Ted Brown is a Londoner and an avid cyclist who belongs to numerous cycling organisations. He loves to travel around the capital by bike. In this blog he explains why a London Cycle Map would help regular cyclists like him, as well as tourists and new cyclists, make the most of all the wonderful attractions London offers.

As a cyclist, I say “Hooray for London!”. It’s a city crammed with great sights and sites: historic and ultra-modern buildings, galleries, rivers, cafes, parks, pubs, museums, bridges, churches, libraries, squares, shops, canals, restaurants, gardens, clubs, markets, theatres, squares, and quiet pathways. All these attractions are of such variety and quality that millions of tourists travel thousands of miles to visit them. Anyone could spend a lifetime moving through the city yet not see a tenth of what’s available.

The best way to visit London’s attractions, while seeing many others en route, is by bicycle. But there is one problem: how do we find our way to these venues if we’re new to cycling or they’re some distance away from our familiar routes?

The idea for a simple solution already exists – Simon Parker’s London Cycle Map, which shows a grid of individually coloured and named routes. As cyclists we would easily see on the map which coloured routes lead from our starting point straight to the desired locality. Then, following coordinated signs and markings on the relevant streets, we could easily ride to the area. Once there, just a few left or right turns would take us to our exact destination. A similar principle applies when travelling on the Tube or on motorways.

All that’s needed is for the idea to be accepted and financed by the travel authorities. The system would not be expensive, especially compared with the cost of infrastructure for any other means of travel. 

For me and my cycling friend, a London Cycle Map would mean that all destinations in the capital would become incredibly easy to locate, making them more accessible – and enjoyable!