Hi all,
In the name of fitness and not going on the underground I’ve been toying with the idea of switching to Boris bikes for my commute from London Waterloo to Canary Wharf. I read on the web about the new massive docking station at Waterloo so before signing up though I thought I’d check the availability of bikes at Waterloo in the morning.
However, when I got to Waterlook this morning at 08:30 I went and had a look and there was not a single bike there, is this normal? If so then it scuppers my plans and i’ll have to think about a folding bike instead.
I know there are other docking stations around, but if Waterloo is empty then I assume that these are going to be a fairly hit and miss as well.
Thanks!
Unfortunately, for Waterloo, it’s a case of “The early bird catches the worm….”
It is horrendous how bad the redistribution is.
I see the vans driving around occasionally but it should be a case of consistent and obvious constant replenishment.
Waterloo is a commuter docking station, so you can’t really expect much after about 8 there. But there are plenty of other docking stations nearby. Or how about getting the tube to another tube station and using a docking station there. You just need to get into a routine.
Redistribution has been almost non-existent for the past few months (quite often not a single bike anywhere in the West End all through the evening, even at 1am), but Waterloo has always borne the brunt of the tidal flow.
If you walk out of the station and do a left over the road and under the bridge (towards Charing Cross footbridge) there are a couple of stations there that normally don’t run out until 8:45ish 
http://londoncommuter.co.uk/bikes/phpsqlajax_genxml_charts.php?termName=001212&large
right, then Boris Bikes is a no go for me 
I’ve noticed that there’s a large cycle store just further up from the Boris Bikes stand at Waterloo, and it seems to hold privately owned bikes. Does anyone know how one would go about getting a slot there, or is it also first come-first served?
Or you could just get a Brompton.
Looks a lot of work, and when the trains are busy i always see other passengers grumbling when they get on and see a folding bike.
Get a semi-decent but cheap-looking 2nd hand bike, two good locks and use the double-decker racks at Waterloo station. Just leave your bike there overnight and it’s ready for you whenever you come in to London.
Or are those racks always full? I’ve never tried to use them at peak times but there are a lot of them!
so those racks are 1st come 1st serve? although every time i’ve looked they are always full
Ahh sorry I didn’t realise that was what you were already referring to. Yes it’s just first come first served.
It’s probably worth having a poke around there a couple of days running to see if it’s really full or just looks that way. There are a lot of racks!
It’s a short walk to nearby docking stations – Belvedere Road, Jubilee Gardens, Waterloo Bridge – and not much of a stride to the docking stations at Southwark tube/Columbo Street. Where do you want to go to? It could be worth investigating your options in the general direction. Waterloo is a bit of a challenge if you aren’t there early. Probably best to consider it an unexpected treat to have a bike available at peak hours!
Have you tried the apps for checking availability of docks and bikes?
There are nowhere near enough racks at Waterloo for the number of people wanting to use them. God forbid they close a road to accommodate bicycle parking! Cars always come first.
I would like to teach his daughter to ride a bike, but first we have to buy her a bike. The daughter is 5 years old and still do not know how to ride a bike and they would really like. We thought about buying some from the website http://www.bike4you.co.uk, what do you recommend?
