Cyclists, motorways and pseudomotorways - Page 3

JLB wrote:

>
>
> I once needed to get from the middle of Dublin to Dublin Airport early
> on a Sunday morning. Could I hell find that alternative non-motorway
> route (it does exist, but for some reason it was particularly well
> hidden on this occasion).


I had a similar experience in Belgium.

> very damned sign led to to the bloody
> motorway. So I cycled to the airport along the hard shoulder of the
> motorway. Got there, too, and was not arrested.

I wasn't arrested but escorted off the motorway and received what I
think was a ticking off but since my Flemish/French doesn't really
extend beyond Funf kilometres von ankomst/cinq kilometres a l'arrivee I
couldn't really tell.
>
> Had a similar experience once at Heathrow; could not find an alternative
> to that horrible tunnel that all the motorised traffic off the M4 uses.
> Head down, keep the speed up, it'll be ok...
>
> Why are cyclists presumed to be almost psychic when it comes to working
> out the appropriate non-motorway route?
>
There used to be a ped/bike tunnel at Heathrow, used to be properly
signposted too.

MSeries wrote:

> There used to be a ped/bike tunnel at Heathrow, used to be properly
> signposted too.

I couldn't find a pedestrian route to Heathrow terminals 1-3.
The best way seemed to be to sneak into the Pink Elephant car park
and get the free shuttle bus.

--
Eiron.

MSeries wrote:
> JLB wrote:

>> I once needed to get from the middle of Dublin to Dublin Airport early
>> on a Sunday morning. Could I hell find that alternative non-motorway
>> route (it does exist, but for some reason it was particularly well
>> hidden on this occasion).

> I had a similar experience in Belgium.
>
Similar experience in Turin. Fortunately I only had to ride a few km on
the motorway before hitting the more rural roads but it was decidedly
interesting.


>> very damned sign led to to the bloody motorway. So I cycled to the
>> airport along the hard shoulder of the motorway. Got there, too, and
>> was not arrested.

Irritating isn't it? Time to complain to DoT about their lack of
provision of signs for non-motorway traffic.

>>
>> Had a similar experience once at Heathrow; could not find an
>> alternative to that horrible tunnel that all the motorised traffic off
>> the M4 uses. Head down, keep the speed up, it'll be ok...
>>
> There used to be a ped/bike tunnel at Heathrow, used to be properly
> signposted too.

It still is but is a little difficult to get on to when heading out of
the airport.

...d

Simon Mason wrote:
> "Epetruk" <nobody@blackhole.com> wrote in message n
>
>>Oh dear - it seems the point I was trying to make is not being understood.
>>
>>My problem isn't with cyclists riding on pseudomotorways - it's the
>>/inconsistency/ of the regulation of cyclists riding on fast-traffic
>>roads.
>>Note where I suggest the alternative of unbanning cyclists from motorways.
>
>
> I can see what you mean. For example, the A1 has several sections where it
> becomes the A1(M). You can cycle on the A1, but not the A1(M) and there is
> no discernable difference, except the signs are blue and there may be an
> extra lane.
>
> Dunno mate, it's like a lot of things in this country. Someone writes a bit
> of paper saying you can or can't do this or that - and that's it!
>
> I wouldn't cycle on the A1 anyway, so I won't lose much sleep over it ;-)
>

Spent much of my teenage years cycling on the A1 south of Peterborough.
At the time it didn't bother me at all but right now, I'm grateful that
it's now an M-way with a barely used local road for cyclists running
alongside.

FWIW i think you would have to have rocks in your head to want to ride
on an M-Way. Noisy, busy, boring - that's enough to put me off even
before we get to risk of puncture/accident...

M-ways are bad enough on a motorcycle. Can;t imagine the hellishness of
them on a pushiron!!

bfn,

Tony B

"Steven Briggs" <news@sbriggs.freeserve.unitedkingdom> wrote in message
news:afuPrDLYzz0BFwN5@sbriggs.plus.com...

> I rode down on the wrong side of the cones (i.e. in the old fast lane),
> just for the very novel experience.

You mean the overtaking lane?
--
Simon M.

James Annan wrote:

> The line has to be drawn somewhere, if it is drawn at all. Personally, I
> would have no particular problem with cyclists being allowed to cycle on
> motorways, I find it hard to believe that roads which are generally
> britain's safest would uddenly turn into death traps if bikes were
> allowed. Junctions would require some thinking about, but at least they
> are generally a long way apart. 20 miles on an empty hard shoulder with
> a mile of visibility can hardly be especially hazardous.

Maybe that's part of the problem. 20 miles with no possibility of
stopping (unless you have a mechanical problem) isn't going to appeal to
most cyclists, especially the CTC types as there are no tea shops ;-)

Peter Headland wrote:

> However, I have not heard of any cyclists
> being hit on these slip roads this past 4 years (since I have been
> living here), so I assume the risk is more imagined than real.

A lot of TTists have died in recent years. I understand CTT may be
looking at phasing out courses where "spear point" slip roads have to be
crossed, although given the proliferation of these (and traffic lights)
the number of potential courses is dwindling.

Steven Briggs wrote:

>
> OK this was the bit just north of Wetherby. A new 6 lane A1M section,
> 200 yards over there >>>>>, opened last week.
> The old road will eventually be converted to a single carriageway local
> access road, but just now each direction is coned down to a single lane,
> and sees maybe one vehicle every 2-3 minutes.
> I rode down on the wrong side of the cones (i.e. in the old fast lane),
> just for the very novel experience.
>

On Christmas Day I crossed one of the new parts of the A1M near
Ferrybridge. It is not yet open but on Christmas Day the southbound
carriage way was tarmaced and lined and just begging for me to ride on.
I was tempted to ride on it for the experience, but I did see a pick up
truck drive down, perhaps it was a security guard, perhaps a joyrider,
I'll never know.

Simon Mason wrote:
> I wouldn't cycle on the A1 anyway, so I won't lose much sleep over it
;-)

I used to regularly ride Buckden - Little Paxton on the A1 and recently
rode the section between Wooley and Buckden on the recumbent as the
last part of a journey from Peterborough. The alternative was a
relatively lengthy detour including a portion of the A14.

Riding at night with good lights, it can be quite fun. It becomes a
relatively quiet road and traffic overtakes in the outside lane leaving
plenty of room.

Jon

Jon is Away! wrote:

> Simon Mason wrote:
>
>>I wouldn't cycle on the A1 anyway, so I won't lose much sleep over it
>
> ;-)
>
> I used to regularly ride Buckden - Little Paxton on the A1 and recently
> rode the section between Wooley and Buckden on the recumbent as the
> last part of a journey from Peterborough. The alternative was a
> relatively lengthy detour including a portion of the A14.

We did 55:27 for a 25 mile time trial on the A1 on a Saturday
evening...somewhere around Biggleswade and Baldock (the turn was where
it became mway, IIRC).

Don't think I would do that again though!

James
--
If I have seen further than others, it is
by treading on the toes of giants.
http://www.ne.jp/asahi/julesandjames/home/

"Kit Wolf" <kit@brain.ncl.ac.uk> wrote:

> Another risk is being hit by vehicles entering or joining the roads
> via the sliproads. On the local (Newcastle) dual carriageways, the
> cycle-lanes cross the sliproads at 90 degrees (cyclists give way).

I think the main risk with sliproads is from vehicles *entering* the road
you are on as there is a risk they could be looking over their right
shoulder for a gap and miss a cyclist in front of them, so it's best to keep
a very close eye on joining traffic, in the same way as you would keep an
eye out on a roundabout. I don't think there is so much risk of vehicles
*leaving* the road as they don't generally have to look over their shoulder
to leave a road, so would be less likely to not see you.

Adrian Boliston wrote:

> it's best to keep a very close eye on joining traffic, in the same way as
> you would keep an eye out on a roundabout.

I thought I was the only one who looked out for cars about to join a
roundabout that I was already on. I (foolishly) used to assume that once I
was on the roundabout, I had right of way - but an accident in which a car
hit me while I was *on* the 'bout showed me the error of my ways.

Truly, only the paranoid survive in urban traffic.

--
Akin

aknak at aksoto dot idps dot co dot uk

"Epetruk" <nobody@blackhole.com> wrote:

> Adrian Boliston wrote:
>
>> it's best to keep a very close eye on joining traffic, in the same
>> way as you would keep an eye out on a roundabout.
>
> I thought I was the only one who looked out for cars about to join a
> roundabout that I was already on. I (foolishly) used to assume that
> once I was on the roundabout, I had right of way - but an accident in
> which a car hit me while I was *on* the 'bout showed me the error of
> my ways.

Since I had an accident 4 years ago when a car coming out of a side road on
my left failed to give way, I am particularly wary about vehicles joining on
my left in almost any situation, including roundabouts and slip roads.

James Annan <still_the_same_me@hotmail.com> wrote:

>Epetruk wrote:
>
>> I know that cyclists are forbidden to cycle on motorways. I'm guessing that
>> the intent here is to prevent cyclists from being injured by fast moving
>> cars.
>>
>> My thinking is, if this is the case, why not extend the ban to
>> pseudomotorways? (I define a pseudomotorway as a dual carriageway roads
>> where the speed limit is 50-60mph but in reality is often exceeded -
>> examples in London are the A13 and parts of the A3.)
>
>Because there is sometimes no decent alternative route for non-motorway
>traffic (including, but not limited to, bicycles).

Indeed. There's a stretch of the A55 North Wales coast road going west from
Conwy where the alternatives are cycle the pseudomotorway for about 400
yards, or do a 15 mile detour over one mountain, along the next pass and
back over another mountain. Despite the pseudomotorway being the most
terrifying cycling experience of my life I still think it was preferable to
the detour.

--
Patriotism is the willingness to kill and be killed
for trivial reasons. - Bertrand Russell
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