benborp
Guru
- Location
- further from Penge
Periodically I find I have to take an alternative route in to work for a while.
Usually and recently it's mainly because of roadworks. They've been springing up all over the place over the last few months. While an extra set of traffic lights here and there doesn't slow me down that much, the congestion they cause does. The fact that they appear, disappear and reappear overnight makes it almost impossible to know how long it will take to get in to London. From a shade over twenty minutes to just under an hour.
Sometimes though it's because a particular area or street starts to pose more and more problems. Whether it's a stronger atmosphere of aggression, a spate of SMIDSYs or general motorised doziness that develops I find it best if I just avoid the area for a while, probably until the next school holiday or clock change. Fortunately living in London I've got quite a few route options - although I also have a fair number of alternating hotspots to avoid.
Since it became a 20mph limit, Marshalsea Road in Southwark has become somewhat hairy for me. I think it also coincides with all the cross-rail and London Bridge road closures. For a short stretch of road there are usually a large number of developing hazards to keep an eye on.
Yesterday there was nearly one too many:
Near head-on collision (contains loud swearing) for a big scare the guy's reaction really helped make this a less traumatic experience. It stops me from dwelling on the consequences of what would have otherwise felt like narrowly avoiding a sudden act of random violence.
I've found that local diversions take me past junctions where I am invariably SMIDSYed so time to avoid the area for a while.
My other current hotspot is Red Post Hill, it's a quieter, less congested route than the alternatives around Dulwich. However from time to time I feel that dodgy motorised behaviour becomes more prevalent and I feel the need to avoid the area completely. Yesterday, there was something up with the signal phasing at the junction which led to only one or two vehicles clearing the junction each time. I'd clocked this driver a while earlier but somehow he'd managed to jump sixty odd cars that I'd put between him and me while I was caught waiting at the lights:
Poor driving (contains quieter swearing but a loud shout) again it's in a 20mph zone but that seems to bring out the worst in some people. The traffic 'calming' measures as so often just make this behaviour more hazardous and cut the options for dealing with it.
It looks like I'll be living with the more consistent congestion on the main routes through Brixton and Kennington Park until the schools break up.
Does anyone else find the 'character' of their commute fluctuate in such a way as to make them alter their routes? It deflates me a little that riding a bike in London so often seems such an involved process. Having spent some time on two wheels in France recently I've been reminded how simple and relaxing getting anywhere on two wheels should be.
Usually and recently it's mainly because of roadworks. They've been springing up all over the place over the last few months. While an extra set of traffic lights here and there doesn't slow me down that much, the congestion they cause does. The fact that they appear, disappear and reappear overnight makes it almost impossible to know how long it will take to get in to London. From a shade over twenty minutes to just under an hour.
Sometimes though it's because a particular area or street starts to pose more and more problems. Whether it's a stronger atmosphere of aggression, a spate of SMIDSYs or general motorised doziness that develops I find it best if I just avoid the area for a while, probably until the next school holiday or clock change. Fortunately living in London I've got quite a few route options - although I also have a fair number of alternating hotspots to avoid.
Since it became a 20mph limit, Marshalsea Road in Southwark has become somewhat hairy for me. I think it also coincides with all the cross-rail and London Bridge road closures. For a short stretch of road there are usually a large number of developing hazards to keep an eye on.
Yesterday there was nearly one too many:
Near head-on collision (contains loud swearing) for a big scare the guy's reaction really helped make this a less traumatic experience. It stops me from dwelling on the consequences of what would have otherwise felt like narrowly avoiding a sudden act of random violence.
I've found that local diversions take me past junctions where I am invariably SMIDSYed so time to avoid the area for a while.
My other current hotspot is Red Post Hill, it's a quieter, less congested route than the alternatives around Dulwich. However from time to time I feel that dodgy motorised behaviour becomes more prevalent and I feel the need to avoid the area completely. Yesterday, there was something up with the signal phasing at the junction which led to only one or two vehicles clearing the junction each time. I'd clocked this driver a while earlier but somehow he'd managed to jump sixty odd cars that I'd put between him and me while I was caught waiting at the lights:
Poor driving (contains quieter swearing but a loud shout) again it's in a 20mph zone but that seems to bring out the worst in some people. The traffic 'calming' measures as so often just make this behaviour more hazardous and cut the options for dealing with it.
It looks like I'll be living with the more consistent congestion on the main routes through Brixton and Kennington Park until the schools break up.
Does anyone else find the 'character' of their commute fluctuate in such a way as to make them alter their routes? It deflates me a little that riding a bike in London so often seems such an involved process. Having spent some time on two wheels in France recently I've been reminded how simple and relaxing getting anywhere on two wheels should be.
