On Apr 21, 11:24=A0am, "Jeremy Parker" <JeremyPar...@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
wrote:
> [snip]
>
> >> Goodness gracious. All this is very un-British. I live, and ride
> >> my
> >> bicycle in London, which seems to be the far-away land that you
> >> are
> >> talking about. London's a pretty good city to ride a bicycle in,
> >> no
> >> need for new laws or conventions.
> >Oh, c'mon. The article was written by a Briton about Great Britain.
>
> As, indeed, was my previous e-mail. As indeed is this one. =A0I can
> look out of my window, right here, at actual London traffic.
I just wanted to know much better was in 1992 when I was there. I
guess that's much better, due to the recent changes introduced.
>
> >I've said your driving laws are very good
>
> Thankyou. =A0I missed that posting, I guess. =A0My apologies. =A0What is
i=
t
> about our laws that impresses you? =A0Are we unique, or do other places
> have similar laws?
No, I was indeed teasing you, but a few GOOD SUGGESTIONS are found in
that article. For example, the 20mph limit on the slow lane makes so
much sense. We would start though by explaining to people there's such
a thing as a slow lane. :)
> >but I trust the
> >writer's statement that cyclists still live under the law of the
> >jungle in London to be right.
>
> Hmm. =A0As one who lives here, and cycles here, I would say that is
> unwise. =A0Cycling is safe enough here that, if you do choose to live
> by the law of the jungle, your mean free path between collisions
> might be long enough for you to get away with it, but it's still not
> a good idea.
Things haven't changed here (Miami) in the last 15 years. I don't
think they ever will. :(
> >How many people ride bike in London?
>
> The should be new annual figures out any time now - watch for a press
> release from Trans****t for London on their web sitewww.tfl.gov.uk.
> Last years figures estimate 480 000 journeys a day. =A0I would guess
> that most people take around two journeys a day, rather than getting
> on the train with their bike to come home again. =A0Whether this
> includes journeys to a train station, I don't know. =A0Most London
> statistics count only the "main leg" of a journey, so riding to the
> station to catch a train might not be counted
How about BIKE FACILITIES? It seems cyclists still must negotiate the
streets. Copenhagen made bike lanes on major streets lately.
> >Anyway, I'd rather ride a bike in London than in places where still
> >the drivers ignore any civilized rules of the road. In America we
> >have
> >to tame the beast first. ;)
>
> Having ridden many miles on both sides of th Altlantic, I would say
> that there is not much in it, though there are, of course, many
> places in the USA where I have not ridden (Chicago, for example).
> Civilized or not - that might depend on your definition of civilized,
> which doesn't always seem to be the same as everyone's on this
> newsgroup - I would say that there always are rules, and when you
> ride or bike, or are anywhere among other people, it's advisable to
> know what those rules are.
I think the most basic rule of the road is LANE DISCIPLINE, without
which the whole road becomes a zigzagging mess. If we don't have that
we are left with the law of the jungle.
>
> >I read the reviews of the book, but I'm sure even bullfighting can
> >be
> >done in a safe way if you know the tricks of the trade
>
> [snip]
>
> The moral of which, I take it, is to know the tricks of the trade.
> Buy a copy of "Effective Cycling"
I'll check into it. But don't forget here's more bullfighting. ;)
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