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Bus driver complaint and OYBike
On Thu, 2 Sep 2004, Dave Arquati wrote:
Tom Anderson wrote: On Thu, 2 Sep 2004, Dave Arquati wrote: Anyway, if you want truly strange cycle lanes, try the back of the British Museum: given the task of fitting a cycle lane heading west in with a two-lane one-way street heading east (which, incidentally, is mostly used by coaches), the road chaps decided that the best place for it was IN BETWEEN the two lanes of traffic! Getting into that lane in the first place is an adventure in itself. Isn't that how the Blackfriars Bridge accident happened? It's nowhere near as bad as Blackfriars bridge, mostly because the traffic's a hell of a lot lighter. Plus, ISTR that it's physically segregated, which Blackfriars wasn't. Also, AIUI, the Blackfriars lane was conflow (or whatever the opposite of contraflow is - Sandinistaflow?), whereas this is contraflow, which is also safer. I don't fancy cycling between two lanes of traffic; I get worried enough cycling in London full stop, which is why I generally don't! I did, however, experience a variety of cycling environments on a trip from South Kensington to Canary Wharf and back. I went via the parks, then Westminster Bridge, cycle route near the South Bank, London Bridge, Aldgate (where I took a wrong turn and ended up going round the one-way system, which scared the living daylights out of me), Do you mean the big gyratory system thing, which you have to go through to get from the Whitechapel road to the City? I've been through that a few times - it's not the best cycling environment, granted. Still, i'd say it's better than the one at Old Street! then down to the Wapping ornamental canal, Shadwell, the riverside, Narrow St and then took another wrong turn to end up walking around West India Quay DLR with the bike and some difficulty. Came back via a more direct route along Cable St (partly contraflow cycle lane, partly on-pavement cycle lane), through the City to Fleet St (got lost again around Fenchurch St & later was following motor vehicle signs and almost ended up on the Victoria Embankment which I didn't want to), Welcome to the club! I usually have a really hard time getting from the City onto High Holborn, or in fact getting across the city in any direction; i'm glad it's so small! I once, coming out of Smithfield and aiming for work (UCL, Eustonish) ended up going down the Farringdon Road, and by the time i realised, didn't really have any choice except to carry on over Blackfriars Bridge (this was after the accident, i think), head along the south bank and go back over Waterloo bridge, then up through the west end to work. This was all because i'd agreed to go and pick something up from Charterhouse Square for a friend; the same friend, in fact, who i had to traverse Old Street and Aldgate to go and visit. She doesn't live in London any more, which, frankly, is something of a relief! then straight along to Trafalgar Square. I wasn't brave enough to cycle across the Square; afterwards I went up The Mall, Constitution Hill and back along the South Carriage Drive. The experience was generally very good (although it was a Sunday!) and would have encouraged me to cycle more in London. Unfortunately right after finishing the ride, my bike got nicked, so that put me off again... That must have been rather irritating. Still, an old saying about falling off horses springs to mind! tom -- Mathematics is the door and the key to the sciences. -- Roger Bacon |
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