A CYCLE group has said multi-million plans that could mark "the biggest change to Byres Road in decades" are a let down.

GoBike, the Strathclyde Cycle Campaign, worked with planners to give input into how to make the West End thoroughfare safe for cyclists.

But now Glasgow City Council has released draft plans for the public realm development of the area.

And GoBike is now calling for segregated cycle lanes to match those in the City Centre and South Side.

Co-Convenor of GoBike Iona Shepherd said: “The cycle lanes drawn up in these plans have been called safe in the proposals and that is simply not true.

"The stone setts might look nice, but they offer no physical protection from the high volume of traffic passing through Byres Road.

"Each time the lanes are blocked by parking cars, buses, loading lorries and the inevitable debris swept to the side of the road, people on bikes will be forced into the stream of motor traffic.

"While we are pleased to see improved space for people on foot, we believe that money spent on major projects such as this should also always include segregated cycling infrastructure on busy roads, safe for everyone of all ages and abilities, and that is not in evidence here.

"The cycle lanes in these plans barely work for the small minority of experienced cyclists who might brave them and certainly not for the majority of people in our city who don’t consider our roads safe enough for active travel."

Glasgow City Council has launched a consultation into plans, which runs until June 27 with a drop-in session on May 31 in Hillhead Library.

Funded by the Glasgow Region City Deal, the design proposals include widened footways and improved surfaces.

The council also boasts the plans include safe cycle routes.

But cycle campaigners dispute this.

Bikes will be separated from motorised traffic by paint, rather than a segregated cycle lane such as on the South City Way route.

One local business owner, who asked not to be named, said: “I had hoped that the redevelopment would allow my child and I to cycle in relative safety on Byres Road without having to mix with traffic.

"A line painted on the road does nothing to prevent cars coming into the lane, making it unsuitable for families such as mine.”

Euan Muir from campaign group Space for People Byres Road also expressed disappointment at the plans.

He said: “Byres Road is currently fraught with potential conflict and has one of the worst safety records for cycling in the city.

"The current proposals fail to create a safe cycling environment and instead look to perpetuate danger and continue to suppress cycling.

"Space for People Byres Road developed safe cycling designs, demonstrating how to make cycling safe on this high street, but we have seen little of these suggestions implemented.”

Iona added: “We have spent months consulting behind the scenes with the designers of the street and have found that despite the best efforts of city councillors, the constraints that the City Region Deal have put on the project from the outset, mean that active travel has not been given the priority the Scottish government promises within its transport hierarchy.

"Providing safe space for people to actively travel to and through high streets has been shown time and again to provide not just health and environmental benefits, but also economic benefits to the people-friendly places they create.”

Green MSP Patrick Harvie added: “The investment in Byres Road could result in the biggest change to people’s experience of the area for decades, so it’s vital that we don’t miss the opportunity to achieve a result that works for everybody.

"The road is unsafe for walking and cycling, and dominated by congested traffic and polluted air. That needs to change, and GoBike are right to say that safe, segregated bike space must be part of the final proposal."