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Misconceived Filtration
Blog Date - 27 February 2013
"So, how long did it take you to get here?"
"9 hours...urgh"
"What!! 9 hours! It usually takes me 6"
"Yeah I know, but the traffic was real bad down the motorway and there was a crash on the A road"
"Yeah I heard, but you're on a bike, traffic makes no difference..."
I've had this kind of conversation a few times, the times and circumstances change but the idea is that I got stuck in traffic and whoever I'm talking to believes that traffic does not effect motorcyclists. According to received wisdom motorcycles do not get stuck in traffic jams and travel times for two wheeled transport are unaffected by gridlock. Nonsense.
If I am fortunate enough to be travelling along a quiet free flowing motorway my speed will reach 70mph. Some riders, I'm told, can even achieve 80, 90 or even 100mph but this would be illegal and of course immoral. If the road is clear a steady 70mph can be sustained as long as fuel, stiff limbs and sore bottoms allow. In one hour's riding the motorcyclist can safely cover 70 miles. Great.
Now imagine that the motorway is very busy. It is moving but stop-start and never exceeding 20mph. Can I continue to traverse the highway at a steady 70mph? It is physically possible. There have been a spate of YouTube videos demonstrating a motorcyclists ability to cut through traffic at speeds far in excess of 70mph. I suspect these riders have a very limited lifespan, they will either loose their life, limbs or licence. For their sake I hope it's their licence first.
Personally I prefer to ride at a much more sensible speed. I will filter but I try to keep to a level where I can deal with people changing lanes, stopping to look at newspapers or answer their phone, drifting out of position or being plain mean and opening doors. This will typically reduce my speed to 20mph maximum, maybe an average of 10 to 15 overall.
From the car driving public's perspective I am moving faster than they are, they may only average 5mph. In their mind I'm not stuck in traffic I am proceeding unhindered. In their mind I'm moving so I'm unaffected by the traffic. In reality I'm doing 15mph, it's going to take 4 hours and 40 minutes to cover the 70 miles I can cover in one hour of quiet motorway.
So the next time you're late for work explain this to your boss. He will of course be impressed by your logical and mathematical explanation, but he's still going to dock an hour's pay. You need to get up earlier like everyone else to allow for the traffic, you lazy sod.
A traffic jam in Reims, France. I was going nowhere even if I could filter as there was an angry mob ahead, demonstrating over what I never found out.
Reader's Comments
John Wilkins said :-
I got a scooter to commute and while I'm enjoying the ride I find my journey to my workplace takes 35 minutes where in the car it took 40 minutes. I am saving 5 minutes. I lose more than this though as it takes me much more time to get ready to ride the scooter. I think I'll keep the scooter for when the weather is nice and because it is cheaper to put petrol in than the car.
23/05/2016 10:36:22 UTC
Ren - The Ed said :-
Thanks John. Yeah the scooter isn't the ultimate solution, especially when it's pouring down, cold and windy. If you're enjoying the ride then great, if not then take the car (or bus or train).
The ultimate solution would be a helicopter, but they're a bit expensive.
24/05/2016 07:57:37 UTC
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