[Talk-GB] difference between bicycle and MTB cycle routes

[Simon Still]

> On 16 Jun 2021, at 16:06, Chris Hodges <chris at c-hodges.co.uk> wrote:
> 
> There's a lot of debate in one of my clubs about what the Sustrans routes are actually for, as many aren't suitable for practical active travel (preferring a long muddy off-road route to a short one on reasonable roads) while others are of limited use to serious road cyclists (too rough) or leisure/family cycling (too far from anywhere much). Of course they shouldn't get all the blame; they're often at the mercy of local authorities 
> 
There isn’t a right answer as it wasn’t defined when the network was built, but I believe there is an ongoing programme to rectify this (which has started with the ‘declassification’ of parts that really don’t meet even a low bar. 

> That doesn't help much with mapping of course.  Unfortunately neither does the rate of degradation of many unpaved routes, whether seasonal or permanent.  I see a middle ground between your two, or perhaps a split of the "off-road route": somewhere you could happily take the kids on hybrids in summer (when most casual riding takes place), but that turns into a mudbath for an MTB in the winter (when only hardy riders are out).  Mapping that to serve both user groups may actually be impossible, or require more detail than can reasonably be recorded and presented 
> 
I’m reminded of a bridleway warning sign up in Cumbria - “Route may be impassable for horses when wet”

It’s mud that’s the issue in my view - whether just puddles (which make a route useless for riding in normal clothes/commuting/utilty cycling), deep mud (that a bike with tarmac tyres won’t get though) or just a slippery surface that many riders will find dangerous.  

Isn’t this just the ’surface’ tag though? Does it need any more?

> As far as some bikes having difficulty, it's also the rider.  I have friends who are willing to ride stretches of pretty rough tracks on 25mm tyres and fixed gears (e.g. the byways around Stonehenge last weekend), while others complain about much easier gravel on slightly bigger tyres;  my own ability to deal with rough stuff on the tourer improves the more mountain biking I do.
> 

Absolutely  - I’ve ridden some pretty rough paths and sections of off road on my road bike which is why I think the Brompton is a good benchmark.  Small wheels and narrow tyres mean they’re really not good off road and they are the ‘benchmark’ active travel bike for me (everyone should have one!)


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