Spirit vs Letter

There are some new houses up on St Pauls Road, Clifton. The council forced them into putting in bike parking as part of their planning permissions.

Two per front garden. Room for four bicycles.

There's just one small flaw. Anybody who spends however much these premium clifton "city" houses cost is going to want to park their cars, multiple thereof. The designers of the houses realised this, and put them as far to the side of the driveway as you could get, allowing the owners to slide two cars in to each garden, from which they can reverse out safely onto this popular road.

As they all do.

This shows the whole futility in this sustainable housing thing. If the house plans require parking to be provided and bike parking, well, the bikes get the short straw. Yet the letter of the requirements "sustainable" has been met.

It would be better to recognise the futility of this design. Anyone in Clifton who does want a bike will get a fancy one and keep it in doors. All these do is take up space and threaten car doors.