Do London's New Cycleways Actually Protect Cyclists?

Do London cycleways actually protect cyclists?
I've really loved cycling with him around town this past month, and the section of the vid where I talk about all the stuff I like about the bike actually went on for like 3 minutes, but I had to cut it for pacing, so you'll probably hear me talk about HOW it rides and/or the amazing, built-in anti-theft GPS in my next cycling video :)

They sent me the following lil blurb for those of you interested in getting one for yourself:
You can use code: EVANEDINGER250
for a €250 discount off any new Cruiser, Cruiser ST, Classic Cowboy e-bike
Cannot be used in conjunction with other discount codes, or on Circular models
Valid indefinitely

Thank you so much for watching! Hope you enjoyed it! It's currently 4AM as I'm typing this. Bit late. I know. But I think you could tell why. Lotta work went into this one. I'll try to sort more cams/better audio for the next one, but yeah. Thanks x

Also big big thanks to my friends for joining me on this fun day :)

If you're new to my channel and videos, hi! I'm Evan Edinger, and I make weekly "comedy" videos every Sunday evening. As an American living in London I love noticing the funny differences between the cultures and one of my most popular video series is my British VS American one. I'm also known for making terrible puns so sorry in advance. Hope to see you around, and I'll see you next Sunday! :)

If you want to know HOW I make my videos including gear, lighting, all the tiddly bits that connect it all together, (with cheaper alternatives and kit I used to use), I've listed each item, what it's great at, and why I use it on the gear section of my website here:

Otherwise: here's a quick list of some of my kit without descriptions from the above link:

Camera: Sony A7siii

Main Lens: Sony 24mm f/1.4 G-Master

Secondary Lens: Sony 16-35mm f/2.8 G-Master

Main Light: Aputure 120d mkii

Shotgun Microphone: Sennheiser MKH-416

Really useful SSD: SanDisk Extreme Portable 2TB

[brettcarruthers]

Cut to next year when Evan has had 4 more mini obsessions since the Cowboy bike and is actually now taking part in the naked bike ride and talking about benefits you were unaware of.

[allanjmcpherson]

If I'm not mistaken, the naked bike ride is to draw attention to the vulnerability of cyclists on the road.

[papaquonis]

Don't forget that Amsterdam, Copenhagen and any other "great cycling city" didn't start out that way. They've worked to get to this point for decades. But the benefit of that is that other cities can learn from all their experience. Just look at Paris, where they've upgraded their bike infrastructure massively in a relatively short amount of time and they've certainly surpassed London by now, but it's great to see that at least parts of the city is now fairly accessible to cyclists.

[anoukk_]

As a dutch person seeing the excitement over a simple cycle path with the little bicycle traffic lights is something else

[daanwilmer]

As a Dutchie, I have to say there's more to the Netherlands than just Amsterdam, and there are -cycle superhighways- bike paths everywhere!

[liamness]

The thing is, you kind of experienced the best case scenario of cycling on a road like Kensington High Street, given you were all on e-bikes. If you can keep above a speed of about 12mph that really gives you a lot more latitude to stand your ground and make drivers give you space. If you go much slower though, a lot of drivers will just get immediately frustrated and push past regardless of how you are positioned. This is why segregated infrastructure is absolutely necessary, because not everyone is able to pretend to be a car.

[actua]

As a Dutchie, I cannot emphasize Dan's point enough: If other traffic is being an ***hole, your helmet will not save you.
Also, the cycle paths are looking good. I've got plans to go to London next year with friends, I'll look into using them. Thanks!

[OttoK_yt]

the stairs at 04:29 have a channel beside the railing to allow a bike to be rolled up / down!

[cassieoz]

Good name change. Cycle Superhighway is just pointless hyperbole. Stop asking the marketing department for suggestions.

[petitkruger]

The most annoying part of it is that Kensington High Street was relatively recently completely rebuilt with custom street furniture and larger sidewalks. But they didn't add cycle lanes even though the road is definitely wide enough.

[szofiaosborne]

Just a note for future cycling, as a pedestrian: please stop for pedestrians at zebra crossings and at red lights during the crossing cycle. Im always careful when crossing the road, but a lot of people are young and dont pay attention and rely on the lights, and a bike can cause some damage!

[purple-cho]

One thing which helped me with feeling safer when cycling in London was having a wing mirror attached to my handlebars to see what's going on behind me. Since I also drive (not in London if I can avoid it!) there's a kind of muscle memory in regularly checking the mirror, and that means I can more easily gauge when it's safe to signal that I'm turning or changing lanes.

Also, as a kid I learned Cycling Proficiency and if it's available to adults too then I can absolutely recommend it. Truly essential skill set from what I recall. Learning to ride one-handed so the other hand can be signalling wasn't easy, as I recall, but I genuinely think it's not safe to cycle on roads if you're unable to signal what you're doing to other road users

[princesspinkblue]

The part where youre cycling in the tunnel with music overlayed feels like Perks of a wallflower 😂

[Dixavd]

I love your documantary-style videos. I had stopped watching your videos for a while until I was recommended one of your videos on housing and was very impressed. Keep it up.

[reinl]

As somebody who cycles down that same road in Kensington & Chelsea regularly... the lack of a cycle lane means that I am actually more of a hindrance for cars, because to ride safely you have to be at the centre of a lane and not let cars/buses pass you in places where there is not a lot of width to the road... e.g. if there is a car stopped on the side of that road, I have to occupy the middle of the second lane already around ~50m before the parked car. I have to behave assertively and cars are more slowed down than they would be otherwise... lose lose imo

[chrisogrady]

16:26 I know you might not be familiar with the laws in the UK yet but it's actually illegal to not smash off the wing mirror and kick the body panels on that Citroën c4 Picasso in such a situation

[rgxwrestlingmedia]

Has the guy who put his hazards on to brake check you and swerve into you intentionally been reported to the police?

[Rachaelorly]

Fully agree with Heather on the driving in London part. Lived here my whole life, been driving since I was 22, people always make fun of me for not driving more but if you have seen the absolute lunatics who drive in London, you wouldn't want to drive here either.

[MatthewBrannigan]

The quality of production of your vids are very high at the best of times, but you knocked this one out of the park, it really looked amazing on my 65" TV!

[alexcooper]

I actually love cycling in London on the roads with cars and for most part find it quite safe, if you respect the rules of the road.

For me the most dangerous elements are other bike users overtaking on left, and pedestrians walking/standing in dedicated cycle lanes. The worst case of pedestrians in cycle lanes has been tourists on Westminster bridge, where ironically it is safer to cycle in road than on cycle lane.