To wonder why some people are twats towards cyclists

[Apacheshadows]

I’ve lost count of the number of times a car has driven past me and people (usually grown men) have screamed/shrieked at me out of their window, shouted obscenities etc.
Beeped at and then they drive on laughing
Today I had a teenage boy deliberately try and jump in front of my path on a road, this isn’t the first time someone has done that.
I had another teenager try to intimidate me by pulling out in front of me on his own bike, forcing me to quickly swerve

It’s putting me off cycling really, there are some absolute pricks out there.

Also, the number of people who have to comment on how small the bike is. It’s not one of the mini fold up bikes or a children’s one, it’s a bit smaller than average but suits me fine, but people have to comment on it constantly which is weird.

Anyone else had this when cycling? I’m responsible, use lights and wear a high vis and go slowly

[quote DreadingChristmasAlready]@DdraigGoch tractor drivers are working, providing food on all of our tables, not out for a bit of fresh air and exercise. Totally different in my view, plus tractors are a lot quicker than cyclists.[/quote]
You realise that many people cycle for utility purposes?

Anyway, I could list plenty of road users who cause congestion for leisure purposes. We'll start with caravans...

Usually quick to agree with misogyny but Dh gets a load of abuse too. And to all the “but this cyclist did a bad thing” crowd does that then mean you get to abuse all the other cyclists? We are not a homogeneous group responsible for the behaviour of twat cyclists in the same way a car driver isn’t tarred with the same brush as a random boy racer 🙄

I also find this - I cycle on the road with lights, try and let car past on narrow roads by waiting in passing places. 90% of the time people are considerate.

But lorry drivers and farmers (esp tractors) are the worst, elderly drivers have nearly taken me out (one just drive straight at me) and a horse box driver beeped me constantly then forced me into the hedge as they forced their way past. I now go off-road biking and take my chances with off lease dogs.

@DreadingChristmasAlready and the cyclist is going about their day without kicking out a tonne of pollution.

I have the other side of not being able to pass a cyclist, I live in London and it's mostly 20mph and there are traffic lights everywhere, why the fuck do people try and pass me when I'm keeping up with the traffic or doing the speed limit? And why pass me then have to stop at the traffic lights a few meters ahead where I inevitably stop in the bike box at the front again? Why do that? Bike doesn't = slow, I regularly out pace cars getting around.

Tractors don't tend to be going very far and frequently pull in to let cars pass. Drivers can be arses but so can cyclists, they'll ride two abreast round here making it very difficult to overtake even though they're going under 20 miles an hour on a 50 mile and hour road.

@DreadingChristmasAlready trust me, horse riders would rather not be on the roads but there is very limited off road riding in most of the country and you have to use roads to get to bridleways.

But that’s not my argument anyway. When I ride (horses not bikes) I like to get out the way of cars as quickly as possible as I don’t like them following me and it’s considerate - last thing I want to do is piss off a driver when I’m in a vulnerable position! Cyclists don’t seem to share this consideration which is what annoys me.

I'm not defending this behaviour at all but I would say about 60% of cyclists I come across ride dangerously whereas maybe 5% of drivers drive dangerously.

I use my errand bike to go and see clients so for work. To be fair I don’t seem to get abuse. When I go road cycling in a small group of late 40 something women we often get women our own age waiting for us and saying “nearly there” etc as I puff up the hill which is actually really nice! So not all drivers are bastards.

Nearly everything I see a cyclist, I see at least one driver acting dickishly towards them.
But not every cyclist is cycling dickishly. And usually the only person the cyclist is endangering is themselves, unlike the car drivers who are endangering the cyclist and the other road users.

(Dangerous cycling is stuff like taking a selfie in the middle of the road while cycling, or cycling with no lights at night. Dangerous drivers is the overtaking behaviour- too close or at a stupid time)

@Pennguin

I don't think it's because you're a cyclist. It's because you're a woman. It's misogyny.

Interestingly the other day my colleague saw a man on a bike zoom out from the pavement into the lights (there was a bike lane but he wasn't using it) almost hit a car, which he then kicked and sped off. The car occupants were older women. Absolutely terrifying.

People can be twats, no matter their mode of locomotion.

I hasten to add I don’t abuse them or ever overtake dangerously, but I can see why people get annoyed.

@loopyapp

Tractors pay road tax and insurance so if their occasional presence on the road while their drivers are providing the nations food cause an accident no one is out of pocket.

I'm not condoning screaming out of a window or berating anyone to be clear.

If as a cyclist you cannot fathom why other road users, including tractors wish you wouldn't then that there is half the problem.

It didn't take long for someone to pipe up with "Road Tax" bollocks, did it?

1. There's no such thing as "Road Tax".

1. Tractors are exempt from VED.

1. When I cycle I am usually travelling to or from my job which is in public transport and therefore keeps the nation moving.

@tabletennistop

If as a cyclist you cannot fathom why other road users, including tractors wish you wouldn't then that there is half the problem

Actually 100% of the problem is people like you who think that legal road users are not entitled to use the road. You are wrong about that.

Of course they're entitled. Just as they should be expected to pay in the same way car users are.

I don’t think it’s a drivers/cyclists thing, it’s just that some people are arseholes whatever they’re doing. Around here we get big groups of cyclists who are impossible to overtake in a car and if they come across another, slower cyclist they shout at them to get out of the way.

I HATE cyclists!!! Why do they think the rules of the road don't apply to them?!? Almost 100% of the cyclists I see don't care about traffic lights! They should be fined just like drivers

@DdraigGoch if you cause an accident you're insured are you??

[quote DreadingChristmasAlready]@tabletennistop what is appalling about my question?

I would say roads are for cars, buses, lorries, vans, etc. Vehicles that pay tax to upkeep them. Cyclists have cycle routes, horses should be in fields.

Please stop being so rude and faux offended.[/quote]
It was an appalling comment. And completely fails to understand the law and reality.

Let me explain it to you. Drivers of motorised vehicles do not have an absolute right to use the road. You have to pass a test, and pay tax to earn that right. And your permission to use the road can be legally removed from you. Paying tax does not mean the roads are 'yours'. It is not a statement of ownership. It just means you have permission to use them as long as you don't do anything to have that permission removed.

Cyclists have a legal right to use the road. As do horses.

You can moan about this all you like and wish it was not the case. But it is.

You think like this because you have failed to realise that cyclists are just as legitimate users of roads as cars

You are wrong. Cyclists, riders and pedestrians have a right to use the highway (motorways excepted), motor vehicle users are licensed to use it so long as they meet various requirements, this can be removed.

It's one of the few rights people have in these countries.

I think the reason people behave like twats towards cyclists is they routinely see cyclists going against the Highway Code. I mean other road users do as well, but proportionally cyclists seem more likely to break the rules, be it going through a red light, cycling on the pavement, not using their lights after dark or whatever. I live on a one-way street and about once a month see a car driving the wrong way - I see multiple cyclists going the wrong way daily.

If people see one group regularly breaking the rules and rarely get punished for it, it's natural for them to become angry. Often anger gets misplaced or misdirected, if twenty customers are rude and the twenty-first is polite, a lot of shop staff will treat the polite one the same way they've treated the previous rude ones.

Really though, rudeness and abuse are just something you will have to accept if you persist in being a cyclist. All you can do is be part of the change - obey the rules, go out of your way not to inconvenience other road users - if all cyclists do that all the time, perceptions will change.

Until then, the minority of "good" cyclists will continue to pay the price for the actions of the majority.

Of course they're entitled. Just as they should be expected to pay in the same way car users are.

You mean in the way that polluters pay more while zero-emission vehicles get zero-rated? I'm not sure that it would have the result you imagine.

In any case, roads are funded through general taxation. We all pay.

@DreadingChristmasAlready

As a driver on country lanes cyclists are extremely dangerous. They often have a long queue of traffic behind them and choose to cycle during the busiest times of the day. I have never shouted abuse at anyone in my life and wouldn't start on cyclists now, but I can see how people would get the rage.

I'm genuinely perplexed as to why you think there's a 'right' time for cyclists to be on the roads? Your comment would appear to be a textbook example of drivers who think the road is for them and them only.

I often have to go much more slowly than I could in a morning because I’m behind cyclists going to work or school. Fine by me, we’ve all got to get where we are going at commuter time and they are getting there in a healthier way than me sat in my car! Considering the behaviour of other drivers towards them at times, I’m reluctant to join them and cycle to work, though.

As a pedestrian I see plenty of twattish cyclists thinking they own the pavements and riding over crossings when the lights are green.

@XelaM

I HATE cyclists!!! Why do they think the rules of the road don't apply to them?!? Almost 100% of the cyclists I see don't care about traffic lights! They should be fined just like drivers

The other day I (and a car or two) were stopped at some traffic lights which had just gone red and were overtaken by two cars who very deliberately ran the red light. No one got fined.

Oh and on the "why no use the bike Lane?" Point, there are so many reasons

Often dirty and full of debris

Puddles

Leaves

Man hole covers

Potholes

Really rough and bumpy

Too narrow

Too close to pedestrians who wander in and out

Shared with pedestrians

Small children using them (I don't mind this but I don't want to be with them in case they get hurt)

Right next to parked cars so you risk being doored

Make it hard to make a right turn

Some make zero sense

Some just disappear randomly

Some aren't suitable for all bikes

Randomly expect you to hop up and down kerbs

And some are just scary

Make bike infrastructure that is fit for purpose and it will be used, see the Netherlands!