No, they weren't years old, as far as we know More...
At least, in terms of being seen by others. However, if you are riding on your own down a darkish lane, it can be a different matter... More...
If you haven't come across these, they are a small kerbed area in the middle of busy roads, that's wide enough to take a pushchair.
Some of the reason for these is also that traffic flow can be maintained, whereas another pelican crossing just makes matters worse.
However, they are pretty scary for cyclists, especially if the road was not that wide in the first place. Perhaps a bit of redesign would help.. More...