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London Cycle Superhighway 2 to 'go Dutch' - well, sort of

Path extends east to Stratford and beyond

Transport for London has told the London Assembly that the extension of the Cycle Superhighway 2 east beyond Stratford will embrace the 'Dutch' principles for road segregation.

From the Bow roundabout, hated by many commuter cyclists for good reason, to Stratford, the path will be a protected cycleway, rather than the blue paint on the roads that are considered by many to be mere lip service to bicycle safety.

The London Cycling Campaign, to whose 'Love London, Go Dutch' campaign the London Mayor Boris Johnson signed up last year, expressed enthusiasm for the move, particularly praising the decision of the Assembly to invite cycling experts from successful overseas cycling nations to the discussions.

These included Roelef Wittink of the Dutch Cycling Embassy and Steffen Rasmussen from Copenhagen.

One ex-user of the CS2 said on the LCC's website that the provisions did not go far enough. He said: "Re CS2, I used to use this nearly every day but take a different route (LCN Route 8) which is longer but a lot safer. Making the CS2 extension to an appropriate standard won't tempt me back until they sort the whole route out. The existing CS2 is a joke."

Another wrote: "Promising, but what about the rest of it? Will the Ilford-Stratford part be based on Love London, go Dutch principles and then spit you out onto the existing, laughably poor, provision with a metaphorical cry of "sorry, love, you're on your own?" Because that would be a bit ridiculous."

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5 comments

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fluffy_mike | 12 years ago
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I reckon part of a network is better than nothing, just like half an eye is better than no sight

Saying that, it's a shame this mayor/administration is so slow to pick up the vibe in London - build good cycle routes and they'll be packed in no time

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JohnS replied to fluffy_mike | 12 years ago
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fluffy_mike wrote:

I reckon part of a network is better than nothingtime

Half a network results in motorists bullying cyclists to "get on the effing cycle lane" where there isn't one, and motorists parking all over what network there is pleading ignorance of where it starts and ends.

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alotronic | 12 years ago
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I rode that route, and CS3, just to see what it was like, at 8am on a Sunday. Horrible.

CS stands for 'Comitting Suicide' in my book.

As with almost all London cycle routes it's safer to make your own using the best bits of LCN and back streets, as above.

Wouldn't be that hard to make it better surely, given the will to slow motorists down a little (ha!).

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Mr Will replied to alotronic | 12 years ago
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Try it again at 8am on a weekday - it'll actually be much better.

One of the major problems with the superhighways is other vehicles driving or parking in them but (in the main) this only happens when the bus lanes and red routes are not in operation.

Combine that with a greater number of cyclists and slower (if busier) traffic and at commuter'o'clock they are not actually too bad.

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JohnS | 12 years ago
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So....
It'll be wide enough to cycle in both directions at a sensible speed, say, 12mph, and overtake without head-on confrontations?
It'll only stop at major junctions, like A-roads, where there'll be light-controlled crossings?
It'll have priority over minor side roads and business entrances?
Drivers driving or parking on it will be arrested and their cars impounded?

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