Bicycling to and from Glasgow International Airport

Hi;

I'm arriving (and departing) Scotland through Glasgow International
Airport (not Prestwick!).

I will need to get to/from Glasgow Queen Street Station. Now I can
ride a short distance to Paisley Gilmour Street Station and take the
train to Glasgow Central and walk/ride to Queen Street.

However, how bad would the ride be?

I would be riding into town fairly early on a Friday morning (my
flight is scheduled to arrive 0630, so actual departure from airport
may be 0730 or later). I am not afraid of traffic (I rode to work
through downtown Toronto this morning) but I have never bicycled (nor
driven) on the left and have never been to Glasgow. I suppose I would
also want to avoid morning commuters--I would like to be in central
Glasgow by 1000.

The fun part is the return to the airport--this would involve riding
out of central Glasgow at around midnight on a Friday night. (The
train gets into Glasgow Queen Street at 2336; my flight departs the
next morning at 0830, so I will just spend the night at the airport.)
I can certainly equip my bicycle with lights, but will there be
"*******" (as they seem to be described in this group) making my ride
miserable or dangerous (again, this is midnight Friday night!)? On
the other hand, I will have had time riding in the UK (Shetland and
Orkney) and won't be particularly worried about cycling on the wrong
side of the road.

Thanks for any info--googling the group didn't really help. I find
the Sustrans maps are pretty incomprehensible and hard-to-use over the
Web, though if people say that the project is reasonable I could give
them another go.

On 29 Apr 2005 08:50:31 -0700, (Ed T.) wrote:

Hi;

I'm arriving (and departing) Scotland through Glasgow International
Airport (not Prestwick!).

I will need to get to/from Glasgow Queen Street Station. Now I can
ride a short distance to Paisley Gilmour Street Station and take the
train to Glasgow Central and walk/ride to Queen Street.

However, how bad would the ride be?

If you will be re-assembling your bike or bits of it, the ground floor of
the car park (about 30 yards immediately across the service road from the
terminal exit) offers lots of room and daylight.

From Glasgow Airport to Paisley Gilmour Street is a 15-minute ride (making
allowances for the fact that you dare not familiar with the route), along an
in-the-gutter / edge-of-road cycle path.

A leg of the National Cycle Network runs from Paisley to Glasgow, a distance
of perhaps 12 miles. It zigs and zags a bit but most of it is divorced from
large metallic wheeled objects.

The train from Paisley to Glasgow Central is a 20-minute affair.


I would be riding into town fairly early on a Friday morning (my
flight is scheduled to arrive 0630, so actual departure from airport
may be 0730 or later). I am not afraid of traffic (I rode to work
through downtown Toronto this morning) but I have never bicycled (nor
driven) on the left and have never been to Glasgow. I suppose I would
also want to avoid morning commuters--I would like to be in central
Glasgow by 1000.


From Central Station to Queen Street is another 15 minutes - actually about
20-30 minutes walk if you think you would be happier doing that than cycling
in city-centre morning commuter-time.

The fun part is the return to the airport--this would involve riding
out of central Glasgow at around midnight on a Friday night. (The
train gets into Glasgow Queen Street at 2336; my flight departs the
next morning at 0830, so I will just spend the night at the airport.)
I can certainly equip my bicycle with lights, but will there be
"*******" (as they seem to be described in this group) making my ride
miserable or dangerous (again, this is midnight Friday night!)? On
the other hand, I will have had time riding in the UK (Shetland and
Orkney) and won't be particularly worried about cycling on the wrong
side of the road.

Thanks for any info--googling the group didn't really help. I find
the Sustrans maps are pretty incomprehensible and hard-to-use over the
Web, though if people say that the project is reasonable I could give
them another go.

As to what population you may find on the cycle-path from Glasgow City
Centre to the Airport, I can't say. Check if you can stay on the train upon
its arrival at Queen Street until, say, 06.00. You don't say what time of
year you plan to do this but from now until August, the days are pretty long
(Glasgow is at 55 degrees North) so 06.00 ought to see you doing it in broad
daylight.

I'll see what CTC/Sustrans maps I can find and what further info I can
scrape off them tomorrow (it's 23.00 here).

Ed T. wrote:
Hi;

I'm arriving (and departing) Scotland through Glasgow International
Airport (not Prestwick!).

I will need to get to/from Glasgow Queen Street Station. Now I can
ride a short distance to Paisley Gilmour Street Station and take the
train to Glasgow Central and walk/ride to Queen Street.

You may find this link useful:

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?saddr=...=PA1+1BP&hl=en

The distance is 1.7 miles, so should be a 10-15 minute cycle.

However, how bad would the ride be?

It should not be too bad, that looks a relatively minor road
though it does connect with Greenock Road to the north so you
may find some rat running. Once you get into the centre you
are in a one way system, which will be busier and will require
more skill. If you don't feel confident you could walk from
this point, which would be shorter.

The fun part is the return to the airport--this would involve riding
out of central Glasgow at around midnight on a Friday night. (The
train gets into Glasgow Queen Street at 2336; my flight departs the
next morning at 0830, so I will just spend the night at the airport.)
I can certainly equip my bicycle with lights, but will there be
"*******" (as they seem to be described in this group) making my ride
miserable or dangerous (again, this is midnight Friday night!)? On
the other hand, I will have had time riding in the UK (Shetland and
Orkney) and won't be particularly worried about cycling on the wrong
side of the road.

Thanks for any info--googling the group didn't really help. I find
the Sustrans maps are pretty incomprehensible and hard-to-use over the
Web, though if people say that the project is reasonable I could give
them another go.

It's about 8 miles to paisley from central glasgow, iirc. When
I used the Sustrans route I used to come from much further out
and come through Paisley on the way to Glasgow. I don't think
the bit through into Glasgow was finished then. What I generally
find is that the routes are hard to follow in cities because they
twist and turn so much to keep away from the busier streets,
which makes them hard to follow. This is particularly hard in
the dark. The signs are very small. If you have a GPS, you
could program the route into that.

My own preference, unless you can find a decent sustrans route
map, would be to simply head out on Paisley Road West and
stay on that road all the way.

..
I've sent e-mail to



with maps and text. If you don't get it, shout.

tim wrote:

On 29 Apr 2005 08:50:31 -0700, (Ed T.) wrote:

I'm arriving (and departing) Scotland through Glasgow International

The train from Paisley to Glasgow Central is a 20-minute affair.

It is not much more than 10 minutes by train.Paisley station is not much
more than 2 miles, maybe less from the airport terminal.

I would be riding into town fairly early on a Friday morning (my
flight is scheduled to arrive 0630, so actual departure from airport
may be 0730 or later). I am not afraid of traffic (I rode to work
through downtown Toronto this morning) but I have never bicycled (nor
driven) on the left and have never been to Glasgow. I suppose I would
also want to avoid morning commuters--I would like to be in central
Glasgow by 1000.


From Central Station to Queen Street is another 15 minutes - actually about
20-30 minutes walk if you think you would be happier doing that than cycling
in city-centre morning commuter-time.

It is only a 10 minute slow walk between the 2 stations.It can be
quicker walking than taking the bus outside the station.

Alan.

--
To reply by e-mail, change the ' + ' to 'plus'.
http://www.dvatc.co.uk - Off-road cycling in the North Midlands.

Ed T. wrote:

I'm arriving (and departing) Scotland through Glasgow International
Airport
I will need to get to/from Glasgow Queen Street Station. Now I can
ride a short distance to Paisley Gilmour Street Station and take the
train to Glasgow Central and walk/ride to Queen Street.
However, how bad would the ride be?

Your bike will be packed up still? And you can carry your luggage
easily?
If so, leave it packed up, and you have a choice of options:
Get the minibus from straight outside the airport terminal to Paisley
rail stn.You will pass some of the more 'urban' natural environments on
the trip.Then get the train to Glasgow Central stn.

Or, get the direct bus from outside the terminal to Buchanan St. Bus
Stn, which is a 5 minute or less walk from Queen St. Stn.

Tickets for both of the above are available from the SPT desk, near to
the airport exit.Around £3.50 to central Glasgow iirc.
Or, for £20, get a taxi direct to Queen St.It is only around 10 miles
from the airport.

I would be riding into town fairly early on a Friday morning (my
flight is scheduled to arrive 0630, so actual departure from airport
may be 0730 or later). I am not afraid of traffic (I rode to work
through downtown Toronto this morning) but I have never bicycled (nor
driven) on the left and have never been to Glasgow. I suppose I would
also want to avoid morning commuters--I would like to be in central
Glasgow by 1000.

It isnt a straightforward journey, you will be knackered from the
flight, so get a lift into the centre.

The fun part is the return to the airport--this would involve riding
out of central Glasgow at around midnight on a Friday night. (The
train gets into Glasgow Queen Street at 2336; my flight departs the
next morning at 0830, so I will just spend the night at the airport.)
I can certainly equip my bicycle with lights, but will there be
"*******"

No, you shouldnt have any problems at all, but if you are bothered, just
get a taxi from the station to the airport, it isnt bad value at £20.A
set of lights will be £15, so it is a quite cost effective option.
Alan.


--
To reply by e-mail, change the ' + ' to 'plus'.
http://www.dvatc.co.uk - Off-road cycling in the North Midlands.

Simon Proven wrote:


It's about 8 miles to paisley from central glasgow, iirc. When
I used the Sustrans route I used to come from much further out
and come through Paisley on the way to Glasgow. I don't think
the bit through into Glasgow was finished then. What I generally
find is that the routes are hard to follow in cities because they
twist and turn so much to keep away from the busier streets,
which makes them hard to follow. This is particularly hard in
the dark. The signs are very small. If you have a GPS, you
could program the route into that.

My own preference, unless you can find a decent sustrans route
map, would be to simply head out on Paisley Road West and
stay on that road all the way.

I would agree here that Paisley Rd West (PRW) is the best route from
Paisley to Glasgow.

From Gilmour Street railway find Paisley Cross head east along Glasgow
Rd which becomes Paisley Rd West ( at the boundary between Paisley and
Glasgow) which inturn becomes Paisley Rd. then a left hander on to the
bridges in central Glasgow which brings you to Central station. For the
full ~8 miles there is only 2 turnings. I would advise against the
sustrans route from Paisley to Glasgow as it would lengthen you journey
by a large amount.

If you did not want to stay on the main road the full way you could
leave PWR in Ibrox and head for Bells bridge (foot bridge) between the
new Science centre and the SECC and head into town on the north bank of
the clyde.

My commute is along part of the route so I could suggest a route if you
want.

Allan

tim wrote in message . ..
On 29 Apr 2005 08:50:31 -0700, (Ed T.) wrote:

Hi;

I'm arriving (and departing) Scotland through Glasgow International
Airport (not Prestwick!).

I will need to get to/from Glasgow Queen Street Station. Now I can
ride a short distance to Paisley Gilmour Street Station and take the
train to Glasgow Central and walk/ride to Queen Street.

However, how bad would the ride be?

If you will be re-assembling your bike or bits of it, the ground floor of
the car park (about 30 yards immediately across the service road from the
terminal exit) offers lots of room and daylight.

I'm planning to bring the bike in a bag. I need to unpack to be able
to roll or ride it or it will be unmanageable. By Saturday evening I
should be sailing away from Aberdeen, heading for Lerwick. So that's
a lot of schlepping between transport modes right there.

However, I won't be set up specifically for cycle touring. The
bicycle is primarily for local transporation on the islands that I'm
visiting.

Thanks for all the suggestions and information that have been provided
from the thread. The conclusions I make a

1) If I have time and the weather cooperates, I will try to ride into
Glasgow instead of taking the train. Why not see some of Scotland and
save a couple of pounds?

2) I will pack carefully so that riding the bike with my backpack
won't be too bad. (Some stuff will go into my panniers.) This will
also help in relocating from Kirkwall to Stromness, and making the
trip from Scrabster docks to Thurso train station.

3) I'll make a point of checking out Paisley Road in the morning if I
get the chance, before taking the more scenic Sustrans route. (What
is the typical speed on the road? I can't tell if it's urban,
suburban, or what.)

4) If the weather is bad, then I will look for an alternative,
especially on the Friday night.

.....Ed

Ed T. wrote:

tim wrote in message . ..
On 29 Apr 2005 08:50:31 -0700, (Ed T.) wrote:

Hi;

I'm arriving (and departing) Scotland through Glasgow International
Airport (not Prestwick!).

I will need to get to/from Glasgow Queen Street Station. Now I can
ride a short distance to Paisley Gilmour Street Station and take the
train to Glasgow Central and walk/ride to Queen Street.

However, how bad would the ride be?

If you will be re-assembling your bike or bits of it, the ground floor of
the car park (about 30 yards immediately across the service road from the
terminal exit) offers lots of room and daylight.

I'm planning to bring the bike in a bag. I need to unpack to be able
to roll or ride it or it will be unmanageable. By Saturday evening I
should be sailing away from Aberdeen, heading for Lerwick. So that's
a lot of schlepping between transport modes right there.

However, I won't be set up specifically for cycle touring. The
bicycle is primarily for local transporation on the islands that I'm
visiting.

Thanks for all the suggestions and information that have been provided
from the thread. The conclusions I make a

1) If I have time and the weather cooperates, I will try to ride into
Glasgow instead of taking the train. Why not see some of Scotland and
save a couple of pounds?

2) I will pack carefully so that riding the bike with my backpack
won't be too bad. (Some stuff will go into my panniers.) This will
also help in relocating from Kirkwall to Stromness, and making the
trip from Scrabster docks to Thurso train station.

3) I'll make a point of checking out Paisley Road in the morning if I
get the chance, before taking the more scenic Sustrans route. (What
is the typical speed on the road? I can't tell if it's urban,
suburban, or what.)

It is 30mph all the way. It used to be the main route from Paisley to
Glasgow but there is now a motorway that is now the main route. So is
quiet most of the time outside of rush hours. If you were going back
along the route at midnight I would suggest you went that route back to
airport.

Allan



4) If the weather is bad, then I will look for an alternative,
especially on the Friday night.

....Ed