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....

There are assholes everywhere and those assholes unfortunately need to travel by one means or another.

As a pedestrian I’ve had far more issues with motorists driving along pavements to avoid a traffic queue, parking on pavements, turning at roundabouts or junctions without indicating or speeding up when you’re crossing the road than I’ve had issues with cyclists on pavements speeding past (still a problem but probably once a month rather than every day with with the ignorant motorists)

While there are asshole cyclists I do think there’s less making stupid manoeuvres as they’re generally going to come off worse. Twats in cars are protected in their metal shell and can drive away from any conflict.

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

There's this thing called confirmation bias. You should look it up before making any more factual sounding claims.

Deliveroo cyclists are the worse. They cycle on the pavement whilst looking at their phone in the middle of the city centre

Yes some are. Not a reason to tar all with the same brush.

I bet a higher proportion of car drivers are.

Yes some are. Not a reason to tar all with the same brush.

Good job the OP didn’t do that then 🙄

As someone who neither drives nor cycles I would say that both motorists and cyclists are behaving dangerously but cyclists are the ones that often scare me.
Cars are previsible in a way, for ex 1-2 sec after the light turns red they might go through but after that they stop whereas very often a cyclist will just go through at any point / or switch from road to pavement to avoid the green light. That is what is scary.

Same for the pavement: cars might park there, so dangerous for the couple of secs it takes them to park, whereas cyclists will cycle there at a fast pace for way longer than that.

As a cyclist and a driver is my considered option that there are more arsehole drivers than cyclists by orders of magnitude.

People rarely , in fact never, wish my children dead when I'm driving them in a car. Although they occasionally act like that is their wish, they don't drive so close to me that I can feel the wind in my leg hairs whilst verbally insulting me out of a window.

Most people on bikes are utterly fab.

It's the selfish bastards in cars I worry about.

Cyclists never signal while turning. Ever. They signal in advance of turning in order to return their hands to the handlebars to control the bike whilst doing the turn
It's not like driving a car!
Look to check it's safe to signal, lift arm to signal, return hands to handlebar, lifesaver look, turn left/right.

@SoupMode agree.

They are the only ones out of all road users who think it is safe to nearly run down an obviously pregnant woman.

They also think it is OK to randomly pavement cycle and they aren't doing it to avoid lights or because a road is busy/dangerous as it's the same roads I happily cycled on earlier in the year.

If one did get hit by a vehicle in front of me I would have no sympathy.

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

I don't know how reliable their sources are but www.cyclinguk.org/campaigning/views-and-briefings/pedestrians have the following figures:

"In 2016, 43 pedestrians died in collisions involving a vehicle on the footway or verge. None of them involved a cycle.

From 2007-16, no pedestrians in Britain were killed by red light jumping cyclists, while around five a year were killed by red light jumping drivers."

Not that this excuses any red-light-jumping or other poor behaviour on pavements and roads.

I would say that both motorists and cyclists are behaving dangerously but cyclists are the ones that often scare me

According to this article you are much more in danger of being injured by a car :

There were 79 pedestrians killed or seriously injured (KSI) by bikes in urban areas in 2012, so that’s one KSI per 75 million miles walked.

By contrast, there were 4,679 pedestrian KSIs involving motor vehicles - one KSI per 1.25 million miles walked.

That means for every mile you walk, you are 60 times more likely to be killed or seriously injured by a driver than a cyclist.

Personally, I’m much more worried about 2 tons of steel smashing into me than some guy on a bike. Cyclists can be badly behaved but they are not the same level of risk to your safety as cars.

Wasn't there a woman killed by a cyclist when she was crossing the road in the City last year? The man had a bike without brakes and plowed into her. He was jailed I believe.

But the chances of being seriously injured by either are relatively slim

However the chances of being “bumped” while walking along the pavement is more for a bike than a car. And for some sections of society that could be dangerous.

Bikes on pavements are in the vast majority of circumstances dangerous and making it harder for people to use the pavements as designed!

Wasn't there a woman killed by a cyclist when she was crossing the road in the City last year? The man had a bike without brakes and plowed into her. He was jailed I believe.

Since then approximately 2500 people have been killed in the UK by motor vehicles. However I don't see threads entitled 'to think car drivers are arseholes'

But the chances of being seriously injured by either are relatively slim

However the chances of being “bumped” while walking along the pavement is more for a bike than a car. And for some sections of society that could be dangerous.

This makes no sense. Surely any “dangerous” injury would be serious and be counted under serious injuries?

I assume all of you talking about safer roads & pavements never drive over the speed limit or use your mobile whilst driving?

I cycle and I live in a city with lots of cyclists and lots of cycle lanes. My pet hate is when a pedestrian randomly decides to step off the pavement and into the cycle lane, right in front of me. I have the choice of slamming on the brakes and risk colliding with them, or swerving into the path of oncoming motor traffic

Our village is unfortunately on a national cycle route. Which means summer evenings and weekends, there are gangs of lycra clad men riding like lunatics and generally thinking they own the road. The access lanes in and out of the village are narrow, winding and in no way suitable to ride 4/5 abreast. Idiots. And the language you get abused with for not getting off the road is obscene. I always slow to a near stop but I won't move into the hedge for them in my new car thanks all the same - and apparently that makes me a "bitch", "road hog" and "stupid fucking woman driver". We regularly hear horns beeping now, so we always know there is a gang coming through . It's been raised time and time again at the Parish Council meetings. I appreciate that most cyclists have some iota of road sense and basic manners but these lots are a law unto themselves.

We have a canal boat. We moor on the tow path. The amount of abuse I have been given when trying to moor up from Lycra clad idiot cyclists is unbelievable.

It’s a tow path, not a cycle path.

Yanbu.

I mentioned the woman who was killed as the stats mentioned said that there were no pedestrian fatalities last year. This case was unuasual because of the custodial sentence.

Of course more cyclists/pedestrians will be killed by car user than pedestrians killed by cyclists - of course you are more likely to be killed by by a car if it hits you than a bike. That's not the argument here. Cyclists do go on the pavement - cars tend not to. Cyclists ride on pedestrian footpath and over the grass in parks - cars don't. Cyclists routinely jump lights, turn without signaling and ride over crossings - cars do but not nearly as much. Bikes don't have license plates - so you can't easily track down a cyclist who whacks into you and speeds off. They don't need a license to use their bikes or even have basic road use and safety lessons.

Getting knocked over by a bike might not kill you but it bloody well hurts. And an injury that isn't 'dangerous' still hurts - Mil had just recovered from an injury that meant she didn't have use of her wrist for 3 months, when a bike went into her from behind on a pedestrian path in the park and buggered her wrist again.

We have a canal boat. We moor on the tow path. The amount of abuse I have been given when trying to moor up from Lycra clad idiot cyclists is unbelievable.

It’s a tow path, not a cycle path.

Tow paths are shared use. Part of my commute involves a canal and the amount of times I’ve seen the path blocked by stoned boaters trying to moor up is unbelievable. If you can’t share the path, don’t complain about people getting annoyed.

Of course more cyclists/pedestrians will be killed by car user than pedestrians killed by cyclists - of course you are more likely to be killed by by a car if it hits you than a bike.

So why are you focusing on cyclists? You are in more danger from cars. You have said it yourself.

FWIW, the woman you mention who was killed wasn’t on the pavement. She had stepped into the street to cross. The cyclist had no bell and only a rear brake. He shouted but it was too late—it was a complete accident and he wasn’t even going over the speed limit. If she had been killed by a car—maybe an uninsured driver with a broken horn to even it up—would the driver be in jail now?

Well, the thread is about cars and the accident I am thinking about - the guys bike had no rear breaks which shouldnt have been on the road.

Yes he shouted before he hit her (not soon enough for her to get out of his way) and then yelled at her as she lay on the ground. Of course a car motor bike rider would have been jailed in the same circumstances (u roadworthy vehicle, driving without undue care and attention) why should a cyclist not be under the same rules of the road? If you are using the road you must keep an eye on other road users and pedestrians.

Without due, not undue, duh

He also wrote dreadful things about her on social media before deleting them.