Kind of obvious question, but I’ve moved offices here in the city and I’m still getting my bearings. Also all the tram works are confusing me more.
So basically:
I live in Flemington, usually ride through Royal Park, straight through Parkville, come out at Royal Parade and rock down Elizabeth St. The thing is my office is up between Exhibition and Russell on Flinders Lane, so I still need to ride up Collins from Elizabeth.
On the way home I can do the opposite, or am I better to ride down Exhibition and all the way down Rathdowne St, then left along Park St bike path? Problem with Exhibition is it doesn’t have a bike lane.
I just want the quietest route I can find, it doesn’t need to be the most direct.
I have tried both routes, in fact I’ve ridden up pretty much every Elizabeth St/Swanston/Russell/Exhibition/Nicholson Sts but I just wondered what other peeps think. I’m sorry for asking…
This essence of the question is, what is the best street in the CBD to ride up?
the wife and i take royal pde each morning, and she rides up/down grattan st to get to the cnr exhibition/bourke. a bit stop-start with the traffic lights, but she doesn’t mind, gives her a chance to catch her breath goign up.
If you’re coming from Flemington, i’d skip Royal Parade and just shoot down Flemington road. Then take Grattan, there you’ll have the choice of Rathdown or Swanston
I should have mentioned I had been commuting via Flemington Rd for years, but the traffic and fumes suck. Riding a couple of hundred metres up through Royal Park the air is clean!
Why not take Tin Alley off Royal Pde over to Cardigan St then a zig and a zag across Victoria to your CBD street of choice - I find Exhibition fairly easy going.
North/South I prefer Elizabeth st these days, the shit they’re doing to Swanston st makes it a nightmare. East/West i prefer Bourke or Lonsdale, but i find most of them similar, its just where you need to go.
Exhibition is ok. It’s busy but there’s plenty of cyclists using it. IMO, Moonee Ponds Creek Trail/Capital Trail/Park St/Rathdowne is the most pleasant option. And besides, I can hang out on Exhibition and high five you on your way past.
King St - There may be no bike lanes but with the clearways its OK. The cars are surprisingly good as they all drive in straight lines as opposed to other city streets. Plus there are hardly any other commuter cyclists - always a good point.
I was the same, until i moved to North Melbourne and it was the quickest to work. The traffic may be fast but as i said there is space with the clearways and no one cars/bikes/pedestrians do erratic things. That being leaving work late at night and having to pass the night clubs and Bogans is a bit much.
William St is good to, similar to king st but with a bike lane and not to much crazy.
^^ +1 to that, i found that’s the most convenient way to the city. I travel from maribyrnong (just behind the flemington race course) to prahran for work
i use king st a lot as well, only downhill towards flinders st though. tend to ride up swanston or elizabeth in the evenings. but in the morning king st is king.
there are two massive pothole/manhole covers to watch out for, that’s the biggest issue i find. that and the trainee police directing traffic
Can I also bitch about the Elizabeth/Flemington Rd/Royal Pde round about- is it just me, or is it a bit dodgy to ride through the Royal Pde via the green line. It just feels really unsafe. Often I pussy out and go the pink route. Anyone else feel the same? It doesn’t feel any safer for cyclists than the old design.
Yep. I don’t ride it a whole lot as I don’t commute to the city. But the other week I rode it and it felt like I was squeezed out and just pushed into the car lane. I’d hate to ride it in peak hour.
