CS2 is awful!

[geekinaseat]

I use CS3 (between westferry and tower hill) daily and have always found it fine, granted there are a few oddities but overall it's not too bad. There is a completely segregated section for most of the way and the rest is along peaceful streets with little to no traffic.

Today I went for a ride and ended up in Stratford so I thought I would follow CS2 back to central London, bad idea!

It's little more than a blue stripe painted halfway across the left hand lane, cars drive over it as there is not enough space for two cars side by side whilst respecting the cycle lane, it's interrupted every 100m by a bus stop forcing you into the main flow of traffic (which I think you'd be better off staying in and keeping your position tbh which completely removes the point in the cycle lane!).

I'm feel I'm a pretty confident and capable cyclist however I had to keep my wits about me all the way from Stratford to Aldgate, I cannot believe it is touted as a "cycle superhighway" it does not deserve that title.

</rant>

Are the otehr cycle superhighways that bad? Have I been spoilt with CS3?

 

[wilkotom]

I've never done CS2 but a lot of what you're describing there sounds very similar to most of CS7 (though we have part-time bus lanes for a good chunk of it at least).

I've gone home via CS8 a couple of times instead and it's a bit nicer but not to the point of adding an extra 3 miles to my 12 mile journey each way.

 

[Twelve Spokes]

I'd say generally Leytonstone to Mile End to Leytonstone but the driving does suck sometimes,you have your days down there.At least I do.You generally "learn the road",at least I do and get used to the hazards.Stratford is a hazard at the moment making it more of a challenge by sticking traffic bollards everywhere.Do they do that for fun? It takes weeks for these road works to clear up.This would never happen in Japan.Yes I would move there if I could.

Wonder if I can pick up CS 3,I'd like to try it out.

 

[geekinaseat]

If 7 & 8 are not much better I can understand all of the criticism of the cycle superhighways, I must admit I've been wondering what all the fuss was about before I experienced CS2, now I get it!

@Twelve Spokes thinking about it the first part of CS3 is really good, there's not much point in going further than Westferry to be honest, I got lost the first time I went through the Canning Town section and the rest is just alongside the A13 dual carriageway so it's not exactly scenic! As a cycle path it does it's job well though, vastly better than CS2.

 

[schocca]

Ha, if you think the CS2 is bad, try cycling onwards from Stratford to Ilford... that makes the CS2 look pleasant by comparison!

I use the CS2 and CS3 most days. Both have negatives and positives. CS2 is as the OP originally says, just a blue painted strip, but it does work when there is a critical number of cyclists. Most cars give up and use the outer lane. The biggest problem with the CS2 is when it rains, then the CS2 painted blue is just too slippery and the traffic has no concept of speed reduction.

I also use the CS3 from the end of commercial road, along the A13 and past the north circular. It's nice to use, except when it has not been swept for a while and that I also need to slow right down for some of the road crossings (some side roads are very well hidden and traffic whizzes out). I used to use the CS3 from city out to the end of commerical road, but I hated the convoluted route, inability to overtake cyclists easily and I was very nervous about the sections outside the tube station and some of junction crossings. Basically, this section is just too slow for me...

Overtaking on the CS2 is easy, but you need careful planning for the CS3.

 

[Frood42]

They are cycle superhighways and not proper cycle lanes. CS2 is mostly made up of blue painted guide strips. Treat the traffic lane as a traffic lane and use the blue painted guide strip as just that, a strip to show you are travelling in the direction of central London. It only becomes a bike lane where it is has a broken or unbroken line by it, mostly it doesn't, but where it does have the lines, still don't trust it as it is a pile of crud. I preferred the CS3 over the CS2, but you can really hammer it down the CS2 if you have the need to get into Holborn quickly (Aldgate can be a pain! ).

 

[Twelve Spokes]

Schoccas is right,the Romford Road is crap.I have commuted on it in the past.I have cycled it every now and again.

Yeah Frood,Aldgate is a mess.Seems more of a problem than what it was before.

 

[spen666]

I ride from Ilford via Stratford into the West End every day and have no real issues with CS2.

I much prefer it to CS3. I try to avoid CS3 whenever I can. There are too many potential accident points with traffic as the seperate lane crosses too many junctions, some of which give cyclists priority some do not

 

[Keith Oates]

Hi Spen, been a while since I've seen you on here. Glad to see you'r still around !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Twelve Spokes]

I had a slippery moment on that blue paint thingy,thought I was going to come off.Think there was some oil on it,should have guessed as they seemed to have turned Bow into Bow by the Sea with the amount of sand about.It tends to be shiny so you can't always tell the hazard.

 

[spen666]

Hi Spen, been a while since I've seen you on here. Glad to see you'r still around !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hi Keith

Good to see you around as well.

I can't get on this site at work, so am not on here as often as I used to be. I'm still cycling and offending people as before