This morning's commute and other commuting stories

overall win.

Took the train. Slept all the way from Enfield to Liverpool St.

9/10 would've preferred to stay in bed

Set off 06:20, normally leave 9ish. Quiet through Fulham, but still fairly hectic on east-west superhighway. Quick and peaceful commute, and just missed the rain, so dry-ish kit for the way back.

smug/10 wish I could be bothered to get up that early every day.

sunny lovely morning.........clunk .....?......clunk.....?......clunk.....????.... one side of 2 chain links hanging out from pins .........clunk.....:( ......clunk...:( .....for an hours commute....

note to self - dont add chainlinks back into a chain at 1am for a 6am commute when your a total muppet at all thing diy bike related....

Fucking squirrel ran into the road and was inches from being blended by the spokes. Totally babbed my pants. I stopped, just and he changed his mind.

Lovely quiet morning. Almost a racing incident with a guy on a yellow road bike going up Lea Bridge Hill. No harm done, though; will give a very wide berth next time....

This happened to me on Old Street round about.
Guy in front glanced it then I went straight over the fucker and burst it.

it flicked up off my back wheel and all up my jersey and bag.
Yukkers.

Also happened to a guy in front of me in Clapham not too long ago.

He had to finish the poor thing off to prevent its suffering.

New chainring and chain = blissful, silent glide all the way in.

silence/10 (won't wait so long to replace chainring next time)

Rode slow, caught some Pokemon, hatched an egg. Nearly crashed into parked cars and buses several times. Not sure if dangerous or totally irresponsible, I'll do a longer study tonight.

Slept in until 9. WFH FTW.

Embankment.

What is it with that road now?

If one chooses not to use the cycle lane (which can be quite congested, and really isn't comfortably spacious, and those bumps!), then every car driver and motorcycle rider will give you grief.

Even though it's really obvious I'm riding with cameras, it doesn't stop people from consciously acting like idiots, imposing their presence dangerously and depriving me of what space there is.

I'm perfectly able to keep up with traffic or overtake it safely, I respected all the reds. But still... just grief.

And because I appear to have to justify not using the cycle lane... it's on one side of the road, if I were going East > West it's totally convenient and the lack of space irks but whatever... but going West > East it's horrible trying to enter and exit the cycle lane, and it is no faster, and breaks the nice flow I have when I'm commuting and just moving all the time.

But seriously... the existence of cycle infrastructure does not create a legal obligation to use it.

So much this^

For these reasons I loathe the conflict that the infrastructure creates. Especially when people feel obliged to try and guide me with a ton or more of metal to where they think a cyclist "ought" to be.

They spent £150+ million on the cycle lanes. If you don't use them, then drivers are legally obligated to try and drive you off the road.

The driver this morning told me it was £28 million.

He'll be really pissed when he finds out it was more.

Isn't there a taxi hashtag that says cyclists not using the Boris lane are fair game?

I'm glad my commute goes nowhere near central.

Off peak, I must admit I have quite enjoyed the one on Embankment, getting on to it is a ball ache I agree, but if you're going onto Southwark bridge it's quite neat, but I imagine it is total hell during peak times. Much like the one on Cable St(? - parallel to The Highway) is when it's peak time, so much stupid overtaking and random swerving.

WTF are cycle lanes? we have a single 200 meter painted on "cycle lane" up here in inverness on 1 road (thats our25million investment right there!) - the rest is redesignated pavements stopping for every frikin side road, roundabout retail store, and signs sobig telling you to get off and walk across a "footbridge" you'd think the queen herself potters along it.........and dont get me started about dog owners with 2 dogs on extendable leads across the entire pavement.
sorry, rant over.

On average, both E-W and W-E, times along the Embankment with the cycle track are pretty similar as without, it would seem

https://www.strava.com/segments/1088420
https://www.strava.com/segments/1028610

I'm not sure what you're reading into those numbers.

It might be shit, but using the road is far shittier IMO. Used to be the worst bit of my commute, now I just take it easy in the cycle lane. Much faster and much less stressful (West to East)

I do use it... most of the time.

But sometimes, for a variety of reasons (obstructing traffic or large vehicles, perceived risk at that moment, passing the point where I'd decide use it or not and arriving at a traffic jam of cyclists, etc)... I choose not to.

That's it though.

It's a choice.

I am free to choose. There is no law or obligation, moral or otherwise... to use the facility provided when I am still permitted to also not use it should I choose so.

The choice to use it is what most people take. I've been through it busy and quiet and think it's great. So much less hassle. But it's barely a beginning, a decent connection up to Tavistock way, a further E-W through Westminster and connecting E&C to Westminster Bridge would all go a long way to ease congestion.

That page shows your times for those particular segments - those a reasonable approximation of the full length of the new Embankment cycle lane, one going East, the other West.

If it's on your commute (which for me it is), you can also see the timings of all of trips that you have made on those segments.

For my commute, those times are pretty similar both before the cycle lane, during the building of the cycle lane (except with more outliers where the traffic was solid) and after the cycle lane.

Obviously not the most rigorous statistical analysis, but an observation nonetheless.

My only real gripes are the poor entry point at Westminster, and the interminable waits at Blackfriars and the Mermaid.

It's probably the most "famous" cycle lane in the UK right now. It's also one of the most conspicuous. As such, when you don't use it, non cyclists are baffled. They are thinking all they ever here from cyclist is "segregation, we want segregation" (when actually, the debate amongst many cyclists is for the opposite). When they see a cyclist not using the thing they think they thought that cyclist wanted, it messes with their heads so they rant at you.