https://www.facebook.com/RecyclesIlfordCorps
This bike recycling project is based in the Salvation Army's building at 15 Clements Road, Ilford. They had a sale this morning, so I popped along.
They had plenty of bikes there, but the stock on display was heavily dominated by mountain bikes. The price range seemed to be £70-£120 based on my unscientific sample.
The project teaches disadvantaged people to maintain bikes using workshops on Fridays, when they will also accepted donated bikes/parts.
Saturday, 8 June 2013
Tuesday, 5 March 2013
Gospel Oak and Barking Line train overcrowding
Here, courtesy of Glenn Wallis of the Barking and Gospel Oak Line User Group is an explanation - edited by me - of why it would be difficult if not impossible to have more or longer diesel trains on this line to relieve peak time overcrowding.
Trailer coaches
Just one trailer (ie unpowered) coach added to each unit would seriously affect the performance the resulting 2+1 unit and Network Rail might even levy increased track access charges for the loss of track capacity.
The Turbostar was designed as an all vehicle powered train, so even trailers would require a lot of design work and possibly alterations to the existing power cars as well.
Engine upgrade
There is no diesel engine that meets current EU emissions regulations that can be installed in the Bombardier Turbostar without a costly and difficult redesign which neither Bombardier or Angel Trains are interested in unless there is going to be a big order for the redesigned vehicles.
Leasing costs
TfL do not lease the Overground Turbostars, LOROL do, which complicates matters even more. TfL would have to pay to have the leases transferred to them and then pay vastly increased rental costs to Angel Trains to make it worth their while to pay the high costs of buying 8, or 16 redesigned Turbostar coaches from Bombardier.
Electrification
TfL are now realising that instead of being a 'nice to have', electrification of the B-GO is now becoming essential as the only way to deal with the overcrowding."
Trailer coaches
Just one trailer (ie unpowered) coach added to each unit would seriously affect the performance the resulting 2+1 unit and Network Rail might even levy increased track access charges for the loss of track capacity.
The Turbostar was designed as an all vehicle powered train, so even trailers would require a lot of design work and possibly alterations to the existing power cars as well.
Engine upgrade
There is no diesel engine that meets current EU emissions regulations that can be installed in the Bombardier Turbostar without a costly and difficult redesign which neither Bombardier or Angel Trains are interested in unless there is going to be a big order for the redesigned vehicles.
Leasing costs
TfL do not lease the Overground Turbostars, LOROL do, which complicates matters even more. TfL would have to pay to have the leases transferred to them and then pay vastly increased rental costs to Angel Trains to make it worth their while to pay the high costs of buying 8, or 16 redesigned Turbostar coaches from Bombardier.
Electrification
TfL are now realising that instead of being a 'nice to have', electrification of the B-GO is now becoming essential as the only way to deal with the overcrowding."
Saturday, 23 February 2013
What kind of London cycle network?
Sustrans, the National Cycle Network charity, have started a petition to persuade the Mayor of [Greater] London to create the world's biggest cycle network by 2020, which they have called the London Cycle Network - a name I think they'll find is already taken. It's a nice headline, and the concept of spending less than the cost of a new Underground train is attractive.
I don't think the cycling advocacy community in London is particularly impressed by Sustrans' independent move - apparently there was no consulatation with LCC or CTC, but I'm looking here about what kind of cycle network Sustrans favours, and the pros and cons.
Sustrans favours off-road and quiet routes. The advantage of these is that they encourage new and less confident cyclists. They can, being quiet, be attractive to experienced cyclists too, if they are prepared at a given time to put up with the disadvantages.New off road links can be valid additions to a cycle route network if they shorten journeys (that is do not parallel other routes/links) and ublocking quiet roads is also perfectly valid. These improvememts really come under 'permeability'.
The disadvantages of quiet routes are several. They could be to the exclusion of improving all roads for cycling, they can take people to secluded areas where they may not feel / be socially safe, especially after dark, and they don't equip cyclists with the skills to ride in mixed traffic on ordinary roads.
Intellectually, the 'answer' to this dilemma really depends on how much weight is given to the individual pros and cons of quiet route networks, but I want to make some empirical - anecdotal really - observations. The approach of training people to cycle in general traffic is a good one, but how do you get to people who are not confident, and are (probably as a result) very resistant to cycling on any but the quietest roads? I dis some volunteering with such novices over the summer, and is does seem to me that carefully and slowly conducting them over the quietest of roads to the local park for a less inhibited cycle does have its merits. The location of the participants homes does constrain the scope of rides (severance by A13, A406 and surface railway lines) and this is exacerbated by the fact that some participants had trailers to carry non cycling children.
To see some of the participants in the saddle at these events is to see people that are far off from day to day cycling in mixed traffic. This is based on their self-perception as well as my observation. Many participants were on bikes borrowed from the organisers (Sustrans), so they get to ride basically once a week. Improving vehicle control, strength and stamina is genuinely a high priority for such people, and more than enough to be going on with in the short amount of time that they have available. From these people's perspective, the Sustrans approach of increasing the network of quiet routes makes perfect sense. They are unlikely to go out cycling unaccompanied at all, let alone in the dark. They perceive cycling as a day-time leisure activity.
Who knows if these people might develop into utility cyclists, cycling for transport as they commute or go about their personal business, or do the school run? The cycling they are attracted to is off-road leisure cycling, and Sustrans may well be right to try to tap into that particular vein. It may be the one way into cycling that is most widely possible/available.
I don't think the cycling advocacy community in London is particularly impressed by Sustrans' independent move - apparently there was no consulatation with LCC or CTC, but I'm looking here about what kind of cycle network Sustrans favours, and the pros and cons.
Sustrans favours off-road and quiet routes. The advantage of these is that they encourage new and less confident cyclists. They can, being quiet, be attractive to experienced cyclists too, if they are prepared at a given time to put up with the disadvantages.New off road links can be valid additions to a cycle route network if they shorten journeys (that is do not parallel other routes/links) and ublocking quiet roads is also perfectly valid. These improvememts really come under 'permeability'.
The disadvantages of quiet routes are several. They could be to the exclusion of improving all roads for cycling, they can take people to secluded areas where they may not feel / be socially safe, especially after dark, and they don't equip cyclists with the skills to ride in mixed traffic on ordinary roads.
Intellectually, the 'answer' to this dilemma really depends on how much weight is given to the individual pros and cons of quiet route networks, but I want to make some empirical - anecdotal really - observations. The approach of training people to cycle in general traffic is a good one, but how do you get to people who are not confident, and are (probably as a result) very resistant to cycling on any but the quietest roads? I dis some volunteering with such novices over the summer, and is does seem to me that carefully and slowly conducting them over the quietest of roads to the local park for a less inhibited cycle does have its merits. The location of the participants homes does constrain the scope of rides (severance by A13, A406 and surface railway lines) and this is exacerbated by the fact that some participants had trailers to carry non cycling children.
To see some of the participants in the saddle at these events is to see people that are far off from day to day cycling in mixed traffic. This is based on their self-perception as well as my observation. Many participants were on bikes borrowed from the organisers (Sustrans), so they get to ride basically once a week. Improving vehicle control, strength and stamina is genuinely a high priority for such people, and more than enough to be going on with in the short amount of time that they have available. From these people's perspective, the Sustrans approach of increasing the network of quiet routes makes perfect sense. They are unlikely to go out cycling unaccompanied at all, let alone in the dark. They perceive cycling as a day-time leisure activity.
Who knows if these people might develop into utility cyclists, cycling for transport as they commute or go about their personal business, or do the school run? The cycling they are attracted to is off-road leisure cycling, and Sustrans may well be right to try to tap into that particular vein. It may be the one way into cycling that is most widely possible/available.
Monday, 31 December 2012
Times of Hammersmith & City Line Trains Leaving platform 6 at Barking Station
It would also be useful to know which H&C trains arrive at platform 3.
Pickering Road
Just in case there's ever a moment when parked cars aren't blocking the cycle track in Pickering Road, some posts have been installed sensitively in the middle of the track just to put cyclists off using it.
Tuesday, 4 December 2012
Some c2c trains diverted via Stratford on the weekend before Christmas
http://www.c2c-online.co.uk/travel_information/service_alterations/planned_service_alterations/saturday_22_and_sunday_23_december
The c2c web page explains in full, but to aid shoppers headed to Westfield Shopping Centre, some trains will call at Stratford instead of West Ham, meaning they will arrive at Fenchurch Street later than usual, or depart earlier.
The moral of this story is - plan your journey.
c2c use the term "semi-fast" on this page. They often use this term, but they never really explain it. They don't appear to use the term in their timetable booklet (I searched the pdf version), so how do we know which specific trains are classed as "semi-fast"?
We have a clue, we might think, in that the above linked page points to xx20 and xx50 trains from Shoeburyness as being "semi-fast" (though it is unclear from the wording whether all are are only some). But consulting the timetable, we find that there are four trains an hour during the main part of the day. The xx20 and xx50 trains take 1:03 to get to Fenchurch Street, whereas the xx05 and xx35 take 1:07, but we don't know if these are classed as semi-fast or not.
The direct route Shoeburyness to/from Fenchurch Street comprises 17 stations. The xx20 and xx50 trains stop at 14 of them.
The c2c web page explains in full, but to aid shoppers headed to Westfield Shopping Centre, some trains will call at Stratford instead of West Ham, meaning they will arrive at Fenchurch Street later than usual, or depart earlier.
The moral of this story is - plan your journey.
c2c use the term "semi-fast" on this page. They often use this term, but they never really explain it. They don't appear to use the term in their timetable booklet (I searched the pdf version), so how do we know which specific trains are classed as "semi-fast"?
We have a clue, we might think, in that the above linked page points to xx20 and xx50 trains from Shoeburyness as being "semi-fast" (though it is unclear from the wording whether all are are only some). But consulting the timetable, we find that there are four trains an hour during the main part of the day. The xx20 and xx50 trains take 1:03 to get to Fenchurch Street, whereas the xx05 and xx35 take 1:07, but we don't know if these are classed as semi-fast or not.
The direct route Shoeburyness to/from Fenchurch Street comprises 17 stations. The xx20 and xx50 trains stop at 14 of them.
Tuesday, 16 October 2012
Stidybasa
I have had a bit of a crack at tidying up the events page on www.stibasa.org.uk. The new regular events page has now gone, as I didn't need a separate page now that most events are on meetup.com/hubbub. I hope it's a bit easier to use now!
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