I really wanted to cycle to work but find it too dangerous

[NorthernDave]

Hi @Binman
Hopefully you're still hanging around to read these messages as there is some good advice on this thread.

When I first started commuting by bike I went across the city, approx. 6 miles each way, and made a really basic error - I went the way I'd go if I was driving (apart from the urban motorway bit). So I was on all the busy roads, with the traffic, the snarl ups, the traffic lights, the impatient and angry commuters, the ones who were late for work / school / anything else, and while I gave as good as I got, it wasn't great and soon got a bit wearing.
Then a chat with a mate who asked a really simple question "Why do you ride down xxx when you could cut across this way instead, avoid that notorious junction AND save yourself nearly half a mile?". So I changed my route home and it was a far better ride.

That evening I dug out an A-Z (this was pre-internet ) and worked out a route using back streets, cut throughs and off road sections (I was riding a Raleigh Amazon MTB) which I tried the next day. Not only was it a far better ride, but I arrived at work 10 minutes earlier and had no conflict with other road users at all. It was also quicker than I could do the journey in a car and significantly quicker than the two buses I'd have needed to catch.

Hopefully there will be an alternative route available to you?

Taking the lane also helps massively, although it can feel counter-intuitive when you first try so you have to stick with it until it becomes second nature.

 

[Pat "5mph"]

@Binman welcome to CC
Don't heed @Drago, he's usually a nice chap, really I hope you're still with us, reading all the excellent advice given up thread.
My commute is similar to yours, 5 miles each way.
Oh, how well I remember the terror of the first few weeks!
The route I chose was all wrong, it was the bus route!
Best thing I ever did was to go on a day's cycling training course, it really opened my eyes on how cyclists are perceived by drivers, how we can confuse them by being indecisive or errant on the roads.
After a few months I found a way to get to work and back without hardly any traffic, a mixture of cycle paths, parks and minor roads.
I now ride anywhere I like, if there's a scary roundabout in the way I will find another route.
Don't get me wrong, occasionally I still get verbal abuse or close passes by drivers, but rarely on the commute, as I honed the route to an enjoyable one.
Apart from trying to find a riding mentor, you could also ride the commute very early in the morning or very late at night: there will be almost no traffic, allowing you to check out best position, lane to be in, potholes, side roads possibilities.
I hope you stick with it, cycling is so liberating, great exercise too.
Good luck!

 

[The_Hawk]

Welcome @Binman .
I totally agree with you. I am not keen on 'road' cycling, maybe this is because I have not had enough experience or I have a hybrid rather than a road bike.
I still think a number of motorist think cyclists should not be allowed out anywhere.

I am sure we have all seen good and bad examples of cyclist and motorists.

I think it's great that you have had so many offers for help - I hope it works out for you.

Have you looked at Sustrans - not sure what people think of it on this forum, however may have something useful for you

Chris

 

[Tin Pot]

I do wonder about this. I grew up in a medium-sized village. We played on the roads, moving aside when cars wanted to drive through. There were pavements in most of the village but to walk anywhere other than the nearest city boundary meant walking over fields (summer only) or along country lanes. I spent time in my grandparents' home village, which was similar but even smaller and without the pavement to the city. We were probably used to being in the road.

The village where I now live is smaller than where I grew up. I cycle through other villages on my way to/from various appointments. There are so few children playing in the streets that it's remarkable when I do see any - so much so that I remember where I last saw two children playing 12 days ago I don't know if it's fear of stranger danger or fear of motorists, but I wonder if cautious parents of the last few decades have done far more harm to their children than anyone realised, discouraging active lifestyles.</old-idiot-theories>

Hard to say. I grew up in London, Z3 and later Z2 and Z1 - my parents were from the sticks, whilst we cycled on the back streets sometimes tales of playing in the streets was only something we saw on "The Way We Used To Live" set in the 1910s when they ate cardboard and slept in holes in t' road etc.

I believe it's more to do with the volume of cars and frequency of their use these days.

 

[I like Skol]

unless you are very confident / assertive.

That'll be me then. No need to be be arsey about it, but know what you are doing it and do it!

Best thing I ever did was to go on a day's cycling training course, it really opened my eyes on how cyclists are perceived by drivers, how we can confuse them by being indecisive or errant on the roads

It is a bit like herd/flock mentality. Act like them and they subconsciously see you as one of them and you can mingle almost unnoticed.

 

[bozmandb9]

I think @Drago has seen him off for good....

Shame isn't it! In venting some spleen, he ensured that instead of a new cyclist finding some support in the forum, and possibly remaining a cyclist, will go back to driving, with an extremely low opinion of cyclists.

 

[Cycleops]

Shame isn't it! In venting some spleen, he ensured that instead of a new cyclist finding some support in the forum, and possibly remaining a cyclist, will go back to driving, with an extremely low opinion of cyclists.

He can't have been that frightened, he was on this afternoon.

 

[slowmotion]

One other thing @Binman, practice looking over your shoulder to see what's going on behind. It can seem difficult at first, but it's an absolutely vital skill to master. Your neck will get used to the strange twisting motion pretty quickly.

BTW, come back soon, and

 

[classic33]

You are spot on with what you say about @Drago, although the OP hasn"t been seen since on this thread, which is a shame because there has been some fantastic advice offered to him

He's not posted, but has been back. Maybe he was serious about off-putting the traffic, which many rarely consider, being the deciding factor for someone new to cycling.

Even now I'm struggling to remember a time when I was in that situation. Anything said made me want to prove them wrong. I was told that the roads were dangerous when working in Leeds. Got me out of having to work either of the christmas holidays. No public transport early enough, left me with one choice. Laughed at at the time, but ended up doing the daily for just over six months. From there, it was a 4 day weekend, working split shifts. Same trip twice a day each way.

So how hard is it, to take to cycling on the roads. Genuine question.

 

[lazybloke]

Agree that you do acclimatise to busy roads, and that training and experience will help along the way.

But the advice to look at easier routes is my favoured option.
I first tried riding home along a narrow and very busy A-road. It felt incredibly unsafe and hostile, and I've no interest in returning that way.

I've since found a better route. It's 14 miles but includes byways and cycle paths, so half of the route is entirely traffic-free. The rest is a mix of quiet village lanes through farmland and woodland. It's an easy ride that feels very safe, not least through the riverside nature reserve and a National Trust SSSI. It's as rural as you can get in Surrey. I now get home with no stress, and a massive grin.

 

[welsh dragon]

Sorry to hear about your bad experience when cycling in rush hour traffic. I have no doubt that it can be very daunting. Cycling can and is a great form of exercise and it can also ne great fun. Dont give up. Cycling in heavy traffis isnt for everyone. Riding through your local park can ne great fun, and if you have a bike rack fitted to your car, or if you own a foldimg bike, you can take it anywhere . Many here do just that. They fimd quiet roads or go into the countryside and do their cycling there. I do hope you don't give up. Give it another whirl in a different place, different environment and with less stress. Good luck.

 

[marshmella]

, if there's a scary roundabout in the way I will find another route.
!

This is exactly what i did when the local council redesigned a roundabout on my commute .i was lucky enough to find a much easier diversion ,i just didn"t feel comfortable with the new layout.

 

[Tin Pot]

I first tried riding home along a narrow and very busy A-road. It felt incredibly unsafe and hostile, and I've no interest in returning that way.

I've since found a better route. It's 14 miles but includes byways and cycle paths, so half of the route is entirely traffic-free.

Each to his own, and your route seems prettier than an A road, but I choose A roads.

In my opinion, the ones that get you are the unexpected manoeuvres that are hard to see - A road traffic is usually boring, predictable and easy to monitor. And faster.

Residential roads are full of people pulling out blindly, performing seemingly insane manoeuvres, all hidden by the insane amount of on road parking that turns a huge space into a narrow run-the-gauntlet death trap for cyclists. Maybe I'm exaggerating

 

[Trevrev]

I seriously think, after Drago's warm welcome, we won't be seeing Binman again on this thread! Just a hunch!

 

[Lonestar]

Residential roads are full of people pulling out blindly, performing seemingly insane manoeuvres, all hidden by the insane amount of on road parking that turns a huge space into a narrow run-the-gauntlet death trap for cyclists. Maybe I'm exaggerating

Oh I agree,it's a challenge...Also pedestrians suddenly appear from nowhere and don't look which is the norm anyway.