Update Initial reports seem positive: “The first cycle Friday has gone really well. We were targeting around 25 new riders per ride and we were pleased with the support. There were two rides of 24 people from Brixton, and the Greenwich ride saw a similar turnout.”
Cycle Fridays is the newest initiative by Transport for London and London Cycling Campaign to encourage people who have never cycled before to make a start with the help of a marshal and in the comfort of a group ride.
The organised routes will be running every Friday (Starting today!) until the 2nd of October. The total of 8 cycle Fridays should give plenty of people an opportunity to get started.
As the rides are meant for beginners organisers have allocated up to an hour to complete the routes though in reality for more seasoned cyclists the routes won’t take anywhere near that long. Hopefully this won’t put people off (especially with a start time of 8am!). For anyone out there doubting whether their bike is even road worthy the LCC marshals will be providing bike checkups. Additionally advice on safe cycling will be provided (worth a visit if you are interested in this is also the TfL cycle safety video).
No doubt this initiative has been born out of the “bike tubes” that took place during the recent tube strikes. During that initiative people had mixed reviews of the effectiveness and attendance varied. Hopefully this regular Friday slot will work well.
Routes
- Brixton to Russell Square
- Finsbury Park to City (St Pauls)
- Mile end to City (St Pauls)
- Ravenscourt Park to Trafalgar Square
- Swiss Cottage to Holborn continuing to the City
- Greenwich to City
Check out the TfL Cycle Fridays site for more information.
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Regular cycling to work isn’t that simple. Work/weather/clothing changes/cycle safe storage/etc all have to be dealt with. For 9 years, before retiring, I did consistant all-weather/all seasons cycling to work (round trip of 11 miles per day).
Those pressing for this mode of transport are not speaking from experience. Before shouting the odds, just do it for one year. Most of you would fall at the first hurdle. And I didn’t even mention the drivers who cut in close, sending you kerb-hopping.
One thing good did come out of it for me; I believe i consider cyclists on the roads more than most drivers.
It’s a bold idea from Transport for London. Like Albert says, cycling in isn’t as clear cut. All the incentives to encourage cycling should be in place first. This should be provision for safety equipment such as helmets. Making them free would help. Also safe and secure bike storage should also be considered. Adding free cycle locks would also provide encouragement.
Steve
Well funny you should mention that as they are considering cutting tax by 10% on all cycling goods as it’s important for fitness. Things are definitely improving but we do need to see better fascilities namely cycle lanes that are separate to main road users