My own little survey (brace yourself)

downfader

Last week I rode the bus into work. Each day I took down notes on the other cyclists I saw to see how many were on the pavement, how many with no lights and how many legal. If the letters to the local paper were to be beleived then 90% of cyclists were riding with no lights and on the pavement.

Sadly I was restricted in the times I could note down details, but I found there were a few cyclists between 6.40 and 7.30am at this time of year.

Here are my (limited) results:
Mon - 4 pavement 12 road (all lit up)
Tues - 3 pavement, 20 road (2 no lights)
Weds - 4 and 18 (3 no lights)
Thurs - 3 and 15 (2 no lights in bad weather and low vis)
Fri - 3 pavement and 11 road (no results for lights as I didnt get a chance to record in the morning so this was from daylight)

Out of a total of 93 cyclists (I think) 17 rode on the pavement. Thats 18% of the cyclists I saw, and at that time no real reason to be on the pavement. 8% rode with no lights in the dark (from from mon-thurs).

I feel like doing some more serious surveys now... Anyone else done stuff like this out of curiosity, or am I just a number junkie?

girv73

I haven't done it myself, but I might now

whyamihere

Monday - No cyclists.
Tuesday - No cyclists
Today - No cyclists.

Does anyone but me ride a bike in Birmingham?

downfader

whyamihere wrote:

Monday - No cyclists.
Tuesday - No cyclists
Today - No cyclists.

Does anyone but me ride a bike in Birmingham?

LOL!!! You're the last man standing, matey!

I haven't done it myself, but I might now

8)

Slow Downcp

whyamihere wrote:

Monday - No cyclists.
Tuesday - No cyclists
Today - No cyclists.

Does anyone but me ride a bike in Birmingham?

I occasionally use the bike to commute, plan to do so more this year. I often see the same 6 or so cyclists doing the same journey every day, through Queslett, down Aldridge Road, and into town past the dog track and A34.

always_tyred

My commuting options are the bike or the train. Neither too good for surveying other cyclists (when I'm cycling I@m too busy).

The only two cyclists I see on the train are guys who can't manage the 5 mile direct route into town. Both have lights. One consistently rides out of the station in the evenings on the footpath, ringing his friendly bell to get the pedestrians to move out of his way. I want to slap him and tell him to use the perfectly serviceable roads that add about 200m to his journey.

girv73

Quick survey of my ride in this morning:

Doin' it right: 4
Doin' it rong: 1 (pavement rider, but with lights)

Not counting me. And all going in the opposite direction, so no scalpings.

Not sure this is representative though as I think I'd normally see a few more pavement jockeys, but the weather was grotty today so I suspect they are all hiding and only the hardcore "proper" cyclists who know what to do are out. And me.

highwaymunky

Today 2 cyclists - on the way to work
Yesterday (2 on the way to work, 4 on the way home) = 6

Average I see 3 - 4 per day

One never has lights/helmet on

One has loads of lights and a huge high viz jacket.... he must sweat some, he even wears it in the summer!

Others are pure roadies, with lights.

Plus the occasional kid on a BMX doing his paper round.

ellieb

Don't forget that your survey may be recording the same people day after day, so it doesn't necessarily represent 93 individual cyclists.

pst88

whyamihere wrote:

Monday - No cyclists.
Tuesday - No cyclists
Today - No cyclists.

Does anyone but me ride a bike in Birmingham?

Haha! I was thinking the same thing! I either ride through Harbourne and down Broad Street or through Cannon Hill park and Pershore Road depending on whether I'm coming from my house or my girlfriend's house. Sometime between 9 and 9:30 in the mornings, rarely see other cyclists, maybe one or two.

prawny

whyamihere wrote:

Monday - No cyclists.
Tuesday - No cyclists
Today - No cyclists.

Does anyone but me ride a bike in Birmingham?

Me! (on occasion) which direction you goin and where to?

I live in hednesford and work on great charles street

prawny

Slow Downcp wrote:

whyamihere wrote:

Monday - No cyclists.
Tuesday - No cyclists
Today - No cyclists.

Does anyone but me ride a bike in Birmingham?

I occasionally use the bike to commute, plan to do so more this year. I often see the same 6 or so cyclists doing the same journey every day, through Queslett, down Aldridge Road, and into town past the dog track and A34.

That's the end of my route! Do you ride a rapid hybrid hybrid and turn off the main road after the beacon?

chuckcork

I reckon a similar survey taken in Richmond park would be interesting. In there last night and the number of riders with no lighting, or lights so pathetically dim as to be totally useless, was rather worrying, given that:

a)there was no moon, and no cloud to reflect street lighting into the park so was pitch black justabouts;
b)there are quite a few points where you can build up a fair bit of speed;
c)deer don't know they shouldn't be in the road, have dark pelts (fur?) dark and don't come with lights;
d)quite a number of the runners I see aren't wearing any lights either, and reflectives are no good if they have nothing to reflect!

An accident waiting to happen really....

biondino

I might do an RLJ survey if I find myself with a large amount of time.

Slow Downcp

prawny wrote:

Slow Downcp wrote:

whyamihere wrote:

Monday - No cyclists.
Tuesday - No cyclists
Today - No cyclists.

Does anyone but me ride a bike in Birmingham?

I occasionally use the bike to commute, plan to do so more this year. I often see the same 6 or so cyclists doing the same journey every day, through Queslett, down Aldridge Road, and into town past the dog track and A34.

That's the end of my route! Do you ride a rapid hybrid hybrid and turn off the main road after the beacon?

I haven't commuted on the bike yet this year - plan to ressurrect an old Raleigh the next week or so and start using that. To be honest I find it a bit "life in your own hands" experience, so don't do it as often as I should. I'm riding from Brownhills, so ride out through Aldridge, over the Beacon, down to Queslett and then the route as described (and the opposite coming back).

What route you take (and time)?

prawny

I ride from hednesford through norton canes, pelsall, up daw end lane then over the beacon I guess our routes cross by the aldridge maccies.

The total route is 19.8 miles ( I call it 20) and it takes about an hour and 25 mins to get home (uphill). I get the train in the morning at the mo beacuse I've only just started riding again but my best in the morning in about an hour and 20 but I had to keep stopping to clean the rain off my glasses.

I don't find the traffic too bad TBH. I leave the office at 5, if I'm riding in I try and get here before 8.30

Slow Downcp

Yep - at the bottom of the drag up to the Beacon. Like you say though - it as all uphill coming back!

prawny

It gets worse again after norton my house is slightly higher than the beacon so I have to do it all over again in the last mile

I've been trying to tell the mrs we can afford to move a bit closer to the city great barr maybe :P

Slow Downcp

What bike do you ride?

prawny

I've just got a Boardman Road Comp which is lovely and I've got an Older Saracen MTB which I used to start riding again.

I love the speed but my wrists miss the suspension forks and my 4rse misses 2.1 tyres,
how bad is the road past Aldridge airport and how long has that been there!!

whyamihere

I avoid the Beacon because it's too climby. Head from Brownhills along Chester Road, turn right onto Banners Gate Road, through Kingstanding and Perry Barr into the city centre, through Digbeth, onto Pershore Road then cut up onto the A38 to Birmingham uni.

pst88 - there's a good chance I may have seen you some time, but on a fixie in baggies I wouldn't know it because you'd look like any number of students...

prawny

whyamihere

have you got the route on bikely or similar? I'd like to avoid the beacon but don't know the roads around these ere parts

whyamihere

http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/242496

Not sure where in Norton Canes you are, but if you head onto Brownhills Road in Norton East off Hednesford Road, you can get onto Chester Road at the Rising Sun Island and into Brownhills, then just ride along the High Street and up the hill and you'll be onto my route.

prawny

Thank you sir, I may give that a whirl next week.

downfader

ellieb wrote:

Don't forget that your survey may be recording the same people day after day, so it doesn't necessarily represent 93 individual cyclists.

Already took that into account... 3 cyclists were seen every day, the others I didnt recognise. I spose what it does show is consistency, and as I said its pretty limited really. I now plan on doing a more thorough one when I get the chance (was fleshing out what I'll possibly record this morning on me break)

MrChuck

whyamihere wrote:

Monday - No cyclists.
Tuesday - No cyclists
Today - No cyclists.

Does anyone but me ride a bike in Birmingham?

I do! I'm a postgrad student so there are always a few round Uni, but apart from Cannon Hill park if I'm there at the right time I rarely see anyone either.

whyamihere

MrChuck wrote:

whyamihere wrote:

Monday - No cyclists.
Tuesday - No cyclists
Today - No cyclists.

Does anyone but me ride a bike in Birmingham?

I do! I'm a postgrad student so there are always a few round Uni, but apart from Cannon Hill park if I'm there at the right time I rarely see anyone either.

Not counting the ones I see on campus, because I've never seen anyone other than me actually use the campus roads properly...

Dudu

Always Tyred wrote:

My commuting options are the bike or the train. Neither too good for surveying other cyclists (when I'm cycling I@m too busy)..

Me too. Apart from which, I'm heading out of town in the morning and in in the evening, so most of the other cyclists are too far away to count on the other side of the road behind two or three lanes of motor traffic (except on the Clapham Common cycle lane, where my sample suggests many riders have a death wish, judging by the number with weedy lights or none at all who ride on the wrong side of the path).

Slow Downcp

Never been keen on the Chester Road - had a few near misses in the past. I know what you mean about the Beacon though! At least going that way it's just the quick blast up Longwood Road, and then pretty much downhill for the next 4 miles :-)

Prawny - Sounds like you;d be travelling the same time as me. I work by Small Heath just off the A45, and if I cycle in try to get there between 8.30 and 8.45. Leave at 5, so would be going over the Beacon at about 5.45ish. I'll give you a shout when you pass me!

prawny

Pah!!

I'll keep an eye out for you, could be a chance for a little bit of SCR, I got done good and proper last week when I nearly missed the turn off for the aldridge road (again), i had to sketch across the hatchings & gravel :shock:

whyamihere

Slow Downcp wrote:

Sounds like you;d be travelling the same time as me. I work by Small Heath just off the A45, and if I cycle in try to get there between 8.30 and 8.45. Leave at 5, so would be going over the Beacon at about 5.45ish. I'll give you a shout when you pass me!

:shock: 3 hours to Small Heath?