dumbass LCC bike lane on Stratford High Street

[rogermerriman]

Any credibility the LCC had with me vanished last night after watching the guy on BBC London news whining on about the Olympic Park and the fact he had to wheel his bike up the side of some temporary (note that, the place is still part building site) steps. He then complained about a couple of cobbled stretches on a cycle path and, wait for it, the fact that 3 roads at a major junction didn't all stop at once to allow him to cross in one go. If I thought he was whiny, god knows what your average non-cyclist thought of him.

He does have a unfortunate manner, the problem with the LCC and Sustrans is they are in politics, and for most part they are attempting to persuade others to do things so they whine....and indulge in party politics which is never attractive.

 

[stowie]

Anyone have views on the little cycle lights at Bow now? Does anyone think that the problem with Bow was due to a lack of traffic lights? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?

Anyway as I sailed past the stop-start traffic tonight I have come to realise I actually quite like the CS2 extension to cycle on. OK so it isn't going to drive a cycling revolution or turn the high street into a place people want to linger (frankly the town planners with their "regeneration" that has made street level a wasteland saw to that). But it was quicker and much less stressful than filtering through traffic. Compared with the rest of CS2 it is a breeze.

 

[StuartG]

[QUOTE 2941057, member: 1314"]More cyclists on the road = critical mass = cyclists win. It's already happened in Zones 1-4 [/quote]
Zone 3 speaking here. It hasn't.

 

[StuartG]

[QUOTE 2941867, member: 1314"]I admit SE London is a mystery to me,[/quote]
We like to keep it that way

We had Andrew Gilligan to speak to us here in Lewisham borough a few months ago. A part from bring us news of the cancellation of our only planned SuperHighway, there was nothing for us. The dosh seems to be going to North of the river. Here in deepest Sydenham the recent TfL sponsored road improvement has made it more carcentric and dangerous than before. The only person I usually see cycling is me.

Zone 1 is great, Zone 2 is patchy, Zone 3 is very patchy. Our London successes are still localised with most of the work yet to be done.

 

[StuartG]

[QUOTE 2942094, member: 1314"]That's a pity, I thought there was a lot going on in SE London - Lewisham cyclists and all that?[/quote]
Karma. For all the enthusiasm of Lewisham Cyclists we have the dead weight of, arguably, the most car centric borough in London and, being solid Labour, completely off the radar of young Boris.
But we have proper 'ills if that interests you

 

[SW19cam]

Anyone have views on the little cycle lights at Bow now? Does anyone think that the problem with Bow was due to a lack of traffic lights? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?

Anyway as I sailed past the stop-start traffic tonight I have come to realise I actually quite like the CS2 extension to cycle on. OK so it isn't going to drive a cycling revolution or turn the high street into a place people want to linger (frankly the town planners with their "regeneration" that has made street level a wasteland saw to that). But it was quicker and much less stressful than filtering through traffic. Compared with the rest of CS2 it is a breeze.

Eastbound it is a small improvement, although it's all 'up, down, left, right'. I don't like the uneven surfaces or the tight corners (some of which, due to the bus stop structures, could result in a collision with a pedestrian i they were to step out blind). Westbound I dislike completely and wish we could have the bus lane back for.

On the cycle lights - I think these should be standard but yes, they do very little for the safety of that junction. People driving and cycling ignore red lights.

 

[stowie]

Eastbound it is a small improvement, although it's all 'up, down, left, right'. I don't like the uneven surfaces or the tight corners (some of which, due to the bus stop structures, could result in a collision with a pedestrian i they were to step out blind). Westbound I dislike completely and wish we could have the bus lane back for.

On the cycle lights - I think these should be standard but yes, they do very little for the safety of that junction. People driving and cycling ignore red lights.

I tend to go Eastbound on this stretch more than Westbound so have less experience, but I actually preferred westbound as it seemed wider. Getting onto the flyover westbound looks horrible with the new lane, but I have never bothered trying either. Eastbound is a bit easier as long as you time the left jink onto the path correctly! The kerbs should have been rounded - I have scuffed my pedals on the narrow bit before now, but the interaction between cyclists and pedestrians seems OK.

Eastbound on Bow roundabout there seems to be more and more drivers completely jumping the lights, both on the slip road but also on the roundabout. I had a bus so late jumping that by the time I could move off, the main traffic behind me was on top of me.

 

[zimzum42]

It seems that the idiocy highlighted in the OP continues unabated. Here's an image from the latest plans for a segregated East-West cycle highway:

When will they work out that this is truly retarded?

Consultation details:
https://consultations.tfl.gov.uk/cycling/eastwest/consult_view

 

[dellzeqq]

the worst thing about this is that it messes up a truly, truly wonderful bike ride

 

[gazza_d]

It seems that the idiocy highlighted in the OP continues unabated. Here's an image from the latest plans for a segregated East-West cycle highway:

When will they work out that this is truly retarded?

Consultation details:
https://consultations.tfl.gov.uk/cycling/eastwest/consult_view

You are of course utterly joking right? These plans are about the best thing for british cycling for decade, possibly since the thirties when the CTC killed off cycle infra.

They WILL protect people on bikes, but more importantly they will enable lots and lots of people who would cycle but feel too scared to do so.

It's not about the brave souls now, but about the next 10 and 20% of the population that will ride if it's safe enough

 

[theclaud]

You are of course utterly joking right? These plans are about the best thing for british cycling for decade, possibly since the thirties when the CTC killed off cycle infra.

They WILL protect people on bikes, but more importantly they will enable lots and lots of people who would cycle but feel too scared to do so.

It's not about the brave souls now, but about the next 10 and 20% of the population that will ride if it's safe enough

Will there be room for them all on that poxy cycle lane? The whole thing is narrower than a single lane of the road...

 

[theclaud]

What are you suggesting, that they don't really have faith that the next 10-20% will appear?

Perish the thought!

 

[zimzum42]

I was referring to the retardness of having the bus stops done in such a way that peds will always be having to cross the bike lane

 

[theclaud]

Got any pics, TMN?

 

[dellzeqq]

You are of course utterly joking right? These plans are about the best thing for british cycling for decade, possibly since the thirties when the CTC killed off cycle infra.

They WILL protect people on bikes, but more importantly they will enable lots and lots of people who would cycle but feel too scared to do so.

It's not about the brave souls now, but about the next 10 and 20% of the population that will ride if it's safe enough

it's about slicing up public space. And missing a golden opportunity to turn the entire road in to a bus lane during rush hour and widen the footpath by the Thames.

One thing you've got to get your head around - cycling is, in strategic terms, no big deal. A bus can carry 120 people in the roadspace taken by a dozen cyclists. A bus can take the old, the infirm, the very young, mothers with pushchairs, people in wheelchairs. Buses are used by the unemployed and high court judges. Having ridden around this town for fifty years I'm as pleased as pleased can be that cyclists throng the streets, but creating a private space (albeit a crap private space) for cyclists is wrong in principle, and, as this horrible scheme so graphically demonstrates, rubbish in practice.

And it utterly screws up the beginning of the Whitstable FNRttC.