Cycle journey planner is deliberately misleading me
Apologies in advance for this not being a missive chock-full of the perspicuous wit and playful humour of my fellow B3tans.

It is a real complaint letter that I wrote today, though, so that should be enough to justify my contribution to this week's QOTW.

Dear TFL,

I am sorry to complain about such a stirling resource as the cycle journey planner, but it has irritated me one too many times for me to stiffen my upper lip, grin, and bear it.

I would like to know more about the machinations of this mysterious and powerful force, and more specifically, how it decides the route.
It is a useful tool, and I particularly like the detailed step-by-step map.
However, the journey planner seems to give me abnormally long routes, which is very frustrating.

It has got to the point where I no longer want to look at the journey planner, as I fear that it will try to make me exercise more than I need to by putting unnecessary, albeit scenic, via-points into my route.

For example, this morning I had to go from Hyde Park Corner to Moorgate.
TFL's suggested route took me immediately SOUTH.

Google provide an excellent route planner for walking which generally accommodates cyclists very well, giving several different options (perhaps you could follow suit?). On their map, were you to look at it, you may find that Moorgate appears to be somewhat NORTH EAST of Hyde Park Corner. "So according to TFL, to go north I must go south? REALLY?"

Furthermore, I have no desire to cross the river, so why am I told I should cross it TWICE? My destination is on the north bank of the Thames, as is my point of departure. Why do TFL want me to take a brief sojourn on the south bank during my journey? The view from Westminster bridge and Blackfriars bridge is admittedly very nice, but that is not what I am asking TFL's cycle journey planner to help me with.

I can only assume that the journey planner was trying to take me along a route with less traffic, but if so it was unsuccessful (as well as being a further distance) – I encountered just as much congestion and heavy vehicles such as construction lorries, refuse collection trucks, and of course buses.
On my return journey I ignored your advice and came a more direct way. It took the SAME TIME even though I got lost for 10 mins - in other words if you had given me a more direct route I would have got to my destination slightly earlier.

Anyway, long story short, I don't demand a quicker suggested route, but I would like to know what the intention of the programmer was when he/she wrote the algorithms that I assume dictate the routes given out by the cycle journey planner!

I hope this goes some way to explaining the "incident" and that one day I will understand the deeper mysteries of Transport For London.

Yours, as ever,

Mr IdlePeAcEsign

Length? A damn sight shorter if you draw the line straight between two points.
(IdlePeAcEsign if trouble were my mistress, i'd send her to them, Fri 3 Sep 2010, 15:01, 3 replies)

Try this link instead
Have been cycling in London for ages now and never use TFL anymore, it's shockingly bad. Once when young and stupid I put a post code for Canning Town into TFL and for some reason ended up in Chingfield... I started off in West Ham...

www.cyclestreets.net/

Is perhaps the best bike website for detailing routes I've ever used. Best of luck.
(Helo, Fri 3 Sep 2010, 15:42, closed)

Wow! That looks like it was an epic "short" cut!

Thanks for the link, I'll be using it next time I'm cycling.

Regards,
(IdlePeAcEsign if trouble were my mistress, i'd send her to them, Fri 3 Sep 2010, 15:49, closed)

Actually........
I used to be a Despatch Rider in London in the 80's and I did a regular run from Haymarket to Lombard St. the quickest way was over Westminster Bridge and back over London Bridge it was about a mile shorter and about ten minutes quicker.
(johnners hitting things with hammers until they work, Fri 3 Sep 2010, 19:07, closed)