Cycling in the olympic VIP lanes

[clarion]

Also in The Times and not behind the paywall:

http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/public/cyclesafety/article3479773.ece

[simonp]

This has popped up on BBC
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-18885587

Comments are allowed.

They must have had enough comments already!

[Cudzoziemiec]

I'm mildly surprised to see Peter Bottomley's still an MP, let alone doing something sensible. He must have changed since being MiniTrans!

[Psychler]

This has popped up on BBC
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-18885587

Comments are allowed.

Just proves that TfL haven't a clue about the roads in London

It said one such section was the 70mph section of the A12 as it approaches the Lea Interchange.

If you approach the Lea Interchange eastbound it's a 40mph limit and heading west it's 50mph.  Unless of course they've decided to make the games lanes 70mph of course!

[simonp]

This has popped up on BBC
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-18885587

Comments are allowed.

Just proves that TfL haven't a clue about the roads in London

It said one such section was the 70mph section of the A12 as it approaches the Lea Interchange.

If you approach the Lea Interchange eastbound it's a 40mph limit and heading west it's 50mph.  Unless of course they've decided to make the games lanes 70mph of course!

Standard, and effective tactic. Talk bollocks and hope no-one checks.

[Kim]

However the government has said that if traffic jams are too bad, then the Lanes will be axed to ease congestion.

Ah, well that's all right then.   

[JonBoy]

This has popped up on BBC
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-18885587

Comments are allowed.

Just proves that TfL haven't a clue about the roads in London

It said one such section was the 70mph section of the A12 as it approaches the Lea Interchange.

If you approach the Lea Interchange eastbound it's a 40mph limit and heading west it's 50mph.  Unless of course they've decided to make the games lanes 70mph of course!

I've heard something like that as well, higher speed limits for Olympic vehicles - but the road speed limits are 60mph for single and and 70 mph for dual carriageway (cars, less for others) anyway.  The view from the provinces is that I've cycled on plenty of roads with cars subject only those limits (mostly 60 though), sometimes rather busy ones, and been OK.  If you can get your speed up, as any machine with a decent drive train and well-inflated tyres on level ground should be able to (assuming the road is flat or near-flat, like most of London), the speed differential becomes lower, especially if fast enough to justify a right hand side filter anyway.  A driver at 60/70 mph should still be able to deal safely with a bicycle as well.  I think TfL are also using one extreme to justify many other situations.

[rr]

This has popped up on BBC
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-18885587

Comments are allowed.

Just proves that TfL haven't a clue about the roads in London

It said one such section was the 70mph section of the A12 as it approaches the Lea Interchange.

If you approach the Lea Interchange eastbound it's a 40mph limit and heading west it's 50mph.  Unless of course they've decided to make the games lanes 70mph of course!

Standard, and effective tactic. Talk bollocks and hope no-one checks.

Is this road even legal for bikes? It is certainly rarely if ever used by cyclists, I commuted out of London on it for 3 years and never saw a bike on it.

[Ham]

Is this road even legal for bikes? It is certainly rarely if ever used by cyclists, I commuted out of London on it for 3 years and never saw a bike on it.

Correct. Cycles are not permitted on that section of the A12, although technically I think you can travel from Hackney Wick to Bow Flyover, I know I wouldn't want to. The speed limit is 50 on most of that section, enforced by several cameras.

http://www.newham.gov.uk/NR/rdonlyres/3CC1F3D6-656E-4402-A2EC-5B627E8C8F80/0/ORNLeaInterchangetoBowRoundabout.pdf

[tonycollinet]

Coming along the Embankment today I noticed a lot more traffic in the left hand (non Olympic) lane than in the Zil lane, even though the latter isn't in use yet. Trouble is, with all the parked up coaches, etc, the left hand lane is not wide enough for a car to pass a cyclist, let alone for a lorry to do so.  The confident among us will need to take primary and put up with the punishment passes, etc., or take to the Zil lanes. I worry for the safety of the less confident.

Hope you don't mind - I've just quoted that at my MP together with a link to the EDM.

[Cudzoziemiec]

I read that half of all the UK's road painters are in London this weekend and one of their tasks is to remove pedestrian crossings from the Zil lanes. Also, traffic lights are to be set to green for the Zil lanes - presumably this means a presumption of green not that other roads will face constant red for the next three weeks.

[TimO]

At least one of the junctions I use, which has an Olympic Route Network road on it (although not a lane, it's too narrow there), has been having unusual traffic buildups from it for the last week or two.  I couldn't work out why, then I wondered if the lights have been adjusted to give a slight priority to the ORN road, which is across the one which has the unusual traffic on it?

I know about half of London light controlled junctions can be controlled by TfL remotely, so presumably someone will pull a big (software) switch at some point, and those lights will all switch into ORN priority mode.

[Kim]

*hums the tune from The Italian Job*

[Jurek]

I know about half of London light controlled junctions can be controlled by TfL remotely, so presumably someone will pull a big (software) switch at some point, and those lights will all switch into ORN priority mode.

According to that which I heard on the radio, this happened last Wednesday or Thursday.

[TimO]

*hums the tune from The Italian Job*

Apparently they deliberately caused the traffic jams in Turin for that.  They just got the local police to block some junctions, and then filmed the result!

I know about half of London light controlled junctions can be controlled by TfL remotely, so presumably someone will pull a big (software) switch at some point, and those lights will all switch into ORN priority mode.

According to that which I heard on the radio, this happened last Wednesday or Thursday.

That seems excessively early.  Presumably they want to make sure that it doesn't cause too many problems with the existing traffic patterns, in case they need to start adjusting things.,

[Jurek]

That seems excessively early.  Presumably they want to make sure that it doesn't cause too many problems with the existing traffic patterns, in case they need to start adjusting things.,

Tweak n' hope for the best...?
http://www.standard.co.uk/news/transport/huge-queues-at-kidbrooke-junction-as-lights-are-rephased-giving-drivers-11-seconds-to-get-across-7952379.html

[Cudzoziemiec]

A whole 11 seconds - they're going to have to be almost as quick as pedestrians!

[Pickled Onion]

I read that half of all the UK's road painters are in London this weekend and one of their tasks is to remove pedestrian crossings from the Zil lanes. Also, traffic lights are to be set to green for the Zil lanes - presumably this means a presumption of green not that other roads will face constant red for the next three weeks.

For the lane near where I work, all the roads crossing are being made left turn only, no straight on + no right turn. There are barriers nearby ready to put across the junctions to enforce this. The only plausible purpose is that there will be separate green lights for the zil lane when the plebs lane is red. Hopefully they will still include a pedestrian phase, not force everyone to use the footbridges.

Coming along the Embankment today I noticed a lot more traffic in the left hand (non Olympic) lane than in the Zil lane, even though the latter isn't in use yet. Trouble is, with all the parked up coaches, etc, the left hand lane is not wide enough for a car to pass a cyclist, let alone for a lorry to do so.  The confident among us will need to take primary and put up with the punishment passes, etc., or take to the Zil lanes. I worry for the safety of the less confident.

The lane left for other traffic on the road I'm talking about definitely has no room whatsoever for a lorry or coach to pass a cyclist without straying into the zil lane. A lot of cyclists use the road. it's also the site of where a cyclist was run over from behind by a tipper lorry a couple of years ago. Hopefully this will be a moot point as the traffic will be virtually stationary.

[Cudzoziemiec]

Stationary or not, I hope London's YACFers and other cyclists are not endangered by these lanes and that all cycle safely through the Olympic season.

[TimO]

Personally the impact of all this on me is likely to be minimal (I hope), since I just cross two ORNs at right angles, so at worst I may just have to deal with slightly higher levels of congestion at junctions, but typically, as a cyclist, I can avoid most of that congestion anyway.

[Redlight]

Coming along the Embankment today I noticed a lot more traffic in the left hand (non Olympic) lane than in the Zil lane, even though the latter isn't in use yet. Trouble is, with all the parked up coaches, etc, the left hand lane is not wide enough for a car to pass a cyclist, let alone for a lorry to do so.  The confident among us will need to take primary and put up with the punishment passes, etc., or take to the Zil lanes. I worry for the safety of the less confident.

Hope you don't mind - I've just quoted that at my MP together with a link to the EDM.

Very happy. I'm still awaiting a reply to my letter to TfL about it.

[Ham]

Not sure whether this deserves its own thread, but I'll leave it here.

This is a serious warning.

I was riding around town  today, and the Olympic vehicles have arrived in force, all over the place.

The warning? There are a huge number of out of town drivers, driving all manner of vehicles, especially "official" buses and coaches - some from as far afield as Eire - foreign cars, all sorts. This means that there are an unusually high number of drivers that are NOT be used to London traffic, roads and cyclists. I've had a couple of unusually close passes from coaches, seen drivers peering at the roads, obviously lost, been asked the way to Victoria station in Proctor Street High Holborn by a bloke with a broad Scots accent (I told him, but don't rate his chances).  There's a kicker here - even when they have satnav, the changes for the olympics are going to make it ... interesting. (eg, no right turns off the Embankment westbound at all !!)

Be careful out there, take extra care, please.

[Redlight]

I am SO glad I am heading abroad on the day before it all starts   

[Sergeant Pluck]

Not sure whether this deserves its own thread, but I'll leave it here.

This is a serious warning.

I was riding around town  today, and the Olympic vehicles have arrived in force, all over the place.

The warning? There are a huge number of out of town drivers, driving all manner of vehicles, especially "official" buses and coaches - some from as far afield as Eire - foreign cars, all sorts. This means that there are an unusually high number of drivers that are NOT be used to London traffic, roads and cyclists. I've had a couple of unusually close passes from coaches, seen drivers peering at the roads, obviously lost, been asked the way to Victoria station in Proctor Street High Holborn by a bloke with a broad Scots accent (I told him, but don't rate his chances).  There's a kicker here - even when they have satnav, the changes for the olympics are going to make it ... interesting. (eg, no right turns off the Embankment westbound at all !!)

Be careful out there, take extra care, please.

Thanks for the heads-up. The bit about the satnavs... the horror.

[Speshact]

The Speshact family cycled from Kennington to Trafalgar Square today. Bloody horrible. Going over Westminster Bridge there's no right turn to the Embankment there, then no bus/cycle right turn on Parliament Sq so you have to go around it. Whitehall stuffed with cars and buses so ended up walking as we neared the square as no room to filter. Coming back via the Embankment - it was stuffed full of traffic with limited space to filter.

It must have been complete torture in a car. I can't for the life of me understand why so many people chose to drive into central London today. I was sorely tempted to ask some of the car occupants as I filtered past what their thought processes were.