Cyclists killed and seriously injured on roads.....spmeone is being unreasonable

[GabbyLoggon]

Big news in todays independent.(and elsewhere)

They say 230 cyclists are killed or seriously injured on our
roads every month.

Really? I would like to see those figures broken down to serious injury/death
The report says HGV drivers are often involved.

Cycling is becomming more popular here

Bear in mind that technically its motorists that fund the roads, not cyclists.

I live in a big city and ride my bike to work and back, which is about 1.5 miles away.

In 4 weeks I've nearly been knocked off my bike twice, both at the same place when I was correctly proceeding on the main road and the car came out of the side road without even looking. The second time it happened the guy just stared at me and carried on driving as I nearly fell off my bike.

We have loads of cycle lanes on the roads but people seem to think a cycle lane means you can park your car on it.

I don't jump red lights and I don't ride on the pavements. I can see why people would want to ride on the pavements though.

Also in the city center there is a huge two way cycle path alongside a pedestrian pavement. Yet the pedestrians treat the cycle path as the pavement. :(

I wear reflective gear/helmet/lights but it doesn't matter, if someone's not going to look they're not going to look.

I wish I had my car again.

Let's take all pedestrians of the roads too, as they are not contributing to the road either

oh and anyone with a foreign number plate and British drivers are not allowed to go to Europe as they have not contributed to the roads, just such a non-argument

Sweet Jesus, some of the opinions on this thread are incredible!! You do realise that roads are for use by pedestrians, horses and riders, horse-drawn vehicles, cyclists, farm machinery AND motor vehicles don't you??

Oh dear. How unfortunate that the first two comments want to blame cyclists.

As a cyclist for many years I always was irritated by those cyclists who did go through red lights or weave through traffic unsafely but there are many many of us who cycle responsibly and still get hit.

When my bike was written off (With me on it) at a roundabout where a car driver failed to give way to traffic coming from the right I was wearing a helmet, a full reflective body suit and had lights. His first words were 'Oh, I am so sorry... I did see you'. Twat.

many drivers (and I am not saying all) do not seem to be aware of their responsibility to look out for other road users, including pedestrians.

How many pedestrians are killed by car drivers? Are all the pedestrians to blame too?

Whatmeworry Tue 06-Dec-11 11:48:42
Bear in mind that technically its motorists that fund the roads, not cyclists.

Yers, that would be due to the fact that motor vehicles cause nearly all the wear and tear and damage to the roads, meaning they have to be rebuilt constantly. See?

JaneBirkin I agree. Cars are by their nature bullies - you can't walk on the road, ride a bike safely, ride a horse with tons of metal hurtling around at 30-60 miles an hour. However good everyone is (or not) it can't work.

Here's a question - do you ride in the gutter or 1-2 metres out? The latter is safer (you're more visible and no car can try to 'squeeze past') but it really annoys car drivers.

I rarely ride on roads. I just can't square it in my mind as I don't believe it's safe for anyone.

The roads here are mainly narrow and complicated anyway. When I do ride I keep as far in to the kerb as possible. but plenty of cyclists ride out into the road, holding up car drivers, making a lot of them irate I'm sure ( and tbh I understand this - when you are in a vehicle capable of doing 30, and you've factored this into your journey time, and someone is stuck in front of you doing about 10, you're going to feel frustrated. I know I do (though I only sigh, I don't swear, act dangerously or hoot - no one reasonable does). I wait.

This is what i mean. If cyclists have their own speed-considered lane, in which they can perform optimally, they are going to do better than if they have to try and share with us in our high powered large lumps of metal.

I don't understand all the 'get cyclists off the roads' or the 'car drivers are bastards', it's not that simple as blaming each other...it's a failing in the entire set up. It needs to be sorted.

Whatmeworry Tue 06-Dec-11 11:48:42
Bear in mind that technically its motorists that fund the roads, not cyclists.

They get really annoyed about this over at the Guardian - have a look.
www.guardian.co.uk/environment/bike-blog/2011/nov/22/cycling-road-tax-confused?INTCMP=SRCH

Road Tax was abolished in 1937, the tax you pay for your car is related to the emissions it gives out. If bikes had the same tax - oh .. they wouldn't be taxed.

I moved from the UK to the Netherlands recently and the attitude towards cyclists is completely different. The cyclist is most definitely king of the road. I think it's part infastructure, there are separate cycling paths on the vast majority of roads so your not in traffic and partly cultural. If a cyclist gets hit by a motor vehicle it's automatically the motorists fault.

I cycle around with my DS in a little babyseat on the handlebars here, I can't imagine doing that in the UK.

Sorry that posted before I had chance to type - that guy drove through a red light on his bike and then got smart with the policeman who stopped him.

My DH cycles in London every day, he's been knocked off his bike several times, once by a taxi driver doing a U turn on Oxford Street, once by a guy on a roundabout who just didn't see him and another time by a guy who pulled out of a junction in front of him. The taxi driver and the guy at the junction both drove off and the guy at the roundabout gave false details and it was just lucky enough someone at the scene had the wherewithal to photograph is number plate. Our insurance company stopped paying out for bikes for DH after the third accident. DH has lights, fluorescent jackets and helmet he's also a proficient bike rider and knows the highway code.

However, I live in a rural area and often come across bike clubs or cyclists out, quite often with no lights, or like last week on a quiet country road cycling side by side chatting and making it impossible for me to get past. I like to show courtesy to other road users but you know I would expect it shown back to me too.

I moved from the UK to the Netherlands recently and the attitude towards cyclists is completely different. The cyclist is most definitely king of the road. I think it's part infastructure, there are separate cycling paths on the vast majority of roads so your not in traffic and partly cultural.

I have driven in both countries too, and as well as the above I have never encountered a cyclist jumping a red light in Amsterdam, or any of the other daft things I see cyclists doing daily in the UK.

It takes reasonable behaviour from both sides for this to all work.

I am a "bike user" and I find myself thinking a lot of the time "It's cyclists like you that make drivers hate us all."

I have been run off the road by a drunk (smashing my knee in the process), been cut off, swerved in front of, and all manner of inconsiderate or dangerous road use and nine out of ten times it's by someone else on a bike. I have also been sworn at because I "stopped suddenly and unexpectedly" at a red light. WTAF?

When I read these threads about cyclists and see how angry a lot of people get for being called dangers or what not, I have to wonder how close to the truth those accusations must be. I don't take offense to the people who say cyclists are a danger and blah, blah, blah because they don't mean me. I actually do stop at every red light (even the ones that are pretty much just zebra crossings). I don't try to undertake lorries or busses. I don't weave in and out of traffic (I have a bike lane and that is where I stay).

Cyclists piss me off to no end... Especially when I am riding my bike.

My point is that it can't work.

Has anyone noticed that this thread is from way back in April.
And here was me thinking Gabby was back.

So it is... Wolf2000 joined to bump it? Weird.
Maybe some cycling geek from a cycling geek forum

As a "for fun" cyclist only, who only really cycles in parks or on tow paths etc I will say that pedestrians piss me off too. On shared cycle tracks etc they NEVER seem to know that there are rules for pedestrians too. I think there are some terrible practices and lack of road etiquette by cyclists but in part that is because car drivers and lorry drivers etc, having overtaken them are then determined to stop the cyclists from making reasonable progress if the traffic flow slows (eg deliberately moving as far to the left as possible so that they cannot pass or get ahead at the lights). I'm not excusing cyclists - I'm no fan of them on the open roads for precisely the reasons set out in here but there is simply a lack of tolerance and consideration in just about everyone. This sadly seems to me to be a UK disease.

My anecdote is that many years ago I was interning for a mid-tier firm of solicitors who were acting in a RTA case. The case involved a lorry which made a left turn right into a cyclist who had a toddler in a rear-cycle seat. No-one was killed but the toddler was badly injured. The Mother (cyclist) sued the lorry driver. She had of course pulled along side the lorry (at its left side) while it was stationary at traffic lights. I can't remember the correct terminology etc but at some point during the case the court stepped in and appointed a guardian/Mckenzie's Friend/something like that to the child in order that the child could sue the mother too.

I was riding my pony on road at weekend & got shouted at rudely & with foul language by a cyclist... Because i was in the road. He told me to stick to a field.

I told him I drive a large black 4x4 and when he meets me in that on his bike he should think about what hes just said to me!

I think there are some terrible practices and lack of road etiquette by cyclists but in part that is because car drivers and lorry drivers etc, having overtaken them are then determined to stop the cyclists from making reasonable progress if the traffic flow slows (eg deliberately moving as far to the left as possible so that they cannot pass or get ahead at the lights)

It's called getting back into your lane after overtaking. It's not done to deliberately impede cyclists, its done so the oncoming traffic doesn't wallop you head on.

And road users - even cyclists - are not supposed to undertake on a road!

This post says it all really.....I suspect this why so many cyclists meat their undertakers....

I cycle the school run with our three children. Last week I witnessed two accidents where cars just ran straight into them.. One bloke just shouted well I just didnt see him as if the cyclist should not have been on the road.
Sometimes as a cyclist you do feel invisible.

'them' being cyclists not my children by the way. If that had been the case I think I wouldnt be cycling.

"but at some point during the case the court stepped in and appointed a guardian/Mckenzie's Friend/something like that to the child in order that the child could sue the mother too."

really!

What happened?

Just watched that video of the cyclist with the policeman and all i can say is what a fucking tosspot that cyclist is. Is it mean of me to think that next time he goes through a red light he is not so fortunate!