commuting via magill rd tips?

[eeksll]

Anyone have any tips on commuting into the city from magill rd/base of norton summit.

It was crap this morning.

[rustychisel]

When you say 'crap', what do you mean, exactly?

It was busy, it'll get busier... roadworks on Dequetteville, Clipsal 500 car race coming, Fringe Parade this weekend, etc etc.

Try cutting across to Beulah Rd from around Barnes Avenue, then take Beulah all the way to Fullarton. Go across to the Parade, but that's busy too! Go across to Kensington, but that leads to the Britannia roundabout...

Have fun traffic jamming, there's little option, I'm afraid

[ALAN Roadie]

I commuted this morning, it was one of the worst commutes I have had in a while. Almost hit by a bus, a car and also cyclists continually jumping from road to footpath and back to road. Better this arvo though.

[eeksll]

basically i felt like I was driving had to stop and start eveywhere.

the bike track is really bumpy billions of drains and just plain not smooth. Cars wanting to turn onto magill rd stuck their noses way out into the bike lane. Lots of people driving half in the bike lane to see up ahead (I presume) and stopping half in the bike lane at traffic lights.

I might give kensington rd a go and avoid the road about.

[Fresh]

The Parade is nice and wide until you reach Portrush. You could turn here and take either Kensington or Magill rd. But yeah, should improve once Clipsal is over.

[ALAN Roadie]

The whole trip is a catch 22 - Magill Road is one of the rougher bike lanes I travel on. Norwood Parade is wider and much smoother but very slow due to lights and traffic backed up. Kensington is also a bit rough and then you have the brittania round about. I find Magill the lesser of 3 evils.

Do you commute in most days via Magill Road?

[DanielS]

Strongly recommend Beulah Rd as an alternative, from Glynburn Rd down to Fullarton. Just be careful on those roundabouts - if the car to your left doesn't look like they are going to give way, there is a good chance they haven't seen you!! (I used to take Beulah Rd daily and this would happen quite frequently)

[rustychisel]

Just be careful on those roundabouts - if the car to your left doesn't look like they are going to give way, there is a good chance they haven't seen you!! (I used to take Beulah Rd daily and this would happen quite frequently)

Yup, and a few of them are in deep shade under trees.

Daniel, how'd your bro get on with those wheels?

[eeksll]

I just moved out east. I was down south and commuted to city daily so i plan to commute in daily from out east too

SOudns like maybe tuesday was just bad for magill rd ... Ill give it a few more goes after clipsal

I went down parade -> flinders st -> bartels this morning it was much better. Next couple of weeks will be pretty bad with clipsal ... any tips there?

[DanielS]

Daniel, how'd your bro get on with those wheels?

Honestly I'm not sure -- he has a lot of frames/wheels/bits lying around and different projects on the go, so I don't know what happened with them! But I'm sure they are fine

[rustychisel]

I just moved out east. I was down south and commuted to city daily so i plan to commute in daily from out east too

SOudns like maybe tuesday was just bad for magill rd ... Ill give it a few more goes after clipsal

I went down parade -> flinders st -> bartels this morning it was much better. Next couple of weeks will be pretty bad with clipsal ... any tips there?

Yep, don't duck out from behind slow moving buses. It's about to get a lot busier with the Clipsal restrictions and all you can do is be smart and vigilant. Cycling is still 100% better than trying to driver into the city at this time of year. Be safe.

Daniel; know what you mean. I didn't hear anything so assumed he was happy with them.

[ALAN Roadie]

Hey eeksl,

How is the commute with the clipsal starting to ramp up? I will be tackling it again tomorrow morning, are you still heading down the Parade?

[europa]

I'm not sure why you're trying to go down main roads - the Bike Direct maps show a number of routes through the back streets. Although I don't live out in that area (and hence don't commute from there), my parents are at Campbelltown and I've used those routes when riding from down south to there, and they work.

[eeksll]

Yeap commuting everyday too and from still.

I kinda messed up, I thought clipsal was on this week, so I took magill rd cause I think my parade route would have some closures. It was in fact much much better than the first day I rode in on it. It seems that first day i rode in was by far the worse.

I head south down Glynburn so for the day the right onto magill is not a smooth transition Ill take the parade. So to answer that question, I am not taking the parade anymore. But from what I haves seen so far, the parade is wide and much smoother but you are much much more likely to get doored ...

I don't like taking the back streets in general, from my limited experience of commuting, the drivers who take the main roads seem much more patient in general and the drivers who take the back streets, take the back streets so they can drive faster. (I find a similar psychology with a lot of bike commuters too ... very iimpatient)

[europa]

I don't like taking the back streets in general, from my limited experience of commuting, the drivers who take the main roads seem much more patient in general and the drivers who take the back streets, take the back streets so they can drive faster. (I find a similar psychology with a lot of bike commuters too ... very iimpatient)

Mate, you really need to change that mindset. For example, part of the Bike Direct route that parallels the Parade at Norwood, is along a wide, smooth backstreet, with a cycle lane outside the parking zone and with enough room for cars to zoom past you with having to cross onto the other side of the road or into your lane. Not all of it is like that, but at least part of it is ... and it'll land you right in the middle of the Clipsal 500 so maybe it's not a goer this week.

Similarly, when I was commuting from my parent's place at Campbelltown, I'd follow a walking trail along a creek to the Linear Park and then follow that in - the fastest, 'main road' thinking route, would have been right down a main road who's name escapes me at the moment.

I live down south. The direct route to work is down Flagstaff Hill and then along South Rd. It's fast but it's bloody dangerous. I now ride across to the Veloway, have a short run along Marion Rd and then follow backstreets to work. It's longer in distance and thus longer in time, but even though the backstreets are shared with the self same drivers that you mentioned, the risks are minimal when compared to South Road.

The commuter route I used when attending Uni in the city a couple of years back (yup, going to Uni in my 50's, I was and still am nuts), was along a popular alternative to South Rd. Although narrow and populated with fast, impatient drivers, it was far safer than South Rd or Goodwood Rd, the two alternatives.

I've recently developed a commuting run for my son who has just started Uni in the city - it's a little longer than the route I took, follows a popular backstreet route, but is still a looooot safer than using the main roads. How do I know? Because I do much of it on the days I have my daughter and have to drop her at school - it gets busy but it's nothing like the main roads.

The point I'm trying to make is that main roads are, nowadays, full of cars and are generally very dangerous places to be. The backstreets are less so and bicycles find the inherent disadvantages of these roads to be less than they are for cars. Sure, SOME drivers use them and go charging down them with gay abandon, but those same close personal friends are belting about on the main roads where their behaviour is far more dangerous due to the lack of room.

Don't plan your bike commuting route the same way the you would your car commuting route. You need a different mindset on a pushbike and sometimes, going the longer route is better - maybe slower, usually longer, but safer and more peaceful. If your commute leaves you stressed and scared, you're on the wrong route. Coming from Magill, you don't have the bike paths that I enjoy, but it's not all bad news and the Bike Direct maps are a good start.

Richard

[MichaelB]

Good summary Richard - agree that many of the backstreets are a much better option.

Key issue is that the speed limit is lower, so closing speeds are less, and traffic density is much less.

[Wee Jock]

From Portrush rd - west, beulah rd, williams st are streets I use frequently to get into town (not in peak hour admittedly) and find them much less stressful, the small roundabouts are good for keeping the flow going. Alexandra Ave is another good option, depending where in the city you want to end up, nice and wide and a beautiful tree lined street, it's also a good one to work your way onto the parklands trails.

Can't comment on east of Portrush, not up there too much, but I know beulah continues across that way. I'm with Richard, you might as well enjoy your ride on the way to work, better than it being a stressfull pain in the a***, no one needs that in the morning.

[eeksll]

When I first started I took a back street west of King william, 40 zone. Its on the bike direct route, not a wide smooth road like the one Richard describes, but is quite wide, it even has islands on the side at regular intervals to force cars to slow down and drive down the middle. In my morning commute to work, no one who goes down there at 40. Even if they did, they speed up to get past any cyclist. Which makes those islands even more hazardous. As I ride into the middle of the road to get through them and cars like to go even wider and zoom around me.

I have done south rd and goodwood rd and they are hell, much much much worse than king william/unley/what i have seen of magill/parade ... I also find winston av worse than king william/unley.

Oddly enough I feel much more stressed riding on back streets then I do on main rds especially in the mornings. I think the reason is on the main rds I feel I only need to be mindful of whats in front of me, where as on back streets I feel I need to be very mindful of whats behind me as well as watching to be doored/cars taking off from the side. I have had a crash on a side street due to this which does not help the matter.

Ill give the back streets a go after the clipsal and see how I go.

[rustychisel]

I hear ya. I thought I was the only one who enjoys banging it in the commuter traffic, but there are key points, I reckon.

Command your space, have a commanding presence. Take the lane when you need to, move over as required. Do not take showtime from anyone, make your moves clear and obvious and signal clearly and early. Use the finger, but use a thumbs up or a nod, wave also to indicate not only appreciation but your spatial awareness. Other drivers will see and take note from that.

Magill road is a munter, narrow 'bike' lanes, stopping buses, uneven surfaces, and always the danger of the left hook, particularly around the Alma Hotel corner. Speed must be moderated to allow you some stopping distance, and powering up along the inside of stationary cars (& especially buses) will get you knocked off, nothing is surer.

You're right, it's different in the back streets, where the danger is always perpendicular rather than linear, the danger comes from cars trying to whip through a roundabout before you get there, or rolling through small, partially blind intersections.

Anyway, it gets much busier now: Clipsal restrictions take place as of tomorrow morning, WOMAD is on this weekend, so is Future Music Festival etc etc

[ALAN Roadie]

Could not agree more with both eeksl and rustychisel, back streets peopl tend to either be trying to cut time off the main road traffic and therefore speeding through or not expecting anyone on a bike and therefore not acknowledging them at all. I prefer the hustle and bustle of the main roads where you just need to be carefull. At this time of year just slow it down a bit, you still paste the cars time to get into the city anyway. This morning I rarely got over 25km/h (Normally around 40+) and I still killed all of the cars in.

[rustychisel]

same same. Vehicles were gridlocked [almost] all the way down Magill from well above Portrush... I used the gap between the 2 lanes for some of the time. Sorry to report I saw an ambulance coming for a cyclist knocked off as predicted - at the Alma Hotel - highly likely it was an impatient left-hook into the hotel carpark. Stay safe out there.

[ALAN Roadie]

same same. Vehicles were gridlocked [almost] all the way down Magill from well above Portrush... I used the gap between the 2 lanes for some of the time. Sorry to report I saw an ambulance coming for a cyclist knocked off as predicted - at the Alma Hotel - highly likely it was an impatient left-hook into the hotel carpark. Stay safe out there.

Yeah I was at that set of lights next to the Alma as the Amublance arrived, I did not know it was a cyclist down though. I would almost put money on it beinig a left hook on top of someone. They were rife this morning, people getting impatient sitting in traffic and at the last minute deciding to turn left with no indictaor. I guess there was a more important line of stationary traffic to go and sit in. Between that and cars turning out of side streets and blocking the bike lanes it was a slow commute in.

[eeksll]

I didn't notice any ambulance today. But it was a slow commute in today compared to last week, probably annoying a couple of riders behind me. I brake/slow down a fair bit when I see gaps left in traffic for people to turn right. Much better dine on my flat bar than my road bike.

[ALAN Roadie]

I would not be worried about it.... I do exactly the same on my roadie, too dangerouse to fly along the bike lane at 35+ when there will be traffic turning accross you!

[rustychisel]

ALAN Roadie = red MTB/flat bar?????????

me = blue fixed gear

Jeff = beardie roadie on an Orbea