Letterin today's (17/4) Telegraph - "Vicious Cycles"

Letter from someone in Sevenoaks about people carrying folding bikes
on trains, and then having the temerity to stand and sweat next to
fellow passengers. Don't quite get his remarks about 4wd's though.

http://tinyurl.com/6mnhdf

Pete

--

Peter Grange

Peter Grange wrote:

http://tinyurl.com/6mnhdf

Letter from someone in Sevenoaks about people carrying folding bikes
on trains, and then having the temerity to stand and sweat next to
fellow passengers

....and about the reduction of available standing space it causes (no
small matter on a London commuter train).

Don't quite get his remarks about 4wd's though.

Reading between the lines, he's saying that some users of folding bikes
are dropped off at the station by spouses in 4WDs ("kiss and ride"
mode), presumably to use the bike only at the London end.

So the sweating (in their particlar cases) should really only apply on
the return journey.

"JNugent" wrote in message
...
Peter Grange wrote:

http://tinyurl.com/6mnhdf

Letter from someone in Sevenoaks about people carrying folding bikes
on trains, and then having the temerity to stand and sweat next to
fellow passengers

...and about the reduction of available standing space it causes (no small
matter on a London commuter train).

No worse than prams, suitcases, any other piece of moderatly sized luggage.


Don't quite get his remarks about 4wd's though.

Reading between the lines, he's saying that some users of folding bikes
are dropped off at the station by spouses in 4WDs ("kiss and ride" mode),
presumably to use the bike only at the London end.

So the sweating (in their particlar cases) should really only apply on the
return journey.


Maybe the person dropping them off is en route to somewhere else so would be
making the journey anyway.

On 17/04/2008 20:12, Peter Grange said,
Letter from someone in Sevenoaks about people carrying folding bikes
on trains, and then having the temerity to stand and sweat next to
fellow passengers. Don't quite get his remarks about 4wd's though.

http://tinyurl.com/6mnhdf

He seems to have missed the point that if the 4x4 wasn't dropping
someone off at the station it would probably be driven all the way to
the workplace thereby chucking out even more pollution.

--
Paul Boyd
http://www.paul-boyd.co.uk/

On 17 Apr, 20:23, JNugent wrote:
Peter Grange wrote:

http://tinyurl.com/6mnhdf

Letter from someone in Sevenoaks about people carrying folding bikes
on trains, and then having the temerity to stand and sweat next to
fellow passengers

...and about the reduction of available standing space it causes (no
small matter on a London commuter train).

Don't quite get his remarks about 4wd's though.

Reading between the lines, he's saying that some users of folding bikes
are dropped off at the station by spouses in 4WDs ("kiss and ride"
mode), presumably to use the bike only at the London end.

So the sweating (in their particlar cases) should really only apply on
the return journey.

My Brompton fits nicely in the gap between seats on the 321s on the
WCML. The 350s are much worse (fewer seats, less standing room, no
baggage space), and from memory the Electrostars on the fast Sevenoaks
trains are the same.

Personally I use my Brompton to get to work as its faster and cheaper
than the tube, and the tube is dangerously overcrowded at Euston in
the morning anyway. Perhaps Mr Pyle would prefer the brompton wielders
took up space on the tube. From memory the Jubilee line at London
Bridge is rather bad.

Additionally, I wonder if he has the same problem with suitcases?

On 17 Apr, 22:24, Paul Weaver wrote:

Additionally, I wonder if he has the same problem with suitcases?

How many oily suitcases with sharp sticky-out bits have you seen?

Ian

The Real Doctor wrote:
On 17 Apr, 22:24, Paul Weaver wrote:

Additionally, I wonder if he has the same problem with suitcases?

How many oily suitcases with sharp sticky-out bits have you seen?

How many Bromptons which have been modified to fold the opposite way
round from the factory original have you seen?

--
JimP
Crosspost deleted.

Peter Grange wrote:
Letter from someone in Sevenoaks about people carrying folding bikes
on trains, and then having the temerity to stand and sweat next to
fellow passengers. Don't quite get his remarks about 4wd's though.

http://tinyurl.com/6mnhdf

Pete

He assumes people ride bikes in London for environmental reasons. I
actually don't know anyone who rides a bike for that reason. Mainly they
do it to save time, convenience and exercise.

On 17/04/2008 21:57, Paul Boyd wrote:
He seems to have missed the point that if the 4x4 wasn't dropping
someone off at the station it would probably be driven all the way to
the workplace thereby chucking out even more pollution.

I think as far as he's concerned they wouldn't then be taking space in
his train carriage, so they wouldn't be his problem.

--
Danny Colyer http://www.redpedals.co.uk
Reply address is valid, but that on my website is checked more often
"The plural of anecdote is not data" - Frank Kotsonis

Adam Lea wrote:
"JNugent" wrote:
Peter Grange wrote:

http://tinyurl.com/6mnhdf

Letter from someone in Sevenoaks about people carrying folding bikes
on trains, and then having the temerity to stand and sweat next to
fellow passengers

...and about the reduction of available standing space it causes (no small
matter on a London commuter train).

No worse than prams, suitcases, any other piece of moderatly sized luggage.

That's true.

But you don't actually get many of any of those on a commuter train, either.

Don't quite get his remarks about 4wd's though.
Reading between the lines, he's saying that some users of folding bikes
are dropped off at the station by spouses in 4WDs ("kiss and ride" mode),
presumably to use the bike only at the London end.
So the sweating (in their particlar cases) should really only apply on the
return journey.

Maybe the person dropping them off is en route to somewhere else so would be
making the journey anyway.

I'm not criticising it!