To expect cyclists not to ride on the pavement and not expect pedestrians to move out of their way!

[ophelia275]

I am so sick of having to swerve the pushchair or move out of the way so that some idiot on a bicycle can avoid the traffic by cycling on the pavement and expect me to stand aside with my kids/pushchair/shopping so that they can ride past. Sometimes (when I am not with my kids) I stand firm and don't move out of their way so they have to get off or be patient and wait until I have walked past.

When I was quite heavily pregnant I was walking along and this guy on a bike came zooming up and shouted "move" and just pushed past me. Nob.

Grrr. Hate them!

Lurking, the statistics for cycle-car accidents show that in these cases the driver is almost invariably uninjured. I could dig them up for you if you like.

The reality is traffic lights are there to protect us from motor vehicle-related carnage. If we were all on bicycles none of it would be necessary. There are no traffic lights on cycle tracks and bridleways.

Geraldine - I doubt that v. much. They prob. just think 'go fuck yourself' or some other pleasantry.

I must say, that's very uncouth pan. Perhaps you are projecting?

Pan - i thought i saw flutters of love last night between you and one other MN'er :D

no, not at all, Geraldine - just pointing out a reality behind your picture. no projection involved.

Flutters, bit? They were massive eagle-like swooshes!

I don't know..It's just not something I can agree with. Frightening anyone on the road just isn't on IMO, whether you're a cyclist OR a driver OR a moron jaywalking on Swanson street... Which is why I haven't got my license yet and DP drives like a granny.

Here's a mad theory.

Cyclists claim they are in the majority considerate.

The roads are over used and clogged and like it or not cyclists do often cause traffic tailbacks whilst motorised road users wait to safely overtake.

Footpaths are in general under utilised ( save for busy city areas )

If the general cycling populace are so considerate and responsible why are they not given licence to use this under used asphalt?

Everyone wins. Motorists don't have a tedious queue, cyclists don't suffer the danger of the road and pedestrians have nothing to fear because cyclists are the most considerate breed of living person to frequent the earth....

Yep, you're right Sparks.

Utterly mad.

(fwiw traffic tailbacks are caused by vehicle traffic, not one skinny little bike.)

Traffic tailbacks can also be caused by a brainless knob on a bike who thought that red lights didnt apply to him, as happened at a very busy main junction near my house. The whole junction was closed and put the town at a standstill for 2 hours while the air ambulance took him to hospital. The driver that hit him was taken by ambulance due to shock. You dont just affect yourself with your stupidity.

Enjoy your red light leaping Pan.

???

I seeee. It's all clear now. Cyclists cause congestion, not vehicles. And let's face it, car drivers' journeys are far more important than anyone else's on the road.

ta.

(fwiw traffic tailbacks are caused by vehicle traffic, not one skinny little bike.)

One skinny bike that is travelling at a considerably slower speed than any other traffic and cannot be safely overtaken if oncoming traffic is present.

Whilst the footpath is empty. Now that's mad.

I think Pan is being unfairly picked on for going through one red light, if he was a serial offender that would be different. I have no problem with cyclists ahead of a white line on a junction so that they have a head start on the traffic behind them, yes legally it shouldn't be done but it is safer for them.

Massive problem with cyclists speeding through red lights on pedestrian crossings or riding fast on pavements, but no one on this thread disagrees with that. So OP YANBU in that respect.

A number of cyclists have said that they ride on pavements, so long as its slow and they are avoiding dangerous roads and not putting pedestrians at risk, fine.

I'm a cyclist, or was until 3 small kids temporarily halted it and I've been sworn at for legally riding my bike on the roard and holding up a car for 30m. Its really threatening when you're a lone female cyclist.

There are a lot of cyclists round here, its rural with a lot of cycle routes. They are all fine, I am held up at times but I'd rather not have a dead cyclist on my conscience so I wait. I'm held up by tractors, weekend drivers etc just part of life.

thank you tryingto - I'd said the same thing repeatedly!

yes I cycle on a pavement, on a really dangerous bit of a dual carriageway. No-one minds as I am really respectful and careful.

How you ride does depend a lot on your environment. Mines is a tricky city jungle, with cars and vans/lorries trying to 'rush' to work first thing, so I guess I behave,and come across as a bit of a bike warrior.
It also depends a bit on how you look. With a bright reflective jacket, helmet, bit ruchsack and on a hybrid bike I prob. look quite different to a youngie in a dark top and trainers out for a spin with his buddies.

Clearly cyclists are not causing congestion. If this was the case how is it that folk moan about them coming up on the inside. How often do you overtake a bike only for it to be sitting in front of you at the next set of lights (waiting for green - natch) because you've been stuck in traffic. I'm confused.

And anyway how can we cause congestion when we're all tossers who ride on the pavement?

Mixed messages.

ha - do you honestly believe Pan only ever goes through one red light?

??nancy? Yes I do believe that, because I watch myself very carefully do it.
hth.

Not all cyclists jump red lights, why shouldn't he be one of those. His posts have been pretty consistent. Why not?

I can totally see why Pan would jump that particular red traffic light. Truth is, the whole road system, including traffic lights are not considering cyclists. In Holland for example, in a situation like this, there would be a green cyclist traffic light underneath the red light to indicate that cyclists are allowed to continue.

lurking it looks like you are in Victoria - the road rules state that cyclists are allowed to two abreast, but no more than 1.5m apart. When I had road awareness education at school, we were actually advised to ride two abreast as it made us more visible to drivers.

In lurking's defence, there have been some serious problems with packs of cyclists, particularly on the notorious Beach Road in Melb. Pelotons have gained a reputation for disobeying road rules - riding 3 or more abreast & not stopping at traffic lights or pedestrian crossings.
Cyclists have killed pedestrians when the cyclist has run a red light, so they are not just putting themselves at risk by disobeying this basic road rule.

Thank you kras

Living in a rural area also seems to be 'free game' for some of these idiots to think they can ride even more recklessly. I do get fed up with it as most of the time they are nasty road bullies, and I'm over it.

Cyclists can actually cause a fair bit of damage to pedestrians. An article in my local newspaper yesterday about an elderly lady who was severely injured by a cyclist on the pavement; as she pointed out, a small child would have been likely to have been even more badly injured or killed.

I have often been very nervous pushing a wheelchair around here, as cyclists suddenly jump onto the pavement with no warning when the lights turn red or the traffic slows down, and with a wheelchair you can't exactly leap out of their way.

One problem is that cyclists go much faster than they did 50 years ago: the bikes themselves are designed to move faster and speed/the ability to move past slow-flowing traffic is actually made a selling point by promoters of cycling, which leads to a different attitude.

I would like to see better provision for cyclists, better cycle lanes, more awareness on the part of motorists, in short more people feeling safe to cycle. But it would have to go with a general attitude that bikes are vehicles capable of doing harm or causing accidents and that cyclists therefore have to follow the same rules as everybody else. I have been observing cyclists recently (after an discussion about the topic above) and the ones that stop at traffic lights like other vehicles are actually in a minority around here.

Yup, I can also see why Pan would jump that one red light on a hill. Hill starts are a bloody PITA on a bike, especially when you've raced up it at speed only to have the lights change...shortly before your leg muscles explode from the effort to get up there!

Some people on this thread have written monumentally dumb things about all cyclists being the same. How's about this: I am an occasional cyclist, an occasional driver and a regular public transport user. I am lovely and considerate no matter how I travel. Go on, pigeonhole me if you can!

PMSL Pan at your 'non-sloppy' comment! All is forgiven. Though I have to say, if Idris Elba walked into the road I'd knock you sideways with my bike to reach him! And like MrsThugPedestrian last night, I wouldn't regret it!