Sunday 11 April 2010

They put up a sign and called it a cycle route






















Isn't that blue sign on the left lovely? It designates this cycling-hostile street as a cycle route. Which is a sick joke. The street - Northcote Road E17 - is lined with parked cars on both sides. Which means that a cyclist either has an impatient driver behind them, itching to squeeze past, or is faced by a psychopath driving towards her on the cyclist's side of the road, who doesn't understand that the cyclist has the right of way. To add to the fun there are rubber speed cushions down the middle of the road, encouraging drivers to make erratic swerves to try and avoid them. The London Cycling Campaign gives prizes to the Council for routes like this, part of the award-winning '20 miles of quiet routes'.