AIBU Cyclist Twats

[TractorAndHeadphones]

Walking down lovely canals with DP. Supposed to be romantic - but every 5 minutes we were interrupted by a cyclists whizzing along! Some had the courtesy to ring the bell but even so they rode straight at us instead of around us.

This really boils my piss because cyclists always complain that cars overtake dangerously and that’s it’s their god given right to hold up traffic. But cyclists can ride straight through pedestrians?

There was enough space for a cyclist to ride alongside us if they’d been slower ; even so you don’t expect people to walk in single file on canal roads which are meant to be enjoyed slowly! There were families in front of us, mothers with prams etc. Thé cyclists were probably scared of swerving into the lake but if you can’t control your bike then dont bloody ride!
It really ruined my day.

This has also happened on pavements with people whizzing along in the middle. Even if the road is dangerous there’s no need to go that fast.
AIBU to think that cyclists are twats and should be licensed?
People often complain that cars are rude to cyclists but IMO people in general are twats. Cars can do more damage but they’re not behaving worse than cyclists.

I've never understood the mentality of British cyclists.
A two mile commute to work and they're head to toe in Lycra and all manner of expensive extras and need to cycle like they're practicing for the Tour de France.

In Holland, they just get on a bike and cycle , leisurely and safely.

I love to laugh at British Lycra louts when they don't realise that their sweaty butt cracks are clearly visible through their fancy Lycra mithrals !

You get twatty car drivers and cyclists.
The other day i pulled up to a junction, stopped and ready to turn right. A cyclist pulled up alongside me, not behind where he should have been, as i went to pull out, he did and rode infront of me, also turning right. Had i continued i would have knocked him off his bike. Bloody ar**hole!

I struggle with my nerves to get on my "sit up and beg" bike and go down to the paper shop each weekend t get a newspaper. I do it because I would like to cycle better and it is a little bit of exercise. Nearly every week I get scared to death by large numbers of MAMILs
who overtake close and at speed, on occasions they have laughed at me too. I've noticed the other cyclists with my type of bike always say a cheery good morning, but the MAMILs and their female equivelants just scowl if they notice you at all.

I always try and avoid tow paths because there's a mixture of bad cycling and unwelcoming pedestrians. I don't think they should route major cycleways via tow paths. I walk along one regularly and frequently see people riding inappropriately

I also hate using other mixed pedestrian and cyclists areas as I end up going about walking speed as I don't like to risk hitting people of they move about the path unexpectedly, which they do.

Saying this I cycled a large section of the Thames path East of tower bridge at the weekend and it's got designated cycle and pedestrian parts and the cycle part is full of pedestrians. A ride that should have taken 40m was 1h20m

99% of the time I ride in main traffic as cycle paths are full of electric scooters, electric bikes and people pootling along at 5mph

I'm a driver, pedestrian and a cyclist. I like to think I'm a considerate road and pavement user. However, the abuse and hatred towards cyclists really shocks me. It's very evident on this thread.

Of course some cyclists are twats, but so are some drivers and some pedestrians.

I've had car drivers behave very aggressively when I've been riding two abreast on a straight road as advised. I personally think people should be made to cycle as part of learning to drive, they would then realise how to behave towards cyclists as a driver.

@JessieJo15

The problem is rude inconsiderate people, not cyclists in general

This with bells on.

This thread is a case of inconsiderate walkers refusing to part hands meet inconsiderate cyclists refusing to slow down.

Are you one of those people who hates happy couples? Or just CBA to read the OP? Or both? Have a cup of green tea, it’s good for your health 😎

**That while cars, lorries etc are held to some sort of standard cyclists are not

Because cars and lorries kill five people every day and seriously injure around 200 people a day

Cyclists kill about one person a year. People walking into other people also kill around one person a year.

It would be insane to set the same "standards" for large motorised vehicles and cyclists or pedestrians. Demonstrably the safety risk is completely different. Higher standards are set for big lorries - they are more dangerous so you need a special licence and they are speed limited and your driving time is limited. Cars are not held to those standards - although I wish they would make speed limiters mandatory. Moped and motorbikes are treated differently - different licences required.
Bikes are much less dangerous than cars hence the standards set are different.

Cyclists should not be inconsiderate when cycling on canal towpaths. Neither should runners. Or really slow walkers in groups. Or horse riders. But some of them will be.

I cycle a bit on a towpath - the other option is an A road with no cycle path and insane drivers. I'd rather not cycle on the tow path but until the council put in the cycle facilities that are needed there is not much choice.

@DoesHePlayTheFiddle

Lycra-cyclists. Hate them. Riding two abreast to bring traffic to a near-standstill, or in groups of twenty so no-one can get by at all, or singly as if they own the road. There's a couple near Otley, a man and a woman, ride two-abreast everywhere, taking up as much room as a damned lorry.

Cyclists should cycle at a velodrome. It's designed for cyclists. Roads aren't. Cyclists on the road are a hazard, even if they're not trying to be (and to be fair, they don the lycra to demonstrate their twattish intent).

Ordinary cyclists, alone, normal clothes and some high viz, on their way to or from work, or cycling because they aren't old enough for a driving licence - yes, give them as much space and care as you can. Lycra-cyclists, ban them from the road.

This has to be a joke. Of course roads are designed for cyclists. They're designed for wheeled transport. And as someone has posted up thread riding two abreast is safer and easier for both cyclist and car if you overtake correctly. Problem is most cars don't.

Fighting the foo - yes agree, I can't believe cars are allowed on roads where they continue the carnage and havoc they've been wreaking for the last 100 years

@Macncheeseballs

Haha op, 'lorries are held to some kind of standard'?! What those left turning ones that plough over cyclists

The ones driving lorries with signs that clearly tell cyclists not to ride down the side because it is a blind spot and thus they can't be seen at all?

@EmmaGrundyForPM

I'm a driver, pedestrian and a cyclist. I like to think I'm a considerate road and pavement user. However, the abuse and hatred towards cyclists really shocks me. It's very evident on this thread.

Of course some cyclists are twats, but so are some drivers and some pedestrians.

I've had car drivers behave very aggressively when I've been riding two abreast on a straight road as advised. I personally think people should be made to cycle as part of learning to drive, they would then realise how to behave towards cyclists as a driver.

You fail the driving test if you overtake a cyclist badly, or get too close to one or dont give enough space. You also fail for driving on cycle lanes even if there’s an emergency vehicles or there’s nobody about.

There are bad drivers and ofc people can drive like areseholes once they pass. However they have been held to the standard at one point and have been taught. Cyclists somehow magically know the rules of the road…?

I live semi rurally and so often I end up un a slow queue of several cars stuck looking at someone’s Lycra clad arse. Surely if they see they are holding back so many vehicles they could pull in for a few minutes to let people past.

I’d need to see a photo of the tow path before I could offer an opinion on the OPs situation to be honest. Cyclists should pass slowly enough to be safe, they shouldnt be whizzing past people closely. But it also wouldn’t kill you to walk single file for a few seconds once every 5 mins.

I commute by bike along a very narrow tow path. I can only get past people if they are single file and even then it’s tight. I slow down and thank people but in the summer when the path is busy it puts a lot more time on my commute. I can imagine on a wider path if cyclists can see they’d be able to go faster if pedestrians weren’t taking up more than half the path it could be frustrating.

I think the “half the path” rule is a good one….so treat it like a road. Am I on my side? But pedestrians are the more vulnerable user and should be treated accordingly.

Like most cyclists im also a pedestrian (and motorist) snd also some days walk on that tow path. So yes, I do see some more stupid cyclists. I also see some very stupid pedestrians. Dogs out of control chasing cyclists, etc.

And I did pass my cycling proficiency test as a kid btw which seems to be the nearest thing to a licence. I also have insurance and I pay vehicle emissions tax for my car.

And I ride 2 abreast with friends on roads when it’s the safe thing to do which is 95% of the time, it prevents cars overtaking when there’s oncoming traffic so protects my life. So any motorist moaning about that can fuck right off.

I’ve no pity for him as these people annoy the shit out of me and are a danger to others. Usually men too
So someone was walking leaving no space to be passed, had earphones so oblivious to danger, but it's the cyclist who was doing nothing wrong at all who was in the wrong?

Unbelievable. For clarity since you are lacking a sense of awareness, it's the guy who chose to block the path and sound who was the complete moron.

Should I cycle with my kids on canal path with grumpy walkers or on road with angry drivers, mmm tough one, 🤔, ah what a delightful cycle friendly country we live in

They should be licensed and taxed.

Oh lord, not the ‘tax’ argument again. Drivers don’t pay road tax any more, why should cyclists?

Everyone who pays council tax already pays for the roads anyway.

@BashfulClam

I live semi rurally and so often I end up un a slow queue of several cars stuck looking at someone’s Lycra clad arse. Surely if they see they are holding back so many vehicles they could pull in for a few minutes to let people past.

Why on Earth would I? The cars don’t have any rights over me…..I’ve never had a car behind me for more than a few minutes. Boo bloody hoo if they have to wait a few minutes. Some days if I pulled over for every car which was stuck behind me for a minute I’d have to pull over 100x when out for a couple of hours. Do you really think that’s practical? Would you be happy pulling over 100x in a car journey if there were faster cars behind you.

I agree about the cycle paths, the runners are just as bad and I'm a cyclist and runner, I was nearly knocked into the canal once!

But not all cyclists are twats, just some, like some drivers are rude aggressive horn honking morons.

People can be twats, no matter what ode of transportation they use, even walkers. Some walkers leave rubbish in forests, on mountains, in parks etc. And if you've got a massive family of twats out walking, guaranteed they take up the whole path and refuse to move. I'm not a cycler by the way, I'd be more of a danger cycling thanks to my lack of coordination, I almost fall on a regular basis just walking. But people are just becoming more entitled and now and after having had some people be assholes to them, they just go fuck it and act like assholes back.

I need to dig out the proper stat but I’m sure I’ve read that something like 80% of cyclists also have a driver’s licence so this idea that ‘cyclists’ don’t know the rules of the road while ‘drivers’ do is bollocks.

Lockheart

They are supposed to ride two abreast on the road. “

Is that true? Well, didn’t know that.

Op, most cyclists are also drivers, that's how they know the rules of the road, its not rocket science, and yes get on a bike, see what it's like out there before sending such hate out into the world, walk a mile, as it were, in their shoes

@WhyOWhyOh

Don't get me started on them riding two or even more abreast on a road 😡😡😡

Because they are SUPPOSED to?? If they spread out single file out YOU have a longer stretch of cyclist to pass out and have to wait longer. You are meant to overtake when there is no oncoming traffic - so two makes no difference (if you drive properly).

I guess you’re “one of those” drivers that gives a foot space and overtakes.

I think all we can conclude is that we've become a nation of selfish and entitled twats, regardless of our mode of transformation. The problem is we all think the other is the issue whilst convince we do no wrong ourselves!

@CovidCorvid

I’d need to see a photo of the tow path before I could offer an opinion on the OPs situation to be honest. Cyclists should pass slowly enough to be safe, they shouldnt be whizzing past people closely. But it also wouldn’t kill you to walk single file for a few seconds once every 5 mins.

I commute by bike along a very narrow tow path. I can only get past people if they are single file and even then it’s tight. I slow down and thank people but in the summer when the path is busy it puts a lot more time on my commute. I can imagine on a wider path if cyclists can see they’d be able to go faster if pedestrians weren’t taking up more than half the path it could be frustrating.

I think the “half the path” rule is a good one….so treat it like a road. Am I on my side? But pedestrians are the more vulnerable user and should be treated accordingly.

Like most cyclists im also a pedestrian (and motorist) snd also some days walk on that tow path. So yes, I do see some more stupid cyclists. I also see some very stupid pedestrians. Dogs out of control chasing cyclists, etc.

And I did pass my cycling proficiency test as a kid btw which seems to be the nearest thing to a licence. I also have insurance and I pay vehicle emissions tax for my car.

And I ride 2 abreast with friends on roads when it’s the safe thing to do which is 95% of the time, it prevents cars overtaking when there’s oncoming traffic so protects my life. So any motorist moaning about that can fuck right off.

You sound like a reasonable road user - but you still don’