Jump to content

Recommended Posts

I go over London Bridge and turn first left down Tooley Street. Carry on for a while and either go right down Tower Bridge Road or carry on and go next right (which is what I do).

Hope this helps (and let me know if you want more details)

Jon

katanita Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Also would like to recommend the Southwark free

> lessons, even if you are an experienced cyclist.

> Had one recently to get some tips about

> maintenance and better technique (e.g. use of

> gears etc) and it was really useful. Learnt quite

> a bit even though I've been cycling for years.

> More info here

> http://www.southwark.gov.uk/info/200123/cycling/44

> 6/cycle_training/1 Can get them if you work or

> live in the borough.


Thanks for this info - I had a lesson this morning after seeing this link - lovely lass, one on one session, totally tailored to what I needed to learn with my experience levels etc and I could have had another if I needed.


Only bad news is Southwark have cut their contract with this provider who do the one on one lessons and sessions will be group in future and not therefore easily tailorable. She thinks she will still be able to book sessions for the next couple of months however especially for complete beginners.


I post this info as a separate thread too....

  • 4 weeks later...

Anybody fancy a leisurely ride of about 20 miles on Sunday morning?

I'd suggest ED > Greenwich > Tunnel > Docklands > Tower Bridge and back.

Meet outside Co Op on Lordship Lane at 9.30 on Sunday.

Would be back around 12.30 - later if we find a nice tea/cake stop.

Please EM if interested

Jon

i have started cycling now and I seem to take a different route home every day - I come from trafalgar square to the top of peckham rye via Burgess park in the morning when it is light but I am yet to find a fast ish well lit way home - any ideas?

@woodland - I cycle from Tottenham Court to Peckham Rye so probably take a similar route. Assuming you ride via Waterloo I can recommend via Kennington / Oval:


or skirt the edge of Burgess Park:


The Kennington route is all wide roads with buslanes or cycle paths, feels very safe from a traffic pov and an "after dark" pov.

The Burgess park route has a few more backstreets and takes longer to learn, but is slightly shorter and less traffic fumes. I included the Barclays cycle route Elephant diversion, personally I ride the roundabout, don't think it's as bad as it looks - but wouldn't want to recommend it to someone who is new to commuting.

Hello,


I've been contemplating cycling to work, and this thread has inspired me even more! Can anyone suggest a good type/ make of bike? I have only ever ridden mountain bikes. I would like something simple to ride, this may sound stupid but does it matter if it's a men's or ladies bike?

And I will definitely be interested in joining a ride one weekend once I have bought it.

Hi Bryony


I'd try buying a second-hand one to start with (or borrow a friend's, if you can) to see whether you get the bug. Then look at buying yourself a nicer one - check if your work takes part in the cycle to work scheme. The reason I'm suggesting this is that new bikes that are fairly cheap are generally fairly rubbish too and might put you off cycling. But if you buy a nicer hybrid (flat bar handles but thinner tyres than your old mountain bike), you might find that you fancy a road bike within 6 months and what do you do then? I was dead certain that I didn't want a road bike (drop bars) when I bought mine but sure enough, after I got comfortable riding, I wanted one!


It doesn't really matter if it's a men's or women's unless you really get into road bikes where the manufacturers claim that the geometry of the frame is more efficient. If you are particularly small or short-waisted, you might find the reach on a man's bike a little long (i.e. you feel stretched reaching for the handlebars) and if you have drop bars, you might find the brake levers on a man's bike a little big if you have small hands. For the most part though, go and try out a few sizes in a bike shop (most will let you go for a test ride) and you'll get some idea. I assure you, even if you end up with a second-hand one to start with, you'll likely end up spending cash in that bike shop at some point!

Bryony


The way I got into cycling about 4 years ago was when I bought a very cheap mountain bike (around ?90). It lasted me a year when I used it every day to cycle to work. I then knew for sure I wanted to do it and bought a more expensive hybrid bike (as mentioned above) for about ?350 ish. Then last year I moved up another level and got a better hybrid, but also a mentioned above I now feel I need (OK want) a Road Bike. When will it end?


I do second everything that AS says above - "try before you buy" being the best advise.


Beware that cycling can become addictive though!


If you do fancy a weekend ride then please do let me know, either here or by PM.

@andredivic thats brilliant thanks. I have been trying lots of different routes - versions of these but these two are brilliant. I have done the elephant roundabout a couple of times - you're right it isn't as scary as it looks.


Your help is really appreciated.

Bryony


Just to reassure you that it is posisble to be very happy riding a modest hybrid bike for years! Despite being slower / less glamorous, a hybrid has a couple of advantages over a road bike:

(a) often a bit more robust, particularly the wheels - which is a good thing given occasional unexpected potholes

(b) less desirable to potential thieves, which means you'll be happier locking it up in public when you're out - so you're more likely to use it not just for commuting.


Happy cycling!

  • 1 year later...

Reviving an old thread. I'm seriously thinking about cycling to work and in all honesty I'd be doing it already if I wasn't terrified. I'm usually quite a confident cyclist, but having spent years on London buses and cringing watching cyclists over taken, etc it makes me really nervous.


My bike is over at my Mum's in her shed and would need a serious service before it's road worthy again. Does anyone know of any places where I could hire a bike for a week before spending a fortune and deciding it's not for me?

Depending on where you work and commute to perhaps you could start with just hiring a Boris bike each day to get used to cycling around the central London part. You could try in the Wanted section - there's bound to be someone out there with a bike that they don't use that regularly that would be willing to lend it for a week. You could also try the Southwark Cyclists forum - I think they have guides that will accompany you into/out of London.

http://southwarkcyclists.org.uk/

You can hire a Brompton from Peckham Rye Cycle Hub for (I think) ?2.50 a day. It has the advantage that you can always bring it home on the train if the journey in is enough for you.


I built up very gradually to my commute. I started by just cycling to Brixton and getting the tube from there. It was a nice, safe pootle across Dulwich Park, Brockwell Park and down a few back streets at the end. Then I did the Sky ride, including the guided ride up to town, and that gave me the confidence to know the distance was no problem. So then I plotted a very quiet back route, and would wheel the bike across the unavoidable busy junctions. It didn't take long at all to gain confidence and regard Walworth Road as just a good way of getting my adrenaline flowing in the morning. Who needs coffee!


Although I've never had any problems with Elephant and Castle, there's a back route around it, up to Westminster Bridge, that is actually quicker as it avoids half the traffic lights.

Hi Annasfield. I'm in a similar position in that I cycle happily around this area and into London at weekends if the weather's ok, but the thought of cycling to work in the city in rush hour is very daunting and I've never done it yet. I rarely make it as far as my local station on a weekday morning without feeling like I'm dicing with death due to the aggression of other road users (men on bikes are the cause more often than other vehicles).


In case it helps you, I've been told by colleagues to aim for Southwark Bridge as the cycle lane is properly segregated, unlike other bridges.

Annasfield - where are you trying to get to? I go into town and the city quite a lot and almost all of my journeys avoid big roads and bus routes. There's a very lovely route to the Elephant (via CP road, Adys, Bellenden, Surrey Canal Path, Burgess Park, Portland Street and then a choice of two bypass routes which take you around the Elephant without using the roundabouts.


Thereafter if you're going to Waterloo / West End there's a quiet route which brings you up onto the bridge and then over it back onto a quiet route and if you're going to the city you can follow a pretty decent "blue path" cycle superhighway along Southwark Bridge Road. Further east and you can take a slightly different (but still quiet) route which takes you over Tower Bridge and onto a segregated cycle path heading east towards mile end etc ...


I'm sure there are plenty of people here who could help you with your route or even accompany you on your first few forays envelo...

I've cycled in London since '06, most days. It can be scary - that's the reality.


However, it is also incredibly liberating - in terms of time, predictable journeys, money, fitness. Parking's no problem!



I strongly, strongly urge you to book cycle lessons through the local council - they're free - as a starting point. Riding a bike is one thing; riding a bike in London is another. The lessons start gradually, suited to you, and build up to busier/trickier junctions and roads.



Learning by doing has its place, but so does someone experienced helping you.



My one top tip - look people in the eyes. Pedestrians, drivers, motorcyclists, other cyclists if needs be. It's an instinctive human reaction that once they've looked you in the eyes - not just seen you, but looked you in the eyes - they properly acknowledge that you're there and consequently give you space. Told to me by my cycling instructor and boy oh boy does it work. Particularly with pedestrians - it's often as if they've been pulled back from stepping into the road by a bungee.

Medley Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------


>

> My one top tip - look people in the eyes.

> Pedestrians, drivers, motorcyclists, other

> cyclists if needs be. It's an instinctive human

> reaction that once they've looked you in the eyes

> - not just seen you, but looked you in the eyes -

> they properly acknowledge that you're there and

> consequently give you space. Told to me by my

> cycling instructor and boy oh boy does it work.

> Particularly with pedestrians - it's often as if

> they've been pulled back from stepping into the

> road by a bungee.


Seconded, big time!

Sorted out typos...........


Email for southwark cyclists is [email protected]


They are always pleased to accompany newbies a few times - they did that for me ages ago.


Also do not forget cycle training - err -


http://www.southwark.gov.uk/info/200123/cycling/446/cycle_training

Thanks to everyone who has replied and especially those who have PMd and offered to lend a bike. I need to reply so will do later. :)


I'm based by Liverpool street so thought of going the back route through Peckham Rye and over Tower Bridge. I definitely wouldn't attempt the Walworth Road/Elephant & Castle or London Bridge for that matter.

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Latest Discussions

    • Denmark Hill to Clapham Junction then pick up the 345 from Falcon Road ( exit Clapham Junction Station from the back entrance) The overground will terminate on platform one anyway so you're already on that side of the station. The 345 bit should take you approximately 30 minutes and the overground from Denmark Hill to CJ approximately 15 minutes. All the best!!
    • I would go to Victoria (185 bus or Southern Rail) then get either a bus from there to Chelsea Town hall (I think it may be the C1 but I'm not sure..I moved from that area over 25 years ago) and the Royal Marsden is a short walk from there. OR get a Underground from Victoria to Sloane square and a Taxi from there to Royal Marsden..It would'nt cost much because its a few mins away..or a bus from Sloane Square to Chelsea Town Hall or Fulham Rd/Sydney St 
    • I don't know how the law works, nor what rules cover what doctors can and can't say in their professional and private (?personal?) capacities,  but on the face of it I agree that some of the comments quoted are unacceptable, to say the least. However, in the context of the subject of this thread,  I think it is important to differentiate between antisemitism ("hostility to or prejudice against Jewish people") and hostility to  the Israeli government's apparent attempted genocide of Palestinian civilians in retribution for the appalling attack on Israeli civilians by Hamas. I might be completely wrong here, and naive, and I am sure someone will correct me if I am, but it seems to me to be as if the English government had started trying to annihilate the whole of the  Irish population because of the IRA bombings in the nineties. I also realise that there is a whole historic background to the Palestine/Israel thing, but I am not familiar with it. Anyway, I and everyone I know who has taken part in any of the recent marches has done so to try to get our government to stop supporting genocide, not because they are antisemitic. And yes there are other awful things going on in the world, and always have been. I can't fight all of them. One of my brothers has taken in three generations of  a Ukrainian family. ETA: Do you really think it is OK to refer to people as "blacks"? Or am I wrong about that as well, and there is some reason why it is acceptable?
    • An abridged version of the article I posted:    The health secretary is preparing to overhaul medical regulators — the General Medical Council (GMC) and Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) — after being appalled by a series of cases in which doctors have escaped disciplinary action. Streeting told The Times: “It is clear that the current medical regulatory system is completely failing to protect Jewish patients and NHS staff.”   Doctors have been let off after spreading antisemitic tropes including claiming that Britain is “controlled by Jewish supremacy”, and claiming the architect of the attack was a “legend”. Some medics have ramped up their activity in the days after the Manchester synagogue attack.   A spokesman for the Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “Time and again, doctors who spew antisemitic bile online and in the streets are being allowed to continue practising medicine, as though calls for hatred and violence are compatible with the duty to care for others.”   Doctor who called Jews ‘worse than Nazis’ cleared Dr Rahmeh Aladwan was investigated over her social media posts, including one that stated that Israelis were “worse” than the Nazis and a claim that the “Royal Free Hospital in London is a Jewish supremacy cesspit”. Since escaping suspension by the MPTS, Aladwan has posted incessantly about Jews and Israel.   She suggested the media’s focus on the Manchester synagogue attack was an example of “Jewish supremacism”. The day after the attack Aladwan shared an image of Britain’s chief rabbi, Ephraim Mirvis, with the words “rabbi genocide” emblazoned on his forehead. On Saturday, she tweeted: “Glory to the Palestinian armed resistance. Death to ‘Israel’.” Aladwan has been a member of the proscribed group Palestine Action, and has shared claims that Streeting is a “Zionist ghoul” funded by “the genocidal ‘Israel’ lobby”. At a rally earlier this year, she said that “Palestinian people who are fighting for liberation, including armed struggle” are “heroes, every single one of them”. “We are proud of our armed resistance and in Islam we call that jihad. That’s an honour. That’s how you defend your people,” she added.   The MPTS ruled that no suspension was necessary, arguing her comments would not “alarm or concern” members of the public.    On Monday night, the CAA announced that it had notified the GMC of its intent to challenge the decision not to impose the condition on Aladwan while she is under investigation. It said that her case was “one of the most egregious examples we have encountered of a regulator failing in its duty to protect the public”.   One of Aladwan’s key supporters is Dr Rehiana Ali, a consultant neurologist who was reinstated by a medical tribunal this year after describing the architect of the October 7 attacks as a “legend”, calling for Israel to be “dismantled”, and claiming that 9/11 was conducted by Mossad.   Ali has made several controversial comments in the wake of the Manchester synagogue terrorist attack, and has claimed that Streeting was an “Israeli puppet”. On October 4, she quoted a post calling for Israel to be abolished and claiming that Hamas had “done nothing to apologise for”, adding: “Agree 100%.” On October 2, about eight hours before the attack, she quoted the same post and said: “Armed resistance is the only solution.”   Ali defended her comments and told The Times that she did not believe in Israel’s right to exist. She said: “It is outrageous that the CAA weaponises an unfortunate incident to continue its defamatory attacks on doctors with a moral conscience for political ends.” Hundreds of complaints over antisemitic doctors Nearly 500 complaints of antisemitism relating to 123 doctors have been submitted to the GMC since the Hamas attacks on October 7, 2023. Of these, 84 per cent were closed at the triage stage, according to figures obtained by Jewish News in July. The rare cases where complaints have led to disciplinary action include that of Dr Manoj Sen, an NHS surgeon. Last month he was struck off for making a string of antisemitic social media comments, including referring to a Jewish man as “circumcised vermin”.   The doctor, who was working as a surgeon at Northwick Park Hospital in London, commented on a Facebook post shortly after the October 7 attacks, using the word “untermenschen” — German for subhuman — as well as the phrases “Jewish c***” and “Jew boy”. Sen also referred to the Auschwitz concentration camp along with the German phrase “Die Juden sind unsere Ungluck”, meaning “the Jews are our misfortune”.   Others have escaped serious sanctions after being reported for antisemitism. In February, Dr Kamran Ahmed, a Wolverhampton-based GP, was not struck off but given a formal warning after posting material described by the GMC as “objectively antisemitic and seriously offensive”. This included sharing a post which said: “The Israeli flag is modern-day swastika”. Dr Ellen Kriesels, a consultant paediatrician at Whittington Hospital, remains on the GMC register despite spending months making openly making racist claims. On her X account, Kriesels has claimed that “virtually every Jew has some feelings of supremacy”. The Whittington Health Trust has previously said that it was investigating and that Kriesels was not working.     Jewish doctors ‘are afraid at work’ Jewish doctors have warned that the institutional failures to tackle antisemitism extend to the British Medical Association (BMA). Those attending the BMA’s annual conference in June warned that they “feared for their safety”.    There have been widespread reports of antisemitic incidents in hospitals. In August, the University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust issued an apology over posters claiming “Zionism is Poison”. A Jewish patient who was undergoing major tests at the hospital and felt “angry, distressed and upset” after seeing some of the posters, adding: “I shouldn’t have to remove my Star of David necklace to go to a hospital visit.” Concerns have been raised at at least two NHS trusts about staff wearing pro-Palestine symbols, such as lanyards in the design of a keffiyeh and badges that say “Free Palestine”. I don't have any skin in the game with what's happening in the Middle East (most likely like many on this forum) and I stand by my clearly stated opinion on other threads that neither Hamas, nor Israel, has clean hands.  What I do care about is what happens on British soil and the idea of any ethnic group in this country - with its supposed history of tolerance and inclusion - being afraid for their lives.  There can be little doubt that the rhetoric of many on these marches fuels the killing that we saw last week.  Don't share a platform with anti Semites.  If you care so much about a community being starved, abused, bombed and oppressed, why not march for Ukraine (where we do have skin in the game), or the 150,000 blacks murdered in Sudan as well? It makes no sense to me.     
Home
Events
Sign In

Sign In



Or sign in with one of these services

Search
×
    Search In
×
×
  • Create New...