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AIBU?

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Original poster

To think this is so unsafe…

381 replies

MyBadHabitsLeadToYou · 30/08/2021 18:51

Parents with toddlers on the back of the bike, cycling on busy city roads with the buses and the crazy drivers.

Howwww is this legal?! When the rules on car seats are so strict.

And don’t even start me on those flimsy trailer things that are so low down they couldn’t be seen from a large car.

Am I missing something??

OP posts:
purplesequins · 30/08/2021 19:57

the trailers are actually very save.

the cyclists aren't the problem as you illustrate so nicely in your first post @MyBadHabitsLeadToYou it's the bloody dangerously selfish drivers and inadequate infrastructure.

CarryOnNurse20 · 30/08/2021 19:59

I use a child seat on the back of my bike. We are in a large city with a great cycle network which they are expanding. The 10 year plan is for the city to be far more cycle friendly than car friendly to encourage cycling. For now I follow the routes, both wear helmets obviously and if we need to use roads without a clear cycle lane im v v cautious. With the climate as it is we don’t need to ban safe cyclists transporting their children in a healthy way. We need to change our road habits to accommodate more people to be comfortable to do this safely. The relative risk is very small and the benefits compared to driving everywhere are huge. I want to be an example to my children by cycling everywhere that I can.

RedToothBrush · 30/08/2021 19:59

Whats the stats on babies and toddlers being injured in bike accidents?

Cos thats really got to be thought about before deciding whether something is safe or not.

Ironically countries with the highest number of cycle users (and babies / toddlers riding with parents) have particularly low cycling accident rates across the board which rather the suggests its not the act of cycling thats the problem but the culture of driving and the road infrustructure...

Beckhamsmetatarsal · 30/08/2021 20:00

Agree. Sadly, my ex's uncle was never the same after losing his 2 year old son who was sitting in one of these when a car hit his wife's bike.

But what are you supposed to do if you don't own a car or don't drive?

You walk or get the train/bus. My children are 5,6 and 9 now and we only got a car 3 years ago. It makes life harder but it isnt impossible.

whoopsnomore · 30/08/2021 20:01

@ronswansonstache

When I lived in london I used to see a dad take his son to school in one every day down the Holloway Road. It made my blood run cold! I'm not sure the pollution would be great either - kids often seem level with exhausts of many vehicles.
Though to be fair children on foot and in school playgrounds in cities are also in this position. The pollution is the thing to tackle, not the bikes!
BorderlineBagpuss · 30/08/2021 20:01

I agree. My heart is in my mouth whenever I see little ones in the trailers - lots in N London. But this reaction is what keeps them safe ? There is no way I would do it, and think of all the awful pollution.

lannistunut · 30/08/2021 20:01

@seaandsandcastles

It’s not safe and shows a shocking lack of appropriate parental judgement.
This is all a bit silly IMO. It is no less safe than pushing your child in a pushchair around a busy area with traffic.

And wrong to blame the cyclists instead of the shit drivers.

00100001 · 30/08/2021 20:01

@Beckhamsmetatarsal

Agree. Sadly, my ex's uncle was never the same after losing his 2 year old son who was sitting in one of these when a car hit his wife's bike.

But what are you supposed to do if you don't own a car or don't drive?

You walk or get the train/bus. My children are 5,6 and 9 now and we only got a car 3 years ago. It makes life harder but it isnt impossible.

Errr it's just as dangerous to walk... Over half the serious injuries and fatalities in London in 2020 we're pedestrians.
Booknooks · 30/08/2021 20:01

[quote Soveryhungry]@Booknooks but complaining about children breathing in fumes whilst on the back of a bike is nonsensical. They are not producing the fumes, their parents are not producing the fumes. The cars around them are producing the fumes. The solution is not for everyone not in a car to go home. The solution must surely be to have less cars? After all kids walking along on the pavement or in a buggy are also at the perfect height to breathe in those nasty fumes which are awful for their health.[/quote]
That doesn't mean the fumes don't exist though, they do and they're at the perfect height to breathe them in. I agree cycling is great, a seat on the back is good, those trailers though my personal view which doesn't affect anyone else as if they like them then that's their choice, is that they're dangerous.

whoopsnomore · 30/08/2021 20:02

@UnfinishedBunting

This thread is eye opening - cyclists are relatively vulnerable therefore they should drive instead 🙈. Or should it be cyclists are relatively vulnerable therefore drivers should be particularly careful around them.
Yep, ^^ agree with this. It's the general mindset, though that the default status quo must prevail even if it causes harm.
TatianaBis · 30/08/2021 20:03

The things we did in the 70s that nobody worried about.

TatianaBis · 30/08/2021 20:04

Part 2: motorway driving with no straps.

Mumtwoboys90 · 30/08/2021 20:05

i absolutely hate trailers too most of the time kids have no helmets and aren't strapped in properly they are not designed for busy roads and i think its mental that parents think its ok to put their children at risk..totally different story somewhere like holland where everyone cycles and there armt many cars

ThinWomansBrain · 30/08/2021 20:05

not seen them recently, but there's a few near me - parents with two/three large not toddler age children, probably nine/ten y/o wobbling around on a single bike. central London. bonkers.

Lucked · 30/08/2021 20:05

I held my breath yesterday as I watched a man cycle through a large roundabout (double lane roads) with a small toddler on the back. To give the drivers credit he pretty much got the roundabout to himself - nobody wanted to move until he was clear!

whoopsnomore · 30/08/2021 20:06

There are lots of (dangerous) cars on the roads so we must drive the children to school. Because they will be safer. but there will be even more cars on the roads, so more children might be less safe. And there will be more pollution. Etc etc...

LalalalalalaLand123 · 30/08/2021 20:06

I was just thinking this the other day! I'd seen a bike with one of the child seats on the back, racing in and out of traffic; then a bike with a child wagon. It is absolutely absurd! Especially, as you say, with all the rules regarding car-seats!

vinoandbrie · 30/08/2021 20:06

Someone can be the best cyclist in the world, but that does not account for the car drivers all around them, who could be dangerous drivers, or drunk or drug drivers. I’m astonished that people put their children in these trailers or bicycle seats.

CourgetteGlutTony · 30/08/2021 20:06

@joystir59

Another reason why I can't stand cyclists. Batshit crazy to a one.
I’ll bite. Why can’t you stand cyclists? I ride a sit up & beg bike, rather slowly. I don’t jump red lights. I signal in good time. I don’t ride on the pavement. I’m just cycling to work. How exactly am I causing a problem for you?
UserNameNameNameUser · 30/08/2021 20:07

Blimey OP, you must absolutely freak out at the thought of pedestrians!

MrsSkylerWhite · 30/08/2021 20:07

PissedOffNeighbour22

Saw a poor kid in one of those trailers a few days ago and the dad hit a curb pretty hard and she was flying around in the trailer. Didn't look safe at all”

Suspect he didn’t even notice.

RedMarauder · 30/08/2021 20:07

@joystir59

Another reason why I can't stand cyclists. Batshit crazy to a one.
Most adult cyclists in my part of London have a car in their household and a driving license themselves.

So you are calling drivers who decide to cycle batshit crazy for using the method that gets them around quicker.

Eilatan2018 · 30/08/2021 20:08

@MyBadHabitsLeadToYou

Parents with toddlers on the back of the bike, cycling on busy city roads with the buses and the crazy drivers.

Howwww is this legal?! When the rules on car seats are so strict.

And don’t even start me on those flimsy trailer things that are so low down they couldn’t be seen from a large car.

Am I missing something??

Totally agree! Driving home the other night from work a bike in front had a toddler on the back asleep… her head was falling to the side hanging down! I had to shout at him and he was like ‘yeah she fell asleep I can’t do a lot!’ I was like ‘Erm push your bike or wake her up’ it was so dangerous she was nearly falling out and it looked so uncomfortable!
peaceanddove · 30/08/2021 20:10

Show me the figures for collisions with bikes and cars where the child was injured. I'll bet more children were injured or killed in a car

Oh dear, you clearly don't understand how statistics work. Obviously far more children die in cars because far more children travel in cars.

You need to look at how many children die when involved in a collision between their little trailer thing and a car.

WhenwillSleephappen · 30/08/2021 20:10

@Theworldisquiethere

Not sure the picture attached!
Jeez I’ve never seen one of these and I’m surprised they are legal. I thought they always had sides and covers to stop stones etc from flying up and hitting. Kids in the face (as well as to stop them sticking their arms out etc)