Cycling on 70mph tripple wide roads

Dezcore

Mr.Duck wrote:

I am looking for a hybrid on ebay and gumtree. It takes a long time before something suitable comes up. I'm bidding on a 2010 Sirrus Expert (carbon forks and seat stays), but it's probably going to get quite expensive. Not sure how much I want to pay for it or if I should wait for something cheaper like with steel forks.

Add facebook to that list, lots of local buy and sell sections. Got a nice reasonably decent Ribble for only £150 and it was in great condition. I do feel bad for the seller as he was getting shot of it due to a knee injury.

drlodge

I have cycled on 3 lane NSL roads i.e. the A3 around Guildford but I don't do it very often. The A3 is not that bad I think, since it has a kind of hard shoulder where you can cycle out of harms way without the need for drivers to move out to pass you. Its arguable safer than the dual carriage way A31 where the lanes are narrower and cars have to pull out to pass.

The thing I don't like about the A3 is junctions, particularly where the near side lane is a left turn e.g. M25 junction. If its busy, you have to stop to cross, or take the published "cycle path". And has been mentioned before, motorists simply don't expect a cyclist on such a road although I am normally doing a healthy 20-25mph ;-)

arthur_scrimshaw

Mr.Duck wrote:

Death wish? I think it's more like being indifferent to it at the time. Nonchalant.

On normal roads, any car can run you down and crush you. Or take a bend too fast and oversteer head on collision into you (that happened to me as a passenger in a car years ago). So you can't be too scared of every car otherwise how can you commute anywhere? Putting in cycle lane usually makes it worse (forcing you into the gutter and generating abuse from car drives when you are not in it). Taking up a bus lane is all good though. I like that extra space.

While this is true, dual or three lane roads are more risky as some drivers do not concentrate in the same way as they do on single lane roads with side roads, bends and other hazards. They should do but the reality is different, this is why hard shoulder accidents occur, drivers get hypnotized by the boredom of the long stretches of straight road.

chris_bass

I reckon the OP put this up as a controversial topic to get people angry!

but if not, i find some dual carriage way roads a lot safer than single carriage way country roads, to a point at least, there are some that just arent worth it. However, if cars are going along quiet country roads, often with corners that are hard to see round or obscured by hedges etc, and they arent expecting to meet anything then these can pose just as much danger, if not more.

as long as the dual carriageway has enough room for a car to comfortably pass me whilst being passed by another car i usually feel pretty safe on them.

Douglas74

Slightly stressful but best to get right out there in middle of lane and move in as cars / trucks approach to buy yourself space. Have quick glance over shoulder as traffic approaches and make sure to get right back there at the first gap to enforce space. You will get a few beeps but that's fine as they've seen you.
Managed to get to Brighton on A23 and go round North Circular (even eastern section where bicycles not allowed), A40, A12 etc.. all on my one gear bike no problem.

Mr.Duck

Chris Bass wrote:

I reckon the OP put this up as a controversial topic to get people angry!

What? How does this make you angry??

Some people can't drive so well on country lanes, so I'm not sure if they are safer or not. The most common bad driving I've experienced is when a car is approaching from behind, and they maintain a constant speed and overtake me into a blind bend. Then when there is a car coming the other way, they have to suddenly slow right down and end up with their front bumper almost pushed up against my right ankle. Then they overtake aggressively and as close as they can when the road is clear.

Chris Bass wrote:

as long as the dual carriageway has enough room for a car to comfortably pass me whilst being passed by another car i usually feel pretty safe on them.

I've never seen a carriageway with enough room to be comfortably passed whilst being passed by another car.

Douglas74 wrote:

Slightly stressful but best to get right out there in middle of lane and move in as cars / trucks approach to buy yourself space. Have quick glance over shoulder as traffic approaches and make sure to get right back there at the first gap to enforce space. You will get a few beeps but that's fine as they've seen you.

That's not going to go down very well. If it's busy you can't even try that anyway.

patrickf

markhewitt1978 wrote:

IME a surprisingly large number of people think it's illegal to ride a bicycle on a road.

FTFY

dav1

Your only option is to do this IMO

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8wRtCbsYV3s

markhewitt1978

On the subject of cycling on three wide roads, what about the A19 approaching the Tees flyover? Pretty scary at the best of times, But wait there's a bicycle lane painted on road http://goo.gl/maps/dG8ch that's ok then . I'm betting that particular cycle lane doesn't see a lot of use. Except perhaps this morning when there was a major crash right at that spot - no cycles involved.

patrickf

I wouldn't. There are good alternative roads to that one. That stretch is particularly nasty as traffic filters into the left lane for the A66 and right for the A19.

A cyclist was also killed travelling in the opposite direction on the other side of the flyover a while ago.

It's a cycle lane though in the council's eye so they can tick their green box.

Also worth pointing out that at the point where you're expected to cross two lanes of traffic that vehicles are usually already travelling at 50-70mph or so.

Mr.Duck

Wow, that's poor. You'd pick up a puncture sooner rather than later by cylcing in that gutter too. At least they are trying I guess. It's so obviously an afterthought though. For second rate road users.

It would be better if they painted a big, fat, red cycle 'lane' inside the left lane. That way drivers will notice it and shouldn't get caught out.

markhewitt1978

Thing is even to get to that point you'd have to be cycling along this http://goo.gl/maps/3UEB7 doesn't bear thinking about. Cycling on motorways is banned and yet cycling along this road - which is arguably far more dangerous is seemingly not only allowed but by having the cycling signs - encouraged.

Druidor

N.F.W. going on a road like that would be suicidal.

Seen people riding along the A34 near me and thats a dual carriageway with a 70mph. The cars and lorries roar along it with little regard for each other let alone cyclists.

Leave those roads to the tin cans on wheel's.