This morning's commute and other commuting stories

side by side back to back double truck trailers...

i don't understand why they wouldn't just take up both lanes instead of allowing traffic to pass on the inside lane?

CsB but why don't drivers of such killing machines show more consideration to smaller pedal powered transports...

London filled with cunts today. What's going on?

status quo is in town.

I discovered on Essex Road this morning that it takes more than 2 bidons to extinguish a blazing bin, although they make a hell of a start. An actual fire extinguisher really is the nuts.

status quo is in town.
Plus ça change...

Getting bored of vespaboys and motorcyclists tooting their feeble little horns at me on Farringdon Road because they figure I ought to be riding faster over potholes and / or diving into tiny gaps between trucks and barriers while they tailgate me. "Toot! Toot!" Fuck off.

moment of the morning: a Boris Biker gleefully giving the middle-finger to a passing dark-coloured Audi on Guilford Street (near the top of Lambs Conduit Street), missed the offence that was caused!

^^

Scooter lads
Scooter lads
If you hit 'em
They tell their Dads

Getting bored of vespaboys and motorcyclists tooting their feeble little horns at me on Farringdon Road because they figure I ought to be riding faster over potholes and / or diving into tiny gaps between trucks and barriers while they tailgate me. "Toot! Toot!" Fuck off.

here here!

my woe is inhaling the taxi fumes particularly on Calthorpe/Guilford Street and also when crossing Euston Road (thankfully not for long though) - the London Cycle Network routes 8 and 0 brilliantly avoiding exhaust fumes for the most part, :-)

looking more at air pollution aspects of central Londoning now, particularly the Clean Air London campaign - wouldn't it be brilliant if a no-emissions zone was enforced in the centre of this city?!

example of a no-emissions vehicle in use today, could all Black Cabs be like this one day soon?!

Doubt it, mileage may not be good.

Getting bored of vespaboys and motorcyclists tooting their feeble little horns at me on Farringdon Road because they figure I ought to be riding faster over potholes and / or diving into tiny gaps between trucks and barriers while they tailgate me. "Toot! Toot!" Fuck off.

Slow down markedly every time you here it until you've stopped and then twist their head around whilst it's in the helmet. They pop off eventually and make a stylish football.

On my commute home I stopped off at the Barclays FREE BIKE CHECK tent as the filth were there doing bike marking and I was on my nice bike that hadn't had its shots done yet. Anyway, after the filth ruined my lovely bike by putting the fucking bikeregister sticker on top of the brixton cycles sticker, squint, I had a lovely chat with one of the mechanics about brake adjustments, Sheldon Brown and Jobst Brandt, keeping it steel, Surly bikes, and boy racers. A++ visit, would stand around in the rain again.

Somebody needs to give the 5-0 a tutorial in how to position stickers so they look ok, though. Christ.

riding through & around lots of horse poo around hyde park corner in the TRAFFIC DEATH MAELSTROM with lots of cars changing lanes with no indicating, although the flow wasn't too fast thank fuck.

slow-ish cycling nodder going uphill during a series of windy gusts. she shouted to her nodder partner "i hate cycling in this weather!"
apart from the wind, it was sunny and mild.

wind is a type of weather... I hate it too.

i like a bit of cooling, lovely wind on my sweaty & pathetic upper body

Wind vs Rik thread >>>>

:)

While on my way this morning, some people proved just how ridiculous some control freaks are...

while approaching a pedestrian crosswalk about 50ft away people had the clear to cross with opposing traffic already at a complete stop. 1 person took that as a sign to cross while the other decided to wait until the vehicle and I was within striking distance to start his leisurely stroll into our path...

I hear what are you doing from the initial walker who had already made it through and he responded "You know its our Right." which i fully agree too but

At what lengths would people go to just prove their right?

At the cost of looking like total Idiots

???

^ same situation yesterday on the old roseberry ave sprint that seems to take place in front of me most mornings - a ped just stepped out on a zebra crossing, into the path of a cyclist, without looking, then berated him for not stopping... dear me.

http://ukcyclerules.com/2010/09/06/do-you-have-to-stop-at-zebra-crossings/

"you have to approach the crossing in a way which enables you to give way to pedestrians if they happen to be there"

"Give way" being operative here.

The Zebra, Pelican and Puffin Pedestrian Crossings Regulations and General Directions 1997

25.—(1) Every pedestrian, if he is on the carriageway within the limits of a Zebra crossing, which is not for the time being controlled by a constable in uniform or traffic warden, before any part of a vehicle has entered those limits, shall have precedence within those limits over that vehicle and the driver of the vehicle shall accord such precedence to any such pedestrian.
A bicycle is a vehicle for the purpose of this legislation (as referenced somewhere else, but bollocks if I'm looking for it).

Law book aside, surely if you're crossing a road you should have a look just to make sure its safe? Not that the cyclist wasn't going too fast, in light of the crossing and not really being responsible - but I wouldn't place the blame solely on him!

As a cyclist you need to ride defensively to avoid these situations. We go faster than peds so need to make sure we don't do them harm.

Yes they can be unobservant idiots but we have a responsibility to ride sensibly and at speeds that are appropriate for the situation.

Law book aside, surely if you're crossing a road you should have a look just to make sure its safe? Not that the cyclist wasn't going too fast, in light of the crossing and not really being responsible - but I wouldn't place the blame solely on him!

Meat pylons in London are of the untethered variety and prone to wander aimlessly into the roadway. They can appear from any angle, at any speed, regardless and oblivious to traffic flow. Beware. They are not as soft as they look.

omg whats a puffin and pelican crossing?! wac!

There is also a "toucan" crossing.

HTH.