Is it me or the cyclist?

[bettyfreddy]

I've just had an incident with a cyclist who was very angry and is going with his footage to the police. I'm quite shaken by it and it was honestly an accident. I was driving.

So I overtook the cyclist along with maybe 2 other cars in front of me. Carried on driving for around 300 yards and slowed down for the queue at the roundabout ahead.

As I began to move forward slowly - it wasn't my turn to leave the round about, there was a car in front of me - the cyclist shot by me on the left hand side of the car. I honestly didn't see him. He was absolutely cycling at quite a speed. I stopped as soon as I saw him (car in front had gone) and he went in front of my car and started swearing at me.

I didn't move the car, let him go round the roundabout.

I was dropping my son off at pre school which is just round the roundabout so he clearly saw where I was going so came to 'speak' to me. He called me a dangerous driver and he was going to show his footage from his cycling helmet to the police and to expect them to call round.

I apologised and said I genuinely didn't see him. I moved my car forwards at about 3mph probably, he just shot by me. Granted I should of checked my wing mirrors but it wasn't my turn to leave the round about so I was just slowing cruising along.

I can take it if I'm at fault and I really did apologise to him.

No cycle lane. Sorry should of mentioned that.

It’s legal for a cyclist to undertake a car. Weird eh. That said I don’t see anything saying that you can’t move your car while being undertaken.

He’s been a real twat about it. Without seeing the incident I can’t say if your driving was legal or not, but the way he harassed you afterwards and threatened to continue doing so on social media sounds illegal.

Frustrating that cyclists don’t have registration numbers, makes it so hard to report dangerous cycling.

Stop apologising, to apologise is to admit liability, and if the police do contact you, tell them what you’ve told us: he undertook you at top speed and then followed and harassed you.

@bettyfreddy as a cyclist who is often going along with heart in the mouth because of actual dangerous drivers, I don't think you were at fault here. I specifically don't squeeze past cars in queues to enter a roundabout while on my bike as its usually a bottle neck and they're concentrating on the roundabout rather than cyclists. I stay behind whatever car was in front of me when I arrived rather than try and squeeze in ahead.
I've had the cars behind me then squeeze past me at times which has been dangerous, when as I say road usually narrows at a roundabout. In this case you're not at fault because you were in front. I can't drive and even I know that you shouldn't nip next to cars as they're queueing and concentrating on whats coming round the roundabout, it's just common sense and self preservation when you're a cyclist!

I wouldn't worry too much about it you didn't hit him and it doesn't sound like you did anything wrong at the roundabout because he was undertaking you at speed so at kost they are going to say 'check your mirrors better' the only other thing it could be is you passed him too close but it sounds like you are quite aware of how to pass a cyclist. He was probably just an angry twat who was annoyed that you overtook him then stopped at a roundabout so then he had to slow down. If he goes to the police they will see that from the footage.

This is true.

But you should remember that you have recently overtaken a cyclist, and if you then have to slow or stop in a queue, it is reasonable to expect the cyclist to reappear and you should be ready for that to happen.

I agree with the person who said you were creeping. I think he overreacted majorly though.

Definitely get a dash cam.

I can't see a problem. If you gave him plenty of room whilst overtaking, which is suggested by it being a wide road and nothing coming the other way and your awareness of the new rules, and the cyclist is able to undertake you at speed while the traffic is crawling immediately after when you've joined the queue then what's his dashcam going to show?
You overtaking at a safe distance followed by him undertaking the queue quickly. Hardly going to be the most damning or exciting episode of police camera action from what you've described. Other than making sure you check your mirrors regularly and maybe getting a dashcam I wouldn't worry about it.

Logically something happened for him to become angry like that. You probably passed too close or overtook in a way that forced him to brake sharply.

This.

I don't disagree, but when it comes to filtering the onus is on a the cyclist to do so in a safe manner. Drivers don't expect anything to be coming down their inside in most cases so don't routinely check their inside mirrors. Sure, it's good practice for a driver to be aware that there may be a cyclist behind them but it is poor cycling to assume that they are.

You did nothing and he'll be a laughing stock if he showed anyone 🙄

What a dramatic knob YANBU

Probably sexually inadequate and can't get a girlfriend. I mean you'd have to be pretty inept to bully and harass a woman alone in a car and film it for your own gratification. I bet he's knocking one out over the footage as we speak thinking how brave he is.

Even if you were in the wrong (and it doesn't sound like you were) he shouldn't have followed you to your kids school and threatened you. So if he reports you, report him right back for harassment.

Why are people suggesting that 'creeping' is wrong - its what you do when approaching a junction in traffic - the alternative of waiting for a big gap then closing it quickly is actually more dangerous - especially if the cyclist cuts across to get to the road centre.

I suspect the cyclist was planning to move across and got upset at you closing the gap - tough.

If he had space enough to nip up the inside and you didnt drift left then he's not got a pedal to stand on.

No some road users are just angry for no reason.

I've dealt with cyclists and vehicle, mostly car drivers, who are angry as a cyclist, pedestrian and car driver.

There's no point in overtaking if you can't progress though. Going and sitting ahead of the cyclist until he overtakes you again just adds 2 passes where there could have been none.

Thing he may be in the right and the OP may be in the wrong, but he's the one who is going to end up in hospital if it had gone wrong.

And he can only control his own actions.

Drivers don't expect anything to be coming down their inside in most cases so don't routinely check their inside mirrors.

You're a bad driver and you shouldn't be giving advice

OP has explained that she wasn't looking when she pulled off, despite passing someone a short way back, doesn't know if she was going on a straight line and can't judge distances.

And people are blaming the bike

If you can make progress you should, you can't predict the future. If it's safe to overtake with a decent amount of empty road ahead, just overtake. You could sit behind the cyclist, get to the roundabout and sail through and find that you can't overtake after that when you could have got past earlier.

Obviously if it's tight or you are turning off the road or whatever then sit behind the cyclist but there is no reason to sit behind someone on the offchance they might catch back up with you.

Your prejudice against cyclists is clear, how about people of both sexes who feel the need to dominate and bully others day in, day out in their oversized metal Chelsea tractors? Do you think they get a sexual thrill out of that too? Or maybe they have to actually knock over a cyclist or kill them to "finish"?

Actually you are the daft one.

I've had lovely vehicle drivers wait for me when I've been further down the road than that. (Then again I ride wearing normal clothes.)

I've also driven behind cyclists because I we are 300 yards near a roundabout or I don't trust the driver behind me e.g. they are a skip lorry.

There's no wonder there are accidents when people don't understand what cyclists can do. It's frightening really.

I think most people would do well to retake their driving test in Oxford or similar where there are cyclists coming from all angles and you have a mixture of cycle and bus lanes. Mirror checking at all times is essential.

I've no idea what the OP did, as personal accounts are always iffy but, "granted I didn't check my mirrors..." FFS.

I'm a former bikeability instructor and deal with the reality of things.

Drivers - note I didn't say I - don't routinely check their inside mirrors. This is a fact.