Hirebiking in London

I found that the new Cyclehire scheme in London fits me perfectly. I haven't got any quick public transport from Waterloo to work near Barbican, and walking is a bit too far.

A bike ride is only about ten minutes, and the system is near perfect - I've got a docking station just across the road from work, and there are a few docking stations near Waterloo station.

The first time I tried it was last Friday. Everything went well - until I tried to brake by backpedalling, which didn't really do anything at all, rendering me some quite nasty looks from the taxi drivers that had to send their passengers flying to avoid running me over.

Today, when I tried to use one again, the docking station was blinking red when I tried to get a bike from it. I got a worried that someone had banned me from using them for being a menace to motorists. I sneaked away before anyone could see the red light and checked my account. I found that I hadn't understood the charging model - you actually have to pay for a full day's use, even if the ride is less than the free half hour, if you only pay for a one day or seven day pass.

Well, I'm going to try it again tomorrow, so a piece of friendly advice is not to drive through London if you had planned to do so.