A team of architects has updated and fleshed out its SkyCycle plan — a bizarre concept that would use the empty channels above some train lines to build floating, bike-only cycle superhighways.
The idea, should it ever be allowed, approved, funded and built, is to create a 220km network of elevated cycle routes spanning the city of London, accessed through various slipway ramps, that would begin with a first phase linking east London to Liverpool Street Station.
The cost for this aerial bike lane would be around $300 million, which is the sort of loose change that ought to easily be dug out from the back of various governmental sofas. If it gets the go-ahead, the network would take 20 years to complete, and then our cyclists and drivers could both go their separate ways and stop punching each other in the face at junctions.
Hopefully there will be separate lanes though — one for the lycra enthusiasts to race each other in and another for the family dawdlers and sightseers — else we might see the battle for possession of the city’s travel space simply moved a little higher up. [BBC]
