Cannot believe there are no replies!!

Listening to Gardeners Question Time today - one questioner said that her garden backed onto the Ride London course and asked if the the peace and quiet she enjoyed while the road was closed could be reproduced by suitable planting.

No, was the short answer.

I live in Surrey and my wife, who is a care worker, works in the area affected. The weekend of the Ride London she was at work. Her normal start time is 7 am and finishes at 2.30pm.
I took her to and from work and apart from a couple of small delays we had no problems with the stewards who appeared to be doing all they could to help people move around during the event.
One day a year of inconvenience has been blown out of all proportion by the NIMBYs.

Ok, for some reason I've felt drawn into replying. I'm sure I'll regret it.

You are right, as Byfleet is within a looped section, it was pretty cut-off. Not totally cut-off as there were diversions in place, even if it was the 10 miles you state.

Carers could get to patients no matter where they were. It specifically states that arrangements for carers will be made on request in the event information from Surrey County Council: http://www.gosurrey.info/assets/documents/prudential-ridelondon-leaflet

The same information also continues to talk about the route crossing points on foot/bicycle. So it is unfair to say the route is totally cut-off. It is merely made inconvenient for car drivers/motorised traffic.

Broadly, there are plenty of reasons roads can be shut, be they sporting (running, cycling), cultural (parades, fairs) or (the one that affects me the most as I live in central London) protest marches, and loads of other reasons too.

I didn't participate in the ride, but I did watch it. I travelled out to Surrey from London by train, watched the race come by and had a nice day out, the local community had put on a small street fair and the pubs and cafes appeared to have done a roaring trade, so it can't have been all bad for those on and around the route!

Have you thought of staying over at a friend's house? Or perhaps you could leave your motorbike at a friend's house on the other side of the road closure and simply cycle there?

We've had noisy neighbours in the past. When they've informed us that they'll have a party, we take our kids and stay over at friends. When the Olympics were on last year and all the road closures and Olympic lanes were in operation in the city, we left the car parked in the street and used public transport or cycled. The Olympics did cause disruption but Londoners just got on with things. And as others have pointed out, while the Wimbledon tennis event causes worse jams in an already congested area, the locals just get on with it. When I lived in Edinburgh the thousands flocking to the city every year for the festival caused some inconvenience to us locals by jamming up the available facilities. But the city's inhabitants knew the value of the additional income the visitors brought, just as this cycle event can benefit the local economy of Surrey.

I take the point that other counties could perhaps run events and why not Kent or Sussex too? But I don't see how you can't come up with a simple way to work around this. You have had plenty of notice.

genuine question, have you considered riding a bike to work for that day. You can wheel it along pavements to get around closed roads and then cycle the rest of the way. As a Londoner I have to put up with blocked up/ closed roads for much of the year. A crash on the trunk roads causes all other roads to get blocked. I'm only late for work on a bike if it's sunny.

freespirit1:
I presume you're aware of the Tour of Britain having a stage in Surrey this year as well? Saturday 21st September.

http://www.tourofbritain.co.uk/stages/stage7/index.php#.Uh8UbT9el3s

Just posting this as a warning that once again there will be significant road closures on that day from very early in the morning until about 7.30pm.

Just telling you this so that you might be able to make alternative plans should your home be on the route again.

I try not to watch too much television, but when I do there seem to be a lot of programs dedicated to obesity, lack of exercise along with their health related problems of heart disease, diabetes. Then of course over-reliance on motor vehicles, people killed by motor vehicles etc. Even Jeremy Clarkson is saying that the country would be better if more people rode bikes.
The people in government put on an event that attracts and hopefully inspires 10's of thousands of people...
and a few hundred whinge that they -might- be inconvenienced?
I may live in Devon but I used to live near to part of the route; your 20 mile diversion statement does not add up to me. Or are you saying you would have to push your motorbike 20 miles?

You still sound a lot like a nimby I think you sum up your attitude when you say about the marathon, "It does not affect me so who cares?" I live in Devon so why should I care?
Anyone know how much this event raised for charity this year?

To pick up on this point you made in the previous thread (freespirit1):

Quote:

2. Like most Surrey residents I was extremely pleased about the route being used for the Olympics as a one off and for a rehearsal. At no point were residents consulted about an annual event.

The council (belive it or not) is actually under no obligation to consult it's residents whatsoever - they can shut roads for any reason (well, anything they deem "necessary") without any prior notice at all - it'll be in your council tax info (hiding somewhere in very tiny print!).

As a general rule though, they will notify residents - exceptions obviously include things like major incidents (burst water main, fire, bomb threat etc) but for things like marathons, cycling events, it's usually regarded as polite to let people know - there are however not obliged to ask your opinion at all!

As I posted in that previous thread, I'm genuinely curious as to how many people were actually affected - people who simply had no other option at all? As I mentioned, my Dad lives right on the route of the London Marathon and for one weekend a year, he can't access his car, can't walk to the shops - so he plans ahead and makes alternative arrangements (or buys in his supplies in advance).

Once a year, there's a funfair held on the park opposite my house which causes a lot of noise, a lot of traffic congestion etc. Personally I hate it but I can see the good it does for the area, can see how many people enjoy it so again, I make alternative plans that weekend.

I'm not saying that's an option for everyone - obviously there will be people who can't just jump in a car and go away for a weekend, just curious as to what options there were in place to cater for that?

Not having a go, genuine question - something you might want to feed back to the organisers?

I am inconvenienced for two weeks a year with tennis at Wimbledon and the resultant traffic (the Olympics were even worse with road blocks). Hundreds participate, thousands come and millions enjoy watching it. Sometimes you just have to plan and compromise for the greater good. I know when the tournament will be and adjust accordingly.

people in bath moan about the half marathon *every* year. you've never heard such whining because you can't drive to sainsburys for six hours of one day every year.

You sound like you are saying you might be inconvenienced not will?
I had a road closed near me, (subsidence, which I realise is a lot different) I was awkward especially as it was closed for weeks but meant I had to walk a bit. It was not the end of the world.
Working nights is s**t; I know because I work them, even a minor irritation becomes a major one, but this event has raised thousands for charity and could go on to raise thousands more. I suspect a lot of local businesses are rubbing their hands with expectation
Do people complain about the London Marathon? Or is this just an anti-cyclist thing?