London commuting question

Hi,

I live in Isleworth, middlesex, TW7, and thinking about cycling to my place of work in Tottenham Court Road in the West End. My reasons are to save money, get some exercise and avoid the horrible conditions on public transport.

I would be taking a similar route to the one suggested by this guy here: http://www.cycle-route.com/routes/Isleworth_to_Kings_Cross_Station_%28fast_Commute%29-Cycle-Route-5172.html, except at Hyde Park carrying on down Bayswater Road and Oxford Street.

I have a few concerns, rain, cold weather, punctures etc., but the main thing which is putting me off is obviously the high rate of accidents involving cyclists in London.

Do you think the route I would be taking is particularly dangerous? Is it case of a little common sense going along way in avoiding incidents?

Of course I would do a few practice runs before hand.

I guess I am looking for assurance I won’t be killed out there, which nobody can give me, but any thoughts/suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks

My suggestion would be that you can get killed anywhere.
Wear the right kit, ride confidently, don’t go down the sides of buses/trucks, watch out for doors opening. Have fun.

I did a similar commute to that every week day for 6 years. Still alive. You’ll be fine.

+1 for wear the right kit.

As for being killed in central london – I personally found that the dangerous part of my journey (from Croydon to Westminster) was the outer London bit. Once you are into the thick of things, the average car speed goes way down, and the number of other cyclists goes up – which means that cars are forced to be far more aware that you are there.

If you are sensible and don’t do things like running reds (blah, blah, yeah I know it can be safe to jump *some* red lights, but it is a lot safer to filter to the front, make yourself obvious to the car you are in front of and go when it is green) or filtering down the inside of traffic (buses, lorries especially) then central london is a very safe place to ride.

I expect I will be flamed now for suggesting that it is the cyclists fault if they are run over. This is by no means what I think, there are many cases where the stupid actions of car drivers kill people, however, there are also many many cases where defensive riding can avoid you getting anywhere near the kind of situation where you put your life in someone else’s hands (not always possible, but a lot of the time it is).

That went on longer than I thought, to summarise:
wear the proper clothes (this includes hi-vis / reflective stuff)
get decent lights.
look after yourself.
don’t rush – better to get there 5 minutes later having been safe than take unnecessary risks to shave tiny amounts of time.

Dave

not looked at your route but i never cycle down oxford st but use wigmore st or brooks st/grosvenor square. less random pedestrian action/buses/taxis

I feel safer cycling in London than where I do now , Dorset / Hampshire boarder. Getting some traing from a bikeability instructor to give you some good tips about riding in traffic. Don’t ride like many of the cock sure male commuters in London.

I’d be inclined to avoid Goldhawk Road/Shepherds Bush, Notting Hill Gate and instead look at going through Hammersmith, along Hammersmith Road then up through Hyde Park and through the back of Mayfair/Marylebone.

I certainly wouldn’t like to be cycling down the Euston Road as that route shows!

high rate of accidents involving cyclists in London

they’re not that high.
if you have an ounce of road sense and common sense then you’ll be fine.
the worst cyclists out there are those who seem oblivious and are unaware of the dangers, the fact that you’ve written this thread means you are.
commuting is fun, not scary!

Ride deffensively, assume all indicators are broken, late lane changes will happen , pedestrians will lemming in front of you , get good lights , remember drivers will not see them anyway.
Don’t get angry with other’s stupidity, remember its better to be alive than right.

That is a singularly nasty route, that. I woon’t use any of it past Chiswick. And the one road I avoid at all costs in central London is Oxford st. Because it’s just mental; peds stepping out in front of you without looking all the time. They’re always getting squished by buses.

Have a look here for alternative routes (bit crappy to use but it has the info):

http://www.londoncyclenetwork.org.uk/DMS/Webmap/LCN_WebMap.html

Wow, wasn’t expecting that many responses so quick

Yes Sheperds Bush was concerning me a bit, might carry on through Kensington and cycle up Kensington Church Street instead.

Thanks for all the responses, I will take everything which has been suggested into consideration. Feeling a lot more positive about this now!

Just saw your post, checking out the link, thanks Elfinsafety

yeah i agree, buy decent lights, refective kit… then chose your route carefully. It might take a couple of trial and error days to get a route right. Dangerous? I guess its all relative, yes it has its moments but like other have said expect cars to do the unexpected and you’ll be fine, ride assertively out from the curb and watch it if you undertake… its legal to under/over take in slow stationary traffic but numpty drivers so often decide to cut left or right, just watch for them be ready to avoid/stop. You’ll be fine. Do it a half dozen times carefully and then you’ll soon get the knowledge!

http://www.cyclestreets.net/ <- give this a go. It’ll tell you how “hostile” each bit of a route is and suggest quieter alternatives.

Don’t go up Kensington Church St, it offers you no benefit over continuing along Kensington Rd, turning into the park at the Albert Memorial, heading up West Carriage Dr, then North Carriage Dr. If you turn left halfway along this, cross Bayswater rd into Albion St, right onto Connaught St, Upper Berkely St, down onto Wigmore St, you’re pretty much there and then you miss Marble Arch and Oxford Street which are not pleasant.
Why on earth anyone would choose to ride along main arterial roads into London by choice defeats me.

Oxford Street.

Nice and easy to ride along prior to 7:30 am, otherwise it’s chuffing horrible with cars, taxis, buses and unpredictable pedestrians.

I speak from experience

Can’t really comment on your route as I’m out East, but do it, it’s fun (although it may take a little while to realise this)

I would avoid Oxford Street for the next year or so as the Bond Street Station Upgrade works have closed half the road so that it is west only so you can’t cycle east along it, and the Crossrail works are beginning to increase – basically there’s a lot of construction going on there at the moment and for the next few years. I really would advise choosing an alternative route.

I think I will definitely be giving Oxford street a miss now that I have read some of the comments here.

The quiet route on cyclestreets.net looks very scenic but takes almost 90 mins. The fast route is apparently “very hostile”.

Might start on the quiet route until I get some confidence then try shave some time off by using some of the fast route.

http://www.cyclestreets.net/journey/1376206/

I’m in your neck of the woods, so I might well see you out on the commute!?

kayak23 – Member
My suggestion would be that you can get killed anywhere.
Wear the right kit, ride confidently, don’t go down the sides of buses/trucks, watch out for doors opening. Have fun.

Ditto

loum – Member
Ride deffensively, assume all indicators are broken, late lane changes will happen , pedestrians will lemming in front of you , get good lights , remember drivers will not see them anyway.
Don’t get angry with other’s stupidity, remember its better to be alive than right.

Ditto

My old route was Ealing to Holborn following the central line straight in all the way.

Oxford St is horrible.
Stop/Start traffic lights all the way down – yes, I do stop at them : )
Buses galore in both directions – although killing car speed, also convinces pedestrians that they are perfectly safe to walk out/wander all over the place : )

aP – Member
I would avoid Oxford Street for the next year or so as the Bond Street Station Upgrade works have closed half the road so that it is west only so you can’t cycle east along it, and the Crossrail works are beginning to increase – basically there’s a lot of construction going on there at the moment and for the next few years. I really would advise choosing an alternative route.

Ditto

My newer route is diverts through Hyde Park at Queensway Tube Station.
Over to Hyde Park corner, then through Wellington Arch > Constitution Hill > The Mall > The Strand > Aldwych > Work

I’m always prepared to try new ones, so I’ll be having a look at a few of the links here too.

Adist – if you want to meet up in the Red Lion for a cheeky half sometime I can show you a decent route.

I certainly wouldn’t like to be cycling down the Euston Road as that route shows!

In two minds re Euston Road and others like it.

(a) part of my commute takes me down here every day, and I’m still alive

(b) I had a flipping big crunch very recently

I think a lot of it depends on how fast you ride. Keep at a decent pace, ride mostly in the bus lane, and the taxis and buses won’t try to overtake. This does depend on riding reasonably quickly though – some of the newer buses are surprisingly swift, so you need to be doing mid-20s where the road’s clear. If you pootle around like most of the Boris Bike riders, you’re in more danger IMO.

Look out for idiots opening car doors on you, and don’t filter too fast. I managed to hurt myself by forgetting that things could go wrong. Some people here were quite right to point that out.

Never filter between the kerb and stationery traffic – you’re really at danger then

Bright lights AND a blinky one. The blinky one attracts attention, the solid one lets the car drivers assess where you are

Decent clothing makes a real difference when you’re doing it every day, and means that the rain and cold weather really aren’t an issue. You’d also be surprised at how rarely you get wet.

Heavier duty tyres are slower, but puncturing ‘cos you’ve got lightweight tyres is annoying. Accept the fact that you’ll go a tiny bit slower, fit the heavier tyres, and you’ll probably get no more than a few punctures in a year. I think I’ve had 3 in the last 12 months, all of them due to small bits of metal in the road (screws and the like).

Mudguards are your friend

You learn very quickly where the danger points are (drivers turning left as you go straight on in the bus lane, for instance) and have to ride defensively to ensure you don’t get taken out.

There are some complete nobbers out there who make your life difficult by driving like idiots, but mostly they’re OK. Cab drivers are pretty dependable and IMO don’t cut you up half as much as the general population.

Another vote for the CycleStreets app (linked to above), that route you’re proposing works but isn’t the nicest. Try to avoid pedestrianised streets like Oxford Street. OK, it’s not fully pedestrianised but it might as well be the way they behave there.

Try the proposed route on a weekend first, it’ll give you an idea of what to expect when you do it for real but without the hassle of as much traffic or the rush to be on time. ALWAYS carry a waterproof and spare tube/pump/basic tools. See if you can take enough work clothes to last the week in on Monday then ride in without worrying about crumpled shirts.

British Cycling has been running a load of articles recently about commuting:
http://www.britishcycling.org.uk/travel
It might be worth joining BC, CTC or London Cycling Campaign (LCC) for the insurance cover so if the worst does happen at least you’re insured…

Sure, name the time, sooner the better.

Thanks for again for the replies, didn’t realise I was going to have so much homework to do.

Cover yourself and your bike in 3M Scotchlite reflective stuff – Wiggle do A4 page of the stuff for frames and you can also buy iron on. Reflectives are so much better than any 1000lumen torch. Lights are for seeing with but reflectives are for being seen.

Next get yourself some tough tyres. Schwalbe marathon supreme or Continental gatorskin. Supremes have an excellent reflective sidewall – two shiny loops make it obvious you are a bicycle.

Don’t give up on the days you feel tired. Just get an extra hour or two in bed and know that you’ll be fine. But have a proper rest (week to ten days) if you get a cold or illness.

Do it!!

🙂

aP, if you are up for it cheeky half at the red lion is on me

aspeich at gmail dot com

Cool. I’ll email you.
Just so’s you know – Central League cx race on Sunday at Hillingdon Circuit – something to get your legs going!