.... cycling from south to north over the Chelsea Bridge is quite eye opening in the morning, are these lycra clad lot just hooked into Strava or something? I'm happy to pootle along and indicate to move out to the right lane in order to head to Pimlico but it's like a bleeding race track. And don't get me started on the riders filtering between the two lanes in a five hand width space.
On the way home I opt for the left hand pavement, I know the cycle infrastructure over there is shit but there's no way I'm gonna get stuck in a left turning bottle neck to the bridge.
:(
I don't find that bridge too bad in either direction TBH. The left turn to head South over the bridge is usually fine because not many people take it. Since it can get quite busy with cyclists you quite often find yourself strung out in single file down the left hand side in CS8. Obviously stay clear of the HGVs, but there's enough room turning into the bridge that cars and vans can swing quite wide, so it's not a stressful turn to make. What I find really frustrating round there is that it's totally unclear whether you can ride on the pavement or not. The cycle path runs out just before the bridge and then there are no-cycling signs on the bridge, but loads of people do anyway.
The real shit is then turning right into Battersea Park. For some reason, taxis love parking on the left hand side of the road directly opposite the park gate. This means that, while you're stationary on the centre line of the road with your arm out, traffic coming from behind is squeezing between you and the taxi to your left. Plus your facing a stream of fairly heavy traffic (in both senses) coming the other way. Not nice.
I don't find that bridge too bad in either direction TBH. The left turn to head South over the bridge is usually fine because not many people take it. Since it can get quite busy with cyclists you quite often find yourself strung out in single file down the left hand side in CS8. Obviously stay clear of the HGVs, but there's enough room turning into the bridge that cars and vans can swing quite wide, so it's not a stressful turn to make. What I find really frustrating round there is that it's totally unclear whether you can ride on the pavement or not. The cycle path runs out just before the bridge and then there are no-cycling signs on the bridge, but loads of people do anyway.
The real shit is then turning right into Battersea Park. For some reason, taxis love parking on the left hand side of the road directly opposite the park gate. This means that, while you're stationary on the centre line of the road with your arm out, traffic coming from behind is squeezing between you and the taxi to your left. Plus your facing a stream of fairly heavy traffic (in both senses) coming the other way. Not nice.