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Benno
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PostPosted: 13:03 - 13 Apr 2014    Post subject: Commuting in London Reply with quote
From tomorrow I will be commuting daily from north London to Mayfair. I have a couple of questions and would be open to any advice.

- Suits and smart clothes, do you wear them under your gear or awkwardly fold them into a rucksack?

- Time - I trialled my route yesterday evening and it took my almost exactly half an hour. How much extra time should I allow for during rush hour?

- Pollution masks. I've been looking into the Respro masks, specifically the "City" and "Techno" masks. Does anyone have any experience with pollution masks, do they make a difference?

And any further points of discussion. Also if anyone has any gruesome stories about commuting by motorcycle in London I'd love to hear them Laughing
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speedy
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PostPosted: 13:26 - 13 Apr 2014    Post subject: Reply with quote
whatever you do gear wise i cant stress enough look for black cabs ahead of you, if you see a side road will a black cab come out of it, if there's a cab in front/ to your right and a person/people walking on the pavement within 300m of you chances are if one of those people raise their arm to scratch their head regardless of whose around him that cab is going to get across to the pavement and stop almost instantly without warning, even when in my car or van i have to be careful with their split second maneuvering decisions
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G
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PostPosted: 13:29 - 13 Apr 2014    Post subject: Re: Commuting in London Reply with quote
I'd be tempted to leave the suit jacket at work and commute in the trousers and shirt/tie.

Biggest issue with time getting through London at busy periods is generally the other bikes, I would say (presuming you're reasonable confident filtering.)
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bamt
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PostPosted: 13:46 - 13 Apr 2014    Post subject: Reply with quote
I leave trousers, shoes, jacket, clean shirt, tie and underwear at work.

I ride in wearing the shirt I intend to wear for the day, and change the rest at work. In case of either arriving in a horrible, sweaty, smelly state (not often since I started commuting at the end of November) or a bit damp (only once) I can clean up and into a full set of clean clothes.

Saves carrying clothes every day, but gives an option for a full change if for whatever reason I need one (also potential useful having a clean shirt generally in case of a coffee/mouth interface issue).
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Charlie
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PostPosted: 14:00 - 13 Apr 2014    Post subject: Reply with quote
Leave trousers shoes at work. Wear a fresh under my bike gear and get changed at work. When I was commuting on my bike it was quite enjoyable, especially when compared to tubes/buses.
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headlamp
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PostPosted: 14:05 - 13 Apr 2014    Post subject: Re: Commuting in London Reply with quote
Benno wrote:
- Suits and smart clothes, do you wear them under your gear or awkwardly fold them into a rucksack?


I wear trousers and put the jacket in the Givi box

Benno wrote:
- Time - I trialled my route yesterday evening and it took my almost exactly half an hour. How much extra time should I allow for during rush hour?


It takes 30 minutes from Finchley to Mayfair, in the rush hour

Benno wrote:
- Pollution masks. I've been looking into the Respro masks, specifically the "City" and "Techno" masks. Does anyone have any experience with pollution masks, do they make a difference?


Waste of time. But wear a face mask to avoid bees, flies etc.

Benno wrote:
And any further points of discussion. Also if anyone has any gruesome stories about commuting by motorcycle in London I'd love to hear them Laughing


Watch out for cyclists who are your mortal enemy. Other bikers will treat you with respect - do be mindful though of pizza/chinese/kebab delivery men on Hondas. They learnt their motorcycling skills in Kaboul where life is cheap.
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G
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PostPosted: 14:07 - 13 Apr 2014    Post subject: Re: Commuting in London Reply with quote
Meant to add - road crafter over normal trousers.

Or some respectable looking kevlar trousers, presuming you've got air con where you're working.
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c_dug
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PostPosted: 14:08 - 13 Apr 2014    Post subject: Reply with quote
In terms if gruesome things I reckon on average I pass the aftermath of three bike accidents a year commuting though London. There are flowers and photos out still on Northumberland Avenue from a fatal the month before last. It's the risk we take.

Can't say I've had many near misses and I'm one of the more daring filterers on my route. Pedestrians is my biggest thing to keep an eye out for, more for their sake than mine.
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Andy_Pagin
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PostPosted: 14:18 - 13 Apr 2014    Post subject: Reply with quote
For travelling time in London work on an average speed of 12mph, that's the low end of the averages I get from Enfield to the city. On a very good day I average 17mph.
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slowlydoesit
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PostPosted: 14:41 - 13 Apr 2014    Post subject: Re: Commuting in London Reply with quote
Benno wrote:
- Suits and smart clothes, do you wear them under your gear or awkwardly fold them into a rucksack?

Hang them up in your locker at work, change at work. Just take in a new shirt every day, rolled gently, not folded. Good quality wool is very resilient, but it needs time on the hanger. EDIT Mayfair... That's HF territory...
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Last edited by slowlydoesit on 16:34 - 13 Apr 2014; edited 1 time in total
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barrkel
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PostPosted: 15:45 - 13 Apr 2014    Post subject: Reply with quote
Andy_Pagin wrote:
For travelling time in London work on an average speed of 12mph, that's the low end of the averages I get from Enfield to the city. On a very good day I average 17mph.

I average between 16 and 20mph going from Victoria Park / A12 to Farringdon Road.

However, I filter like a maniac and traffic lights are just about the only thing that slow me down. I see about 1 bike every 2 months that's faster than me.

A lot depends on your route. If you can find a wide road with a single lane of traffic on either side, you can make good progress down the middle, dodging traffic islands. Likewise, if it's a red route with a bus lane (but watch for pedestrians / cars coming through gaps in slow traffic, and turners into and out of side streets).

If you can find a route with fewer traffic lights (often back streets) it can be a win, but those streets are riskier to overtake cars on, the proportion of turners vs through traffic is much higher.

Avoiding right turns on busy streets, where you have to wait in the middle of a junction for a gap, is also often a win (as well as safer). Often you can do a turn into a side street a little bit earlier rather than further on, or turn right at a roundabout then left onto back streets.

It usually takes trying a number of different routes before you find the best one. Also have some backups in case of road works, there's nearly always roadworks somewhere.
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Benno
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PostPosted: 17:05 - 13 Apr 2014    Post subject: Re: Commuting in London Reply with quote
slowlydoesit wrote:
Mayfair... That's HF territory...


HF? If you mean Hedge Funds then you'd be right, 617 of them.

barrkel wrote:

A lot depends on your route.


Route includes Edgware Road and Park Lane. Filtering on Edgware Road is really difficult because of the central reservation. I don't know of any alternative routes and like you said backstreets may be slower for different reasons.

Quote:
Waste of time. But wear a face mask to avoid bees, flies etc.


Reference respiratory masks. Do they really make no difference? Daily commuting through all that smog can't be good for your health. I have a GSR but can't wear that for a number of reasons so I'm very tempted by the respro masks.

Quote:
be mindful though of pizza/chinese/kebab delivery men on Hondas. They learnt their motorcycling skills in Kaboul where life is cheap.


Good god I have noticed this. Those pesky little mopedistas who drive like maniacs, filter like men possessed, and have only two throttle settings - none or ALLTHEFUCKINGWAY. They are absolutely lethal.

Quote:
I'd be tempted to leave the suit jacket at work and commute in the trousers and shirt/tie.


Would it be a social "faux pas" to turn up to work on the first day and ask if I can leave my smart clothes there in order to facilitate my commute? There are no lockers, it's an office in what looks like a converted house. Every house around there is full of offices it seems. I'm sure there is somewhere I could hang them up though.
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G
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PostPosted: 17:12 - 13 Apr 2014    Post subject: Re: Commuting in London Reply with quote
Do you get your own desk? Would have thought there would be somewhere you could put it.

Saying that, I made a point of not making it clear I came on a bike for the first month or so of my last job - nobody realised until a comment was made about a bike and I responded "oh yea, that's mine" - benefits of big panniers on the KTM meant my road crafter and helmet could be left on the bike. All comes off in a minute or less.
I didn't have a suit jacket or tie, but did wear a shirt and black trousers. Army boots which I kept polished and shiny.
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Benno
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PostPosted: 19:27 - 13 Apr 2014    Post subject: Re: Commuting in London Reply with quote
G wrote:
Do you get your own desk? Would have thought there would be somewhere you could put it.

Saying that, I made a point of not making it clear I came on a bike for the first month or so of my last job - nobody realised until a comment was made about a bike and I responded "oh yea, that's mine" - benefits of big panniers on the KTM meant my road crafter and helmet could be left on the bike. All comes off in a minute or less.
I didn't have a suit jacket or tie, but did wear a shirt and black trousers. Army boots which I kept polished and shiny.


I will have to ask, then, if I can leave my suit at the office. I'm not sure if I'd get away with army boots as normal wear since I'm told people judge a person a lot by their shoes (is this true?) and I'll be working in a place full of very pretentious people. I prefer to hide my strangeness from people for as long as possible but I sometimes end up being discovered eventually. Being pragmatic makes people laugh at first, and later makes them suspicious and begin to ask searching questions. It helps to know how others do things so I can do the same, even if it is less practical.
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Rogerborg
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PostPosted: 19:50 - 13 Apr 2014    Post subject: Re: Commuting in London Reply with quote
I'd go with light textiles over trousers and shirt, smart shoes in the carrying solution of your choice. The jacket is likely to have to be left in the office, so they'll know that you're mad, you are[*] fairly early on.

Once you've embezzled enough money from pension funds and the weather has warmed up properly, consider Hood H2 jeans.

[*]
Benno wrote:
I prefer to hide my strangeness from people for as long as possible but I sometimes end up being discovered eventually.

https://i60.tinypic.com/295fg55.jpg
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headlamp
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PostPosted: 20:05 - 13 Apr 2014    Post subject: Reply with quote
If you can afford them - rubber soled RM Williams boots are 'accepted' wear for offices and you can use them for biking.....
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Benno
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PostPosted: 20:35 - 13 Apr 2014    Post subject: Reply with quote
I'm particularly interested in the respiratory masks. Has nobody else here tried anything of the sort?

https://respro.com/store/product/city-mask
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headlamp
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PostPosted: 20:47 - 13 Apr 2014    Post subject: Reply with quote
Benno wrote:
I'm particularly interested in the respiratory masks. Has nobody else here tried anything of the sort?

https://respro.com/store/product/city-mask


I think I wore a mask in the 90's when commuting on the bike....but basically there are a lot of other things that will kill you before the smog. In reality you should wear one just walking around anywhere in Central London!
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slowlydoesit
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PostPosted: 20:49 - 13 Apr 2014    Post subject: Re: Commuting in London Reply with quote
Benno wrote:
I'm not sure if I'd get away with army boots as normal wear since I'm told people judge a person a lot by their shoes (is this true?) and I'll be working in a place full of very pretentious people. I prefer to hide my strangeness from people for as long as possible but I sometimes end up being discovered eventually.

This is slightly off-topic but I think it's really important not to stand out at all during the first few months, unless it's because you're stunningly competent. Keep your entire wardrobe as anodyne and "normal" as possible. If that means a suit and tie, go to the nearest M&S and buy a suit and tie. If everybody's in Gap khakis and button-down shirts, wear those. This may irk you but consider it an investment in your future.

If you're into tailored suits from Hong Kong together with Emma Willis custom shirts, Borrelli ties and Gaziano & Girling handmade shoes, fine, but don't stun them with your sartorial flair Cool until you've got your feet under the table. Perhaps more relevantly, if you're into battered old leather jackets, Dream Machine helmets, Held textiles and army boots, also fine but again, don't stun them with your sartorial flair until you've got your feet under the table.

People are innately suspicious of newcomers who don't look like them. They pick up on shoes, clothes, the way you stand, the way you brush your hair, everything . And most of the time they're not even aware they're doing it.

That "stranger suspicion" fades with time if they decide you're harmless, so no need to panic and no need to bend over backwards to copy everybody else. Just try not to make waves early on.

Source for this "wisdom", such as it is: 20 years in the financial markets in some very political environments across a number of different firms, making waves and making enemies. Rolling Eyes
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stirlinggaz
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PostPosted: 20:56 - 13 Apr 2014    Post subject: Reply with quote
Hi,
that looks like exactly the same mask i used while commuting around dagenham/essex.
i rated it.
up in scotland i always (well maybe for that 2 weeks when the sun comes out i dont) wear a ski-mask & the air is usually ok.
but darn sarff i would always wear the mask after i blew my nose following a 45min commute with the visor open.(no ski mask due to better weather as i find it can get a bit sweaty) the stuff that came out of my nose!!! & the stuff i hacked up convinced me that wearing these masks can only be a good thing.
cheers,
GAZ
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Benno
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PostPosted: 21:00 - 13 Apr 2014    Post subject: Re: Commuting in London Reply with quote
slowlydoesit wrote:
Benno wrote:
I'm not sure if I'd get away with army boots as normal wear since I'm told people judge a person a lot by their shoes (is this true?) and I'll be working in a place full of very pretentious people. I prefer to hide my strangeness from people for as long as possible but I sometimes end up being discovered eventually.

This is slightly off-topic but I think it's really important not to stand out at all during the first few months, unless it's because you're stunningly competent. Keep your entire wardrobe as anodyne and "normal" as possible. If that means a suit and tie, go to the nearest M&S and buy a suit and tie. If everybody's in Gap khakis and button-down shirts, wear those. This may irk you but consider it an investment in your future.

If you're into tailored suits from Hong Kong together with Emma Willis custom shirts, Borrelli ties and Gaziano & Girling handmade shoes, fine, but don't stun them with your sartorial flair Cool until you've got your feet under the table. Perhaps more relevantly, if you're into battered old leather jackets, Dream Machine helmets, Held textiles and army boots, also fine but again, don't stun them with your sartorial flair until you've got your feet under the table.

People are innately suspicious of newcomers who don't look like them. They pick up on shoes, clothes, the way you stand, the way you brush your hair, everything . And most of the time they're not even aware they're doing it.

That "stranger suspicion" fades with time if they decide you're harmless, so no need to panic and no need to bend over backwards to copy everybody else. Just try not to make waves early on.

Source for this "wisdom", such as it is: 20 years in the financial markets in some very political environments across a number of different firms, making waves and making enemies. Rolling Eyes


This is good advice, thank you.

Quote:
I think I wore a mask in the 90's when commuting on the bike....but basically there are a lot of other things that will kill you before the smog. In reality you should wear one just walking around anywhere in Central London!


That is true but I'm not a believer of the "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger" mantra! Over time pollutants will definitely make me less healthy so I want to take precautions. I'm just thankful that I can avoid the tube now, perhaps I won't catch as many colds. And when Ebola finally ravages London I have a slightly higher chance of surviving and escaping it!
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Benno
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PostPosted: 22:29 - 13 Apr 2014    Post subject: Reply with quote
Westminster parking website won't process my payment for a motorbike parking permit Evil or Very Mad
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luke.r
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PostPosted: 02:26 - 14 Apr 2014    Post subject: Reply with quote
Started commuting last year from Gravesend to Bloomsbury. I guess you're not a new rider like I was, but this is what helped me:

Know which bus lanes you can go in (mostly red routes) and get to know the operating hours of those you can't (some on my routes you can go in 10-4).

Find a convenient parking spot, then find a few more. Maybe not the case in Mayfair, but in Bloomsbury some mornings it takes me a few tries before I find a spot.

Don't really have any problems with cyclists and cabbies are mixed bag in my experience, but I guess this depends on your route.

Looking stupid in a rain suit is way better than looking cool in your 'waterproof' gear and getting soaked. I wish I'd bought one sooner, even though I despise the thing.
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