

Thousands of people have objected to plans to charge up to 80,000 households ￡45 a year to collect garden waste. But it would not include food waste, leading the town’s Conservative group to brand it a ‘garden tax’.

However the council’s environment chief Coun Richard Silvester has defended the idea, saying currently all council tax-payers help fund the collections ‘regardless of whether they have a garden or not’.? Chris Gee has more here

‘Bury will never be the same’

It’s the end of an era in Bury, after long-standing town centre restaurant Pizzeria Bella Italia announced its closure. Loved by generations of Bury families, the family-run venue first opened on Bolton Street in 1982.

But sadly it will close its doors in December, due to the ill-health of two of its senior staff.? Ramazani Mwamba reports

Council in crisis

Tameside’s council leader has quit after a week which saw its chief executive resign and several councillors leave their roles. Ged Cooney has tendered his resignation with 'immediate effect' this morning alongside deputy leader Bill Fairfoull.

It comes after another damning report, this time by a government-appointed commissioner, into the local authority's failing children's services.? Read more

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Weather etc

Weekend:?It's set to be a chilly few days in Greater Manchester this weekend as temperatures drop to as low as 4C. Largely dry and fine conditions are expected over the coming days but it will feel cold in our region, according to Met Office forecasters.

Roadworks:?Temporary traffic lights due to roadworks on A576 Cromwell Road at Littleton Road in Salford. Expect delays.

Manchester headlines

M62 death:?A motorist drove on for two-and-half miles after his car hit a 12-year-old boy on a motorway – despite the massive damage to the vehicle, a jury has been told. But prosecutors told a court that Shahid Ilyas, 48, from Bolton, was not responsible for the death of Callum Rycroft, who died as he ran across the M62 on August 5 last year. Read more

Tram work needed:?The ageing Metrolink network will need significant maintenance in the coming years, Andy Burnham has said. The Greater Manchester mayor said ‘significant upgrades’ will be needed. More here

Train delays:?A problem at Stockport station caused major disruption on the trains this morning. All lines were blocked through the station due to damage to the overhead wires, according to National Rail. Numerous services were cancelled and delayed.

Worth a read

It’s more than 30 miles from the sea and has never come to the aid of a sailor. So why does Monton have a lighthouse? Here Lee Grimsditch? tells the delightful tale of Salford’s most unlikely landmark.

Contact Us

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