Riding into London, where is best to leave the bike?

[Alex@POD]

I need to go to London and the trains are so expensive I think I'll take the bike (travelling from Harrogate). I need to go to Cromwell Road, opposite the National History Museum, will I find somewhere to leave the bike easily for an hour or so? Will I find somewhere I can chain it to?

I never normally ride into London so it will be an experience!

[anonymous-user]

What bike? You can put it in any Westminster bike bay for £1 per day, and there are loads in the area.

[anonymous-user]

Unless youve done it before dont underestimate the length of the journey. Nor how long it will take you to get onto the city when you think youve made it to outer london

[wa16]

keirik said:

Unless youve done it before dont underestimate the length of the journey. Nor how long it will take you to get onto the city when you think youve made it to outer london

this

we have a project in Holland Park and the other day i was in Maida Vale riding from Cheshire, it takes quite a while and it was f'in cold despite gerbing gloves jacket and trousers

m1 is always st but you can always get on the A5 at Crick for a break from the monotony and then get back on at the new junction north of dunstable
call in at the super sausage for a brew

keep an eye on your mirrors for the kamikaze filterers

[DirtyHarley]

Depends on the bike; I will say though that the area you are going to is prime 'scootie-puff thug-land' so make sure you have visible security on the bike: if you're just relying on a steering lock and cheapo oxford chain even the most battered commuter bike runs a risk of being nicked (although a lot of the scootie-pricks arenlt out at the moment as its a tad too chilly for them!)

There are bike bays in Imperial College (on imperial college road next to the science museum) that used to be available without any permits etc. - its a well travelled area and lots of students and people about so a bit safer - I've not parked that way in a few years though so I am not sure if they are restricted to students/permit holders etc - but worth a check out.
Good luck and look out for the 'snow' that is supposedly heading our way.

[croyde]

Yeah watch the thievery.

I had a Street Triple which had constant theft attempts over my 6 years of ownership. Then I got a Vespa 300 which was stolen although a year later the police have got it back, and currently I ride a T Max.

Or should I say own a parked and locked up with everything T Max but don't seem to use it much due to theft/bike jacking worries.

Also my fault for owning the type of bikes that the scrotes want.

[Alex@POD]

Thanks guys, the bike is a 2017 Africa Twin. I need make the journey in the near future, but not "in the next couple of days", so I can wait a bit to see if the weather improves. Lengthwise I'm not overly worried, it'll take a while but the bike is comfy.

Thievery is a concern, but i'd take my Almax chain with me. I'll have a look at the bike bays mentioned. As I need to make an appointment, I may end up having to take the commuter trains, so we're talking about £35 for fuel compared to £150ish for the train!

[black-k1]

It looks like there's a bike bay in Cromwell Place directly opposite the Natural History Museum.

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.4954677,-0.17501...

If you have a decent lock and chain then that will be as good a place as any to park.

[Bumblebee7]

Check out parkingforbikes.com it lists most bike bays and you can search through permit, free and paid ones. I work 5 mins away from the Natural History Museum and park my bike there daily, plenty of nice bikes around including a new Ducati Monster. Scrotes do loiter but they seem to be after easy pickings, with me they broke into and nicked the contents of mine and others top boxes but never attempted the bikes themselves. I use a pragmasis 13mm chain and it's always the beefiest of anywhere I park, so figure I try to make it the hardest to nick of the bikes in the bay. Using a battered cover is a good shout as well, just use as much security as you reasonably can but should be fine. As others have said it might take you longer to get in than you think, but anything beats the train! The A4 gets quite narrow near the big Tesco in Earls Court so can take a while to filter through.

[Bumblebee7]

Just wanted to add that working in the area I can tell you most bike bays are fairly empty this time of year, so shouldn't be too hard to find a space. Also in Kensington & Chelsea a lot of the old Permit Bike Bays have been converted to regular (free) motorbike bays so they have anchoring points. Not all bays have anchoring points so just ride around as there's plenty available where you can physically lock it to something.

[Alex@POD]

black-k1 said:

It looks like there's a bike bay in Cromwell Place directly opposite the Natural History Museum.

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.4954677,-0.17501...

If you have a decent lock and chain then that will be as good a place as any to park.

That would be ideal as that's exactly where I need to be (French Consulate), but I wasn't sure if the resident's permit applied as per the sign?

ETA: Just seen on here the 2 on that street are free bays, not permit bays, so all good:

https://www.rbkc.gov.uk/PDF/MotorCycle_Parking_Map...

Edited by Alex@POD on Tuesday 29th January 13:03

[Alex@POD]

Bumblebee7 said:

Just wanted to add that working in the area I can tell you most bike bays are fairly empty this time of year, so shouldn't be too hard to find a space. Also in Kensington & Chelsea a lot of the old Permit Bike Bays have been converted to regular (free) motorbike bays so they have anchoring points. Not all bays have anchoring points so just ride around as there's plenty available where you can physically lock it to something.

Thanks!

[Krikkit]

anonymous said:

[redacted]

I thought the same! Perhaps ride to York to avoid the bone shaker then straight on the decent train?

[TbirdX]

There are lots of bike bays in the area. I do some work at the V&A and sometimes take the bike.

If you head along the A4 towards Harrods there are bike bays every 2nd road or so. Check them out on maps.

[babelfish]

How full do the suggested bays tend to get?

[Alex@POD]

Well, after all that they only have appointments available for March! Train tickets are £50 return, so it's a no-brainer.

[Alex@POD]

I knew I should have gone on the bike... train from harrogate to Leeds took ages and arrived about 20 minutes late, so I missed my connection. Jumped on the next train to kings cross, due in at 11:59, which will get me to my appointment a couple of minutes late... it's now 12:15 and we're not even inside the m25 due to signalling issues...

[black-k1]

And it's quite a nice day too!!!

I feel for you. Hindsight is always 20:20 vision.

[308mate]

Alex@POD said:

I need to go to London and the trains are so expensive I think I'll take the bike (travelling from Harrogate). I need to go to Cromwell Road, opposite the National History Museum, will I find somewhere to leave the bike easily for an hour or so? Will I find somewhere I can chain it to?

I never normally ride into London so it will be an experience!

Literally peak bandit country. If you lock it up really well and its not that desirable and its parked next to a Panigale with the keys still in the ignition, you'll be fine.

[Alex@POD]

308mate said:

Literally peak bandit country. If you lock it up really well and its not that desirable and its parked next to a Panigale with the keys still in the ignition, you'll be fine.

You're just trying to make me feel better! Though I'm less annoyed at the train (as a mode of transport) than I was yesterday, as once I explained why I missed my train back they just put me on the next departing train, at no extra charge.