Cyclists and the Highway Code

[Jemima232]

Huh. Just Huh.

And Wow, too.

So now we have to be careful not to knock cyclists over, when driving past them.

Of course, they don't have to be careful not to knock anyone over when they go through red traffic lights, do they?

As if they need more legislation in their favour. It absolutely enrages me.

Yes, I've occasionally seen another cyclist do so but not often. Mostly when it's a pedestrian crossing where no one is crossing

Or where people are crossing and the cyclists think they can dodge them, which I see all the time in Central London. There was one idiot who failed to dodge me & crashed into me instead. I thought “Are you bloody stupid?” was a pretty restrained response really.

It's rather farcical to talk about bikes and traffic lights on numerous levels.

I go through a particular set on red most days, as to not means having to 'battle' for space with cars and lorries on a tight bit of road just round the corner. So I go through to get a start and can then dominate the lane.

And at MOST lights I see cars drive through on red, obv with the thought "I'll just sneak through.." I know this as I do it myself.

I doubt we will never evolve beyond the nonsense posted by the OP. Drivers never learn.

If drivers were given proportionally the same amount of prison sentences for killing a person then there’d be approximately another 1000 drivers going to prison without a suspended sentence.

If you want kill in the uk, use a car and walk free
Never do it on a push bike as you’ll likely to go to prison

I go through a particular set on red most days, as to not means having to 'battle' for space with cars and lorries on a tight bit of road just round the corner. So I go through to get a start and can then dominate the lane.

I can understand that. But presumably you wouldn't do it if there were pedestrians crossing at the time?

"But presumably you wouldn't do it if there were pedestrians crossing at the time?"

Nah, mow the bastards down. It's all they're good for, with their funny-looking "coats" and "flat shoes" and stuff. I saw a couple walking two-abreast the other day, WITH A DOG as well, so it took me almost three seconds to get past them. They don't even pay pavement tax FFS, the sooner they're all insured and have to have licence plates on their backs the better.

And helmets. I bet the bastards weren't wearing helmets. Or day-glo and lycra.

When will they LEARN????

Yes, funny. But I get why going through on a red light when there's nobody crossing is reasonable. I'm thinking about the wanker who sped straight into me when I was halfway across with a load of shopping.

You've answered your own question there - he / she is a wanker. As I said in my first post, we hate those guys as much as you do. There's no excuse for it.

I understand why some cyclists will choose to go through red lights but I don't like it myself. Regardless of how safe it is or they perceive it to be, it just gives people grounds to make baseless statements that start "all cyclists..." In that situation I'd get off my bike and push it.

You've answered your own question there - he / she is a wanker. As I said in my first post, we hate those guys as much as you do. There's no excuse for it.

Cheers UKCougar.

See, oddly, I don't give a care as to allowing people saying "all cyclists (whatever)" They will say it anyway, no matter what you individually do. So given the massively unbalanced risks re riding a on roads compared with driving, I give myself enough latitude in behaviour to stay safe and not endanger anyone else either, even if it is slightly illegal.

The thing about a cyclist going through a red light when no pedestrians are crossing is that you don't know if a pedestrian might come up to cross. I have walked into the road, only to be nearly mown down.

OP's on a wind-up

The reason that cycling is dangerous? Because of car drivers.

There are many many more inconsiderate, reckless and dangerous drivers than there are cyclists, and they are much more likely to maim or kill you.

I have walked into the road, only to be nearly mown down.

So basically you didn't look? Even on a green man, every child has it drummed into them to stop, look and listen every single time, just in case.

That cyclist didn't just manifest out of thin air, so they were already moving towards the crossing when you stepped out onto it without looking properly.

Thank god it wasn't a car or something even bigger.

Can any of the relevant contributors on this thread point me to the other threads they have started to complain about the disgraceful amount of deaths caused by motor traffic - 5 a day?

Or even the shockingly high number of accidents that didn't quite kill anyone? Thousands.

Or even the number of people who break traffic laws each and every day? Millions.

Or the pollution they cause and damage to roads which costs the country billions in direct repairs and delays? Untold.

Where are your campaigns to sort this out? Perhaps we should make them take a test and have some form of license and insuran---- oh...

Can I make a thread about the car-driver that sped through a red light and across the pelican crossing, narrowly missing 12-year-old me? If he'd hit me, I would at the very least, have been seriously injured.

Or the little bastard who drove down a bridleway in his car, and hooted at walkers in his way?

Can I make a thread about the car-driver that sped through a red light and across the pelican crossing, narrowly missing 12-year-old me? If he'd hit me, I would at the very least, have been seriously injured. Or the little bastard who drove down a bridleway in his car, and hooted at walkers in his way?

Yes, why not?

Yes you could start such a thread, but it wouldn't get much reaction as it is stating the obvious. Just as most of the anti-cycling threads state the obvious (someone cycling like a twat is a twat). But what you really need to do is extrapolate from the poor driving of such an individual to propose something that will affect all drivers. For example: everyone should have to pass a test every year to prove they are safe; all cars should by law have a black box type recording of GPS and cameras, or that all vehicles should be controlled such that they can never speed or go through red lights; cars should have detectors so that they cannot be driven if they detect a mobile phone in operation.

All vehicles must have all entertainment and/or communication devices removed;

No tinting whatsoever allowed on any glass.

No items to be transported in the car that protrude anywhere above the level of the windows (so no filling the car for holidays etc)

If you have trailers, caravans etc, you are only allowed on the roads at certain times. And it's a whole other test and insurance and tax.

No dark coloured cars allowed to drive at night time.

All cars should be banned from town and city centres 24/7 and made to park in offsite parks.

There you go, some more ideas.

Magical Automatic braking systems that stop drivers going through red lights, I think. Just the ticket.

Talking of tickets, if I'd been one foot further in front, he'd have got me. What's the betting that the guy would have got a paltry sentence, if caught?

That's the idea BSB. And then act all po-faced when people who drive object, and claim it's just the bad drivers you're having a go at.

(Inspired by the time a car driver didn't check before he reversed out of his driveway, across the pavement.)

Make it illegal for drivers to reverse off their driveways, if they have to drive over a footpath in order to access the road.

From now on, you have to reverse INTO your driveway to start with, because of one motorist I encountered. Totally fair.

I'd like a new law of walking without due care and attention.

Pedestrians have started crossing the marked off cycle path near us to get to the new council offices over the road rather than walking an extra 1/4 to the pedestrian crossing. I've had to start crawling past that bit on my bike as they often don't look. I even hit one of them once.

Obviously they all do it.

This really needs to be a brand new thread.

Jamie Jamie Jamie...

I prefer making snide comments on other people's threads. You do it!

It is fair to say though that any driver who can't cope with cyclists on the road is a truly shit driver and should hand in their license...... Lets just allow drivers who can actually cope with day to day hazards behind the wheel.