Why does anyone commute into town centres in cars?

road · 2018-10-16T10:10:30+01:00

I know there's always going to some people who 'have' to commute in cars for some reason or another but it just seems madness after what I witnessed this morning. Luckily I don't work in a town so my commute is fairly rural and congestion is perhaps a tractor in the way but I went into York as I had a early appointment at the hospital and it was just utter grid lock. I was on the motorbike and came off the A64 at the designer outlet to massive queues, down the outside to the front and carried on like that, cutting to the front all the way to the hospital. It was just like a 3 mile queue into town. I'd have never made it on time in a car. I really can't imagine doing that EVERY day and never get that lightbulb moment. All you'd need would be a moped.

This topic has 50 replies, 26 voices, and was last updated 7 years, 7 months ago by Anonymous.

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October 16, 2018 at 10:10 am #29050

road

I know there’s always going to some people who ‘have’ to commute in cars for some reason or another but it just seems madness after what I witnessed this morning.

Luckily I don’t work in a town so my commute is fairly rural and congestion is perhaps a tractor in the way but I went into York as I had a early appointment at the hospital and it was just utter grid lock.

I was on the motorbike and came off the A64 at the designer outlet to massive queues, down the outside to the front and carried on like that, cutting to the front all the way to the hospital. It was just like a 3 mile queue into town. I’d have never made it on time in a car.

I really can’t imagine doing that EVERY day and never get that lightbulb moment. All you’d need would be a moped.
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October 16, 2018 at 8:04 pm #929131
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srchar

huntswheelers wrote:

huntswheelers wrote:
if she was to walk, would take her 10 mins and it’s 250 metres walk from her home

Is she fitted with leg-irons?

October 16, 2018 at 8:01 pm #929129
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srchar

I don’t get it either. I ride

I don’t get it either. I ride into London 5 days a week. If I set off anytime after 7, my 9-mile commute is just one long traffic jam. The motor traffic just doesn’t move. I want to ask them how and why they do it, day in, day out? Mind you, I want to ask the same thing of people who stand at bus stops. Wait for ages in order to board a vehicle that travels more slowly than a bike, usually standing up, in close proximity to other terrible decision-makers. They’re not even cheap.

October 16, 2018 at 7:06 pm #929127
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Anonymous

Question should be, why is

Question should be, why is anyone allowed to commute into town city centres by motor unless they are disabled?

Forcing motorists to choose alternates is the only sure fire way of resolving the problem, taking away the space completely from those that kill, maim and pollute is the ultimate solution.

I believe Denmark are at the forefront of seeing this as the way to go.

October 16, 2018 at 6:37 pm #929125
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huntswheelers

I’m finding more locals are

I’m finding more locals are getting their bikes out as the congestion is getting so bad…. I use my Dutch Cortina bike when whizzing around town for supplies and shopping..my other half uses her bike to and from work, 6 mile round trip from our town outskirts home to the hospital where she works….. the posts on local facebook groups about the congestion lights up every day.

One of her colleagues lives on another new housing estate in the town and if she was to walk, would take her 10 mins and it’s 250 metres walk from her home……no she drives 2 miles and takes 30 mins…. you can’t make it up…. I guess folks are self entitled. Obvs if you are disabled or need to use a vehicle then that is fine, it would be easier for you if many of those who are able to cycle…..actually did so for the good of the locallity, air pollution and the planet

October 16, 2018 at 12:13 pm #929123
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Crippledbiker

My usecase is a bit different
My usecase is a bit different to most people, being a wheelchair user.

I try to avoid driving…anywhere, actually, if I can help it. I’ve done less than 7000mi on my nearly two year old 17 plate S-Max, which I’m actually pretty happy about.

However, there are some scenarios where it’s not really possible to get There from Here via bike safely – For example, it’s technically possible to cycle from Surbiton to Guildford, but good luck actually doing it – double so on a handcycle, where you cannot dismount to bypass certain roads or junctions (though in that situation, I will just behave like a pedestrian because who the fuck is gonna stop me?).
Even when it IS technically possible to get There from Here – some routes are just impossible for handcyclists to traverse, due to barriers, impossible corners, steps…the list goes on.
I used to commute by handcycle from Romford to Euston every day, along CS13/CS3 (about 23mi each way, so, what, 900+mi/mo) – and I would frequently be the fastest thing moving along that route, because the road beside me would be completely stopped with traffic. It was also quicker than taking the train, once I got past the initial “oh dear god why did I chose to do this my arms are falling off” weeks. Less stressful, too, since delays, overcrowded trains etc were all avoided.

The few times I’ve been forced to commute into London via car since moving from there, however, I’ve tended to park near to a CS, get the handcycle out, and go the rest of the way by cycling.

This isn’t viable for a lot of ‘chair users – I’m fortunate, in that I’ve got the ability and the resources to have a clip-on that’ll fit into a car and that I can take on the train, and also maintain a proper road handcycle (that’s 2.2m long, and only fits into larger cars) which I can use for longer routes.

For a lot of people, though, a ‘cycle would serve them far better than a car. It’s going to take a long time for a modal switch to fully occur, and the infrastructure isn’t there – I couldn’t ride my full roadcycle to work if I wanted to, there’s nowhere to put the damned thing. Likewise, there simple isn’t parking and storage for a huge modal shift to happen in most places currently.

I think a greater uptake on e-bikes, a greater availability of secure and well lit storage, and earlier introduction to utility cycling will all be hugely vital components of a shift. I also think that presumed liability will help, as it will help increase the level of risk for drivers who collide with cyclists – removing the onus from us proving that they’re at fault, to them proving that they’re not.
There’s a big cultural viewpoint to get through, and it’s one that I totally sympathise with – having a car does open up a lot of options, and gives you a lot more choice. But for a lot of people, they’d really be better off cycling.
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