Anybody else tried one yet? IIRC Mapmaker was looking for third party cover with a view to having a go.
Abandoned the folder for a day on Wednesday. Arrived at Euston around 13:00 to find the stands in Drummond St completely empty. Fortunately there were still a handful on Doric Way on the other side of the station and after a short wait while SERCO folks were upgrading the paypoint I was away.
The bikes are extremely heavy and have quite low gearing until you hit third when the impression is of having an elephant on tow. Progress is best described as stately. Not quite sure of best technique but my usual ‘ride it like you stole it’ and keep up with the traffic method certainly doesn't work. However everybody gave a wide berth and I got to the office in about 15 mins. Fortunately there were a couple of spaces free in Bream's Buildings but the big problem has been the extent to which bikes are stacking up in the City/West End at the expense of mainline stations and zone 2. Another staff member using one had to return to Charing Cross to find room to drop it off. I think however this will ease as soon as the weather breaks and the commuters bore of the idea.
General verdict is that I'll not be selling either of my Bromptons but that for one way commute days or lunchtime errands to the West End I'll probably be using them thre
|
You mean anybody other than me?
They come with £2m of third party cover, which is probably enough.
The bikes are very heavy indeed, and progress is certainly stately - though I'd imagine (shows ignorance here) that a Brompton must be pretty unpleasant to ride too; there's a reason bicycles have proper-sized wheels.
Third gear should be higher, you cannot go at a sensible speed.
I've not been as far as you have, but I find them excellent for pootling about. Something that would be a 30 minute walk (otherwise undoable by public transport) become a 10 minute bike ride. And I love being able to abandon them, something very carefree about it!
You won't find any in zone 2 as there aren't any...
I would say that bunching is less of a problem than it was in Paris where I happened to be last week, where the bikes were all tied up in the middle of town during the day.
Last edited by: Mapmaker on Fri 13 Aug 10 at 14:39
|
>> The bikes are very heavy indeed, and progress is certainly stately - though I'd imagine
>> (shows ignorance here) that a Brompton must be pretty unpleasant to ride too; there's a
>> reason bicycles have proper-sized wheels.
Alex Moulton solved the problem of the rideable small wheeler half a lifetime ago. Other designers including Andrew Ritchie with the Brompton have built on his foundations.
The Brommy isn't quite as comfortable as my Dawes Tourer. But with a decent Brook's saddle and the six speed wide ratio gearing it's only the handlebars that limit it. If I wanted to tour on it I'd have gone for the 'P' type with butterfly bars for a wider range of riding positions. But for commuting the standard 'ape hangers' are pretty good.
Last edited by: Bromptonaut on Fri 13 Aug 10 at 15:06
|
>>You won't find any in zone 2 as there aren't any...
My comment about zone 2 was based on something posted in a cycling forum. I think what the poster meant was that folks were abandonong the tube at the Zone 1/2 boundary and biking the last mile.
There are hire points near, for example, Kennington, Oval or Mornington Crescent and doubtless around AC's old patch in the west.
|
...that a Brompton must be pretty unpleasant to ride too; there's a reason bicycles have proper-sized wheels...
I don't use my Brompton nearly as much as would be good for me, but I reckon it's a pretty good ride.
I wonder about the ultimate grip from the small tyres, and it says something in the handbook about being careful and not to use it on cinder tracks.
There's no problem bowling along on a hard surface.
Braver - and fitter - folk than I race Bromptons.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lsrg2hX85u8
|
I have been tempted, but I haven't done it yet. The bike stations are very thick on the ground in the posher parts of town. Where we were staying in Islington last week (and will be again) there are two bike stations withing 200 yards, one in each direction. Car parking for visitors is expensive and limited.
The bikes are said to be heavy and are obviously low-geared. They have a Sturmey-Archer type 3-speed hub and dynamo lighting.
A Canadian artist and lunatic I know, nicknamed Fitzcarraldo, and himself a vigorous and aggressive cuclist, hates the bikes being called Boris bikes because he is a lefty and disapproves of Boris. What I wonder is whether he thinks 'Barclays bikes' would be any better.
|
< SPLUTTER - COUGH >
AC! YOU? of all people, on a pushbike?
Of all the mimsing forms of transport A BIKE
< shakes head in disapointment and rips up his AC fan club card >
Last edited by: Zero on Fri 13 Aug 10 at 15:02
|
>> Of all the mimsing forms of transport A BIKE
Heh heh... and being extra heavy and low-geared these are particularly mimsing (there are more and more car-beating cyclists in London, but they wear speedos and ride tall racing bikes).
But don't throw the bits of your fan club card away just yet. I very much doubt that I will get round to it.
Mind you, my walk isn't as brisk as it used to be either. I used to overtake everyone on foot, now more than half of them overtake me. Sometimes I catch myself toddling like someone on the wrong side of middle age. But at least I can usually manage a couple of miles without excessive discomfort. Heard to my horror yesterday or so that a publican of my acquaintance, a most amusing Irishman probably five years or more younger than I am, can't walk 200 yards without getting agonising cramps and leg pains. He's got to have his arteries chopped around. Chain-smoker of course.
|
Well, I did three decent trips (30 minutes each) yesterday. It's a brute of a machine, really, being very heavy and slow.
However... being able to park it without worry, and not having to pick it up from where you drop it, it was a lovely way to pass a summer Sunday. And certainly good for my knowledge of town.
|
Two things about Boris' bicycles:
- is it me or are some of the racks in obscure places?
- is this scheme encouraging people to ride without a helmet?
Discuss.
Alex.
|
>> Two things about Boris' bicycles:
>>
>> - is it me or are some of the racks in obscure places?
web.barclayscyclehire.tfl.gov.uk/maps
>> - is this scheme encouraging people to ride without a helmet?
The scheme makes no value judgements on helmets, that is entirely down to the conscience of the individual.
I'm still in the timeframe whereby I could decide to buy a helmet, so I'm not going to donate the money to charity just yet. (With apologies to BBD! :p )
|
I won't be riding the damn things. I looked at the basic regulations at a docking point the other day. Costs £45 a year just to have access, plus what looked to me rather a steep hourly rate. All just to knacker myself mixing it with hopeless drivers... no thanks. Zero can rest easy and keep his fan club card.
From what I see though the ones in Islington - there are lots there - are quite heavily used.
|
£45 per year for unlimited access, first 30 minutes free.
OR
£1 per day, first 30 minutes free.
They're a delight to use on a balmy summer evening, I've had £45 of fun already...
|
|
Perhaps I skimmed the data too fast and allowed the fines for late return or something to confuse me. Doesn't sound so bad the way you put it Mm. But balmy summer evenings are quite rare this summer.
|
I see a cycle stand besides my office in London. Never seen more than 2/3 cycles are being used at anytime out of 20.
The penalty charges for late return/lost are outrageous.
What if you can't find a free stand to return your bike?
|
Gosh movilogo you are a cheery chap. I suggest you look into the scheme before you slam it thus.
>> I see a cycle stand besides my office in London. Never seen more than 2/3
>> cycles are being used at anytime out of 20.
Either you are at a cycle stand that is not being used, or you're not looking! In my experience, these stands can be either empty or full
>> The penalty charges for late return/lost are outrageous.
Really? Are you in the habit of losing a car or a baby? If not, why lose a bike?
And the penalty charge for late return is a couple of pounds, tops. Most journeys are under 30 minutes - free. Run over that 30 minutes, max cost £1. "Late return" is for "hire" of over 24 hours... that's one heck of a lot of cycling!
>> What if you can't find a free stand to return your bike?
You get another 15 minutes to go to find another, empty stand. The screen at the full stand tells you where to find an empty stand within 5 minutes walk.
Admittely it's not 100% reliable: you cannot rely on finding a bike exactly where you want one, nor can you rely on finding a space at the other end exactly where you want it.
|
>> You get another 15 minutes to go to find another, empty stand.
This is fine when I'm hovering around London as a tourist. For a daily commuter, that extra "find another stand" time is quite costly. I can miss my train (overground not tube) for that :)
|
Access charge is £1 per day per access key even if only one of them is used. So if you've got keys for the family it could be £4 a day. A 'clarification' email on this point has been issued to members today.
I've made a complaint as it's not explicit in the T&C's and I'm fairly sure they've fiddled the website to add data that was not there when I signed up.
Last edited by: Bromptonaut on Thu 19 Aug 10 at 16:20
|
But if you're a family of 4, then £45 covers you all for the whole year.
If you don't like it, send your keys back - do you get a £3 refund, and give up.
|
>> If you don't like it, send your keys back - do you get a £3
>> refund, and give up.
That's an option but I object to the way it's being handled so I'll pursue a complaint first. If the £1 per key irrespective bit had been made clear at the outset I wouldn't be so cross but as they've need to 'clarify' I suspect deepr issues, possibly TfL being stitched up by SERCO.
If it is a cock up and the press get onto it then they're going to be in a tough place!!
|
'Once you've purchased access, you can hire up to four cycles' says the TFL video:
www.tfl.gov.uk/roadusers/cycling/15025.aspx
|
>> Two things about Boris' bicycles:
>>
>> - is it me or are some of the racks in obscure places?
>>
>> - is this scheme encouraging people to ride without a helmet?
>>
>> Discuss.
>>
>> Alex.
I abandoned the eponymous folder for one today just for the fun of it.
Some of the racks are slightly out of the way. Those serving Euston station for example are in Drummond Street and Doric Way - side roads off the main roads runnig up the west and east sides of the station respectively.
As to helmets possibly, but they're of dubious value for utility bikers anyway.
The stands round here (Chancery Lane) are full from 09:30 and, with some movement over lunchtime, only begin to empty again after 16:00. I had to go round to Hatton Garden to dock mine this morning. Interestingly the website suggested that the racks in Bell Yard abd Portugal St, full at 09:50 had spaces again by 11:00. Currently a lot of commuter use - it will be intersting to see how patterns change as the nights draw in and casual usage becomes available.
On the whole a dman good thing but today's issue over multiple keys has the capacity to be a PR disaster.
PS - Moddies might like to merge this with the thread another user started last week!!
|
>> PS - Moddies might like to merge this with the thread another user started last week!!
Hopefully I've found the correct one?
|
|
Regular poster over on Cyclechat puts helmet use at under 10%, personal observation suggests it's even lower. I don't know if there have been any accidents yet but I'd wager the first KSI stat will involve an LGV crush rather than a fall on the bonce.
|
>>Under 10%....
more like under 1%. I have seen precisely two helmets (a couple).
|
In last night's downpour I'd normally have ridden the Brommy to the station and put up with being drenched in order to have the bike in the right place this morning. Instead I left it at the office, took the tube to Euston and picked up a BB on arrival today. And therein lies their greatest value; they actually provide new opportunities for travel.
A commentator elesewhere has suggested that they should be seen not so much as a bike hire scheme but more as a supplement to tube/buses.
And as I had an access period open today I took a bimble round the City in my lunchbreak. Stopped for a sarnie, a walk round Leadenhall market and a closer look at the 'Gherkin' then I've managed before. Then picked up another bike in St Mary Axe and wondered back to Bream's Buildings.
The sarnie cost 3times as much as the bike hire!!!
|
Contrary to advertised, your £45 doesn't get you up to four keys for just a £3 supplement. It's £45 per key.
They even sent round an email suggesting that the double-billing had been in error.
|
>> Contrary to advertised, your £45 doesn't get you up to four keys for just a
>> £3 supplement. It's £45 per key.
There are people on cycling sites who say they for 4 keys for £45+£12 as early adopters. The website and call centre are now quoting £192 as MM says above.
That really does look like misadvertising and one rather hopes that trading standards or the ASA will come down on them. They need to make a clear public statement explaining how they got into this mess.
Oh, and according to todays Stannad casual access is delayed until end of the year. As well as being a blow to non-members turn up & go tourist use would help address the current chronic surplus/shortage that goes with the commuter tide. There is now some very active re-distribution from the busiest docks but its still hit & miss whether you will find space to drop off at 09:30.
More at www.borisbikes.co.uk/
Last edited by: Bromptonaut on Thu 2 Sep 10 at 15:23
|
>>There are people on cycling sites who say they for 4 keys for £45+£12 as early adopters.
You couldn't get any earlier than we did. Still cost £90 and call centre won't refund.
>>www.borisbikes.co.uk/topic.php?id=238
I now see why people are complaining about the multiple keys. That's bonkers. Why would you want 2 keys on the same account if it costs you £2 for one-day hire even if you only use one key???
Last edited by: Mapmaker on Thu 2 Sep 10 at 17:46
|
Bonkers is one of the more polite epithets......
Useless unless you're conjoined.
|
Boris Bikes. - Mapmaker
