Beckenham to Central London commute

Does anyone commute from Beckenham to Central London on their bike?. I'm moving to Beckenham in a few weeks and wanted to get some tips on routes...The point being that I want to avoid hills as much as possible.. Help!..Cheers

Does anyone commute from Beckenham to Central London on their bike?. I'm moving to Beckenham in a few weeks and wanted to get some tips on routes...The point being that I want to avoid hills as much as possible.. Help!..Cheers

I do.

If you want to avoid hills as much as possible then your 'best' option is a21 through Lewisham and either up the a2 or down lower road / Jamaica road.

However, that way is not very nice and much longer than going over crystal palace and through Camberwell.

Which end of beckenham?

Yeah I live in Catford at the moment so I know the Lewisham route but I see that it would be longer . I'll be more towards the Elmers end side of Beckenham. Do you go around the north or south of Crystal Palace park?

I find the north side of the park much better in terms of traffic - and then you can bomb down to Gipsy Hill roundabout or down College Road. Anerley Hill has too many side turns for my liking.

This is my route

Pretty much a straight line to my office in Waterloo. Takes a little over half an hour each way.

It's the section King's <-> E&C which I'm not really keen on. Always choked on my way home.

My avoiding too many hills route involves going via Sydenham, Forest Hill, then down to Dulwich village via Court Lane, up Sunray Avenue and down Denmark Hill to Camberwell.

There is a flat NCN route that shadows the railway up through Lower Sydenham, Catford Bridge, Ladywell etc., but it's mixed use path most of the way and slow going.

Another option is to go through Lower Sydenham, although the Bell Green gyratory is horrible, then turn left up Houston Road which feeds into the B218 that runs up through Honor Oak to Brockley, then pick up the OKR. A variation on this is to turn left through the back of Nunhead, past Peckham Rye then pick up the cycle path through Burgess Park.

Yes, I went that way (Kent House Road, Bell Green, Houston Road, B218, A2) when I first moved to Beckenham.

I think the A2 from A202 to E&C is slightly slower than Camberwell / Walworth Road over the same leg.

Marginal gains and that.

Some good options there.. thanks guys. Been commuting from Catford / Lewisham for the past 6 years so I'm slightly apprehensive of those extra few miles. Rather that than giving in to the trains, that's for shnizzle

I moved from Lewisham. It doesn't feel much further. And the benefit is how much closer you are to the countryside for your weekend spin.

Which bit of central london are you after?

When I lived in beckenham I always used to go through brockley to either tower bridge or the greenwich tunnel but presumably both are further east than you want to be...

Which bit of central london are you after?

When I lived in beckenham I always used to go through brockley to either tower bridge or the greenwich tunnel but presumably both are further east than you want to be...

Yeah a bit too far east.. Going to be riding into Piccadilly