Taking a non-foldable bike from Paddington station in London, UK
I need to take my non-foldable bike from Paddington station in London to the tube station Woodside Park. I understand you can't take a non-foldable bike on the tube 07:30 - 09:30 or 16:00 - 19:00, except public holidays.
- Outside of those times, can you just take your bike on the tube and complete the whole journey? The recommended route involves taking the Circle and Northern lines. I don't think I have ever seen a non-foldable bike on the tube in central London.
- Inside those times, is there any way to make the journey by public transport? I can of course cycle at least some of the route but I would rather not cycle all the way.
Best Answer
Non-folding bikes are only allowed on some parts of the tube. Tfl provides this map of the tube network, showing where bikes are allowed, subject to the hours you mentioned.
Bikes are allowed outside peak hours anywhere on sub-surface lines (The Circle, Hammersmith & City, Metropolitan and District lines). All the remaining, deep level lines have some restrictions on where bike can be taken. There is no route to Woodside on the tube from Paddington with a bike, since the High Barnett branch of the Northern Line doesn't allow bikes south of East Finchley, at any time. This is because many deep level platforms are only usually accessible by escalators, which bikes aren't allowed on.
Bikes are allowed on the Overground, and on National Rail services (subject to the rules of the various train operating companies). Unfortunately, Woodside Park is not very near to any other stations.
I would suggest that you could take a taxi. If you phone a taxi company and tell them you want to bring a bike, they should be able to send a van-style taxi which it will fit it.
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Quick Answer about "Taking a non-foldable bike from Paddington station in London, UK"
- Arriving at Liverpool Street (from the east) before 07:30 and after 09:30.
- Leaving Liverpool Street (eastbound) before 16:00 and after 19:00.
- Arriving at London Paddington (from the west) before 07:45 and after 09:45.
Can I take my bike on GWR trains?
Fully folding bicycles are allowed on all trains without restrictions or reservations. Reservations are sometimes required for full-size bicycles on certain services, and there are also restrictions on Peak-time travel.Can you take a bike on the tube in London?
In summary: Folded bicycles can be taken free of charge on the tube at all times. Non-folding bicycles can be taken free of charge on some sections of the tube outside peak times. Peak times are 07.30 \u2013 09.30 and 16.00 \u2013 19.00, Monday to Friday, except for public holidays.Can you take a bicycle on a UK train?
Can You Take Bikes on Trains? First the good news: bikes are allowed free of charge on most British trains at most times of day. However there's usually a limit of two to six bikes per train, and you may need to reserve a space.Can you take bikes on the Metropolitan Line?
Bicycles are permitted on all sections of the Circle, District, Hammersmith & City and Metropolitan Lines, as well as the Docklands Light Railway (except to/from Bank).4K Walk Around London's Paddington Station 2022
More answers regarding taking a non-foldable bike from Paddington station in London, UK
Answer 2
I'm not sure why you don't want to ride it all, so this explores your options in case you do choose to ride. You can use the same tools to check out routes if you want to ride part of the way.
Cyclestreets is a good route-planning tool for unfamiliar bits of the UK. They offer a range of route: fast, balanced, or quiet. There's no such thing as a quiet route in London, but the quietest route they offer for this journey looks OK to me (9miles/15km/just over an hour via Hampstead Heath). Strava's route planner, with popularity mode turned on (i.e. going where people ride in practice) goes a little further east, up Kentish Town Road, which I'd ride but I can see why some wouldn't.
In cities I rate Cyclestreets slightly higher than Strava, as the latter's popularity option captures a lot of commutes, which are likely to be routes chosen to be quick for locals rather than pleasant for those unfamiliar with the area. Strava (for which you might need to register, but it's free) has the advantage that you can tweak the route to go round hills. Google's bike routing has its place, but this isn't it. In this case it uses a lot of main roads that it calls cycle friendly but that don't look very friendly to me.
2020 update: Strava's route planner is no longer free
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