Imperial War Museum to Westfield Stratford - a safe, fun ride?

All things going to plan, next Wednesday's Pedal Power Kennington ride will see our teenagers riding after school to see the Olympic Park. I suspect the best view will be from the Observation Deck behind the John Lewis store at Westfield Stratford City, the gateway to the Olympics.

Conveniently cycle specific route planners are provided by Westfield Stratford City and by Transport for London. Our starting postcode is SE1 6HZ, the Imperial War Museum.

From the TfL site I chose the Easy option: Mainly quiet backstreets, canals and park routes. The speed is 12km/hr. Here's an extract of the route:

Turn Left Into Whitechapel High Street
Straight Up Whitechapel Road
Straight Up Mile End Road
Straight Up Bow Road
Straight Up Bow Interchange
Straight Up
Turn Left Into
Turn Right Into
Straight Up
Straight Up High Street
Straight Up High Street Cycle path
Straight Up High Street
Straight Up High Street
Turn Left Into Great Eastern Road
Turn Left Into walk your bicycle (230m)
Straight Up walk your bicycle (150m)

And here is part of Westfield's recommended cycle route:
14. Slight right onto Whitechapel Rd/A11
Continue to follow A11
15. Slight left onto Mile End Rd/A11
16. Slight left to stay on Mile End Rd/A11
Continue to follow A11
17. Slight left onto Bow Rd/A11
18. Slight left to stay on Bow Rd/A11
19. Slight right to stay on Bow Rd/A11
Continue to follow A11
20. Turn left onto Warton Rd
Destination will be on the left

Cycle friendly shopping centre? Cycle friendly Olympics? That's what we've been promised. We'll find out next Wednesday when we follow the recommended routes. Gulp.

Enjoy the Jubilee Greenway

I couldn't resist taking a quick snap of the Jubilee Greenway in Lambeth this afternoon, and by coincidence this very evening Crap Cycling and Walking in Waltham Forest posted, in a downbeat kind of way, about the Jubilee Greenway, the feature of an upbeat Evening Standard article today.

This is the official Jubilee Greenway cycle route from Tate Modern to Westminster Bridge (note it includes the Blackfriars Bridge approach which TfL want to make 30mph):

Just after the Tate Modern cyclists follow a different route to the end of this section as the path alongside the river is closed to cyclists. Turn left onto Hopton Street after the Tate Modern and then right onto Southwark Street. Turn right onto Blackfriars Road , heading North towards Blackfriars Bridge, but turn left into Upper Ground just before you cross the bridge.
Pass the National Theatre on the right and head under Waterloo Bridge continuing along Belvedere Road. With the London Eye directly to the right, turn left onto Chicheley Street. At the end, turn right onto York Road. To reach the official end point of this section, follow the road around and turn right towards Westminster Bridge where this section ends. Alternatively, to continue onto section 9, continue ahead onto Lambeth Palace Road towards Lambeth Bridge.

This is my photo of the York Road part today. What a delightful Greenway.

Oops, Oh Bollards!

 The AA to the rescue

I wonder whether this driver will be required to have a medical check and driving retest?

I saw this today on Cornwall Road (London Cycle Network Route 3) at the junction with Stamford Street. The primary school children I was teaching safe on-road cycling to weren't impressed.

And, for the record, they all considered Upper Ground, where they were to turn right into Cornwall Road, to be a very hostile cycling environment. That'll be one of those Olympic Cycling Greenways / National Cycle Networks - stuffed full of big lorries, big buses and belching taxis.

£4m for Thames Path

The SE1 website today reports that Mayor of London Boris Johnson has approved plans to spend nearly £4 million of Olympic funds on works to improve the riverside walkway along the South Bank and Bankside in time for the 2012 games.

I wonder if this funding came with a condition that considerate cycling needs to be permitted along the Thames Path by the respective boroughs and landowners, or is most of the £4m dedicated to improving cycling part of the Jubilee (Olympic) Walking and Cycling Greenway - which is largely on currently horrible A-roads that many families are too scared to cycle along?