Lets violate the Olympic lanes

jds_1981

A contributor to that guardian page comments

I just called the TfL Games Lanes hotline (0843 222 1234) and was told they are planning to impound bicycles from those unable or unwilling to stump up the £130 fine.

From the article

The Environmental Transport Association (ETA) has looked into the regulations on the "Games lanes" – the 30 miles of road in central London exclusively reserved for use during the event by the "Games family" of athletes, officials and sponsors – and found that 95% will be off-limits to cyclists.

il_principe

rjsterry wrote:

Rick Chasey wrote:

rjsterry wrote:

In short: find another route.

So what's the new embankment going to be? :twisted:

Nine Elms is out as well I think. CS7? It's hectic at the best of times :?

9 Elms is never busy, hoping it stays that way.

rick_chasey

jds_1981 wrote:

A contributor to that guardian page comments

I just called the TfL Games Lanes hotline (0843 222 1234) and was told they are planning to impound bicycles from those unable or unwilling to stump up the £130 fine.

]

Borris bike :twisted:

rubertoe

Its basically going to be chaos! A lot of my commute will be on the ORN and I am not looking forward to it at all, saying that I'll be getting to work for 6 so the morning wont make much difference, but the 2pm commute home will be a nightmare especially with all the "couriers" that seem to stop on my route.

rjsterry

Il Principe wrote:

rjsterry wrote:

Rick Chasey wrote:

rjsterry wrote:

In short: find another route.

So what's the new embankment going to be? :twisted:

Nine Elms is out as well I think. CS7? It's hectic at the best of times :?

9 Elms is never busy, hoping it stays that way.

York Rd, BPR and Nine Elms are all part of the ORN

Headhuunter

ORN and PRN lanes don't seem to affect my commute or any of my regular rides in London at all.... 8)

ToeKnee

"Games Lanes ... 95% will be off-limits to cyclists."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/b ... s-cyclists

bails87

I'm also suprisingly unaffected by the ORNs.

EKE_38BPM

How exactly are they going to stop cyclists?
Physical barriers:
Bollards?

Railings?

Cones and tape?

Crowd barriers?

Armco?

Walls?

Roaming Technicals?

walkingbootweather

Don't joke about it EKE,

These

have already been deployed in Blackheath and Tower Hamlets :shock:

rick_chasey

walkingbootweather wrote:

Don't joke about it EKE,

These

have already been deployed in Blackheath and Tower Hamlets :shock:

Had a chat with someone who's job is to know about this kind of thing (but not this specific thing), and he suggested the fact that a) it's been well publicised and we know EXACTLY where they are and b) Cameron himself has to give permission for them to be used, that they're a very public show that the govt is taking the threat of terrorism very seriously, rather than a proper serious line of defence.

If they were, we'd probably not know about them.

99Problemos

More to the point, how are TfL going to impound cycles (other than from their hire scheme) anyway? How can they keep track of them once impounded? Do they seriously expect people just to hand their machines over?

Paul E

From the traffic on the embankment this morning and how I actively had to take primary to avoid being squashed I can see a lot of frustrated drivers for a few weeks.

The thick white line looks like it would be very slippy in the wet too

bromyG

+1 - it already feels crowded in places along the Embankment and they haven't closed the Olympic lane to traffic yet!

The thick white lane line and other black patches covering the old road markings seem to be made of a vinyl material and just stuck on - so yes, it could be very slippy in the wet

Brakeless

99Problemos wrote:

More to the point, how are TfL going to impound cycles (other than from their hire scheme) anyway? How can they keep track of them once impounded? Do they seriously expect people just to hand their machines over?

As I understand it Non payment of a Fine is a criminal offence.

Punishment for a criminal offense is given by a court.

TFL have no legal right to impound your bike as a punishment whatsoever.

I'm sure someone with more legal knowledge than me will correct this if I'm wrong.

Paul E

bromyG wrote:

+1 - it already feels crowded in places along the Embankment and they haven't closed the Olympic lane to traffic yet!

The thick white lane line and other black patches covering the old road markings seem to be made of a vinyl material and just stuck on - so yes, it could be very slippy in the wet

I noticed the patches on the run down and up then into the blackfriars underpass, I stayed clear of them anyway.

It's going to be gridlock, it's already close to it and they are taking 50% of the road volume away

rick_chasey

Brakeless wrote:

99Problemos wrote:

More to the point, how are TfL going to impound cycles (other than from their hire scheme) anyway? How can they keep track of them once impounded? Do they seriously expect people just to hand their machines over?

As I understand it Non payment of a Fine is a criminal offence.

Punishment for a criminal offense is given by a court.

TFL have no legal right to impound your bike as a punishment whatsoever.

I'm sure someone with more legal knowledge than me will correct this if I'm wrong.

Judging by what else has happened with the olympics, I'd suggest anything olympic related probably doesn't come under normal law.

phy2sll2

http://www.guardian.co.uk/discussion/comment-permalink/17084429

Quality comment:

"When it comes to the games i think we've been labouring under a misapprehension: We thought we were hosts like the queen is at a posh garden party, when actually we're hosts in the way that John Hurt is in Alien."

rjsterry

Paul E wrote:

bromyG wrote:

+1 - it already feels crowded in places along the Embankment and they haven't closed the Olympic lane to traffic yet!

The thick white lane line and other black patches covering the old road markings seem to be made of a vinyl material and just stuck on - so yes, it could be very slippy in the wet

I noticed the patches on the run down and up then into the blackfriars underpass, I stayed clear of them anyway.

It's going to be gridlock, it's already close to it and they are taking 50% of the road volume away

The patches are actually all bumpy for increased... err... grip.

jds_1981

I guess if the roads are too congested for filtering you could always get off and push your bikes along the route.

daviesee

Remind me again.
What is so great about living and working in London?
Ha ha ha ha .....


Sorry. Bad boy. Slow day at work, network issues so nothing better to do..........

Origamist

99Problemos wrote:

More to the point, how are TfL going to impound cycles (other than from their hire scheme) anyway? How can they keep track of them once impounded? Do they seriously expect people just to hand their machines over?

AFAIK, TFL will not be impounding bicycles. The enforcement along the Games Lanes is being handled by CEOs (Civil Enforcement Officers) and they do not have the power to detain transgressors (although I suspect the Met might well be around to back them up, like they do for TFL Revenue Protection types).

If I were overtaking traffic using a Games Lane and a CEO instructed me to stop, I would be minded to cycle past with a cheery wave. If a Met Officer and a CEO pulled me over, I'd comply and plead ignorance. With a bit of luck, I would just be advised against using the Games Lanes in future and not be hit with a £130 PCN.

All that said, I intend to avoid the ORN at all costs...

el_presidente

Don't carry ID and just give them a false address

that will be my policy. Fight the Power

roger_merriman

daviesee wrote:

Remind me again.
What is so great about living and working in London?
Ha ha ha ha .....


Sorry. Bad boy. Slow day at work, network issues so nothing better to do..........

this is my commute.


will get busy during TT/road race though I suspect most will not wander far from the route.

daviesee

roger merriman wrote:

this is my commute.

will get busy during TT/road race though I suspect most will not wander far from the route.

Thats not exactly the Embankment but nice of you to play.
Networks back up so I don't have much time now anyway.
Was looking forward to getting paid to watch Le Tour.

Applespider

Yes - I saw my first Games lane today in a road that I didn't think had any according to the map I'd seen. Still, it's a nearside Games + buses lane so I will be staying in it!

I'm volunteering at the Games so was pretty gung-ho for it all until today when they changed a rehearsal time for Saturday night. Which is fine except now I can't go to Hard Rock Calling at Hyde Park and see Bruce Springsteen. Grrrr! And not great notice for trying to sell the darned tickets either now!

el_presidente

Applespider wrote:

Yes - I saw my first Games lane today in a road that I didn't think had any according to the map I'd seen. Still, it's a nearside Games + buses lane so I will be staying in it!

I'm volunteering at the Games so was pretty gung-ho for it all until today when they changed a rehearsal time for Saturday night. Which is fine except now I can't go to Hard Rock Calling at Hyde Park and see Bruce Springsteen. Grrrr! And not great notice for trying to sell the darned tickets either now!

Nice of you to volunteer for Coca Cola and McDonalds, shame they can't afford to pay people but there you go. I would tell them to stick their rehearsal and go to Springsteen if I were you.

greg66_tri_v2.0

Dear oh dear. This thread is pulling out the Jeremiahs by the bucketload.

I was at the Olympics two years ago, and spoke beforehand to a number of Vancouverites who were similarly resentful, dismissive and generally a bit whiney. The city did not implode; nor did it grind to a halt, and all those who had not been looking forward to it thoroughly enjoyed it.

Perhaps a dose of "wait and see" is in order.

Paul E

Greg66 wrote:

Dear oh dear. This thread is pulling out the Jeremiahs by the bucketload.

I was at the Olympics two years ago, and spoke beforehand to a number of Vancouverites who were similarly resentful, dismissive and generally a bit whiney. The city did not implode; nor did it grind to a halt, and all those who had not been looking forward to it thoroughly enjoyed it.

Perhaps a dose of "wait and see" is in order.

Vancouver is not London, not by a long shot, they have tried to shoe horn in all the infrastructure into a city that had very little capacity left.

rjsterry

Greg66 wrote:

Dear oh dear. This thread is pulling out the Jeremiahs by the bucketload.

I was at the Olympics two years ago, and spoke beforehand to a number of Vancouverites who were similarly resentful, dismissive and generally a bit whiney. The city did not implode; nor did it grind to a halt, and all those who had not been looking forward to it thoroughly enjoyed it.

Perhaps a dose of "wait and see" is in order.

Quite. Some seem to want it to be a disaster, just so that they can wallow in "I told you so'. As to the use of the lanes, given that we as a group get pretty uppity with non-cyclists abusing cycle lanes and ASLs, is it not a tad hypocritical to thumb our noses at the ORN regulations?