Kick scooter commuting advice

[Ms Blueberry]

Does anyone commute to the London Bridge area on an adult kick scooter? I'm considering this as a replacement to the trains. I'm far too chicken to cycle and walking is too slow. I'd love to hear your tips, etc.

[rendelharris]

Will you not cycle because you're frightened of the traffic, because if so there's a route from Rye Lane to London Bridge which involves perhaps 600m on-road, which you could easily get off and walk...

[Ms Blueberry]

Really? I didn't know this - and yes it may well change things. Hmmmm.... Are there special maps showing cycle routes? I can't immediately find anything online.

[rendelharris]

Ms Blueberry Wrote:

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> Really? I didn't know this - and yes it may well

> change things. Hmmmm.... Are there special maps

> showing cycle routes? I can't immediately find

> anything online.

Well, went that way today with Mrs.H who's very much not on for cycling on the roads: starting at Peckham Rye station, cycle up the buses and cycles only bit of Rye Lane until you're opposite the library. Cross the road at the pedestrian lights, cycle across the plaza and join the Surrey linear canal path to Burgess Park, exit Burgess Park at the Old Kent Road. That's where you'll have to walk about 600metres up to the Bricklayer's Arms junction, from there there's an on-pavement route to Elephant, from Elephant the new segregated lanes take you all the way to Blackfriars Bridge, from where you can ride along the riverside on the south side to London Bridge, or cross over and use the new segregated paths to the north side of London Bridge. Total distance on road certainly less than a kilometre, so easily get-off-and-pushable if necessary. If I have time later I'll see if there's a way of posting a map of it, but your best bet is getting in touch with Southwark cyclists, who are running "cycle trains" to introduce people to the new routes.

It really is a great route, as I say, Mrs.H wouldn't dream of riding in traffic but she loved it.

Best,

Rendel

[Ms Blueberry]

Many thanks for this great tip.

[DaveR]

If you are thinking about starting to cycle, Southwark offer free cycle training to all residents. There is an 'urban cycle skills' session which is specifically aimed at helping people deal with urban roads and traffic. And as noted above, it is possible to minimise or almost eliminate on-road time for most commutes into C London.

http://www.cycleconfident.com/sponsors/southwark/

[rendelharris]

Ms Blueberry Wrote:

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> Many thanks for this great tip.

Good luck and let us know how you get on if you try it (Sunday mornings are great for trial runs). There is a slight variation if you can face a little quiet road cycling: come out of Burgess Park at the west end of the lake and go up Thurlow Street, Flint Street and Rodney Street to Elephant, all traffic calmed and not too busy - alternatively you could push that bit, it's about 0.7 of a mile. Just for interest for you or anyone else thinking of taking this route, I did it today: from the corner of Copleston Road and Soames Street (near East Dulwich station) it took me 16.5 minutes to the middle of Blackfriars Bridge without ever getting my pulse over 120 bpm. Now I'm a good 20 lbs overweight, smoke and drink far too much and am hurtling rapidly towards fifty in a couple of years (I know, relax girls, he's already married!) so if I can do it...

[snowboarder]

I have one of these:

http://swiftyscooters.com/

It's great - but - I don't scoot very far on it (1-2 miles) and it's hard work up hills! I use it either side of a train commute to ease a 25 min walk into a 10 minute scoot.

[Ms Blueberry]

Thanks for the advice. But I'm going to stick to the trains. A healthy, brisk walk to Denmark Hill will take me to City Thameslink Station (close enough to the City) without the stress of Southern. I may get a scooter if the City streets can absorb it (I doubt it though at rush hour). Cycling on London's roads is still not for me, but I really appreciate the support. Love hearing about cycling trains - surely the way forward on a mass scale.