It looks like I’ll be spending 1 or 2 days a week in London, so thinking about getting a bike to get around. Anyone got any advice on finding the best routes from A to B.

Having seen a nasty (fatal I’m guessing) accident at Old Street today, I’d rather keep off the major car routes. I do a bit of walking around, so know some of the cut-throughs that take you off the beaten track, but those are mostly from tube to tube.

Register for the Boris Bikes? Great if you’re doing lots of little hops round Zone 1. Plenty of cycle lanes and backstreet cut-throughs.

There’s a decent (nationwide) route map at cyclestreets.net, freebie London cycle route maps are available at most bike shops and plenty of newsagents.

HTH!

: P

hmm heard about the accident today and that it was a fatal but this says different at the moment

http://www.london24.com/news/old_street_crash_woman_cyclist_critically_ill_1_811375

MM

Where’s A and B?

I saw that too, and I was sure it was fatal, but apparently not. Also I’m sure I saw two bikes on the ground, not one.

Good News! You now don’t need to register for Ken’s Barclays Bikes, just stick in your credit card and you’re away! I got a great map from their stand at the bike show detailing all the stands in London. **** good idea I reckon!
http://www.tfl.gov.uk/assets/downloads/roadusers/Cycle_Hire_docking_stations_map.pdf

Unfortunately, Old Street roundabout is often hard to avoid if you’re going east to west in that area.

transport for London do some free cycling maps that may come in useful
http://www.tfl.gov.uk/roadusers/cycling/11682.aspx

MountainMutant – Member
hmm heard about the accident today and that it was a fatal but this says different at the moment

http://www.london24.com/news/old_street_crash_woman_cyclist_critically_ill_1_811375

MM

Funny turn of phrase to that headline:

Old Street crash: woman cyclist critically ill

So she was knocked off her bike and then caught a really bad dose of flu? Surely she’s critically injured.

Oh and more info here:
http://www.lfgss.com/thread60261.html

This might seem weirdly rural but it works great in town
1 – mount a compass on the stem/bar
2 – clock approximate distance and bearing between A and B
3 – wiggle through back streets taking turns that keep you vaguely on course
4 – stop to look at map when you’ve covered approximate time/distance

Mostly you will find that when you stop, you are;
A- not dead
B – fairly near where B is.

Cycling in central London is much nicer than cycling in most small to medium sized towns IME. If you don’t feel confident consider getting a couple of hours cycle training, you may be a MTB god and an experienced driver but cycling in traffic is a different skill and most people could do with some tip on getting through traffic with out either being scared or acting overly aggressive way that you see many middle aged men riding.

Old street roundabout is not a difficult junction to deal with and you should not be afraid of it.

As for route finding just get a mini AtoZ and ride you will soon pick up the routes you need.

Thanks everyone really useful stuff. I’ll probably start by taking a Boris bike out next time I’m there. See how it goes.

Cheers again!

As TheBrick says, get a couple of lessons, the local council might pay for them, worth checking with their Road Safety team.
Ride confidently, obey the HC, be bold never stupid, remember Smart cracks when you punch it hard (don’t ask 😉 ). BTW I find it relaxing cycling in the Big Smoke, way easier than in smaller towns (let alone Liv’pool and the likes).
Enjoy!

Lots of light and bright clothing! On many roads you’ll be moving faster than the traffic, especially right in the centre, so it’s not as scary as you’d think. The compass idea is a good one – I frequently used to navigate using the sun!

Like others have said…
Get the TFL maps. very handy for planning the quiet routes.
Get a bell with a compass on it.

One handy tip for when you get lost- check the bus stops…
they all tell you where the bus that stops there is heading to.

Other than that take it easy ,make yourself wide and concentrate.

+1 for the Boris Bikes. But register for rolling 24h access and get a key fob (all of £3). Will save you the grief of using your credit card in the payment terminal every time you want to hire a bike on the “casual user” scheme.

Old Street roundabout

def a junction where using your lights in the daytime is a good idea – in fact i have started using them all the time

as for tips…

look everywhere! especially at junctions even if your lights are green

and NEVER NEVER go up the inside of HGV’s on corners

and watch for peds crossing the road, especially if the traffic is stationary