Gloat

Richard Goodman

Of course, there may be an enormous number of things to gloat about in riding a bike, but the
advantages of commuting by bike is definitely among them. Yesterday thousands of commuters were
delayed for hours by a power cut affecting the tube and trains. My extra journey time? 4 minutes
over a 40 min journey, and at least half of that was probably due to the weather, the only effect of
the cut for me being the extra volume of peds spilling off the pavement and into the road making
less room to manoeuvre around the cars buses and taxis getting in each other's way.

Rich

Lee

"Richard Goodman" <rich@NOSPAM.rsk.homechoice.co.uk> wrote in message
news:3f4efeb7$1@news1.homechoice.co.uk...
> Of course, there may be an enormous number of things to gloat about in riding a bike, but the
> advantages of commuting by bike is definitely among them. Yesterday thousands of commuters were
> delayed for hours by a power cut affecting the tube and trains. My extra journey time? 4
> minutes over
a
> 40 min journey, and at least half of that was probably due to the weather, the only effect of the
> cut for me being the extra volume of peds spilling off the pavement and into the road making less
> room to manoeuvre around
the
> cars buses and taxis getting in each other's way.
>
> Rich
>
>
>
Ha ha, nice one.

The weather was nasty yesterday but I guess that the other nice thing about commuting on a bike thru
London is no congestion charge :-)

Tenex

Richard Goodman wrote:
> Of course, there may be an enormous number of things to gloat about in riding a bike, but the
> advantages of commuting by bike is definitely among them. Yesterday thousands of commuters were
> delayed for hours by a power cut affecting the tube and trains. My extra journey time? 4 minutes
> over a 40 min journey, and at least half of that was probably due to the weather, the only effect
> of the cut for me being the extra volume of peds spilling off the pavement and into the road
> making less room to manoeuvre around the cars buses and taxis getting in each other's way.
>
> Rich

I wasn't affected but a situation that requires the evacuation of 250,000 commuters from the
Underground hardly seems something to gloat over.

A few years back I was in Canton which was then described as a city with 3 million inhabitants and 2
million bicycles. I thought they were all remarkably skilled at cycling very slowly due to the
crush. If all London commuters were to get onto bicycles then it would be much the same here. What
price expensive bike kit if there were only bicycle choked roads ...

Richard Goodman

"Tenex" <email@in.group> wrote in message news:qPE3b.7304$2z3.69021801@news-text.cableinet.net...

>
> I wasn't affected but a situation that requires the evacuation of 250,000 commuters from the
> Underground hardly seems something to gloat over.
>

It wasn't 250,000 "evacuated" from the underground, AIUI that estimate includes everyone
inconvenienced in some way - overground train users, people who were not able to get on the trains
or into the stations in the first place, bus users cramped or unable to get on due to overcrowding
etc. Anyway, as it happens my daughter was one of those affected, as well as much loved colleagues,
and I'm still happy to gloat, although not entirely without sympathy!

> A few years back I was in Canton which was then described as a city with 3 million inhabitants and
> 2 million bicycles. I thought they were all remarkably skilled at cycling very slowly due to the
> crush. If all London commuters were to get onto bicycles then it would be much the same here. What
> price expensive bike kit if there were only bicycle choked roads ...
>

This I have to admit is something I've occasionally thought about. I don't think I actually would
want all those tube and train passengers on the road on bicycles instead. You could get a lot of
motorists off the road and onto bicycles, however, and still have more room to cycle rather than
less. In any event, since there's no danger either of millions of motorists or public transport
users giving up their bikes, I'm still happy to point out why cycling is so good to my travel weary
colleagues, family and others.

Rich

Tenex

Richard Goodman wrote:
> It wasn't 250,000 "evacuated" from the underground,

It sounded a lot to me but then I suppose they include stations in the estimate so it may be
accurate see http://tinyurl.com/lkpi

Tony W

"Richard Goodman" <rsk@NOSPAM.homechoice.co.uk> wrote in message
news:e7042dfa8b2825b8f7a4caaa6f0827b0@news.teranews.com...
>
> > A few years back I was in Canton which was then described as a city with
3
> > million inhabitants and 2 million bicycles. I thought they were all remarkably skilled at
> > cycling very slowly due to the crush. If all
London
> > commuters were to get onto bicycles then it would be much the same here. What price expensive
> > bike kit if there were only bicycle choked roads
...
> >
>
> This I have to admit is something I've occasionally thought about. I
don't
> think I actually would want all those tube and train passengers on the
road
> on bicycles instead. You could get a lot of motorists off the road and
onto
> bicycles, however, and still have more room to cycle rather than less. In any event, since there's
> no danger either of millions of motorists or
public
> transport users giving up their bikes, I'm still happy to point out why cycling is so good to my
> travel weary colleagues, family and others.

There is something intensely pleasing and friendly about cycling in such a cycling traffic jam,
however. I've done it in a couple of places in India -- just a massive peleton of cyclists all
moving together close enough to chat. Somehow such an organic mass keeps moving.

So much nicer than the bad tempered machine that is a traffic jam in this country -- little
interaction other than rage and carve ups.

The concept of a cycling traffic jam round Hyde Park Corner is, somehow, attractive.

T

Richard Goodman

"Tenex" <email@in.group> wrote in message news:TTF3b.7383$Bh4.69662830@news-text.cableinet.net...
> Richard Goodman wrote:
> > It wasn't 250,000 "evacuated" from the underground,
>
> It sounded a lot to me but then I suppose they include stations in the estimate so it may be
> accurate see http://tinyurl.com/lkpi
>

Ah, Torygraph reporting. The BBC just reported it as "rush hour misery for 250,000 people in London
and south-east England" and said that "some tube stations were evacuated". I could believe that
250,000 people were unable to use affected tubes and trains, but would be inclined to doubt that all
of them had to be 'evacuated'.

Rich

Marc

Richard Goodman <rsk@NOSPAM.homechoice.co.uk> wrote:

> >
> > It sounded a lot to me but then I suppose they include stations in the estimate so it may be
> > accurate see http://tinyurl.com/lkpi
> >
>
> Ah, Torygraph reporting. The BBC just reported it as "rush hour misery for 250,000 people in
> London and south-east England" and said that "some tube stations were evacuated".

It sounds so much better than the truth " Power cut in London , rest of country gives a toss as much
as London does when other parts of country have power cuts"

--
Marc Stickers,decals,membership,cards, T shirts, signs etc for clubs and associations of all types.
http://www.jaceeprint.demon.co.uk/

Simon Mason

"marc" <marc@jaceeprint.demon.co.uk> wrote in message
>
> It sounds so much better than the truth " Power cut in London , rest of country gives a toss as
> much as London does when other parts of country have power cuts"

I believe large parts of Iraq have been without power for some time now. Simon

Tenex

Richard Goodman wrote:
> "Tenex" <email@in.group> wrote in message news:TTF3b.7383$Bh4.69662830@news-text.cableinet.net...
>> Richard Goodman wrote:
>>> It wasn't 250,000 "evacuated" from the underground,
>>
>> It sounded a lot to me but then I suppose they include stations in the estimate so it may be
>> accurate see http://tinyurl.com/lkpi
>>
>
> Ah, Torygraph reporting. The BBC just reported it as "rush hour misery for 250,000 people in
> London and south-east England" and said that "some tube stations were evacuated". I could believe
> that 250,000 people were unable to use affected tubes and trains, but would be inclined to doubt
> that all of them had to be 'evacuated'.
>
> Rich

Couldn't resist posting this extract from the London Fire Brigade website:

Latest information on incidents in London

FRIDAY 29 AUGUST

Major power cut hits the capital The Brigade worked flat out dealing with the hundreds of calls it
received following yesterday evening's power cut. Nearly 400 calls - ten times the average - were
received in just over an hour, mainly to people shut in lifts and fire alarms going off. Calls were
given a level of priority and every emergency call was answered, with over 120 people rescued from
lifts. Pre-prepared plans for co-operative work between the emergency services were put in place and
these worked well.

Tenex

marc wrote:
> Richard Goodman <rsk@NOSPAM.homechoice.co.uk> wrote:
>
>>>
>>> It sounded a lot to me but then I suppose they include stations in the estimate so it may be
>>> accurate see http://tinyurl.com/lkpi
>>>
>>
>> Ah, Torygraph reporting. The BBC just reported it as "rush hour misery for 250,000 people in
>> London and south-east England" and said that "some tube stations were evacuated".
>
> It sounds so much better than the truth " Power cut in London , rest of country gives a toss as
> much as London does when other parts of country have power cuts"

Do other parts of the country have power cuts? Other than metropolitan areas it's difficult to see
250,000 affected at once.

I try to place it all in the context of overseas experience in the east where even in large cities
they load shed for a few hours each evening and people crank up their Honda generators causing even
more pollution etc..

Colin Blackburn

In article <KNH3b.7490$if5.70629406@news-text.cableinet.net>, email@in.group says...
> marc wrote:
> > Richard Goodman <rsk@NOSPAM.homechoice.co.uk> wrote:
> >
> >>>
> >>> It sounded a lot to me but then I suppose they include stations in the estimate so it may be
> >>> accurate see http://tinyurl.com/lkpi
> >>>
> >>
> >> Ah, Torygraph reporting. The BBC just reported it as "rush hour misery for 250,000 people in
> >> London and south-east England" and said that "some tube stations were evacuated".
> >
> > It sounds so much better than the truth " Power cut in London , rest of country gives a toss as
> > much as London does when other parts of country have power cuts"
>
>
> Do other parts of the country have power cuts? Other than metropolitan areas it's difficult to see
> 250,000 affected at once.

Dunno. I live "off the grid" on a road with no lights so I wouldn't notice if the whole of the north
east blacked-out.

Colin

Tenex

Colin Blackburn wrote:

> Dunno. I live "off the grid" on a road with no lights so I wouldn't notice if the whole of the
> north east blacked-out.
>
> Colin

LOL Astronomers heaven ....

Richard Corfiel

In article <bin9vr$bah38$1@ID-161007.news.uni-berlin.de>, Tony W wrote:
>
> There is something intensely pleasing and friendly about cycling in such a cycling traffic jam,
> however. I've done it in a couple of places in India -- just a massive peleton of cyclists all
> moving together close enough to chat. Somehow such an organic mass keeps moving.
>

Cambridge has them (or at least had them back in '97 when I was last there), every hour on lecture
changeover. I could imagine it turning nasty if there were too many cyclists, though they take less
room than cars per passenger.

A problem in Cambridge was the shortage of bike parking, leading to bike clamping by people not
wanting their railings obscured. You'd think that in a place full of students people would think of
parking perpendicular to the railings, using the railings to hold the bike, rather than along them.
The pavements were wide enough in many places.

- Richard

--
_/_/_/ _/_/_/ _/_/_/ Richard dot Corfield at ntlworld dot com _/ _/ _/ _/ _/_/ _/ _/ Time is a
one way street, _/ _/ _/_/ _/_/_/ Except in the Twighlight Zone.

Andymorris

Simon Mason wrote:
> "marc" <marc@jaceeprint.demon.co.uk> wrote in message
>>
>> It sounds so much better than the truth " Power cut in London , rest of country gives a toss as
>> much as London does when other parts of country have power cuts"
>
> I believe large parts of Iraq have been without power for some time now. Simon

But they are now Free of Inhumane Repression (tm) and without power.

It makes all the difference.

--
Andy Morris

AndyAtJinkasDotFreeserve.Co.UK

Love this: Put an end to Outlook Express's messy quotes
http://home.in.tum.de/~jain/software/oe-quotefix/

Marc

Tony W <tonyREMOVE@chapmore.co.uk> wrote:

> It can get out of hand when they start breading though.

Oh crumbs I can hear the puns being spun now...

Incooommmmminnnnggg!

Tony W

"Marc" <marc@jaceeprint.demon.co.uk> wrote in message
news:1g0j0j3.30cij01eiekn4N@jaceeprint.demon.co.uk...
> Tony W <tonyREMOVE@chapmore.co.uk> wrote:
>
> > It can get out of hand when they start breading though.
>
> Oh crumbs I can hear the puns being spun now...
>
> Incooommmmminnnnggg!

Just what I kneaded.

But I will try not to rise to the bait.

Slice it anyway you like.

I'm toast.

Al_mossah

"Richard Goodman" <rsk@NOSPAM.homechoice.co.uk> wrote in message
news:3a30fdfa712155e5a354144093b24881@news.teranews.com...
> "Tenex" <email@in.group> wrote in message news:TTF3b.7383$Bh4.69662830@news-text.cableinet.net...
> > Richard Goodman wrote:
> > > It wasn't 250,000 "evacuated" from the underground,
> >
> > It sounded a lot to me but then I suppose they include stations in the estimate so it may be
> > accurate see http://tinyurl.com/lkpi
> >
>
> Ah, Torygraph reporting. The BBC just reported it as "rush hour misery
for
> 250,000 people in London and south-east England" and said that "some tube stations were
> evacuated". I could believe that 250,000 people were unable to use affected tubes and trains, but
> would be inclined to doubt that all
of
> them had to be 'evacuated'.
>
> Rich

Al_mossah

Oops, finger trouble.

I've always thought that the use of the word "misery" in these circumstances is rather over-the-top.
"Traffic-jam misery", "rail-delay-misery".... Isn't the correct attitude to use the opportunity to
go to the pub until the crush has abated. Of course, you'd have to choose one with hand-pumps....
one would just have to drink real ale.

Maybe I've been cycling too long.

Peter

"Richard Goodman" <rsk@NOSPAM.homechoice.co.uk> wrote in message
news:3a30fdfa712155e5a354144093b24881@news.teranews.com...
> "Tenex" <email@in.group> wrote in message news:TTF3b.7383$Bh4.69662830@news-text.cableinet.net...
> > Richard Goodman wrote:
> > > It wasn't 250,000 "evacuated" from the underground,
> >
> > It sounded a lot to me but then I suppose they include stations in the estimate so it may be
> > accurate see http://tinyurl.com/lkpi
> >
>
> Ah, Torygraph reporting. The BBC just reported it as "rush hour misery
for
> 250,000 people in London and south-east England" and said that "some tube stations were
> evacuated". I could believe that 250,000 people were unable to use affected tubes and trains, but
> would be inclined to doubt that all
of
> them had to be 'evacuated'.
>
> Rich