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

I don't know where people live that they never see any bad driving. Round here it's appalling

I meant drivers kill "thousands of times more pedestrians" than do cyclists.

Good post amy.

Spot on Amy.

This is going round in circles now!

How do you get that I think I own the road? I'm not the one that is uninsured and unlicenced and forcing others to move into the other side of the road or drive at a speed that is well below the limit.

Cyclist after cyclist has been crushed by lorries in my area of London over the last couple of months. All overtaken by HGVs overtaking and then turning left. I have passed the scene of at least 4 of these horrible deaths this year.

The advice is that cyclists should always cycle right on the middle of the lane.

Just remember that, some of you on this thread, as you curse cyclists. Yes, you will need to manouvre past them, and be held up at times.

But you know, those ambulances in the road as they clear up bodies can also hold you up very badly, too.

And pray that your children meet with careful, patient and non-arrogant drivers at all times.

Cyclists aren't insured (although some are) or licenced because there is no legal requirement for them to be. Are you really saying you'd be more considerate if they were? [doubtful]

Agreed, Amy .

And yes SardineQueen there are some roads around here that are practically lawless!

"Sidge "I see idiotic and dangerous behaviour from cyclists most days on my local roads. I see idiotic and dangerous behaviour from motorists less often."

How odd. Are you oblivous to the cars you get with malfunctioning lights? I wonder if the people complaining here about cyclists not wearing helmets ever run a red light or have correct legal tread on their tyres.

tbh I see less cyclists running red lights (which is bloody crazy anyway) than I do cars, and as soon as it rains, I seem to always see at least one car wheelspinning at low speed as the little remaining tread on its tyres fails to gain traction."

Why do you think it's odd? Where I live there are huge numbers of cyclists, most of whom do not wear helmets or use the roads responsibly. I don't often see cars running red lights but most cycles do. I very rarely see a car at night without it's headlights on, but I'd say 8 out of 10 bikes I see after dark have no lights. I do not for one minute think they 'deserve it', or that as a car driver I'm entitled to mow them down. .

I am well aware many motorists are inconsiderate, inattentive and no doubt put cyclists at risk. But irresponsible cyclists and irresponsible drivers aren't mutually exclusive. I stated earlier that I worry about DH cycling to work - having worked in A&E I've seen exactly how vulnerable cyclists can be. I also worry that one day I will hit a cyclist entirely due to their behaviour not mine and I don't know how I could live with that. A cycle lane cuts across the junction of the road I live in, I turn right into that road daily when coming home from work. The cycle lane has Give Way markings and of course as a driver I look around for cyclists, but considering many don't slow down, let alone stop and give way for traffic turning into the road, I just can't believe there aren't more accidents.

It seems that the onus is on me as the driver, not the cyclist. Of course they'll come off worse if there's a collision but they also need to take responsility for their actions if they're using the road.

I just wish EVERYONE using roads took more care and attention, whether on 2 wheels or 4.

Blu , we are Hackney and there have been many fatalities recently, mostly involving HGVs. DS saw a ghost bike the other day and I had to try to explain to him what it was without putting him off cycling for life .

well milk vans are licenced and insured and they force you to move to the other side of the road and drive at speeds well below the limit as do tractors and diggers and other farm veichles. So what exactly is your point on that one? Cyclists are entitled by law to be on the road and are not entitled to ride on the pavement so you are now whinging about people who are merely obeying the law and the highway code and are entitled to be doing exactly what they are doing.

There are some good and some bad drivers out there - equally there are some responsible cyclists and some very irresponsible ones.

When my DS had not long passed his test he overtook a cyclist who was in a cycle lane, DS and 2 independent witnesses who came forward all verified he had done this safely and with plenty of room but the cyclist (who, incidentally, was riding at a ridiculous speed) disagreed. At traffic lights he banged on the car, kicked it and finally picked up his bike and banged it onto the bonnet several times before riding off! A passer-by was so shocked he followed him but the police could do nothing as he denied being the cyclist involved when they questioned him and, by coincidence, was wearing all black unidentifiable cycle gear. DS was very shaken and the car was damaged.

Cyclists always deserve consideration from drivers but they are not always in the right.

bubblecoral The speed limit is a MAXIMUM not a compulsory target! YOU have to be insured because you are thousands of times more likely to cause a death than is a cyclist (and you personally sound as though you are an even greater risk than that). YOU have to be licensed because, unlike cyclists and pedestrians, cars have no common law right to be on the public highway at all - they are only there by, as it says on the tin, license (which can be withdrawn).

JEEZ, I honestly think that people like you should not be allowed cars at all. My idea is that nobody gets to pass their driving test without spending a whole day cycling first and seeing how it feels.

Incidentally, when driving, I have never been forced onto the other side of the road by a cyclist (I am struggling to imagine that tbh). I assume you are not talking about when you choose to overtake...if so, then you should remember only to do so when it is safe not only for you but also for road users coming the other way and the cyclist? There is no force involved.

Saggar, I'm not inconsiderate to cyclists in the first place, I just get irritated by them. There is a big difference.

And I would get much less irritated if they were liceneced and insured, because then I would know that they are aware of the rules of the road, and that if they scratch my car or something simelar (as has happened to dh) then I can get it repaired without dipping into my own limited finances or losing my no claims.

Cyclists having to be identifiable in the same way as motorists would also help, because if they do make a mistake and ride off, I at least have a fighting chance of being able to know who they are. It might also encourage cyclists to stick to the rules if they could be identified, thus increasing their own safety.

Erm, you mean I choose to overtake in the same way that a cyclist chooses to cycle, right?

And just because something is a law, does not make it perfect.

My son damaged a car when cycling and our house insurance paid. Hopefully you'll be a bit less 'irritated' if you come across him.

amythesecond YY to drivers having to spend a day cycling before they can take their test. It makes you a much better driver, more aware of consequences and hazards.

I've been reminded of something that happened to my dad a couple of years ago. He's retired, cycles regularly to keep healthy and is very responsible. During one cycle ride he was on a wide main road, going at a fair pace, when a car overtook him and the passenger leaned out of the window and shoved him. He obviously came off his bike and was hurt pretty badly, no one stopped to help and he never even saw the car.

So that's where all this overwhelming hatred gets you. Random acts of violence towards a pensioner.

I object to being made to slow down by people who haven't had to prove that they are as safe on their chosen mode of transport as I have had to do with mine, and who don't have to pay to be there, and don't have to be insured if they cause damage to me or my property.

You don't pay to be there - you pay a vehicle tax for the emissions you produce as a pollutant - if you drive a large pollutant then you will pay more tax - if you drive a vehicle that isn't a pollutant then you will not pay any tax - some cars and all cycles don't have to pay the emissions tax.

Some cyclists may choose to insure their bike, but that is unlikely to do me any favours if my car gets dented by a cyclist, or I need councelling because I have injured a cyclist that wasn't following the rules.

I insure myself as a cyclist - and on top of that I insure my bike against getting stolen or damaged - so if you have an accident and need consselling and the accident was my fault - then you can sue me and my insurance will be there to stop me having to pay you they will - you can also sue if the person cycling hasn't go insurance - its up to you, but I have insurance incase you do decide to sue - so do a few millions others that do so through the ctc, it is common place.

Some cyclists may also have a car and pay road tax, or whatever you want to dress it up as. But that is completely irrelevant. If I want two cars as my chosen means of transport I pay the tax twice, if a cyclist wants a car and a bike on the road they only pay once. That injustice annoys motorists, and why shouldn't it? It is unfair.

As stated before several times it was abolished before the second ww in 1937 and no one has to pay any road tax and as you say its irrelevant regardless of whether you dress as a bunny at Christmas and wear a santa outfit all summer.

i rarely see a cyclist stop at a red light and the other week the pedestrian lights had turned so i slowly started to pull out of a side turning where i live to go right and have done this for years, if the ped' lights are red then you can go but fuck no, some cyclist women came STEAMING through the ped' red light. if i had not been driving carefully i could have easily knocked her off her bike even though i had the right to be pulling out. ffs, it still makes me angry, i could have killed the stupid cow and it would have been her fault. i would have gone mental to her face had i have had the chance

Please remember life isn't cheap and ever cyclist some kind of family who love them dearly

Bubblecorral "Erm, you mean I choose to overtake in the same way that a cyclist chooses to cycle, right?"

What don't you understand about you driving a big, metal car? You can't drive it like you ride a bike.

It seems that the onus is on me as the driver, not the cyclist. Of course they'll come off worse if there's a collision but they also need to take responsility for their actions if they're using the road.

That would be because you require a license by law to drive a heavy metal object with an engine, and are responsible by law should you do so carelessly, recklessly or dangerously. Is this new to you?

You obviously drive in an urban location with cyclists. Yet you seem to be claiming it is too much for you to drive safely. I drive; I don't find it too much for me. Its pretty much a hazard of driving somewhere thats not a motorway.

Guess what? There are also pedestrians around.

I'm also astonished that you have never experienced a car jumping red lights while driving yourself, or a car with faulty lights. You know, the ones with one almost dead and the other blindingly bright, so that you're not sure whether its a motorbike or a car behind you.

For the protection of everyone who does or might in the future ride a bike, might I suggest the two above users spend a day using a bike for transport, so that their driving and road awareness skills improve?

nij - if you are referring to me, my driving is fine thanks, and if it wasn't i would have knocked over the stupid cow who sped through a red light and probably killed or seriously maimed her, she was lucky that i was paying special attention and not pulling out in a normal way you usually do when the road is clear, noone expects someone to go bombing through a light that has been red for about 5 seconds

Bubblecorral and others This thread was started with a stark reminder of the thousands of cyclists who are KSI'd every year. Do you not see how offensive and unwelcome your comments are?

Seriously, you remind me of the apologists who jump on to any thread about women being abused with "what about the menz" bullshit.

We're talking about being people being KSI'd every fucking day and all you worry about is being held up for five minutes or your crappy car being scratched.

Victim blaming at it's worse.

Listen to yourselves.