Bicycling around London?

Is it practical or safe to use a bicycle rather than Tube and buses to get
around London during daylight hours?
We have accommodations near Hammersmith and plan to use rented bikes to
sightsee within 5 miles of that area.

John wrote:

Is it practical or safe to use a bicycle rather than Tube and buses to get
around London during daylight hours?
We have accommodations near Hammersmith and plan to use rented bikes to
sightsee within 5 miles of that area.

Dunno, but maybe this link will help :
http://www.londoncyclenetwork.org/

--
ME
Posted by news://news.nb.nu

John wrote:
Is it practical or safe to use a bicycle rather than Tube and buses to
get
around London during daylight hours?

My son-in-law somertimes used to ride one to work there before moving.
Of course he knew which routes were safe, but you as a tourist don't
really know that. How easy is it to leave the bike parked? I don't
really know how safe it is, but if you are used to driving on the right
side of the road instead of the left, I definitely wouldn't do it,
instead of a fender bender if you're driving a car, you'll have a
fatality. With a travel card the tube and bus are cheap, and if you
want to see the surface sights, the bus is the way to go instead of
magically popping up at destinations using the tube. A good deal of
central London is walkable without using any public transportation.

George

On 15 Jun 2005 11:09:06 -0700, "george" wrote:

John wrote:
Is it practical or safe to use a bicycle rather than Tube and buses to
get
around London during daylight hours?

My son-in-law somertimes used to ride one to work there before moving.
Of course he knew which routes were safe, but you as a tourist don't
really know that. How easy is it to leave the bike parked?

there's plenty of places to lock a bike up, so long as it is locked up
and in a busy area it will be completely safe.

With a travel card the tube and bus are cheap, and if you
want to see the surface sights, the bus is the way to go instead of
magically popping up at destinations using the tube. A good deal of
central London is walkable without using any public transportation.

Hammersmith into central london is a pretty easy cycle and you're very
quickly into parks, there's lots of cycle lanes, it's very safe, if
you're not that confident a cyclist, at busy junctions just get off
and walk, but on a lot of the main roads there's a bus lane so you're
very isolated from the car.

There's also the option of going on the thames path completely free
from cars from hammersmith into town, or even out to hampton court via
richmond park and the thames, a very enjoyable cycle ride (but more
than 5 miles) I think it's an excellent idea. Cycle routes are well
signed and keep you away from the main roads and on quieter ones.

Whilst obviously cycling round the bus station in hammersmith is a
nightmare, walking around that bit and cycling all around is simple
and safe.

Jim.

Jim Ley wrote:
Hammersmith into central london is a pretty easy cycle and you're very
quickly into parks, there's lots of cycle lanes, it's very safe, if
you're not that confident a cyclist, at busy junctions just get off
and walk, but on a lot of the main roads there's a bus lane so you're
very isolated from the car.

There's also the option of going on the thames path completely free
from cars from hammersmith into town, or even out to hampton court via
richmond park and the thames, a very enjoyable cycle ride (but more
than 5 miles) I think it's an excellent idea. Cycle routes are well
signed and keep you away from the main roads and on quieter ones.

I'm certain that there are pleasant bike ways that are probably
perfectly safe and would be enjoyable to ride on. However, the OP
sounded like he was going to use bicycling exclusively to get around
central London, which I believe is an entirely different matter. I
never really looked, but can't remember seeing cyclists on central
London streets. I live in Stuttgart and would certainly cycle in the
parks and on the special isolated bike paths, but I would never even
consider riding a bicycle (other than for enjoyment) as a primary means
of transportation on city streets, especially as a tourist. I walk or
take public transport, although there are always a few people who will
ride in heavy traffic on busy streets.

On Wed, 15 Jun 2005 09:17:14 -0700, "John"
wrote:

Is it practical or safe to use a bicycle rather than Tube and buses to get
around London during daylight hours?
We have accommodations near Hammersmith and plan to use rented bikes to
sightsee within 5 miles of that area.

I lived in Hammersmith for years and often cycled into the centre.
Hyde Park Corner is hair-raising, and the route is never particularly
direct, but it can be done in around 20 mins to the West End.

The traffic in London is a whole lot more respectful than here in
Italy!
--
---
DFM - http://www.deepfriedmars.com
---
--

Is it practical or safe to use a bicycle rather than Tube and buses
to get around London during daylight hours?
We have accommodations near Hammersmith and plan to use rented bikes
to sightsee within 5 miles of that area.
I lived in Hammersmith for years and often cycled into the centre.
Hyde Park Corner is hair-raising, and the route is never particularly
direct, but it can be done in around 20 mins to the West End.

I did Hyde Park Corner on a Bickerton folding bike once - these have
the unusual design feature that the handlebars swing towards you if
you pull hard enough. Just stay r - e - l - a - x - e - d and calm,
no jerks when changing lane or when being passed by 44-tonne TIRs and
psycho taxidrivers...

I suspect the Parachute Regiment is mostly made up of former London
cycle commuters in search of a more laid-back way of making a living.

============== j-c ====== @ ====== purr . demon . co . uk ==============
Jack Campin: 11 Third St, Newtongrange EH22 4PU, Scotland | tel 0131 660 4760
http://www.purr.demon.co.uk/jack/ for CD-ROMs and free | fax 0870 0554 975
stuff: Scottish music, food intolerance, & Mac logic fonts | mob 07800 739 557

"Deep Foiled Malls" wrote in
message ...
On Wed, 15 Jun 2005 09:17:14 -0700, "John"
wrote:

Is it practical or safe to use a bicycle rather than Tube and buses to get
around London during daylight hours?
We have accommodations near Hammersmith and plan to use rented bikes to
sightsee within 5 miles of that area.

I lived in Hammersmith for years and often cycled into the centre.
Hyde Park Corner is hair-raising, and the route is never particularly
direct, but it can be done in around 20 mins to the West End.

The traffic in London is a whole lot more respectful than here in
Italy!

How's the air--now that the congestion charge is in effect? Seems like you'd
breath a lot of carbon monoxide.

Marianne

On Wed, 15 Jun 2005 17:11:56 -0700, "Mimi"
wrote:


"Deep Foiled Malls" wrote in
message ...
On Wed, 15 Jun 2005 09:17:14 -0700, "John"
wrote:

Is it practical or safe to use a bicycle rather than Tube and buses to get
around London during daylight hours?
We have accommodations near Hammersmith and plan to use rented bikes to
sightsee within 5 miles of that area.

I lived in Hammersmith for years and often cycled into the centre.
Hyde Park Corner is hair-raising, and the route is never particularly
direct, but it can be done in around 20 mins to the West End.

The traffic in London is a whole lot more respectful than here in
Italy!

How's the air--now that the congestion charge is in effect? Seems like you'd
breath a lot of carbon monoxide.

I don't think the air in London has been too bad for a long time. In
the tube it's wretched, but London usually gets a bit of a breeze
which pushes the pollution where they want it - France.
--
---
DFM - http://www.deepfriedmars.com
---
--

On 15 Jun 2005 12:42:58 -0700, "george" wrote:

I'm certain that there are pleasant bike ways that are probably
perfectly safe and would be enjoyable to ride on. However, the OP
sounded like he was going to use bicycling exclusively to get around
central London, which I believe is an entirely different matter. I
never really looked, but can't remember seeing cyclists on central
London streets.

I have, there's lots of them, not around the sites, but then I'm sure
the OP would be walking around those too.

There's lots of commuter cycling, and the routes to the center are
good with both good signing, so he shouldn't get lost, good dedicated
bus/cycle routes to keep the cyclist free from the majority of the
traffic, it's a pretty good option.

Jim.