London cycle facilities-a hick writes

[james01]

Wife and I rented Santander bikes on a recent rare visit to London. There's clearly been much recent detailed infrastructure work, especially at junctions, eg cycling from Paddington to V&A Museum via Lancaster Gate and Hyde Park is much less exposed to traffic, and the cyclist "enjoys" many dedicated traffic lights. My wife, a nervous cyclist, thoroughly approves, and happily toured around London in a way that she'd have been reluctant to do a few years ago. For my part I was aware of the constant stopping and button-pressing at each junction - I'd much prefer to mix it with the cars and move quickly and efficiently. Some of the complex cycle facilities at major junctions were very hard to fathom. We often had to dismount and peer at the serpentine bike lanes to work out the way ahead. Again it would have been easier and maybe even safer to join the main flow of traffic. Our two opposing preferences neatly sum up the bike lobby's conundrum - segregation or integration?.
Anyway, despite some reservations, I reckon London is an excellent cycling city compared with many or most provincial towns, and it's reassuring to see so many cyclists on the streets.

[bovlomov]

Speaking as one of the metropolitan elite, I think this hick's assessment is spot on.

I generally choose cycling in traffic before cycling on segregated paths, but I can see why many people wouldn't. And while there are loads of problems with either choice, it could be a lot worse. In any case, cycle share has increased. That is surely the best measurement.

Next time you come to London, try saying hello to any of the cyclists you meet. We're a friendly lot here, who have all the time in the world to stop and chat. Especially the commuters.

[Tigerbiten]

I think that covers cycling facilities in the UK as a whole.
If you're on a go-slow, then follow the facility but navigation is a bit iffy.
If you're on a go-fast, stick to the roads but mix with traffic.
Until the cycling facilities get continuously very good like some places on the continent, then the two cannot mix.

[Pete Owens]

Its not just fast cyclists - Those of us who ride slowly but don't want to get squashed by turning motors also prefer to use roads rather than farcilities.

[Cyril Haearn]

Where do you usually cycle? Is it above London (on the map)?

[The utility cyclist]

For this country the only solutions are to remove and/or heavily restrict motorvehicles from ALL town and city centres, replace motorised deliveries with cargo bikes of all types incl electric assist or radically restrict access times.
Instead of peeing in the wind trying to build something that is simply never going to happen a la NL/DK just get rid of the motors, take back a single lane on through roads with absolute priority at all turns for people on bikes.

What is described by the OP encapsulates how mickey poor the infra even in that their London is, it's still rubbish and nowhere near good or direct or joined up/complete enough to be anything but piecemeal, most commuter cyclists use it because it's all they have, you still don't see many non commuters on it though and certainly very few kids. In many cases in London there is in many respects little option but to use it in places despite how stop start/indirect it is. At least it can get you out of some of the stopped traffic and is a bit safer but this relates to so very few places as to be meaningless in the grand scheme of things.

in 50 years time we will still have the same issues and still not have decent infra even 10% of what the Dutch have now, we/cycling will still be in low single digit % of journeys and still have a nation of obese motorcentric morons and a government still scratching at the surface/piecemeal offerings for cycling UNLESS someone takes the government to task legally to challenge and change how we address what is a massive issue not just for people on bikes but how we live as a nation.

[mjr]

I generally choose the protected way, even if going fairly fast unless it's congested, and I rarely find London's confusing but I grew up using cycleways as well as back roads and maybe it's different for those who didn't. Personally, I'd settle for Danish levels of infrastructure everywhere instead of Dutch level on a few.

London seems a bit keen on traffic lights of all sorts but I suppose the motorists there have demonstrated over years that they can't be trusted to merge fairly without crashing!

One thing that London has been more willing to do is to close side street entrances when a cycleway is built across it, after a few howlers with the early superhighways, which I'm sure Mr Owens will welcome because it also helps stop carriageway cyclists getting left hooked.