Friday Track

Today's track is linked in to a protest I am taking part in tonight at 6pm.

I'm not normally one for protests but since moving to a more central London location I find myself involved in two ongoing ones at the moment. The one I will be taking part in this Friday is being dubbed as the 'Battle of Blackfriars'.

I have mentioned before about the Blackfriars debate when Conservative London Assembly Members walked out before a debate on the speed limit for Blackfriars Bridge.

TFL are now pressing ahead with what is believed to be their original plans which, if it is the case, will make the bridge conditions for pedestrians and cyclists far worse rather than better.

Before you ask - I am not a militant cyclist and also as a driver I understand the notion of 'smoothing traffic flow'. After all every time I try to drive out of London it can take over an hour for a journey I can actually do faster on my bike (the reason I drive rather than bike in these situations is a) the total distance would not really be doable on a bike unless I was a Tour De France rider, b) Luggage and my bike don't really mix, and c) trains are ridiculously expensive unless you book months in advance which doesn't really bode well with my spontaneous nature). All I would ask is that there are provisions for cyclists to easily get around London. It's always baffled me that not all traffic lights have the advanced stop line or that most roads do not have cycle lanes.

The flashride across Blackfriars tonight is not a protest to say all roads belong to bikes but to make it clear to TFL that there are a number of us who want to cycle in London and do so safely. I think it is really sad that so many people, myself included, cycle out of their way to avoid junctions and crossings as they are so hostile to cyclists. Since I have been reading about the many different junction layouts many people have problems with, I have noticed far more that make it difficult for pedestrians to negotiate too.

I am all for smoother traffic flows as a motorist (I hate sitting in traffic) but not at the expense of everyone else. I'm not sure what the ideal solution would be that could benefit all road users but the answer is not to create Urban Motorways.
So for this Friday's track I have selected Queen - Bicycle Race because I want to ride my bicycle and I would like to ride it where I like - namely on the roads that get me where I need to go - safely!



If you are interested in joining tonight's ride across Blackfriars, it sets off at 6pm from outside Doggetts pub on the southside of the bridge and will finish up near Waterloo.

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