Past Events
It’s Official - Two wheels are fastest!
Inspired by Messrs Clarkson, Hammond and May, the TPS held its very own “Race Across London” on 14 July 2010.
Six groups from Arup, PBA, Halcrow, MVA and SDG, with a total of around 25 participants, started the race from their different offices and converged by foot, bike, scooter, motorcycle, bus, tube, ferry and taxi on the Cross Keys pub near the Chelsea Embankment - probably the pub most distant from a tube station in the whole of Central London!
Overall, we found that, based on average speeds across all the journeys, two wheels are the fastest way to get around, with little difference between motorised and leg-powered forms. Taxi came in third, whilst taking the tube and running came in at about the same speed. Next came bus, then walking (although walking was quicker than the bus for some journeys). The ferry came in last, although that was entirely down to having to wait for 40 minutes for the next service!
We also found that popular on-line route planners, e.g. TfL, walkit, cyclestreets (other journey planners are available) are, with a number of exceptions, pretty good in estimating journey times.
Discussion over a few beers after the race revealed that the Halcrow team had included in their journey times the time taken to get changed into cycling gear and trainers, raising the interesting question of whether this should be included in transport models, and if so, what weighting should be applied to it?!
National Pub Quiz - 'Universally Challenged' Take Top Honours in London!
The 'Universally Challenged' team from the Transport Planning Practice fought off competition from 17 other teams to win the London leg of the 2010 TPS National Pub Quiz, claiming victory after the tie-breaker.
Despite only scoring 5 points in the transport round(!), they showed an amazing breadth of knowledge in other areas, including children’s TV and sport, to amass an impressive total of 63 points. This score was matched by 'The Even Cheaper Side' from TfL, but 'Universally Challenged' clinched it on the tie-breaker. In third place was the 'Cylcopaths' from Halcrow.
As well as the quiz, the evening also featured a raffle with prizes donated by Steer Davies Gleave, Halcrow, Urban Initiatives and ITP. Thank you to them and to all those who bought tickets, as we managed to raise £170 for the charity Transaid.
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| TPS Board Member, Bob Coe, presents the prize to Dean Hodson, captain of the winning team, Universally Challenged |  |
The Even Cheaper Side 63
Universally Challenged 63
Cyclopaths 62
MYFG 61
MVA 60
Team Arup 58
Steer Davies Gleave 58
Urban Initiatives 56
SW2 54
Mott So Clever 52
TTR 50
Spirit of Partnership 50
Paved with Gold 48
Les Quizerables 47
ITP and Strays 47
Crash Test Dummies 46
Mott So Good 36
Mott so Clever Either 36
TPS at the Olympics
13 November 2009
30 TPS members enjoyed a fascinating tour of the Olympic Park in London followed by a presentation on transport planning for the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Meeting at Stratford station on a wet Friday morning, our bus took us on a tour around the construction site of the Olympic Park.
We were able to see the velodrome beginning to emerge from the ground, the aquatic centre with its distinctive roof, and the Olympic Stadium. Many of the buildings on the site are also well advanced, including the main press centre, the international broadcast centre (as big as Canary Wharf!) and the Olympic Village where the athletes will stay during the Games.
We then learned about the transport planning for the Games and the challenges faced in ensuring spectators, athletes, media, sponsors and officials can access the Olympic Park and other venues, and at the same time allowing London to continue to function normally.
Many thanks to Iain Killingbeck and Bayo Dosumnu from the Olympic Delivery Authority for hosting the event and for providing such an interesting commentary and presentation.
