To think some cyclists are complete arseholes....

[Sophisticatedsarcasm]

I’m not blind to the fact that cyclists get grief from drivers, you’d think they’d give some thought to pedestrians. 3 Times today I came across douchebags who couldn’t be bothered to signal when turning and almost run me over, luckily I’m very aware when out walking. One of then tried to hurl abuse at me when I shouted back some very tasteful words along with the other women also almost knocked over. If you want to cycle in a busy part of town then you need to abide by the Highway Code of signalling so people know not to cross the road not just cycle along and spontaneously decide I want that turn no matter who’s there.
Another went up a one way street the wrong way then because a car was coming swerves and almost hits me on the pavement....and not a sorry in sight... which I kindly pointed out when I shouted your welcome really loudly... not that it mattered he continued on his ignorant way.
I like to cycle but I’m always weary of people and to me pedestrians are priority.... it’s a shame not everyone feels the same.
So tell me am I being unreasonable....

Some complete arseholes cycle, some drive (we can guess their favoured makes ), some walk along blocking up the whole pavement in a big group.

Most cyclists are fine. I did recently encounter one knob who thought it was reasonable to woosh along a shared use path in a country park at great speed berating us for not physically being able to get a youth group of primary age children out of his way quickly. 1) he was too fast to react safely to. 2) The children were of an age where they're not sure which right is right or if it's left. They were moving in a way that was easy to anticipate for anyone approaching in a considerate manner.

Some people are arseholes. They are still arseholes whatever means of transport they use!

I got knocked down by a cyclist once. It bloody hurt. And ripped two of the toggles off my duffle coat. And the swine didn't even stop to see if I was ok, or apologise.

The Highway Code states that cyclists should signal "for the benefit of other road users" - does this mean pedestrians or other vehicles e.g. cars etc. The only time this is a problem though (as a cyclist) is turning left going downhill where having both hands on the brakes may be needed.
There are a few roads in my area that are marked as one-way "except for cyclists" that have a cycle lane that you can go into (provided there are no cars parked across it). Only a few roads are like this though.
My bug-bear is cyclists going through red lights and cycling on pavements through local parks that aren't officially cycle paths when I am walking my dog.

Most cyclists are fine
Really? Proportionally I see significantly more cyclists flouting the law and behaving like idiots than motorists.

We have a set of temporary traffic lights in the village, the other day I was over 50% through the controlled area when a cyclists came through, over taking the waiting cars. When I didn't move to give him space to get through I got a mouthful. Hopefully I'll see him in a ditch somewhere soon.

YANBU. Cyclists here rarely stop at zebra crossings (and yell at you to get out of their way).

No, yanbu if that’s how the cyclists behaved. Glad you pointed out it was some cyclists.

As I cycled to work today I had two different incidents of pedestrians stepping off the pavement to cross the road without looking directly in front of me. Luckily I’m very aware when cycling and stopped in time. Some pedestrians are idiots and need to learn some basic road safety before endangering themselves and others.

If you want to cycle in a busy part of town then you need to abide by the Highway Code of signalling so people know not to cross the road not just cycle along and spontaneously decide I want that turn no matter who’s there

Exactly. But the lack of indicating isn't remotely unique to cyclists. Car drivers are just as bad. Also, indicating doesn't give you the right just to turn into people, which seems to be a common misconception of both drivers and cyclists - well I indicated so why didn't' you stop for me?

To the PP: Pedestrians are road users so yes you indicate for their benefit.

The other day though I came out (on my bike) of my local railway station behind another cyclist. We got to a side road and he turned in without indicating so I moaned at him and then realised he couldn't hear me because he had headphones on! What is wrong with people!

My bug-bear is cyclists going through red lights and cycling on pavements through local parks that aren't officially cycle paths when I am walking my dog

Mine, other than pavement parking, is dog walkers letting their dogs off lead on cycle paths.

Proportionally I see significantly more cyclists flouting the law and behaving like idiots than motorists

Really? The thing is you can't see all the motorists who are over the limit, or on their phones, or texting, or tapping out stuff on their satnavs. You might notice the odd one. I see a lot more cyclists going through red lights though - car drivers do, but it's usually just slipping through as the lights change from amber to red. Cyclists just ride right through a red light even if it's been on for ages.

To leave our road you mainly have to turn right across a very busy road . The road is a direct link to an industrial estate where it seems lots of cyclists work.The traffic has to slow down for traffic lights ahead and most good drivers see this and will allow right turners out as it doesnt impinge on their progress at all due to the red light . However ( mainly lycra clad) cyclists will not slow down for anyone nor leave a gap . They will continue to approach at speed and will loudly berate any vehicle that is in their path.Even when much larger vehicles have kindly given way to help with traffic flow.
One even thumped the roof of my car when he had to slow down even though the traffic lights ahead were on red. Naturally he had no intention of stopping at them either.

How come people get annoyed when cyclists ride on pavements but don't care when there are cars parked all over them? Do you know how many hundreds of people are run over and killed each year by cars/motor vehicles driving ON THE PAVEMENT? It's 100 fold more that are killed by cyclists on pavements.

Also if there were not cars everywhere it would be safe to ride on the road.

As for zebra crossings/traffic lights, I have several times stopped on my bike, only to have a car speed past and go either through the red, or through the zebra when someone was on it.

It's human nature that some people are stupid/careless/rude, but the weird thing is people are so car blind they don't even realise that cars are dangerous.

How come people get annoyed when cyclists ride on pavements but don't care when there are cars parked all over them I get annoyed at both!

I would like to see the stars for your claims on pavements, but there again I would imagine most cases of bikes knocking someone over don’t get reported but that doesn’t mean they don’t happen!

Here are some figures from the Office of National Statistics

Pedestrian hit by pedal cycle
Year Deaths
2006 3
2007 6
2008 3
2009 0
2010 2

Pedestrian hit by car, pick-up or truck
Year Deaths
2006 233
2007 267
2008 247
2009 141
2010 123

To be honest as a pedestrian I consider car drivers about 50x more arsehole-like than cyclists

Those stats don’t say they are hit on the pavement though as a PP had suggested!

I don’t think anyone would deny cars are dangerous, or that some car drivers are dick heads. However bikes on pavements is also dangerous. Two wrongs don’t make a right!

Mine, other than pavement parking, is dog walkers letting their dogs off lead on cycle paths.
My dog is on a lead until we reach the field area of the park. It isn't a designated cycle path!

Doris the cyclist statistics will not accurately capture their behaviour, because they are unlicensed. It is much harder to inflict damage with a cyclist, but this does not mean that cyclists are much better behaved.

In many cases, they just seem to know that they can get away with shit.

Queendoris - you rule!

The rounds around us have been shrunk by a half for a shiny new bike highway.

Traffic grinds to a halt at rush hour (great for air pollution) and the buggers still cycle on the road and pavements and mostly don't stop at red lights - even the red bike ones (which mean they are hurtling into oncoming or tuning traffic). There are so few cyclists anyway in the winter it's a joke.

We are now also up to our ears in Boris bikes as well as the yellow hire ones and grey hire ones (where you dump them anywhere after use - usually in the middle of the pavement or in a doorway).

We have a turning called 'death corner' near us because the cycle lane on the road splits and goes over the pavement to cut the corner. There is a filter light but no one bothers to stop - it's between a junior school and a playpark (so not dangerous at all). In the mornings especially it is very dangerous as cyclists often hurtle around the bend where there is a pedestrian crossing and don't stop at the lights.

I know it's not safe to cycle on busy roads - which is why I'm exasperated that the cyclists (often - not all but it rate to see a cyclist stop at a red light or walk their bike over a crossing) don't follow the rules themselves and put pedestrians at risk.

Infrastructure for cycling in the UK is a joke. Cycle lanes are clearly created by people who are not cyclists. Using them is akin to a death wish, which is why the majority of cyclists who wish to arrive at their destination unscathed ignore the marked cycle lanes and continue to ride on the road, as is their right to do so.

There must be assholes who use every mode of transport but as someone who never ever cycles I come across many many more asshole car drivers (probably because there are far more of them).

Anoush - the lanes near us are very wide with 2 lanes mapped out, a kerb between bikes and cars and bike traffic lights. Both sides of the street. There are filters for turning and crossing traffic and should work very well. Sadly they are not used well - one filter stops bikes at a right hand turn on the road but cyclists rarely stop and it is so bloody dangerous. They also use the running path when there are 2 cycle lanes of their own - it's crazy. They don't use the horse lane though (don't fancy a hoof up the backside I suppose and the army uses it a lot).

There is no way I'd cycle in London.

Hopefully I'll see him in a ditch somewhere soon.

Yes, death is an appropriate punishment for bad manners.

I know car drivers can be arseholes, I know a few... I’m just talking about cyclists. And yes pedestrians should be aware but surely that goes both ways. Esp3cialy when I was in the middle of the road crossing when he decided to turn, surely I have right of way. It just fucks me off because this seems to be a daily occurance in a very busy town. Surely you’d be more cautious knowing there are shitloads of people about. Yes some pedestrians are ignorant idiots aswell, I know that full well I encounter them on a daily basis, don’t even get me started on them but today my issue is with cyclists 😡

I was crossing the road on a green light recently & an idiot on a bike came flying into me.

To be fair he managed to pull up before actually running me over, he just whacked into my legs. And he was obviously horrified.

I thought yelling "ARE YOU STUPID????" & asking what he thought would have happened if I was a toddler or a pensioner was a very reasonable response in the circumstances. When I walked off he was wheeling his bike & looking very embarrassed. Good.

Lethaldrizzle

Queendoris - you rule!

why? She has only put down cause of death, not cause of incident.

I’m a cyclist, a driver, pedestrian and a public transport user. I get really frustrated when non-cyclists make sweeping generalisations about cyclists. I often cycle on the road because cycle paths are often uneven and in some instances bloody dangerous. I always signal; for road users and pedestrians alike.

The amount of abuse cyclists receive is disproportionate imo, I see no end of pedestrians with their heads down in their phones walking out in front of cyclists on a daily basis causing pile ups and injuries and then have the audacity to blame the cyclists even where there are traffic lights for the pedestrians on cycle lanes (Blackfriars bridge London) and still pedestrians cross dangerously into the paths of cyclists.

Not every cyclists is an angel, but nor are pedestrians or road users.