Reckless cyclists causing trouble in Catford

http://www.thisiskent.co.uk/Cyclists...ail/story.html

HUNDREDS of cyclists taking part in an annual ride through Toys Hill have
sparked fury.

Residents accuse those taking part in the event, organised by Catford
Cycling Club, of leaving litter strewn along roads, of being abusive and for
not riding with care and attention.

Toys Hill Road is favoured by clubs for its steep climb and descent and its
winding course, where races date back to 1886, but calls are now increasing
for safety measures to be put in place. John Evans, a Sundridge with Ide
Hill and Toys Hill Parish Council member, said he would raise the issue at
the next meeting on March 19.

He said: "Having 1,000 cyclists come rushing down these roads is just
ridiculous."

Mr Evans said a villager had followed a group of cyclists along Toys Hill
Road, where signs show the change from 40mph to 30mph. "I was told they
were doing about 45 to 50mph through the 30mph zone and it only takes a
little child to wander across the road for something terrible to happen," he
said. "Cyclists have as much right as anyone to be using the roads but
they're not following the rules," she said.

"They come over the top of the hill at a crazy rate, three or four abreast,
and we can hear them in the house as they go whizzing past." Helen Aston,
46, of Scords Lane, agreed and said the problem lies with cyclists who
"think they own the road". She said: "My husband nearly had a nasty
accident after a cyclist cut right across him."

Toys Hill PCSO Clare Bournazian wrote to British Cycling to pass on
residents' concerns that more injuries and deaths could occur on the
dangerous roads. John Hawkridge, chairman for the South East Region of
British Cycling, said: "We have taken all the actions which we can to bring
the dangers of Toys Hill to the attention of as many cyclists as possible
and the residents have expressed themselves satisfied with our efforts in
this respect."

"We are happy to take any reasonable action that the police or the residents
suggest but it may well come down to the enforcement of the law or a ban on
cyclists using Toys Hill and both of these are outside the scope of the
action which we can take."

Correction, this is in Toys Hill, not Catford. The problem cyclists are
from Catford Cycling Club.

I wonder if Doug is a member?

"Mr Benn" wrote in message
...
http://www.thisiskent.co.uk/Cyclists...ail/story.html

HUNDREDS of cyclists taking part in an annual ride through Toys Hill have
sparked fury.

Residents accuse those taking part in the event, organised by Catford
Cycling Club, of leaving litter strewn along roads, of being abusive and
for not riding with care and attention.

Toys Hill Road is favoured by clubs for its steep climb and descent and
its winding course, where races date back to 1886, but calls are now
increasing for safety measures to be put in place. John Evans, a
Sundridge with Ide Hill and Toys Hill Parish Council member, said he would
raise the issue at the next meeting on March 19.

He said: "Having 1,000 cyclists come rushing down these roads is just
ridiculous."

Mr Evans said a villager had followed a group of cyclists along Toys Hill
Road, where signs show the change from 40mph to 30mph. "I was told they
were doing about 45 to 50mph through the 30mph zone and it only takes a
little child to wander across the road for something terrible to happen,"
he said. "Cyclists have as much right as anyone to be using the roads but
they're not following the rules," she said.

"They come over the top of the hill at a crazy rate, three or four
abreast, and we can hear them in the house as they go whizzing past."
Helen Aston, 46, of Scords Lane, agreed and said the problem lies with
cyclists who "think they own the road". She said: "My husband nearly had
a nasty accident after a cyclist cut right across him."

Toys Hill PCSO Clare Bournazian wrote to British Cycling to pass on
residents' concerns that more injuries and deaths could occur on the
dangerous roads. John Hawkridge, chairman for the South East Region of
British Cycling, said: "We have taken all the actions which we can to
bring the dangers of Toys Hill to the attention of as many cyclists as
possible and the residents have expressed themselves satisfied with our
efforts in this respect."

"We are happy to take any reasonable action that the police or the
residents suggest but it may well come down to the enforcement of the law
or a ban on cyclists using Toys Hill and both of these are outside the
scope of the action which we can take."

On Fri, 9 Mar 2012 09:46:03 -0000, "Mr Benn"
wrote:

Correction, this is in Toys Hill, not Catford. The problem cyclists are
from Catford Cycling Club.

I wonder if Doug is a member?

I doubt it. Catford Cycling club is for road cyclists. If Doug has
ever been a road cyclist I expect he hasn't for very many years.

"Mr Benn" wrote in message
...
http://www.thisiskent.co.uk/Cyclists...ail/story.html

HUNDREDS of cyclists taking part in an annual ride through Toys Hill have
sparked fury.

Residents accuse those taking part in the event, organised by Catford
Cycling Club, of leaving litter strewn along roads, of being abusive and
for not riding with care and attention.

Toys Hill Road is favoured by clubs for its steep climb and descent and
its winding course, where races date back to 1886, but calls are now
increasing for safety measures to be put in place. John Evans, a
Sundridge with Ide Hill and Toys Hill Parish Council member, said he would
raise the issue at the next meeting on March 19.

He said: "Having 1,000 cyclists come rushing down these roads is just
ridiculous."

Mr Evans said a villager had followed a group of cyclists along Toys Hill
Road, where signs show the change from 40mph to 30mph. "I was told they
were doing about 45 to 50mph through the 30mph zone and it only takes a
little child to wander across the road for something terrible to happen,"
he said. "Cyclists have as much right as anyone to be using the roads but
they're not following the rules," she said.

Is there any evidence, other than annecdotal of wanton or furious
cycling, that any cyclist is breaking any law?

"They come over the top of the hill at a crazy rate, three or four
abreast, and we can hear them in the house as they go whizzing past."
Helen Aston, 46, of Scords Lane, agreed and said the problem lies with
cyclists who "think they own the road". She said: "My husband nearly had
a nasty accident after a cyclist cut right across him."

Toys Hill PCSO Clare Bournazian wrote to British Cycling to pass on
residents' concerns that more injuries and deaths could occur on the
dangerous roads. John Hawkridge, chairman for the South East Region of
British Cycling, said: "We have taken all the actions which we can to
bring the dangers of Toys Hill to the attention of as many cyclists as
possible and the residents have expressed themselves satisfied with our
efforts in this respect."

"We are happy to take any reasonable action that the police or the
residents suggest but it may well come down to the enforcement of the law
or a ban on cyclists using Toys Hill and both of these are outside the
scope of the action which we can take."

QUOTE:


One of the more publicised teething problems of London's Barclays Cycle Hire
Scheme was cyclists being overcharged for using the distinctive navy blue
Boris bikes, and it's now emerged that one user has been wrongly charged
£900, equivalent to £20 a day since the initiative was launched at the end
of July.

According to BBC News, Dave Ward from Colliers Wood, South West London, is
among 14 users of the scheme erroneously charged multiple times for
returning bikes late. Transport for London (TfL) has stated that anyone
charged in error will receive a refund, and Mr Ward has also been given £200
compensation.

The 38-year-old, who works in Westminster, joined the scheme soon after it
was launched and returned a bike to a docking station on Horseferry Road on
8th August, but although the docking mechanism engaged properly, the green
light to signal that the bicycle had been put back didn't come on.

Mr Ward rang TfL and told them what had happened, but they still charged him
£150 for non-return of the bike and his membership key was cancelled.

This happened several more times, and on each occasion Mr Ward called TfL,
the money taken by mistake from his bank account refunded, and his key
reactivated.

Then, on 1st September, the date he had set to be billed for his use of the
scheme, he was charged £900, even though the journeys he made were each
under 30 minutes and therefore should have been free.

The £900 is due to be credited to Mr Ward's account today, while he has
already received the £200 compensation, but despite the billing problems, Mr
Ward remains enthusiastic about the scheme, telling BBC News: "I think it is
a great scheme. It's healthier and cheaper than using the Tube but obviously
there are teething problems."

TfL has apologised for the error and a spokesman said: "We have been assured
by Serco that these members have now had, or are about to have, their money
paid back into their bank accounts, and that they have all been offered
compensation for the inconvenience they have experienced.

"Serco have put in place measures to make sure this issue with their billing
system doesn't happen again," he added.

http://road.cc/content/news/23520-hi...-hes-still-fan

--
Simon Mason

QUOTE:

Cycling clubs from across England are queuing up to book track time at a new
velodrome planned for Derby before a board has even been laid.

Derby City Council submitted a formal planning application for the 250 metre
covered track, which will form part of a £22 million multispsorts complex
adjacent to Derby County's Pride Park Stadium, in January.

Since then, clubs across the Midlands and from as far afield as Bristol have
been in touch with the council to ask about booking sessions, despite the
fact that the track is not due to open for two years.

While the facility in Derby may have a lower profile than the Olympic one in
London or the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome being built for the 2014 Commonwealth
Games in Glasgow, one of the big draws for those clubs, of course, is
location, particularly for those based in Midlands cities such as Nottingham
and Leicester.

Although Bristol cyclists already have a velodrome within fairly easy reach
across the Severn in Newport, too many cyclists chasing too little track
time also means that availability can be restricted.

Peter Pain, head coach at Lincolnshire's Witham Wheelers Cycle Club told
This Is Derbyshi "My main responsibility is to coach the youths and
whilst we have facilities to coach them on closed road circuits, there are
no proper velodrome facilities in Lincolnshire.

"Therefore, I have taken youngsters to Manchester and Newport to train.

"This year one of my youngsters, Peter Cocker, got an invite to attend all
four sessions of the Revolution Series at Manchester - some achievement for
a Lincolnshire club that does not have regular access to a track.

"The new track in Derby will shorten the distances we have to travel and
give other youngsters the opportunity to follow in Peter's footsteps," he
added.

Steve Fuller of S****hrope RC highlighted the difficulty of booking track
time at Manchester, saying: "We welcome the ability to be able to continue
track cycling through the winter and access a closer track, since
opportunities at Manchester are rather limited."

Chairman and coach of local club Sherwood Cycling Club, Craig Watson, said
that the track had long been needed by the area's cyclists.

"There have been no local facilities for track riding except a small, oddly
shaped track at Forest Town, Mansfield, or travelling to Stoke, S****horpe
or Manchester," he pointed out.

"This is why it's important to us in the East Midlands to get a track within
a reasonable travelling distance to use at nights or weekends.

"We at Sherwood CC, along with numerous local clubs, are thrilled that we
will soon have a purpose-made facility for us to use, both for current club
riders and the future Olympians.

"We certainly intend to make use of the track and its other facilities."

The design of the facility, which can be converted to host concerts, puts
the track at first floor level, to make the ground floor infield area, which
will host sport such as badminton and basketball, easy to access. There will
also be a road cycling track outside.

Another local, Chris O'Connor of Newark Castle Cycling Club also highlighted
that the facility would fill a gap and do away with travelling time.

"When the velodrome opens at Derby this will be a godsend to us, for the
younger and older members," he said

"The sports arena also has a closed road circuit on it which means we can
hold races on it.

"All of the Midlands' cycling clubs need, and I would say look forward to,
the sports arena being open from day one."

Philip Hickson, leader of Derby City Council, told This Is Derbyshi
"There has been a lot of interest in the sports arena, showing we are
creating something for which there is real demand.

"I also understand that Nottingham are quite envious of the fact we are
getting this facility," he added.

http://road.cc/content/news/54328-cl...s-its-due-open

--
Simon Mason

On 09/03/2012 16:43, Wriggling Cwispin wrote:
On Fri, 9 Mar 2012 09:46:03 -0000, "Mr Benn"
wrote:

Correction, this is in Toys Hill, not Catford. The problem cyclists are
from Catford Cycling Club.

I wonder if Doug is a member?

I doubt it. Catford Cycling club is for road cyclists. If Doug has
ever been a road cyclist I expect he hasn't for very many years.

"Mr wrote in message
...
http://www.thisiskent.co.uk/Cyclists...ail/story.html

HUNDREDS of cyclists taking part in an annual ride through Toys Hill have
sparked fury.

Residents accuse those taking part in the event, organised by Catford
Cycling Club, of leaving litter strewn along roads, of being abusive and
for not riding with care and attention.

Toys Hill Road is favoured by clubs for its steep climb and descent and
its winding course, where races date back to 1886, but calls are now
increasing for safety measures to be put in place. John Evans, a
Sundridge with Ide Hill and Toys Hill Parish Council member, said he would
raise the issue at the next meeting on March 19.

He said: "Having 1,000 cyclists come rushing down these roads is just
ridiculous."

Mr Evans said a villager had followed a group of cyclists along Toys Hill
Road, where signs show the change from 40mph to 30mph. "I was told they
were doing about 45 to 50mph through the 30mph zone and it only takes a
little child to wander across the road for something terrible to happen,"
he said. "Cyclists have as much right as anyone to be using the roads but
they're not following the rules," she said.

Is there any evidence, other than annecdotal of wanton or furious
cycling, that any cyclist is breaking any law?

Wriggling Cwispin strikes again.

--
Dave - Cyclists VOR. "Many people barely recognise the bicycle as a
legitimate mode of transport; it is either a toy for children or a
vehicle fit only for the poor and/or strange," Dave Horton - Lancaster
University

On Mar 9, 8:23*pm, "Simon Mason" wrote:

Steve Fuller of S****hrope RC highlighted the difficulty of booking track
time at Manchester, saying: "We welcome the ability to be able to continue
track cycling through the winter and access a closer track, since
opportunities at Manchester are rather limited."

Chairman and coach of local club Sherwood Cycling Club, Craig Watson, said
that the track had long been needed by the area's cyclists.

"There have been no local facilities for track riding except a small, oddly
shaped track at Forest Town, Mansfield, or travelling to Stoke, S****horpe
or Manchester," he pointed out.

I have ridden with our club on the Manchester and S****horpre tracks,
so I will suggest to our club chairman that we hire time on this new
Derby track as it is only 90 miles away or so. Knowing him, he will
have already booked it though well in advance.

--
Simon Mason