London CableCar Free for Cyclists ... Why?

[DynamicSpirit]

I was just idly checking information about the London cable car at https://tfl.gov.uk/modes/london-cable-car/opening-hours-frequency and discovered this:

Bicycles are accepted on the IFS Cloud Cable Car at all times.

Guests with bicycles travel for free on the cable car before 09:30 on weekdays, excluding bank holidays.

If I've understood that right, if I turn up before 09:30 on weekdays, I can avoid paying the fare simply by having a bicycle with me. Which is actually potentially pretty useful as a cyclist considering how often the lifts on the Greenwich and Woolwich foot tunnels are out of action, if it means I have a way of crossing the river without having to carry my bike up 100+ steps. But I'm curious, why would TfL make the cablecar free for cyclists at that time? Does anyone know the rationale?

 

[John Webb]

As a former resident of Woolwich who used the ferry or foot-tunnel for two years commuting to my first job, I too am aware of the occasional failures of ferry, lifts etc. Also you cannot bicycle through either the Blackwall tunnels or the new Silvertown one. So perhaps it's a way of encouraging cycling commuters?

But presumably to return the same way after work you have to pay. So effectively you get a 50% discount on the fare.

 

[nlogax]

Additionally, to encourage residents and workers in the local area to cycle to work, the cable car is free to cyclists before 9.30am Monday to Friday, with the exception of bank holidays.

Link:
https://www.london.gov.uk/who-we-ar...ns-mayor/find-an-answer/cable-car-concessions

 

[TrenHotel]

There are a few discounts aimed at locals/regulars - free morning travel for cyclists is one of them. That long predates City Hall's move to the Royal Docks.

It's not formally advertised, but people holding Parkrun barcodes have been carried free before 10.30am to help those getting to/from Victoria Dock parkrun, which is next to the Royal Docks terminal.

As mentioned in the link above, you can get a ten-trip ticket for £17, which lasts a year and will offer a huge saving on the usual £6 single fare.

 

[Via Bank]

I believe it was a token measure during one of the many long outages of the lifts at the Greenwich foot tunnel (where technically cycling is banned, but many people cycle anyway and it is part of NCN 1.)

Of course the cable car still isn’t really a viable cycle crossing if you don’t work 9-5, if it’s windy, if you have a cargo bike etc. The lifts at Greenwich and Woolwich are still semi-permanently broken, the Woolwich ferry finishes super early & is unreliable, and you can’t cycle through Blackwall. Really there’s no reliable way to cycle across the river east of Tower Bridge.

Don’t worry. I’m sure the Silvertown magic cycle bus will fix everything

 

[James H]

Really there’s no reliable way to cycle across the river east of Tower Bridge.

Not disagreeing with the thrust of your post, but your list omits the (expensive) Rotherhithe to Canary Wharf ferry, which is due to get a cycle-friendly upgrade soon.