to think that if you cycle up a road on the left hand side of cars, you can't blame the passenger if you get a door in your face

[amispartacus]

It looks like the cyclist was on the inside. No cycle lane but there is one coming up. The cars are queued. Passenger door is open. Cyclist is on the ground.

I cycle a lot. I don't go past cars on the inside. You are vulnerable. If you have to overtake queuing cars, do it on the outside. Then go to the cycle lane.

The person was the transport secretary.

[JenLindleyShitMom]

Err no!! Passengers fault entirely! You don't open your car door in the middle of a lane of traffic without checking it's safe to do so.

[Soubriquet]

What Jen said

You don't just fling your door open. You look at what you are dog for

[Soubriquet]

Doing*

[harderandharder2breathe]

Passenger is to blame for not looking before opening the door randomly. It's not like the car pulled over to let someone out, they were in a line of traffic. First thing my driving instructor taught me was to be predictable, that applies to the passenger here too.

[amispartacus]

You don't open your car door in the middle of a lane of traffic without checking it's safe to do so

But it's not the middle of the lane?

[amispartacus]

So the cyclist cycling up the inside of traffic is blameless?

[Soubriquet]

Yes

[KathArtic]

The vehicle he got out of was not indicating so the cyclist had no reason to think anyone would be getting out.

[JenLindleyShitMom]

It is the middle of a lane of traffic. Is that not a lane of traffic at a standstill? Or is that a side lane for pulling over and letting passengers out?

[Lancelottie]

I don't think that was the passenger's fault. You'd have a quick glance to see that there wasn't someone on the pavement before opening your door, but wouldn't necessarily spot someone belting up the inside of the traffic.

If it was across a cycle lane (doesn't look like it) my sympathies would be with the cyclist.

[BestZebbie]

Passengers fault - cars in a queue are still "moving" (even if they are actually waiting for a traffic light etc), so people are not supposed to be getting in and out of them! If the passenger wanted to get out, they were doing something unusual and it was on them to ensure it was safe to do so.

[JenLindleyShitMom]

Where I am cyclists go up both sides of traffic so you would be nuts not to check before opening your door at either side of the vehicle. Not sure what happens elsewhere but if it was me as passenger I would feel so stupid for not looking. You should just expect there to be cyclists.

[WorraLiberty]

You should always look when opening a car door, it's common sense.

Doesn't mean the cyclist was blameless, but only an idiot flings a car door open in a queue of traffic, without checking first.

[MeetMeAtMidnight]

I'm going to try and please everyone and end up pleasing no one and say both. Cyclist shouldn't be belting inside lane like that if there's no cycle lane, passenger should have checked before opening door. Oh and driver should have been indicating.

[Pseudonym99]

Anyone getting in or out of a car is legally responsible for ensuring it is safe for them to do so, whether they are a driver or a passenger. That is why you have child locks on cars. If the cyclist was injured, Grayling would have been arrested and charged for the offence.

Ignorance of the law is no defence.

www.cyclistsdefencefund.org.uk/the-law-for-cyclists-hit-by-vehicle-doors

"It is worth noting that it is an offence to simply endanger a person (for example if they have to swerve to avoid a crash). There does not have to be a collision. The offence is not limited to drivers, so a passenger who injures or endangers a cyclist by opening a car door also commits the offence."

[PinkSwimGoggles]

yabu
just as everyone else says.
you are lucky the cyclist isn't badly injured.

[LoisWilkersonsLastNerve]

Just an unfortunate accident, bit of blame on both sides, technically the cyclist shouldn't have been on the left of traffic but passenger should have been more careful opening the door.

[amispartacus]

Doesn't mean the cyclist was blameless

Exactly. I have sympathy for the cyclist but cycling up the inside is potentially dangerous. I cycle up the outside and am wary when going past parked cars because the door can easily open on the driver's side.

Yes, the passenger should have looked BUT the cyclist shouldn't have been there.

[LuckyBitches]

I'm with the cyclist on this one. Realistically, in London you wouldn't get anywhere as a cyclist if you didn't overtake on the left side of standing traffic. I always do it slowly in case a pedestrian appears, but I'm not sure how much that would have helped in this case. The car clearly wasn't parked.

[amispartacus]

If the cyclist was injured, Grayling would have been arrested and charged for the offence

What's the law on cycling on the inside?

[BristolLFR]

Unless the car had left indicator or hazards on, I wouldn't expect someone to be getting out of the car- they aren't pulled over.

I'm far more likely to cycle on the left side of cars as that's where the cycle path is, or just where you're usually positioned as a cyclist. Far more dangerous to weave on to the right hand side of cars every time there's traffic, and cars are less likely to expect you there / you get trapped on the right once the traffic starts moving.

[LuckyBitches]

Amispartacus - not sure about the law, but cycle lanes are often on the left hand side which certainly gives me a sense of being allowed there IYSWIM.

[LuckyBitches]

I agree - overtaking on the right feels really hazardous, especially buses.

[rightsofwomen]

From Cycle Law

"Filtering on the left hand side should only be done when the traffic is completely stationary and the cyclist is confident that it will remain so until they are safely past the vehicle."

[rightsofwomen]

In the clip it looks like the vehicles are moving slowly, but we can't tell whether this was the case when the knocked over one went past - I suspect it was very slow moving.

I've cycled into a door that flew open (I was on the right hand side of the car) and would never belt along on the inside. Legal or not, you're just more vulnerable as a cyclist.