moving to victoria park...

hey

I'm moving from Haggerston to Bow (a rather cool flat on the old ford road right next to vicky park)

thing is, I like to go out for a few drinks on a friday/saturday night and come back at about 1/2am-ish. sometimes I'll get on the rad and cycle back. I know in some peoples eyes this will make me a cunt but I wont do it if it would be too dangerous.

anyway I've got some fairly nice rides , and it seems that there are a few council estates on my way back, particularly when you go down the old ford road itself. Is the area fulll of cunts and I'm going to get whacked round the head if I cycle back on the main roads after dark, or am I being a bit paranoid? I dont know the area from Adam, just saw the flat and liked it.

any local knowledge?

best

nah you'll be fine. I live just off roman road and never had any trouble.

thanks mate. my local appears to be a place called the Eleanor Arms. any good?

Where exactly are you moving to, maybe we can help...

It's busier around there than you'd think at that time of night. If you're asking whether it's a good idea to abandon all street sense and ride your number one antique build around, pissed off your nuts in the East End, then - don't be daft. If you're worried that this particular part of East London is any more like a scene from Attack on Precinct 13 than anywhere else in London's Famous London, it's not.

We have our fair share of gangs and our fair share of bold as brass thieves so lock your steed well.

Keep your wits about you and you'll soon get to know the area and what to avoid. If it was me, I'd stay right off the canals (nowhere to hide if you get trapped) and the dark park perimeter roads / one way streets in that area. But if you do get done over (especially if you're half cut and somewhere dumb) don't come crying to me.

Welcome to Bethnal Green / Bow. Try the Camel on Globe Road for tasty pies and a convivial atmosphere, The Florist nearby for pizza, coked up hipsters fighting with aggrieved coked up locals, The Approach for people complaining about how it used to be a lot better, The Palm Tree for no nonsense landlording with a proper East London vibe, and The Royal Inn for sunday lunches, space and ale.

I'm in Hackney Wick and take Old Ford late at night if I'm coming home from the south (take Wick Road if I'm coming from the North). End up going through the council estates on Empire Wharf and over the ped bridge crossing the A12. Haven't had a problem. Object and Hillbilly do the same thing (and have done for years now). As far as I'm aware, they've been fine as well. (Although there was a not so nice attempted jumping in the park itself late at night).

In addition to what Wrongcog said, The Hackney Pearl is good for an evening meal/couple of pints of Meantime Helles

great local knowledge from coggers and ratio. nice one.

Horatio, I'm not basing this on personal experience, but didn't I hear recently about some jumps on that very same ped bridge in recent months?

I live between Viccy Park and London fields and I think you will be alright as long as you use common sense. TBH it seems to me Haggerston is worse for menacing looking gangs and bike thefts than Hackney at the moment and the park is going through a huge pre olympic spruce up so aint too bad.

Horatio, I'm not basing this on personal experience, but didn't I hear recently about some jumps on that very same ped bridge in recent months?

I heard about an bike jacking on Cadogan Terrace a month or so ago, which also has a A12 crossing by Wick Lane/the garden centre. Cadogan Terrace is much quieter (not even wide enough for two lanes of traffic) than Old Ford and being right on the park, it would be easy for any would-be villains to escape (just jump over the fence and vanish into the dark).

However, if you did hear about anything on that bridge it would be good to know.

I could have sworn I read about the Cadogan Terrace thing on here. But a search isn't bringing anything up. Am I getting confused?

Aitch, I told you about cadogan terrace and sent you a link from a news article. Can't remember what the source was though.

I feel sure that someone posted a link to another forum describing a jacking at the foot of the bridge by the scrap yard... But I too am having a search fail. This is now officially unsubstantiated gossip and I'm fairly sure we are failing to roll out the carpet to our OP.

Truth is, I'd be more concerned riding around Haggerston than this neck of the woods of late, what with the 'De-Beauvoir two' and all that.

I live in that neck of the woods and have never had any trouble (touch wood). There is groups of youths that hang around but most are ok and will keep themselves to themselves.

Aitch, I told you about cadogan terrace and sent you a link from a news article. Can't remember what the source was though.

Ah! Thought I'd invented the entire incident in my head for a minute.

And I found the other incident that happened in the Wick (by the scrap yards) here: https://www.lfgss.com/thread53274.html#post1895643

I just wanted to give everyone a quick head's up. Last night I was ambushed at the bottom of the overpass that goes over the A12, level with Hackney Wick and
on the Hackney Wick side, by a couple of youths, both clearly with a propensity
for unprovoked violence. They took my bike and my bag which contained my keys,
wallet and phone, and felt that the best way to be persuasive was to punch me a
couple of times on the side of the face and stab me with some kind of sharp
implement, three times, in my left arm. It was one black man and one white man,
both in the early twenties, wearing dark clothes and hoodies.

The one positive was that it happened just round the corner from my flat and a
neighbour was kind enough to let me in so that I might call the emergency
services. The police were very quick, as were the paramedics, and I was taken to
Homerton hospital where I was seen virtually immediately - it was unusually
quiet - and I'm now patched up.

This is probably more detail than you need to know but I figure that it was
important to mention, quite possibly to confirm what some people already know or
suspect. I've lived in the area for nearly two years and have used the overpass
late at night countless times and until now I never thought it was a dangerous
place. It's an ideal spot for an ambush and these two youths had left their
bikes across the path so there was nothing that I could do to turn around or get
past them. The police suggested that they were opportunist but they seemed to
have a good idea of what they were doing.

What can be taken from this? I suppose, the fact that it might be worth
reassessing routes to anticipate these kinds of eventualities.

And later:

Hi everyone,

I promised I wouldn't spam the list unnecessarily but I thought I'd at least pass on some good news (of a kind). On Monday the police arrested two men in connection with the robbery and assault of which I was a victim just over two weeks ago. Enough evidence was gathered for the police to feel confident about charging them and they have been behind bars ever since; the case, having gone through the Magistrates Court, is proceeding to the Crown Court. I suspect that there's still a way to go for me but it's reassuring to know that at the very least, so far, things have gone the way that they should.

The only downside is that there was no trace of my bike, the bag or the hi-vis vest that I had taken. The insurance company is going to pay out but not enough to enable me to buy a like-for-like equivalent - the perils of a no frills insurance policy. I'll be making a claim to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority but as I understand it that could take a while to come through.

No matter. This is mostly intended to share some good news.

Thanks again for your support.

That happened at the Cadogan Terrace crossing rather than the Old Ford Road one. I don't know if that matters too much - I have no idea if one is busier than the other. But hopefully the same guys were responsible for both incidents.

Anyway, shit happens all over the place. We need to have our wits everywhere in London, and the Viccy Park area is no different.

Nice one Horatio. How did you find it?

You're right though, it's generally ok round our neck of the woods.