Rise Of The Cyclist In Greater London

[ChillDoubt]

Good news all round:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-35475318

[woofgang]

Good provided they are all moving there from around where I live.

[Baldric]

We need to stand up to this cyclistification of our Capital City before it spreads from the East to the rest of the UK!

[Hopkirk]

I wouldn't mind, if they would observe the rules of the road.

Few do, as far as I can see.

[youngmafbog]

//Big changes are now happening on the streets of London in a bid to make cycling safer.//

I wonder if that includes making cyclists obey the law of the land.

And I wonder if big changes will be made to make life safer for pedestrian from cyclists. The mass of lycra clad self opinionated law breakers is jaw dropping.

[mushroom25]

//The mass of lycra clad self opinionated law breakers is jaw dropping. //

yep, but society as a whole - and officialdom in particular - are content to let them get away with it. in the morning rush hour, bikes are not permitted on trains arriving at euston until after 09h30. a quick look at the amount of bikes being wheeled (and sometimes ridden) up the platform ramps between 08h00 and 09h00 shows just how much this is ignored - including by Network Rail and the train companies.

[Baldric]

Their main centre of activity is in the East.
They dress differently to us, some even cover their heads.
They ignore our Laws, and consider themselves to be superior to us.
I feel the chances of them integrating with the rest of society are slim until they begin to change their ways.

[andy-hughes]

Good news? Really???

I rarely drive in London, but as a pedestrian, I think the flagrant ignoring of road rules by the mass of bike messengers makes the city's roads a nightmare for everyone, drivers, passengers, and indeed cyclists/

I attend the Cambridge Folk Festival every year, which means that for three nights, I must drive back to my hotel in the dark. It is an utter nightmare with streams of unlit cyclists on the road. Bearing in mind that by definition, most of these are the brightest young minds in the country - why are they not bright enough to light their bikes properly, and ride safely?

Until cycling training is mandatory, and sanctions are imposed for dangerous riding, the upsurge of bikes will entail a proportionate upsurge of injuries and fatalities on the roads.

[mushroom25]

one of the changes that would contribute greatly to cyclist safety would be the way that tipper truck drivers are paid.

traditionally, they are paid by the load. tips don't open until 08h30 and are rarely open much after 16h00. thus the drivers need to get in as many loads as they can. they drive accordingly. they.stop.for.nobody. and as a result, cyclists get squashed.

[andy-hughes]

mushroom25 - //one of the changes that would contribute greatly to cyclist safety would be the way that tipper truck drivers are paid.

traditionally, they are paid by the load. tips don't open until 08h30 and are rarely open much after 16h00. thus the drivers need to get in as many loads as they can. they drive accordingly. they.stop.for.nobody. and as a result, cyclists get squashed. //

I think if you check the stats for tipper drivers crushing cyclists in the centre of London, you'll find the numbers are reassuringly small compared with collisions involving commuters, taxis and pedestrians.

[melv16]

I saw a cyclist the other week riding with no lights, texting, headphones in his ears and no hands on the handlebars.
If I did this on a motorbike, I'd get a few points on my licence.
BTW Andy, you're supposed to camp at folk festivals, unless you're a woos:-)

[Togo]

A wonderful opportunity surely to make cyclists pay a 'bike tax' and have insurance. Public liability insurance would be a start.

[anotheoldgit]

All adult cycles should have identifying plates fitted to help in the recognition of bad cyclists.

They should be made to insure themselves, and have yearly safety checks carried out on their cycles every year.

Even then they are let off lightly, since they do dot have to pay towards the cycle lanes that are constructed on their behalf.

[andy-hughes]

melv - //BTW Andy, you're supposed to camp at folk festivals, unless you're a woos:-) //

Absolutely, but at sixty-one, I want a bath only I have sat in, a toilet only I have used, a comfortable bed, and complete silence, followed by a nice cooked breakfast in the morning which someone else has prepared.

I am a Wuss with a capital W!!!

[ChillDoubt]

Given some of the attitudes and posts on this thread I'm not really surprised that attempts to maim and injure are so commonplace :

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-nottinghamshire-35472617

[Ellipsis]

Brilliant that the cyclist being interviewed 30 seconds in to the link in the OP about "Improving safety for cyclists" has taken her headphones off to conduct the interview!

[Svejk]

^lol

[mushroom25]

// I'm not really surprised that attempts to maim and injure are so commonplace //

chilldoubt, having been knocked flat twice by cyclists at the same set of lights outside the british library (that stood red against the cyclists!!) i hope you're not going to defend these lycra clad guerillas?

[ToraToraTora]

outnumber car drivers, some will even ride on the road no doubt.

[anotheoldgit]

/// I want a bath only I have sat in, a toilet only I have used, ///

Blimey someone is staying in a hotel nobody has been in yet.

[andy-hughes]

AOG - fair point - I should have added the point - 'used today ...' better to clarify my requirements.