As I have a family member who lives in Southampton, it was about time. I had a look to see what the cycling infrastructure was like.
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33 Comments
Hello mate is that jacket one of them ones that gets super bright when a light is shined on it (the grey parts) if so were u get it from
12:22 is what using the road is all about. No rushing by anyone, everyone looking out for each other and so simply done that it cleared quicker than it happened 👏
Thanks Ashley
No infrastructure, no problem.
Looking forward to watching this 24 min video soon. I remember you mentioning you visit family in Southampton. As per also the video description. Hope you get to make it to the Beaulieu Motor Museum and grounds at some point. Better in Spring and Summer of course. Similarly for the surrounding New Forest. I have very happy memories of visiting the area each year with my very dear Mum.
Interested seeing you ride across our fair city. You almost passed the test centre, in Green Lane off the Romsey Road, and actually it would have been better to cycle through the Millbrook estate and pick up the cycle lanes on the main road (Mounbatten Way) into the city. When arriving at St. Mary's it would have been helpful if you had brought your football boots, and signed on for the Saints? (Let's face it, they couldn't do any worse?)
So Glad you mentioned drivers getting triggered when filtering. Tonight at stationary traffic I filtered offside and onside up towards traffic lights, I stopped in front of a Merc 300 CLA and he was triggered by this, he aggressively close passed me from a standing start, So when the traffic stopped again I filtered past him again. He was very unhappy to say the least and when the lights turned red he was revving and revving so I took primary as its a cross junction and a lot of road narrowing's he tanked past me and brake checked me several times. Alas I never had my camera on me. He also tried to run me into traffic lights on a narrowing of the road. I had to stop and wait till he had his little hissy fit but soon as I took out my phone to call the police he veered off and sped away.
The thing is its Friday and heavy traffic, he had no concerns to my safety what so ever, and people wonder why my bike has cameras front and rear.
Stay safe out there and always stay well back from screw drivers.
Love your cycling vlogs ashley. Something particularly satisfying about never seeing a speck of trouble follow you around during your rides! 😂😂
Easy done Ash roads look great for cycling there but the actual ring road can be a bit mental in the summer with peeps heading to/from the ferries, Do you not fancy cycling round the Isle of Wight?
I don't see the use of arm signals, am I mistaken that they are not necessary?
The really surprising part is the route you took was plenty wide enough to add cycle lanes.
What I've found with the infrastructure in Southampton is that a lot of it is good if you're going to the very busy spots, but anywhere outside of that is very difficult to cycle. There's a general lack of safety with road drivers ignoring the laws. Close passes are pretty rough in the city, especially with the hills. Very often cut off coming out of parking lots. Lot of parking in the bike lanes. Definitely been abused and shouted at for taking the primary position.
Decent speed that mate 18-20 mph. I'd say it's definitely safer (for everybody) on the road at that speed rather than on the path or bike lane. That's just my view of course.
The paramedic looked a bit lost there at 15:52 or was (s)he just taking a liberty going straight on at a right turn filter 🤔
you were both unlucky in to finding the cycle routes, and you witnessed the lack of it on the main routes.
Many of the routes are on the side roads.
But one thing regarding the main routes… they are getting safer as many have 20mph speed limits.
Could you stop your head bobbing up and down in the rear view – it's making me seasick.
Isn't looking at google maps using you phone whilst cycling? Cycling Mikey would not be happy.
Interesting to see my home city featured. Yes I find its a bit hit and miss for cyclist on the infrastructure side. Where you were going along Shirley High St, which is pretty much always super busy there's never been anything for cyclists. If I was cycling home after 10pm up Shirley high St I used the very wide pedestrianised bit to your left after I read the awful stats of cyclist killed in Southampton. Most were after 10pm. This was some 10 to 15 years ago. Cyclist were fined for using that path but I felt it was worth getting a fine over potentially being struck by a drunk driver.
16:11 that cycling lane is more of a danger than if it wasn't there. The road doesn't get wider, so there's no benefit to it being painted.
Like your Jacket!
17:40 the danger of stopping in that position is the risk of a driver behind hitting you and pushing you into the car in front. This is why cyclists and motorbikes tend to filter to the front. Its not about flow but about safety.
@6:10 that was not decent enough time. they should have not been overtaking at a junction.
Real men cycle on the tarmac. Women and children cycle on the pavement. Cycle paths are often covered with broken glass.
I’ve lived in Southampton all my life. I’m a confident cyclist. The last time I did any road cycling was during Covid, and I could happily go the rest of my life not doing it again. There is not enough infrastructure here, too many traffic lights make travel frustrating no matter what mode of transport you choose and being a cyclist you end up feeling like all you’re doing is frustrating other road users by using a mix of the roads and what little and very ill thought out cycling infrastructure there is. The less said about our useless local council, the better… Anyway, glad to see your journey was hassle free!
How it started: "I'm going to use as much cycling infrastructure as possible"
How it's going: 18:00 🤣
18:38 if you listen carefully here, you can just about hear the bus driver shouting something. I think it's: "the council put in these cyclist lights – at great cost to us tax payers – and cyclists don't even use them!" 🤣
Looking at google maps I see dual carriageways, long straight roads and recreational land that could be used for a cycling activity. I’ve found a few shared paths using street view and one bus only lane on a two way road. Compared to what I’ve seen from other UK towns and cities cycling infrastructure that I’ve seen and read upon, the council would get my vote for the worst place to cycle. Effort by the planners lacks so much.
23:08 "I have found the drivers to be nice, very nice" – well I hope you give some credit to Jeremy Vine. I suspect, with that 360 degree camera sticking out of your helmet, that a lot of drivers will have thought you were JV (or another 'vigilante' camera cyclist) and subsequently given you a wide berth; lest they get ridiculed on YT or a letter from the police! 😉
The Cycling infrastructure in Southampton is decent if you follow the cycle routes, once you got into Shirley if you hang a left just after Sainsburys there is a whole Cycle Route away from the Major Road, across Southampton Common and then protected cycle lanes to get to St Mary's
This non-eventful ride is why painted cycle infrastructure is unnecessary. When it's not present, it gives the cyclist more autonomy to choose exactly where and when they want to be, and gives everybody more road space to divvy up for best flow.
I only really believe in separated bike lines, usually separated from, but flowing alonside, high speed traffic routes. It's not so much about separating cycles for safety, its about giving them a place to make decent progress too. A higher speed section, with fewer junctions, entrances, merges and overtakes.
I live in Southampton😆
With that light level of traffic, there's literally no need for "infrastructure" for bikes, might be more of an issue for a commute during rush hour, but as you rode it adding any would be a waste.
Even as an ancient git who rides slow, & I'm no quicker than a jogger (think of a grandad on a bike from the 1950s) there's none of that that would phase me.
Many cyclists seem to expect a disproportionate amount of spending to take place.
It looks like you went past a few bits of shared path without finding a sign for where to actually join them or leave them. It's like that where I am, plenty of blue shared path signs around but you are never sure where the section start or end (some sections are only 10m long it seems). The only way you know the shared path is ending sometimes is when you notice the path gets a bit narrower. It's like tell me to rejoin the carriageway without telling me to rejoin the carriageway.
18:00 this was just silly.
Southampton is a dump.