To get annoyed at cyclists in the middle of the road

[ILiveAtTheBeach]

There are loads round here. They don't cycle to the side. They cycle in the very centre of the lane you are in. So you can't overtake if it's busy. Thus you drive to your destination in first gear. I. Haven't. Got. Time. For. This. Aargh!

So, it's better if they hit pedestrians than for cars to be mindful of cyclists?

Bikes are not the fastest mode of transportation. In the city I live a good chunk of bicyclists do use the sidewalks. Oddly they don't hit pedestrians, they move around them just like any other walking path here that shares the space with bikes and peds.

Though I do find it a bit ironic that you expect cars who are faster and deadly to be mindful of slow, vulnerable bikers, but the idea that a bike couldn't avoid a pedestrian going 2mph just preposterous.

Clearly where you are bicyclists aren't the most intelligent lot. Which only proves my point that they need to be off the road, don't you think?

At least a bike hitting a pedestrian wouldn't cause more than a fistfight few scraps and bruises.

I agree with you it drives me bonkers, they end up holding up all the traffic

Oddly they don't hit pedestrians

Or you don't see them.

Clearly where you are bicyclists aren't the most intelligent lot.
Not sure what kind of intelligence this came from, btw... what the hell?

but the idea that a bike couldn't avoid a pedestrian going 2mph just preposterous.

I see speeding bikes (in London including) swerving around pedestrians and it only takes a pedestrian suddenly changing direction, which they do easily, without indicating because obviously you don't expect a silent bike coming your way and pedestrians don't have mirrors.

I drive with cyclists around and have much less problems dealing with them and making sure I don't hit them than as a pedestrian making sure I'm not hit by them.

Particularly because children are more difficult to see, they are more random walkers and much more vulnerable and they are taught to use the pavement.

And speeding is, frankly, for the motorway.

Yes, completely agree. Pedestrians are probably hit on a regular basis in this country, just as there are more car accidents in countries with a less rule observant driving culture.

OP, I suggest you go for your motorbike test - a) it'll turn you into a better road user, b) you won't have to sit behind slow cyclists.

When I'm on my bike, I have still paid road tax, the law still applies to me, and I'm not getting on the pavement, I go way too fast to mix with pedestrians. I cycle because it's mostly faster at commuting time.

If everybody exercised patience and courtesy, there would be fewer problems on the roads.

But if you or I get it wrong around a cyclist, we might end up with a dented car. The cyclist doesn't have an airbag or seatbelt, and the road is bloody hard. When I drive, I don't ever want it on my conscience that I caused somebody's loss of life/health/ability to earn a living - just because they held me up for a few seconds, or even minutes.

Other posters have already explained the road positioning

I just wanted to add that cyclists do not cause significant delays to your journey. That would be car users. Your perception is skewed. People think nothing of sitting in queues of traffic. But notice when they spend a couple of minutes driving slowly behind a cyclist. Even as a cyclist, I am delayed by traffic queues

I was a cyclist for years, it does make you a more aware driver if you've also ridden on main roads as an adult IMO.
I'm more stunned by the number of riders who are all carefully wearing helmets but are barely visible. In my day, no one wore helmets but every sensible cyclist had decent lights.

Also, imagine how much more of a delay you would have if cyclists all simitaneously stopped cycling and starting driving their cars...how many more cars would be on the road?

People think nothing of sitting in queues of traffic.

Actually, it irritates me, which is why I prefer public transport in general. :)

And, interestingly, traffic queues are commonly caused by drivers suddenly swerving in front of other cars, speeding up then breaking hard.

I usually drive in a stretch of road that has a annoying but justifiable speed limit. Adhering to it causes maybe a 1 min delay in relation to the speed I'd like to go at. But if an arse overtakes me, usually over the solid line, I usually catch them up, at normal speed, by the time we reach the parking area, and I park faster than them too...

It's all about average speed, not instant speed.

Traffic congestion is caused by too many cars, less cars less congestion, I think people like to see the problem as caused by other road users not by themselves. What what happen if every cyclist in London suddenly decided to drive to work?

An extremely quick google suggests up to 155,000 more cars in London, which is astonishing really.

What some cyclists need to do:

1. Stop running red lights.
2. Be more visible - use good lights at night.
3. Don't cycle on the pavement if you're older than 12.

What some drivers need to do:

1. Give cyclists much more space.
2. Don't stop in the place reserved for cyclists at traffic lights. It's for their SAFETY.
3. Appreciate that many cycle lanes are unsafe because they are a) in the gutter b) uneven, so the cyclist won't use them.
4. Just accept the Highway Code says it's OK for cyclists to ride 2 abreast.
5. Ride a bicycle in peak traffic, to see for yourself just how dangerous some drivers can be.
6. Drive around cyclists as if the cyclist is your own child.

Oh, and Senpai? The only thing that irritates me is that cyclists don't follow traffic laws. They want to be treated like cars, but then don't act like cars

As far as I can see more than half motorists exceed the speed limit regularly, drive too close to the vehicle in front (or too close to a cyclist), and have little empathy for other road users. Cyclists could teach most motorists a thing or two about observing traffic laws.

www.theguardian.com/environment/bike-blog/2011/aug/01/cyclist-take-the-lane

Article about riding in the middle of the road from various perspectives. As both a cyclist and a driver in a congested city I wish there was a bit more compulsory education on both sides. I see cyclists doing stupid things and lots of drivers doing stupid things and the cyclist is always the person who will come off worst.

I was in Scandinavia for work last week. Moving around the capital city there looked like cycling heaven and SO many less cars on the road - better for everyone, surely?!

Yes, YABU - people trying to squeeze past is the reason I make sure I take the lane when cycling. I've just started cycling again (to work) recently out of necessity and am remembering why I stopped. IT's terrifying sometimes.
Cycle lanes also awful - round here they are either a little painted line that the cars all sit on/park on at intervals or on the pavement which means pedestrians end up walking on it. It really feels like you can't win - use the cycle lane and risk people pulling over in front of you/it suddenly running out or cycle on the road and get abuse for taking the lane or people overtaking dangerously if you are closer to the pavement.

Also, imagine how much more of a delay you would have if cyclists all simultaneously stopped cycling and starting driving their cars...how many more cars would be on the road?

Completely true on workdays. Not so sure about the MAMILs out on a Sunday morning though. I suspect they cause more delays than they reduce. Although of course, if they weren't on their bikes, they might then be on the roads in their cars going off to play golf or something else.

They really should make bikes ride on the sidewalks

There's a thread somewhere for the worst advice given on Mumsnet.

They really should make bikes ride on the sidewalks.

I've nearly been bowled over by pavement cyclists twice (once when getting off a bus, once when leaving a shop). My son's pushchair has been hit twice by pavement cyclists who cycled up behind me, cut around me and then cut back in sharply, not expecting there to be a pushchair there. Did any of them stop to check he was okay? Nope, just kept on cycling.

Just to quickly add - I've also seen the outcome of a couple hit by a pavement cyclist, both hobbling to get up (I helped them, ensured they were okay). The cyclist got back onto his bike as quickly as he could and cycled away.

The majority of cyclists are fine, even on the pavements, but a lot aren't.

I have often thought that there could be a compromise- you can cycle on the pavement but must keep as far to the outside as possible and MUST be no more than mobility scooter speeds. I'm fine with people cycling on the pavement for safety, but you can't then expect to ride at the same speed as you would on the road.

We have a massive problem with pavement cyclists here and the only other thing that would solve it is banning cycles altogether.

Why not keep bikes on the road but split the road to one lane for bikes and another lane for cars its what they have done here and look at the motorised traffic - it moves!

Don't put bikes on the pavement with pedestrian

Ah, I think I see the point about the dual carriageway: if there's a single car/bike lane and a central reservations, then you just can't go into the opposite lane to overtake.

Not the cyclist's fault, though; it's the fault of whoever decided they couldn't share the bus lane.

The cycling on the pavement stuff... I live in a major UK city, and I get tutted at for cycling on the pavement a LOT by drivers. But here's the thing. The planned (and bright red) cycle routes actually go over the pavement. There is a red area for bikes (sometimes brick, sometimes tarmac) and a paler area for people. So before you tut, please check that the cyclist isn't actually exactly where they are suppose to be!!

As soon as you get on a bike, you understand why they've done it this way. The point is to take bikes off the road at dangerous points and to allow them all kinds of shortcuts, e.g. to use cycle-and-person crossings to access footpaths. With the level of congestion this autumn, cycling has become far and away the fastest way I can get around the city. It's absolutely brilliant - a journey that takes 40 minutes in the car takes 15 on a bike.

"Bikes are not the fastest mode of transportation"

They are in urban environments. I used to cycle 10 miles to work through a busy city. It took on average 30 minutes less on a bike then it did on a car.

Second point, a half decent cyclist can do 15-20 mph on the flat. That is much closer to the speed of a car in a 30 zone than to a ped. Motorists are supposed to be paying attention to what is going on around them. Peds generally are chatting, or listening to music or whatever.

I think more investment should be put into proper cycle lanes (like Denmark) and that if cyclists want to have equal access to the road they should pay tax (which could contribute toward cycle lanes) and insurance. Like some drivers, some cyclists are terrible road users but there is no liability. They can scratch vehicles, knock into folk etc and cycle away with no impunity. Both drivers and cyclists need to have a bit of respect.

As for those who say that drivers should manage their journey times more effectively - that's just daft. I live in a village connected to other villages and the nearest town via 60 mile country roads. An average journey from my village to nearest town takes ten minutes. The one time I got stuck behind a couple of cyclists, cycling side by side at a very leisurely pace it took 25 minutes. Does this mean that I should leave my house 15 minutes early every time I do this journey. I don't know about everyone else but I literally do not have the time to do this. I am not suggesting that cyclists should cycle in the gutter, but on national speed limit roads they could follow the lead of tractors and pull over occasionally to allow the flow of traffic and to avoid any impatient overtakers to cause death and injury to themselves and others by undertaking crazy overtaking.

shovetheholly
The red lanes on pavements are cycle lanes. Fine. Pedestrians learn to avoid them as they avoid walking randomly on the road.