London's Drive to Work Day

Well I drove in to work today. I will admit though it was because I failed to get up in time to cycle.

You're suggesting driving was quicker than cycling?

Preposterous, I'm not sure whether the lynch mob will burn you as a heretic or behead you and parade your lifeless noggin around WC1 on a cargo bike.

Only about 2% of journeys into Central London are, I understand, with a destination of Central London. The rest are just passing through, sadly I can't find my citation for that.

I think you may have got the wrong end of the stick as to what today was about.

My understanding of the idea was to show how important those who currently cycle are in keeping traffic moving and reducing congestion, not to try and persuade anyone to cycle instead. If car drivers thought about each cyclist that they passed as one less car that is in front of them, maybe they would give us a little more room and respect.

I had an inkling about the central London figures, which I why i made the comment. but I never realised they'd be as low as that, that's quite remarkable. And one which perhaps the OP should have looked into before embarking on this escapade.

I think you'll also find that the drivers who make life dangerous for cyclists are also doing the very same for other drivers, motorcyclists, pedestrians, pigeons etc. In much the same way that some people think putting a bad driver on a bike would be beneficial, it's important to understand that poor driving is seen from everywhere, not just from the saddle.

great event,
is it going to be on 'bottom gear'?

Perhaps the (tiny) brain behind this masterful stroke of cretinism would be better served putting his meagre talents to something of benefit.

^This :)

OK, in brief, if all of us who cycle started to drive to work, or even take public transport, we would see those systems start to fail, as the pressure on them increased.

and this^...

And also playing with the philosophical contrast between a drive to work day as opposed to a cycle to work day. People who drive are not evangelistic about encouraging other people to drive whereas many people who cycle wish others to do so too.
Now why is that?

Offering no answers, just to question wether you could maybe get Chris Morris to front LDtWD ads next year?

Only about 2% of journeys into Central London are, I understand, with a destination of Central London. The rest are just passing through, sadly I can't find my citation for that.

You must be talking about car trips--of course, Central London is by far the main destination in London. :)

You may be thinking of some of the data from the cordon counts, or TfL’s Central Area Peak Count survey (CAPC), which are in the Travel in London reports, most recently:

http://www.tfl.gov.uk/assets/downloads/corporate/travel-in-london-report-4.pdf

From memory, about 6% of car trips originating in Outer and Inner London go to Central London, but I'd need to look it up to be sure. At any rate, the vast majority of trips into Central London are by public transport, walking and cycling. I think the split between public and private (the latter including cycling, although that stat is probably now muddled because of Cycle Hire) was 90%/10% in 2007. It's probably still something close to that.

I had an inkling about the central London figures, which I why i made the comment. but I never realised they'd be as low as that, that's quite remarkable. And one which perhaps the OP should have looked into before embarking on this escapade.

While the modal share of driving may be low, remember that it still has a disproportionate impact given the long trip distances covered. David's photos of today also showed the Inner Ring Road, the Congestion Charging boundary streets, which now takes some of the motor traffic that used to go straight through Central London.

I, too, think that motor traffic is a bit of a red herring here, though, as the main issue isn't driving so much as over-centralisation. If we had a London in which nobody drove except when they absolutely had to, and we had zillions of people commuting to Central London by bike because that's where all the jobs are, I'd still be very concerned (and would probably still be campaigning against that).

Also, I don't really understand what David is after, either, other than to imagine him gently rocking in his chair, chuckling to himself. :) I find the stunt pretty pointless and not worth the joke of saying afterwards 'thank you, great success' while showing business as usual. But seriously, the best case I can make for it is as a bit of role-playing. David's called it a 'thought experiment', and I suppose he just needed to slip out of his usual routine for a change. I would guess that understanding his motive is probably specific to doing so much [s]psycho[/] cycle training all the time. Perhaps there's something that he can see from a teacher's perspective that I can't see? I don't know.

and this^...

And also playing with the philosophical contrast between a drive to work day as opposed to a cycle to work day. People who drive are not evangelistic about encouraging other people to drive whereas many people who cycle wish others to do so too.
Now why is that?

They want them to HTFU.

Well I drove in to work today. I will admit though it was because I failed to get up in time to cycle.

You're suggesting driving was quicker than cycling?

Preposterous, I'm not sure whether the lynch mob will burn you as a heretic or behead you and parade your lifeless noggin around WC1 on a cargo bike.

Reminds me. When I enquired as to whether my colleague was cycling to work this week, she became really defensive:

"Oh I'm far too old for that in this weather!" (She's about 40 and it's not even snowing yet!)

"I've just got so much on at work." (You are a classroom assistant in a private nursery - the kids are in at 9 and gone by 4. Besides, that affects your commute how exactly?)

"Oh, I just do the cycling for fun really." (All the more reason to keep going with it, surely? Although how you can ever have fun on that heavy lump of junk I don't know.)

It's not my place to condemn her and didn't want to argue her points. I don't feel smug. I do feel a bit sad/puzzled that there are some people who still prefer to drive even after they've experienced cycling.

Leave her be. The pressure to be virtuous only leaves people grasping for excuses. She just didn't want to, full stop. You obviously didn't want her to justify herself, but that's often how it comes across because of all the background noise about cycling being the best thing since Vittoria Randonneurs.

Give her the time to make her own decision. Remember that for the most part it's a persistence of habits and a lack of skill. If she rides a heavy lump of junk, she probably has a long way to go yet before she realises what a big difference a nice bike makes.

^ That's what I did Oliver. I'm not exactly the greatest advocate for cycling at the moment anyway. (Still, not as bad as Lance Armstrong or MAMILs.)

99 % of Teachers just dont want to, full stop.

Give her the time to make her own decision. Remember that for the most part it's a persistence of habits and a lack of skill. If she rides a heavy lump of junk, she probably has a long way to go yet before she realises what a big difference a nice bike makes.

ftfy and well said Oliver

David's photos of today also showed the Inner Ring Road, the Congestion Charging boundary streets, which now takes some of the motor traffic that used to go straight through Central London.

I, too, think that motor traffic is a bit of a red herring here, though, as the main issue isn't driving so much as over-centralisation. If we had a London in which nobody drove except when they absolutely had to, and we had zillions of people commuting to Central London by bike because that's where all the jobs are, I'd still be very concerned (and would probably still be campaigning against that).

Funnily enough, the 'inner ring road' (presuming you mean Victoria>hyde park corner>marble arch etc) is the most consistent route through town, even when it's at full capacity it's still moving OK. Further west and you may as well chop your cock off and send it to the moon, further east and the C-zone is as solid as a boxing day turd.

I also want to make the point that the 'congestion charge' is no longer based on congestion in any way whatsoever, it's an emmisions charge and should be named as such. A true congestion charge would charge all traffic driving through central London, the fact that the direct route though the middle exists outside of the zone makes the whole thing a bit of a joke really.

Funnily enough, the 'inner ring road' (presuming you mean Victoria>hyde park corner>marble arch etc)

Here's a simplified diagram of the Inner Ring Road:

It goes along the Hipster Spice Route for a short distance, funnily enough.

The CC was emasculated the moment they decided not to tie it to inflation (i.e., before it was started). When you do road pricing as your main strategy, you have to make it economically relevant to road users. It still had an impact, but not nearly as much as it could have had.

Just got home after being stuck in a traffic jam since Tuesday. Have the streets of London ever been so clogged with traffic? Luckily I have my car radio blaring. Wall to wall coverage of this wonderful event. Sadly, many who took part did not understand the irony and were getting very aggravated about the delays. Well done all concerned.

Reminds me. When I enquired as to whether my colleague was cycling to work this week, she became really defensive:

"Oh I'm far too old for that in this weather!" (She's about 40 and it's not even snowing yet!)

"I've just got so much on at work." (You are a classroom assistant in a private nursery - the kids are in at 9 and gone by 4. Besides, that affects your commute how exactly?)

"Oh, I just do the cycling for fun really." (All the more reason to keep going with it, surely? Although how you can ever have fun on that heavy lump of junk I don't know.)

It's not my place to condemn her and didn't want to argue her points. I don't feel smug. I do feel a bit sad/puzzled that there are some people who still prefer to drive even after they've experienced cycling.

At 40 she is far too old. Armstrong is around that age and has been banned for life. No one over 35 should think of riding a bike.

No one over 35 should think.

ftfy

Drive to Work Day -A great success!

I am wondering of this claim of a great success. Do anyone have anything to back this up?

I assume success is getting your msg across, now fucking the road network for the sake of it.

Probably an ironic reference to the fact that the roads were v.busy that day. I doubt the campaign really believes they were responsible for a spike in car driving levels.

Been a while since we heard from the Drive to Work Day people:
Seems they like the Mayors Vision for Cycling
http://drivetoworkday.org/2013/03/12/not-bonkers/

New post launching the
Best Town for Driving Award 2014
http://drivetoworkday.org/2013/09/14/best-town-for-motoring/
Thread here

"Experience the rush, the freedom of London streets empty of pesky cyclers and walkers. Laugh as you whizz by the empty buses and tubes."

experience the sensation of being totally stationary as all around you pedestrians and cyclists go about their daily business.

experience the freedom and total entitlement to the frustration and expense of parking, the preying wardens issuing penalty notices and cameras all across the city that detect and bill you for any motoring indiscretion.

come and breath our air and experience bogies like your ancestors in the olden days used get from working in terrible conditions in grim northern towns.

And how are they planning to empty the streets of walkers and cyclists on the 11th, is there a mass cull planned?

every facepalm.gif you have ever seen and some you haven't

lolz :)))

come and breath our air and experience bogies like your ancestors in the olden days used get from working in terrible conditions in grim northern towns.

This is the best bit.