On Sunday I was driving to Gatwick Airport at about 11am. Using the M25 and M23. There were lots of motorbikes on the road, probably no exaggeration to say hundreds.
The result was close to chaos. There were motorbikes undertaking, overtaking, riding illegally. Many bikes were stopped on the hard shoulder - in some cases for the rider to relieve himself in the bushes; some riders and passengers were doing stretching exercises; some bikes seem to be broken down, which required another 10 or 20 bikes to stop as well.
Doesn't this all tend to indicate that a motor-cycle is an impractical vehicle for a journey of any length?
Where the slip road on to the M23 narrows to a single lane, the traffic was stopped, because of the antics of the mororcyclists.
I write as a former motorcyclist, both in my youth and born-again more recently.
A motorbike is not the solution to traffic congestion.
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Maybe there was a bike event somewhere that would account for the large number on the road at that
particular time.
As for the broken down bikes,well what you see there is the camaraderie that goes with owning a bike.Other bikers will actually stop and help even for complete strangers,unlike car drivers.
Just because there was chaos,as you call it,it's a bit unfair to denigrate bikers in general.
By the same rules,we could ban all public events because of the ensuing traffic jams that always happen at the beginning and end of any event.
I could go on,but I'm sure you get my point.
And yes,for my sins I do ride a motorcycle and pay for the right to do so.
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Maybe there was a bike event somewhere that would account for the large number on the road at that particular time.
Yes, very probably so.
As for the broken down bikes,well what you see there is the camaraderie that goes with owning a bike.Other bikers will actually stop and help even for complete strangers,unlike car drivers.
>>
How many other bikers does it take to help one who has broken down? Many of the people stopped were simply wandering around or standing in group chatting on the hard shoulder. Of course they may have been saying to each other ' Do you think it's the condenser sproket Julian' 'Personally from the noise, I must say I thought it was the giggling pin wishbones' No I don't think so.
>> By the same rules,we could ban all public events because ofthe ensuing traffic jams that always happen at the beginning and end of any event.
>>
No one is suggesting banning anything, I simply feel that they should act legally, sensibly and responsibly .
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I must say I thought it was the giggling pin wishbones'
:^D Fantastic
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I wonder what the effective size of a bike on the road is?
About the same as an artic?
Zebra
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I wonder what the effective size of a bike on the road is? About the same as an artic?
I quite frequently see artics filtering rather than adding yet another box to a queue, so I suppose you're right.
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Effective size means over the entire journey, not just a piece of road of your choosing. I write as both biker and HGV driver, so there's no anti-bike agenda.
Zebra
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Doesn't this all tend to indicate that a motor-cycle is an impractical vehicle for a journey of any length?
My John O'Groats - Lands End run of 2800 miles says no.
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"My John O'Groats - Lands End run of 2800 miles says no".
Although it might point up the difficulty of using a map while you're riding!
;-)
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Tank bag with a clear window in the top soon sorted that!
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...or Tom Tom Rider.......however, it slices a coupple of minutes from my drive to work, it's easier to park at the Office, uses less fuel than the Beemer, has less of an enviromental impact than a car. But it needs to be used responsibly (ok most of the time)
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Yeah, but , 2800 miles?? This horrible little island isn't that long, is it??!
N
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Bikes will travel in groups, i.e. clubs, in groups of 30 or perhaps more, if one needs to stop perhaps 10 or more of the group may stop with him (or her), no problem. It is a good job car drivers do not behave in the same way, it would be chaos.
>>No one is suggesting banning anything, I simply feel that they should act legally, sensibly and responsibly . >>
As with car drivers and any other group in society there is a minoririty that act illegally and / or irresponsibly however that is not a reason to restrict or penalise the majority.
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Hope I never get you as a taxi driver,I assume you went via Frankfurt.
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>> Doesn't this all tend to indicate that a motor-cycle is an >> impractical vehicle for a journey of any length? My John O'Groats - Lands End run of 2800 miles says no.
There you are, confirms my worst suspicions. If you clocked 2800 miles riding from John O'Groats to Lands End, that is completely impractical.
What did you do, go the pretty way?
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What did you do, go the pretty way?
No. Who needs to leave the M1? It's lovely.
If only this forum had a :rolleyes: smiley.
2800 miles taking in the Scotland/Isle of Skye, Wales, and the best bits of Cornwall.
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If only this forum had a :rolleyes: smiley.
I frequently feel that I should put TIC at the beginning and end of most of my posts.
But that would spoil the effect, wouldn't it? Rather like the bloke in the pub who feels he has to say 'just joking' at the end of his contributions.
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But that would spoil the effect, wouldn't it? Rather like the bloke in the pub who feels he has to say 'just joking' at the end of his contributions.
Bloke in pub isn't using a purely text based forum.
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I guess they were all on their way down to Brighton for the day? I used to live there and some weekends it would get chock-full of bikers. The 'end of the summer' coupled with good weather could have prompted them all to head down there, or was there an organised event on?
A motorbike is not the solution to traffic congestion.
I wasnt there to witness it on Sunday, but I would think their behaviour was largely due to it being a weekend jolly; I very much doubt it would be the same if the same number were all commuting to work on a week day. I suppose a few of them got overexcited and rode irresponsibly, but I bet the majority were acting responsibly? Its not very often you see that concentration of bikers in one place, is it.
I was driving in the Peak District on Sunday and saw a lot of bikers but didn't see any problems. Matlock Bath is a similar mecca for them but not in the numbers you get in Brighton. I have ridden bikes a few times in the past, I'm not a biker but I've got nothing against motorbikes.
;o)
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2800 miles taking in the Scotland/Isle of Skye, Wales, and the best bits of Cornwall.
Quite right, any mug can ride on duals and ignore the best roads.
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