Is Leeds soooo different??

[Flying_Monkey]

I've never ridden in Leeds, but I was visiting the other day and I have never a seen a more gentrified characterless city centre where everything has been replaced by chains and themes and where everyone seems to be either an excluded chav or a preening permatanned poseur. I though Newcastle was getting bad, but we are positively keeping it real and gritty compared to Leeds. I used to like the place. I was seriously shocked by just how generic and nouveau riche the centre had become. Is this the future for all of our city centres?

 

[HJ]

If this is true - does driving standards improve in the summer when we ladies wear less?

Are they taking the Danish approach to road safety?

 

[mmace]

I've never ridden in Leeds, but I was visiting the other day and I have never a seen a more gentrified characterless city centre where everything has been replaced by chains and themes and where everyone seems to be either an excluded chav or a preening permatanned poseur. I though Newcastle was getting bad, but we are positively keeping it real and gritty compared to Leeds. I used to like the place. I was seriously shocked by just how generic and nouveau riche the centre had become. Is this the future for all of our city centres?

I've lived in Leeds all my life but not been in the city centre for a long time (a couple of years?), just don't see the need to travel there for shops that are everywhere else and easier to get to!

 

[ajc]

I ride through Leeds on my commute from Bingley to Garforth, I've got to say that I find car drivers, white van and lorry drivers are on the whole very considerate, I hardly ever get problems. Of course there are a few numpties but there are always going to people like that wherever you go.

 

[Disgruntled Goat]

Are they taking the Danish approach to road safety?

That's a spoof right? Please tell me it is.

 

[atbman]

Commuted for several years from Bradford (A58) to Leeds city centre and from Morley, ditto, and only very rarely encountered problems, even on the infamous Armley Gyratory.

Even used the first part of the famous 40mph inner city motorway for a while until I realised that doing it wearing a Leeds City Council Highways hi-viz jacket was probably not the best idea

 

[marinyork]

Commuted for several years from Bradford (A58) to Leeds city centre and from Morley, ditto, and only very rarely encountered problems, even on the infamous Armley Gyratory.

Even used the first part of the famous 40mph inner city motorway for a while until I realised that doing it wearing a Leeds City Council Highways hi-viz jacket was probably not the best idea

LOL. I've not lived in leeds only been there but I think I know what you mean. I did think the Bradford inner ring road was particularly nasty as a road though, just in general, don't know why really.

 

[mmace]

even on the infamous Armley Gyratory.

my god, I know people who won't even drive round there, I'd never consider taking a bike round it!

 

[GrahamG]

On the other hand I've had bad days - I don't think I like the Muller Road in the mornings too full of people getting stuck in slow moving traffic. Equally I don't like the centre first thing in the morning. (I think what I'm trying to say is that I think its worst 1st thing in the morning).

Good point, it has tended to be during rush hour journeys. I'm sure that some of it is that Bristol drivers are used to students pootling along in the gutter, so when someone is a bit more assertive it gets viewed as antagonistic!
I had a novel experience with rush hour traffic on Friday evening (I finished a bit earlier than usual at 4pm), overtaking queues of traffic going up Park Street, never seen it that bad so I presume it was just a freaky friday thing.

 

[vernon]

I accept that have been commuting a very short time, but i ride past queues of traffic, i refuse to ride in the gutter, i am often distracted by attractive girls and occasionally i even .........RLJ.

Cant say i've had a single bit of grief from a motorist.... nothing but politeness and plenty of room.

May be that its just Leeds drivers are nicer.... but i'm guessing this is the norm for most of us no??

andy

I'm glad that someone else has noticed that cycling can be a safe and enjoyable experience!

When I read about all the near misses and road rage incidents, I can not square them with my experiences of cycling in Leeds. There's nowhere that I find intimidating and like another poster, I've taken Armley Gyratory in my stride in the past.

Drivers are courteous on the whole and I am heartened by the increasing number of cycling commuters that I see. I just might start commuting by bike to the Halifax side of Bradford once cycling facilities are available at my place of work.

 

[summerdays]

I had a novel experience with rush hour traffic on Friday evening (I finished a bit earlier than usual at 4pm), overtaking queues of traffic going up Park Street, never seen it that bad so I presume it was just a freaky friday thing.

The cars would have to be rolling backwards for me to overtake it going up Park Street

 

[nethalus]

my god, I know people who won't even drive round there, I'd never consider taking a bike round it!

Gone round the Armley Giratory loads of times. Its not that scary as its got traffic lights like, unless you are comming out of Tong Road, now that bit I don't like.

 

[redjedi]

I've only been commuting in London (west and north, not centrally) for a year, but I really don't see the problem.

I have had a few encounters with drivers and peds, but I don't let it bother to me.
Today was the first time that I actually said something to a driver, after he swerved out from one lane of traffic, to get into the left hand lane of stationary traffic. I just said he needs to look before doing something like that, and he apologised, and I went on my way and didn't think about it again.

I think it's more to do with your own attitude, and how it affects you.

I do worry about people like Magnatom, who seem to have run-ins every day. When I see some of their videos, I wonder why they get worked up about it. Sometimes they have a very valid point, but other times I just wouldn't let if affect me.

Perhaps we're just more chilled out than others.

 

[BentMikey]

It's probably more a case of you accepting the bullying and bad driving you get, and simply rolling over without making a fuss. It's completely right that cyclists should do this after all, because we're only second class citizens and don't pay road tax.

 

[redjedi]

Perhaps it's just me then.

I don't feel like I'm being bullied or treated as a second class citizen. I have as much right to be on the road as anyone else, and I think I show that in my riding.

Maybe I've just been lucky, or maybe I'm still quite cautious.

I am a very patient commuter. I don't RLJ, I stop at ped crossings when someone's waiting to cross, and I don't always filter to the front of traffic at lights.

But I'm far from slow, when I get going, so I don't see the need.

Don't get me wrong, there are a lot of idiotic drivers, who shouldn't be allowed to drive, but I try not to get in their way and hopefully they won't be any trouble to me.