Australian Cycling Forums - Bicycles Network Australia

trek52 wrote:Boys the other way is to go to cecil ave then parsonage rd to windsor rd, bit further but easier with the traffic.

I still reckon I will go m7/m2 off at windsor, through dipper and then back on M2 at penno

That's on my "to try" list (did it about 8 yrs ago once - wasn't pretty on a hybrid). If I can manage the Big Dipper I won't need to cut short my morning commutes.

I do the dipper on Saturday mornings and it is fine with little traffic. Heading East, it is fine also. If you get a good run down the hill you can roll up to Gilbert at good speed with the traffic. Heading West in traffic, it is OK if traffic is rolling slowly. Not so good if traffic is moving quickly.

When does the diversion begin?

jm.catarroja wrote:When does the diversion begin?

Westbound apparently this month (November) sometime and eastbound in Jan 2016. This was in the Transurban cycling report but nothing has been announced/made public that I'm aware of.

heading east is fine on the road, as it starts to get steep I just get on the foot path but I think it is 2 lanes again now.

heading west is a different story, I hit the path on the way down and stay on it until i get to the top then cross back over at the sporto. Not being rude but I prob climb west bound a little quicker than the average bear and I end up way too slow if I stay on the road. The cars are just too quick through there.

trek52 wrote:heading east is fine on the road, as it starts to get steep I just get on the foot path but I think it is 2 lanes again now.

heading west is a different story, I hit the path on the way down and stay on it until i get to the top then cross back over at the sporto. Not being rude but I prob climb west bound a little quicker than the average bear and I end up way too slow if I stay on the road. The cars are just too quick through there.

Yeah, two lanes on the eastbound climb now so probably a bit worse than when it was one lane but with temporary and easily avoided barriers.

Westbound couldn't agree more RE path but fortunately I won't need to do that. I did that direction once as well and had cars flying up the hill in both lanes and then on the anchors in the left lane behind me.

I might have confused things. I was talking the showground rd "dipper".

vosadrian wrote:I might have confused things. I was talking the showground rd "dipper".

Ahh, I think Trek and I are talking the Renown Rd big dipper . I know I am. The clue (your mention of Gilbert Rd) should have helped me.

trek52 wrote:Boys the other way is to go to cecil ave then parsonage rd to windsor rd, bit further but easier with the traffic.

I still reckon I will go m7/m2 off at windsor, through dipper and then back on M2 at penno

Hey Trek, m7/m2 off at windsor, through dipper and then back on M2 at penno is certainly the most direct route and what I was thinking of doing also. But the thought of the dipper - on a bike - during peak hour - scares the sh*t out of me. I grew up in the area and went down it on a bmx when I was about 12 and I think I'm scarred for life! I drive that way in the morning when I'm not commuting (rather than the M2)....I really don't think it's a safe route!

If only there was a PSP (Principal Shared Path) along the M2 like there is on the railways and freeways in Perth. Would revolutionise cycle commuting in Sydney.

wellington_street wrote:If only there was a PSP (Principal Shared Path) along the M2 like there is on the railways and freeways in Perth. Would revolutionise cycle commuting in Sydney.

Agreed but on the flip side with the method of infrastructure construction and complete lack of consideration displayed for cyclists in NSW it would be likely that a dedicated shared path would be closed for the duration anyway.

wellington_street wrote:If only there was a PSP (Principal Shared Path) along the M2 like there is on the railways and freeways in Perth. Would revolutionise cycle commuting in Sydney.

they (the govt) should have made the approval of construction of the upgrade to include a PSP mandatory, like happened with the lane cove tunnel project.
I guess the govt has no vision. They believed the fantasy of congestion free commuting on the M2 after the upgrade, and look how that turned out for motorists. They could not be honest and just say that by widening the road we can cram 33% more vehicles into the jam so that revenue from tolls will increase.

queequeg wrote:

wellington_street wrote:If only there was a PSP (Principal Shared Path) along the M2 like there is on the railways and freeways in Perth. Would revolutionise cycle commuting in Sydney.

they (the govt) should have made the approval of construction of the upgrade to include a PSP mandatory, like happened with the lane cove tunnel project.
I guess the govt has no vision. They believed the fantasy of congestion free commuting on the M2 after the upgrade, and look how that turned out for motorists. They could not be honest and just say that by widening the road we can cram 33% more vehicles into the jam so that revenue from tolls will increase.

Don't forget on top of that, that the toll cost itself is rising with inflation every quarter - every quarter they put out electronic signs to advise of the increase in one regular place completely blocking the shoulder/bike lane. Genius!!

I’m planning to cycle to Hornsby from Epping/Roselea, planning to either go:
- 1) via West Pennant Hills-to-Pennant Hills
o Pennant Hills Road-M2 intersection (northbound)
o Exit at Aiken Road (I got lost going this way and ended up walking up a MTB trail near Thompson’s corner!)
o Victoria Road – Boundary Road – Yarrara Road - the Esplanade

- 2) M2 eastbound then exit at Beecroft Road
o Epping Road (northbound) via Beecroft-to-Pennant Hills , eg Sutherland Road

With both options, I end up somewhere near the Esplanade, Thornleigh, and then I have to make my way to Hornsby from there.

Are there any simpler alternatives ?

Sunday morning, 0630 departure.

Thanks!

Eastbound M2, Browns Waterhole, Kissing Point Rd then back streets through Warrawee/Wahroonga?

caneye wrote:I’m planning to cycle to Hornsby from Epping/Roselea, planning to either go:
- 1) via West Pennant Hills-to-Pennant Hills
o Pennant Hills Road-M2 intersection (northbound)
o Exit at Aiken Road (I got lost going this way and ended up walking up a MTB trail near Thompson’s corner!)
o Victoria Road – Boundary Road – Yarrara Road - the Esplanade

- 2) M2 eastbound then exit at Beecroft Road
o Epping Road (northbound) via Beecroft-to-Pennant Hills , eg Sutherland Road

With both options, I end up somewhere near the Esplanade, Thornleigh, and then I have to make my way to Hornsby from there.

Are there any simpler alternatives ?

Sunday morning, 0630 departure.

Thanks!

From Epping, follow the old M2 Detour through to Beecroft Rd, go under the railway, continue following the detour until you reach Vimiera Rd, turn left, Cross Epping Rd, go all the way to the end, under the M2 to Browns Waterhole and up Kissing Pt Rd to Turramurra. Right onto the highway, left after crossing the railway. Follow the railway to Warrawee/Wahroonga/Waitara, then up Edgeworth David Ave.

Other option is the back streets through Pennant Hills/Thornleigh, which is Victoria Rd, Bellamy St, Stevens St, Esplanade, Duffy Ave, Chilvers Rd, Sefton Rd, then follow the train line to normanhurst, and around the back behind Hornsby rsl.

queequeg wrote:

caneye wrote:I’m planning to cycle to Hornsby from Epping/Roselea, planning to either go:
- 1) via West Pennant Hills-to-Pennant Hills
o Pennant Hills Road-M2 intersection (northbound)
o Exit at Aiken Road (I got lost going this way and ended up walking up a MTB trail near Thompson’s corner!)
o Victoria Road – Boundary Road – Yarrara Road - the Esplanade

- 2) M2 eastbound then exit at Beecroft Road
o Epping Road (northbound) via Beecroft-to-Pennant Hills , eg Sutherland Road

With both options, I end up somewhere near the Esplanade, Thornleigh, and then I have to make my way to Hornsby from there.

Are there any simpler alternatives ?

Sunday morning, 0630 departure.

Thanks!

From Epping, follow the old M2 Detour through to Beecroft Rd, go under the railway, continue following the detour until you reach Vimiera Rd, turn left, Cross Epping Rd, go all the way to the end, under the M2 to Browns Waterhole and up Kissing Pt Rd to Turramurra. Right onto the highway, left after crossing the railway. Follow the railway to Warrawee/Wahroonga/Waitara, then up Edgeworth David Ave.

Other option is the back streets through Pennant Hills/Thornleigh, which is Victoria Rd, Bellamy St, Stevens St, Esplanade, Duffy Ave, Chilvers Rd, Sefton Rd, then follow the train line to normanhurst, and around the back behind Hornsby rsl.

Option 3.

East to Kent St Epping, over the M2 on the footbridge next to Epping Heights public, Castle Howard/Boronia/Kirkham. Beecroft Rd to the top (will be fine at that time of morning. If you're uncomfortable with that, use Wongala Cres and the East footpath on Beecroft Rd from Albert around to City View Rd), then Yarrara/Esplanade. At Duffy Ave, you can either go down to Sefton and follow Malsbury around to Hornsby - but its narrow and up and down. Another option is the shared path on PH rd from Duffy to Dartford, then PH rd to Huddart, Denman Parade, Unwin Rd to the Highway at Waitara.

Hi All,
I've just taken up cycling after being off the bike since uni (some 15 years ago) as I felt the need to instead of sit in a car on the M2 and pay for the privilege I should get a little exercise during my commute, only to discover after 2 rides that the M2 will soon be off limits for a decent portion! Not happy

I live in Glenwood, so I'm guessing my best alternative is cutting across Old Windsor at Celebration drive and back roads through Bella Vista to Windsor Rd (I'm a bit shy for Norwest bvd), then Parsonage to Old Northern, then Terminus, Olola, Cecil, Crane, Castlewood, Highs, Taylor, Aiken, PHR then onto M2.

My question to those that do anything similar (Boognoss?) is how much path V's road is there? I'm a little car shy but that applies equally to being on a footpath and having cars exiting driveways to direct competition on the road! Also, what sort of trip time should I expect, noting my couple of runs from Glenwood to Macquarie Park have being around the 50 min mark. I'm expecting considerably slower given the stop/start, up/down nature of the trip.

NOVISCOTT wrote:Hi All,
I've just taken up cycling after being off the bike since uni (some 15 years ago) as I felt the need to instead of sit in a car on the M2 and pay for the privilege I should get a little exercise during my commute, only to discover after 2 rides that the M2 will soon be off limits for a decent portion! Not happy

I live in Glenwood, so I'm guessing my best alternative is cutting across Old Windsor at Celebration drive and back roads through Bella Vista to Windsor Rd (I'm a bit shy for Norwest bvd), then Parsonage to Old Northern, then Terminus, Olola, Cecil, Crane, Castlewood, Highs, Taylor, Aiken, PHR then onto M2.

My question to those that do anything similar (Boognoss?) is how much path V's road is there? I'm a little car shy but that applies equally to being on a footpath and having cars exiting driveways to direct competition on the road! Also, what sort of trip time should I expect, noting my couple of runs from Glenwood to Macquarie Park have being around the 50 min mark. I'm expecting considerably slower given the stop/start, up/down nature of the trip.

With the exception of a tiny portion between Castlewood and Highs Rd zilch path-action, but for the most part those roads are all quiet and/or have a shoulder/parking lane painted in so you're not mixing up with cars when climbing and downhill you'll be doing 40+ so that's when I personally take the main lane. At the top of Aiken I'd jump onto the RH footpath (as I used to the last time the M2 was out of bounds), then use the crossing to get across PHR and turn right taking the left lane down to the M2 onramp. Uphill I take the ludicrously narrow footpath on that section since it's either that or PHR uphill in afternoon peak.

Thanks Boognoss

No problem. When the closure is active again I think some mornings given that "extras" will be more of a hassle I'll just leave my driveway (on Crane Rd) and turn left following the route you've described. I used to do that both ways each day except going past the M2 and doing the awful old detour route. At least (as far as we're being told - I'm quite cynical) we'll have the M2 for the most part.

duncanm wrote:

queequeg wrote:

caneye wrote:I’m planning to cycle to Hornsby from Epping/Roselea, planning to either go:
- 1) via West Pennant Hills-to-Pennant Hills
o Pennant Hills Road-M2 intersection (northbound)
o Exit at Aiken Road (I got lost going this way and ended up walking up a MTB trail near Thompson’s corner!)
o Victoria Road – Boundary Road – Yarrara Road - the Esplanade

- 2) M2 eastbound then exit at Beecroft Road
o Epping Road (northbound) via Beecroft-to-Pennant Hills , eg Sutherland Road

With both options, I end up somewhere near the Esplanade, Thornleigh, and then I have to make my way to Hornsby from there.

Are there any simpler alternatives ?

Sunday morning, 0630 departure.

Thanks!

From Epping, follow the old M2 Detour through to Beecroft Rd, go under the railway, continue following the detour until you reach Vimiera Rd, turn left, Cross Epping Rd, go all the way to the end, under the M2 to Browns Waterhole and up Kissing Pt Rd to Turramurra. Right onto the highway, left after crossing the railway. Follow the railway to Warrawee/Wahroonga/Waitara, then up Edgeworth David Ave.

Other option is the back streets through Pennant Hills/Thornleigh, which is Victoria Rd, Bellamy St, Stevens St, Esplanade, Duffy Ave, Chilvers Rd, Sefton Rd, then follow the train line to normanhurst, and around the back behind Hornsby rsl.

Option 3.

East to Kent St Epping, over the M2 on the footbridge next to Epping Heights public, Castle Howard/Boronia/Kirkham. Beecroft Rd to the top (will be fine at that time of morning. If you're uncomfortable with that, use Wongala Cres and the East footpath on Beecroft Rd from Albert around to City View Rd), then Yarrara/Esplanade. At Duffy Ave, you can either go down to Sefton and follow Malsbury around to Hornsby - but its narrow and up and down. Another option is the shared path on PH rd from Duffy to Dartford, then PH rd to Huddart, Denman Parade, Unwin Rd to the Highway at Waitara.

thanks for the info. looks like i have a few options to pick.
will ride each way on a different route.

Slightly off topic:

Lots of new signs (that say 'M2 Detour') and painted bicycles put up in the so called M2 detour between North Parramatta and Pennant Hills Road.

ed933 wrote:Slightly off topic:

Lots of new signs (that say 'M2 Detour') and painted bicycles put up in the so called M2 detour between North Parramatta and Pennant Hills Road.

Not off topic, it's prep for the closure. The detour is along Windsor Rd to Northmead and then up North Rocks Rd back to Pennant Hills Rd and the M2. Kilometres out of the way and a tonne of climbing thrown in to boot.

So they didnt adopt the back streets route through Winston Hills?