On your bike…

All of us in the Dot Dot Dot office like to cycle, and as part of our environmental policy we try to do everything we can to make it as easy for staff and guardians to get around by bike.  But given that London’s roads can be dangerous and scary, we decided to spend a few hours getting some training in how to ride on them as safely as possible.

We spent two hours with Charlie and Diane, qualified Bikeability trainers from Bikeworks learning how to ride assertively and confidently on everything from tiny roads to major arteries.  The biggest bit of advice was to make sure we took up the amount of space we deserved – riding about a meter out from the kerb and from parked cars, so that we can’t be hit by doors opening, so that drivers aren’t tempted to squeeze past us in narrow spaces, and so we have space to dodge into if a car does get too close.

We practiced safe road positioning at junctions, we looked at how to filter through traffic safely, and we worked our way up from turning left on quiet residential roads, to turning right in five lanes of traffic at a huge traffic-light junction.

It was a good morning – enjoyable as well as useful – and hopefully we’ll all be as safe as we can be on the roads from now on.  It’s always nice to be able to work with a fellow social enterprise like Bikeworks, too.

And the best bit is that Tower Hamlets council provide up to five hours of this training for free to anyone who lives or works in the borough who wants it, regardless of how much or how little cycling experience you have.  Full information about how to get trained is available here.  Definitely worthwhile for anyone eligible!   Safe riding, everyone.