to think some cyclists appear to have a death wish

[whoneedssleepanyway]

last night it was dark and rainy I was turning right into a residential street with cars parked both sides so only room for one car and as I am turning suddenly a cyclist comes into view coming out from behind parked cars, no lights and wearing a dark jacket...I nearly knocked him off.

If I had would it have been my fault, I am guessing it would have...? But I can't understand why someone would cycle in the dark and rain without the proper equipment (lights and visible clothing...)

I was hoping for milk floats.

Engages brain and realises that cars are not the only vehicles

"I'm in control of a killing machine" - this is why I do dislike driving. I don't particularly want to be in charge of a two ton tank of a car (eyes the one outside currently on loan from dad).

It's interesting how much difference eye contact makes, as well. If I have right of way over oncoming traffic (chicanes, parked cars etc), I put myself right in the middle of the road and make eye contact with the oncoming driver. They stop, I give them a nod and a smile, and all is well. I wonder if being on a road bike and wearing lycra helps, though - I look more like a professional cyclist (disclaimer: I am nowhere near the standard of a professional cyclist), so perhaps afforded more respect? I suspect someone riding in the gutter on a sit-up-and-beg with a basket on the front would be taken less seriously by many drivers.

It's scary, TiARRRGHo, it really is. I quite like driving, but mostly on roads that are rarely used by anything other than motorised traffic! Motorway or major A-road driving is infinitely preferable to anything else because it's so much more predictable.

I live in a "cycling city" and cycle regularly. I also walk regularly and drive a least once a week. There are a reasonable number of cyclist who indeed do have a death win. I would say about 1 in 4 go through red lights / don't have lights / don't give way when they should.

But that leaves 3 in 4 who are pretty sensible.

And despite the fact that this is a city full of bikes I 've seen some pretty stupid things done by both car drivers and padestrians as well. (Most regularly the headphones padestrian stepping out into the road without looking leaving me with the happy choice of ploughing into them or swerving and risking being hit by a car.

I'd agree with compulsory hi-viz for all, cyclists, cars and pedestrians. Safety first ;) In fact, if we were all painted orange like Tango Man, there would be no accidents at all!

There are also occasions where it is not safe for a cyclist to follow the Highway Code to the letter.

The route home from where I used to work had traffic lights at a T junction. Both lanes on the "straight bit" could go straight ahead and the left hand lane could turn left. So far, so straightforward. However , just beyond the junction was another left turn (a sort of diagonally-to-the-left-straight-ahead road - not part of the traffic-let junction). This road leads to the cycle/pedestrian bridge across the (very busy) expressway.

So, if you are aiming for cycle bridge, unless you are the front of the traffic, you risk being cut up by cars. If you stay in the left lane, a car turning left can cut you up as you try to go "diagonally" straight ahead, ie across the junction and then bearing left. If you stay in the right lane, you would get cut up by a car legitimately going "straight" straight ahead on the main road as you try to bear left into the "other" road.

It's a junction crying out for a cycle apron at the lights - but until that is put in, the only safe place for a cyclist is wait ahead of the solid white line and to start moving when the light turns amber so as to be ahead of the traffic.

I never go through it on the red - but I learnt, through close shaves, that I had to be flexible with the Highway Code in this instance. (BTW: I always wore a high viz jacket and good quality lights)

This annoys the hell out of me. You can't group all cyclists and say they are all irresponsible any more than you can with car drivers.

Whoever is to blame when car and cyclist collide, the cyclist will always come out worse. There are far more cars than bikes and that means more twats driving killing machines than twats cycling a few pounds of metal.

The most common situation I see is cars driving into oncoming traffic because they are so desperate to get past the cyclist.

Oh and yanbu for being annoyed with cyclist but yabu to post it thinking its worse than when a person in a car acts this way.

I'be been doing some v.informal counting of number of helmets worn over the last few months.

Back in the dark days of February, in busy commuter traffic to and from Westminster, on one stretch of road, broadly between a quarter to a third of cyclists were not wearing helmets.

I have now switched routes and the proportion has declined, but over the last fortnight, between about 6.45 pm and 7.46pm, about 20 per cent(lowest 16, highest 25) are not wearing helmets.

I can sort of understand if you are going a short distance on a Boris Bike, but most weren't.

Jumpjockey, you need to put yourself in the middle of the carriageway so a car can't pull up alongside you. Then you get a turn on your own and the car and can wait for the next gap. It's more defensive than been on the left and letting a car come alongside you.

YY to middle of the lane.

TiAAAAARGHo O my days
I have never seen a milk float run a red light... I have never thought before about a milk float running a red light. There could be a lot of broken glass if they did and a lot of white stuff on the road

No point crying about it though, eh?

ooo lol

Ps, also hate bad drivers, who are bad, and cannot understand pedestrians in headphones who believe they have divine right but are just mad.

SkippyYourFriendEverTrue said:

(btw flashing lights are legal, check your facts before spouting rubbish)

Please go back and read my post carefully. I never said that flashing lights weren't legal - they have actually been legal since 2005 but their legality doesn't make them any more visible than the non-flashing variety, and doesn't make them any easier to drive behind on a dark wet night!