On Thu, 14 May 2009, MIG wrote:

On 14 May, 08:05, Tom Crispin
wrote:

2. *From London Bridge, follow the A200 [Tooley Street (bus/cycle
lanes), Jamaica Road (bus lanes), Lower Road (bus lanes), Evelyn
Street], then right Deptford Church Street (nasty junction, bus lanes),
ahead Brookmill Road, ahead Thurston Street, left Loampit Vale, ahead
Lewisham High Street (nasty roundabout, bus lane), left Lee High Road,
right Manor Park, right Staplehurst Road, arrive Hither Green.- Hide
quoted text -

Route 2 ain't so bad really. Even the apparently terrifying
roundabout at Rotherhithe is surprisingly easy.

Yes, i've been through that a few times and it's nothing special. But then
my commuting route as of a few months ago went through Highbury Corner and
Old Street, so i've very much got my roundabout wings!

The only really horrible bit is trying to turn right into Deptford
Church Street, where you can't get into the right lane.

When i went through it, there was naff all traffic, and i had no trouble,
but i do remember being struck by just how much width of road i had to
cross to get into the right position.

The worst bit, i thought, was where Deptford Church Street crossed New
Cross Road: the road on both sides was too narrow for a car to pass me
safely (or at all, really), there was no ASL, and drivers certainly came
at it with the intention of going much faster than i was able to, so the
departure from the lights was a bit stressful. And the surface! My god!
Have the RAF being dumping their old cluster bombs there or something?

Needless to say, i didn't take this Tooley Street closure seriously
enough, and rode right into it. Away from the actual closure itself, it
was great - there was no traffic, and the road was entirely usable. But at
the closure, to was on the north side of the road, and had to push round
some immense detour. Possibly i would have done better on the south side.

Also, once in Brookmill Road, you can pick up cycle routes through
Lewisham and continue with route 1.

I spotted the signs pointing to those (near the railway bridge?), but
didn't take the risk!

The most educational bit of the ride was getting behind some fairly
petite, slightly dumpy girl who was riding the same way at the top of
Lower Road, idly deciding to make her my pace rider, and then being highly
chastened to find that i had to pedal like the absolute clappers to keep
up with her! I was a bit relieved when i had to stop and look at a map,
and she rapidly vanished into the distance ...

tom

--
When they finally drop the bomb, the only survivors will be cockroaches
and Marathon Pluses. -- Mark T, uk.rec.cycling