Blood on the streets

So you don't think the quick increase over the past 10 years hasn't had a critical mass effect.?
More drivers will be cyclists.
Drivers get used to driving among cyclists

Gilligan mentioned this at the Hackney Cycling Conference, he's obviously concerned about the numbers. It's difficult. I don't think cycling is inherently dangerous, but if I am asked to agree that speeding up traffic (this is what 'smoothing flows' means) and cutting enforcement of road traffic law is going to have no effect on road casualties, I obviously have to disagree, which means I think cycling has become less safe under Boris, so I am bound to say so.

There's nothing wrong with decrying misguided policies like 'smoothing the traffic flow' and the general signals that this sends to London's traffic engineering community. Everybody agrees that crashes should be reduced and when people claim that 'smoothing the flow' does that and crashes go up, there's clearly something wrong in the state of Denmark, although it is hard to prove a direct correlation. Just as moving as part of traffic is a social skill, so also the general atmosphere and feeling that people have about the streets is closely related to the quality of our public culture. This culture has been impaired now for some considerable time following a few years in which, arguably, some of it got better, which was perhaps reflected in falling casualties. As you say, it's difficult, particularly identifying potential general causes behind the specific causes of phenomena.

So you don't think the quick increase over the past 10 years hasn't had a critical mass effect.?
More drivers will be cyclists.
Drivers get used to driving among cyclists

I don't think that's what Bill was saying at all.

As was the "bendy bus".

The unsuccess impleadment of the bendy bus were due to the route rather, which are unsuitable for the design, such as the junction between Clerkenwell Road and Rosebery Ave.

Boris labelled them as "Cyclist Killers", while in actual fact, had never happened.

Sadly, it got people voting for him because of the new Routemaster which was funnily enough, also a shamble.

The unsuccess impleadment of the bendy bus were due to the route rather, which are unsuitable for the design, such as the junction between Clerkenwell Road and Rosebery Ave.

Boris labelled them as "Cyclist Killers", while in actual fact, had never happened.

Sadly, it got people voting for him because of the new Routemaster which was funnily enough, also a shamble.

Well. Livingstone had the original policy of retaining Routemasters when he was an independent candidate. He gave this up alongside his idea to introduce conductors on closed-door buses, too (I still think he was conned on this one, long story), and then Johnson picked up the orphaned policy and altered it by adding his plan for a new type of bus.

The story that articulated bus operation caused particular problems for cyclists originated when TfL ill-advisedly published a misleading set of figures deprived of their context which seemed to show this. As you allude, there were other factors to consider such as the nature and busy-ness of the routes, but that's water under the bridge now. However, apart from blocking junctions because of their length, I don't believe any problems were ever specifically identified to which articulated buses laid the only claim. People have always complained about buses, and particularly bus driver behaviour, and my (anecdotal) impression during the years when articulated buses ran was that such complaints actually went down. Bus driver training improved hugely. We have heard that this training has since been much reduced in quality and it certainly appears as if the relative neglect of bus services has already had negative consequences. I haven't studied this in detail recently, though, might be time for a refresher.

Well, they're definitely not voting for the £15 bottom bracket charge.

I agree, it's like Where's Wally? How could anyone being paid to write about this stuff expect to find it? It must take literally seconds.
The big advert for free lights when you join the LCC only makes their position even weaker.

The offer ain't working at the moment -

I remember when the bendy buses were introduced, my first encounter was really quite alarming - I think one overtook then pulled in or changed lanes a bit too fast, with it's back half swinging out - but they seemed to very quickly become better on the roads (drivers became used to handling them or effective extra training) and were such an obvious hazard that even dozy cyclists tended to keep clear.

They're now all attempting to drive around (I shit you not) Malta- a tiny island with a medieval street plan everywhere.

The traffic jams are incredible.

I would say that lights should be compulsory. I ride a scooter and a bicycle, and there are times when I don't see a cyclist on my scooter at night until they are very close.

We are harder to see and being visible, particularly now that it is dark at rush hour (Time change recently) is a key.

The other issues I have seen are that a lot of cyclists tailgate others up to junctions and some go over red lights. It pisses me off and I believe other motorists also.

On the HGV side of things, I don't undertake at all since I have been in an incident of one not noticing me at a junction when I was on a motorcycle. The lights were red so I thought I'd be on his left and go in front. Unfortunately he didn't see me when it was green. I was slow to move off mind you and take the blame for it.

Car drivers make a lot of shitty dangerous moves which scare me more than large good vehicles. Some cut you up, tailgate you etc...

This is brilliant; Boris Johnson's Cycle Safety Test.

I would say that lights should be compulsory. I ride a scooter and a bicycle, and there are times when I don't see a cyclist on my scooter at night until they are very close.

We are harder to see and being visible, particularly now that it is dark at rush hour (Time change recently) is a key.

The other issues I have seen are that a lot of cyclists tailgate others up to junctions and some go over red lights. It pisses me off and I believe other motorists also.

On the HGV side of things, I don't undertake at all since I have been in an incident of one not noticing me at a junction when I was on a motorcycle. The lights were red so I thought I'd be on his left and go in front. Unfortunately he didn't see me when it was green. I was slow to move off mind you and take the blame for it.

Car drivers make a lot of shitty dangerous moves which scare me more than large good vehicles. Some cut you up, tailgate you etc...

Lights are compulsory.
If you do not have lights a local street Bobbie will advise you to "getsomefuckinglights!"

Its been a bad two weeks. Today, for the first time, I think, there were no cycling death stories in the standard. I presume LBC has also moved on

So give me 3 or 4 things that would make a difference after all this?

Mine would be
1) Keep calm and carry on
2) Carry on the dialogue between cylists and other road users
3) Safer crossings of the River Lea/Lee; from Canning Town to Tottenham.
4) More attention spent on Cycking in to zone 3 and less on the big projects in Zone 1.

I remember when the bendy buses were introduced, my first encounter was really quite alarming - I think one overtook then pulled in or changed lanes a bit too fast, with it's back half swinging out - but they seemed to very quickly become better on the roads (drivers became used to handling them or effective extra training) and were such an obvious hazard that even dozy cyclists tended to keep clear.

Yes, initially there were problems with the length of the vehicles when overtaking. They would close in on riders they were overtaking and that was quite alarming. Drivers were then told to stay behind cyclists. They had the advantage that they w/couldn't overtake riders just ahead of bus stops and cut in.

They also were good around bends and turning because of the middle bend.
I liked them. They seemed more accessible and open than the double deckers
I am sure the Maltese will like them

As ever, it's not the vehicles themselves, it's the way they're driven/ridden. The vehicle is just a tool - the only thing which can ever make it dangerous is the driver/rider.

As ever, it's not the vehicles themselves, it's the way they're driven/ridden. The vehicle is just a tool - the only thing which can ever make it dangerous is the driver/rider.

Not entirely so, mechanical issues can make a vehicle dangerous.

Not entirely so, mechanical issues can make a vehicle dangerous.

Brakeless bikes?

Not entirely so, mechanical issues can make a vehicle dangerous.

Brakeless cars?

They also were good around bends and turning because of the middle bend.
I liked them. They seemed more accessible and open than the double deckers
I am sure the Maltese will like them

Lots of them are in Swansea now. They rebuilt the entire city center to accommodate them and it's now a complete mess of confusing one-way systems.

They also were good around bends and turning because of the middle bend.
I liked them. They seemed more accessible and open than the double deckers
I am sure the Maltese will like them

They absolutely fucking hate them- did you not read what I wrote?

They don't fit down the roads.

The fact is they actually worked perfectly well in London, but Boris decided to waste a fortune on selling them off cheaply to places like Malta, then commissioned the new routemasters, which cost an average of £354k each. Originally the bus companies were meant to buy them, but unsurprisingly there is no market for them outside of London so TfL had to cough up.

The only real problems with bendy buses were initial route planning errors, then a few caught fire. There have also been plenty of teething problems with the routemasters.

A colossal waste of taxpayers money.

You didn't write they hate them in Malta Dammit you wrote:

They're now all attempting to drive around (I shit you not) Malta- a tiny island with a medieval street plan everywhere.

The traffic jams are incredible.

Do they cause the traffic jams in Malta?
They could suit Malta's medieval street plan (like London's) since they can turn round tight bends. They had easy access for people with Buggies. Johnson had a bugbear about them perhaps because of an negative interaction he had with one? (Speculation)

They absolutely fucking hate them- did you not read what I wrote?

They don't fit down the roads.
But they did get them cheap from a smooth talking foreigner
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1185613/Bag-bendy-bargain-Boris-Johnson-sells-hated-buses-80-000-o-n-o.html

Johnson had a bugbear about them perhaps because of an negative interaction he had with one? (Speculation)
No, he realised that the emotional attachment to the old Routemasters was a useful vehicle for exploiting a weakness of Livingstone's, who had, after all, gone back on his original promise.

I still think Livingstone's main mistake was to just buy articulated buses from abroad instead of using the job to support British industry. OK, people badmouth British industry, but you have to give it a chance to grow again before you condemn it.