Moving To London

Hey. I am currently living in Bradford near Leeds.

I am about to make the move down to london and am just wondering if it is a good idea for me to be commuting on my bike down there.

I do 15 miles to work on my bike ATM and will be living in the harpenden area and commuting to golders green area.

Basically is there something I need to do to keep me safe and the bike safe? Locking it up when I park in the same place all the time and just how different is riding in london to elsewhere in the country?

I current have to alpha'ed and alarm imobiliser and two locks with me...

Cheers ma dears

Originally Posted by fullstop102

I do 15 miles to work on my bike ATM and will be living in the harpenden area and commuting to golders green area.

Easy Peasy

I'd love a commute like that

Don't even think about public transport

What He said!

Just check your oil level....everything else will fall into place

Cool. But are there places to avoid parking or doing to reduce the chances of having my bike nicked?

You see I have a car too but I have heard that the M1 can be pretty crazy in rush hour and so the bike just seems the right way to keep going.

Cheers for the advice so far and hopefully I ill see you all in a few months when I move down!

Also looking for a house to rent down this way (harpenden area) so if anyone owns a 2 bed house or flat with somewhere for my to park the bike then PM me! :P

I rode daily for 15 years before moving to London without too many mishaps. But since coming here there's been too many accidents in too short a time- kinda puts you off, I get the bus now and keep the bike for fun.

Maybe the difference is in the country the space between the cars is all yours, but here theres much much less of it and lots of others want it too!

Do the bikesafe course with the Met police if you have any concerns and want some advice and recommendations about your riding in London.

Otherwise, take it easy and dont try and keep up with the couriers/scooter boys. Be prepared for the stupidest things, peds appearing from nowhere, buses who pull out on you, u turning taxis etc etc

yeah I had a chat with my new boss and my wife and I may sell the car and the bike and buy a nicer car for the journey. Finances with the boost in house prices may just stop me from keeping two vehicles.

Shame but you know I can pick up biking at any point when I have a few more pennies to rub together.

Saw a really nice sensible renault megane sport this afternoon and it was no more than my 206 and the insurance was only a little more but it is a diesel so 35 quid tax and 55 mpg.

Not even my careful bike riding can boast those stats!

[Biker Biggles]

It will cost you a fortune in depreciation to sell car and bike and then buy another car.I reckon Harpenden to Golders Green is an ideal commute for an SV,but a bit of a bugger by car in rush hour.Your bike is unlikely to be nicked in Harpenden(very pleasant,low crime),and parking it in Golders Green should not be too difficult.I find it hard to imagine living in the crowded South East/London area without a bike as travel is just a nightmare any other way.

If I were you I would give it go on the bike for a bit, and then see how you like it. People either love or hate riding in london. Either way, it's going to far quicker than a car!