This morning's commute and other commuting stories

@Dammit are you talking about Talbot?

Bravo, the future is cargo-shaped. Gonna be aluminium?

They are very easy to 'open' most of the time just set the wheel size differently and it feels it's going a legal 15.6mph on 16inch wheel when really it's going much faster on a 28inch wheel.

Yes, completely unlawful, of course.

It's not all bad, a fair amount of the cyclists who switch to using them it's for medical reasons when the only other option would have been a motorbike or car. All the people I have known in the last few years(in the uk) using ebikes daily it's been for medical reasons to prolong the time they can enjoy riding.

I've been following the e-bike story mainly through the good offices of A to B magazine for about twelve years, and there are often readers' letters to this effect. However, I do think that this eminently sensible use is not likely to be very prominent if and when the market takes off in the UK, if evidence from other countries is anything to go by.

Yet to meet anyone who used it to take the edge off a long commute, I think ebike use is rather limited in that aspect as the cheaper ebikes aren't great quality and wouldn't withstand a long daily commute, when you jump up into the £2k+ ebikes you then can't realistically lock it anywhere.

There has been a tremendous increase in cycle parking in new developments in Central London, which would naturally prove a suitable class of receptacle for fleets of e-bikes, too.

Also once you hit the outskirts of london and hills the motor on your 'opened' ebike is going to overheat and break. They might improve a little but at the moment buying an ebike that will be reliable enough to commute like that vs a cheap scooter, it's more practical and cheaper to just get a scooter.

They said the same thing ten years ago, and while technology seems to have plateaued a little, it is nonetheless being improved all the time. Many people actually say that they particularly like them on hills.

#offtonorthsnow

better a coal fired power station in the middle of nowhere than a diesel in my face...

I think middleofnowhere might have something to say about that. :)

It's a price I'm willing to pay.

No opinion on ebikes here but everyone who was driving a car in Hackney today around 5 should just suffer a horrible death.

All of them?

Why not move to South London?

Yes everyone.

Because it's in South London?

Cycling up towards St Paul's from Bank tonight, spotted a dozy pedestrian meandering across the road in front of me, so slowed down until he crossed, only for him to step backwards right into the road (without looking) just as I went past so inevitably went straight into him.

Hip and arse are bruised to fuck, guy was really apologetic and he was pretty shaken up, plenty of friendly cyclists helped me too which was appreciated. Bike okay but more annoying is I checked my bag later on and my android tablet screen is fucked.

Tonight was a shitty cycle.

What about 19:00? Can I avoid death?

Normally spared the rigours of a cycle commute, (home based car enabled salesman),
but the opportunity arose, (Chinese visa application in EC2, only 20 miles away), to put myself to the test.
Highlights: bewildered ss rider in Kensignton Gardens; not 'on here' so my cheery 'DOA' fell on deaf Italian ears. Found the cycle racks just round the corner, thank you Crop, lunch at Tempo, (to collect Elia Viviani autograph for son), 'Nice biked' to bespoke titanium owner by London Bridge, waist length dreadlocked Orlowski rider in Ealing.
Lowlights: weaving through barely moving traffic for first 5 or 6 miles. Pedestrians thinking carjam means no need to check for other road users. Bonked about 8 miles from home on return journey, (but was carrying set of winter wheels for sons school commuter on rucksack).
7/10 Would do again.
(Weather permitting will do again on Friday to collect visa-stamped passport).

Few days back was riding along to work and spotted some workers + policewoman gathered around a jacket on the floor. Stopping at lights it was a jacket over the top of a fallen worker (scaffolder) with a large quantity of blood on pavement and no signs of life. Policewoman was either talking to injured trying to assess state of consciousness or just talking to others whilst crouched down.
Did not look good, was properly tipping it down + high winds at the time.
Got to work and a solid 10 mins later an ambulance rolled down the (same) street, not sure why it took so long when the A&E hospital is literally 250m up the street.

Are most ambulances based at hospitals though?
I thought they have bases elsewhere.

I was told the other day that I behave like a typical single speeder. This was not meant as a comment. I'm not sure how a typical single speeder behaves. My crime seemed to be riding too far to the right and swerving about the place. I was indeed a good distance away from the curb but still within the bus lane - not aware I was swerving about all that much though.

So tell me, how do typical single speeders behave?

compliment, not comment

Whoever told you this is just jealous of your confidence in adopting a sensible road position, and your souplesse.

Thanks. So it was OK for me to spit in his face and push him off his bike then?

Sure. Just the kind of thing a typical single speeder would do.

If you behaved nicely.

anyone know any decent (i.e. quiet, civilised) routes between Wandsworth Town and Shepherds Bush? Traffic through Fulham and Hammersmith at rush hour is tedious. Don't mind if it's not the quickest.

What a beautiful morning today.
Not even London's drivers could spoil it.

Absolute clusterfuck on Waterloo Bridge north end this morning, narrow filtering not to everyone's taste and queue of 20 empty buses. I reckon 50 cyclists backed up from the asl in one light phase. Sorry to the person at the front who jumped like a jelly when I shouted 'Go!' on green. It was a foolish thing to do.

I must say I do find the unsociable atmosphere around a lot of London cyclists a bit weird. We're on bikes, we're the lucky ones, let's chat and have a laugh. Serious commuter is so serious.

Fell off on a patch of damp leafy road on a corner up a hill. Low speed and pathetic but my bum and wrist hurt. Bike is made of sterner stuff and is fine.

2nd crash in the wet this year after never having done so for the last five years. Fuck you Vittoria Rubino Pro. Terrifying tyres in the wet. Durano pluses going on tonight.

6/10 still better than public transport

I had a chat with a cabbie as we sat in that queue.

/csb