Why do some cyclists not want to stop at red lights?

[Puppytrashedmysofa]

Had a day off last week so took son up to London to see the sights.About to cross with six seconds to go when my son held me back.To my right was a helmet jiggling about trying to not put his foot down. Fully crossed that road and about to cross another I saw another gent in his fifties looking to cross when I bike swerved round him at speed.He said something to him and the biker told him to FU.Guy then crossed the road , all the cars had stopped.
I asked son why you held me back.He said biker was going so fast he had to swerve all over the road to stop.Of course my son reported to my family that he saved my life today.
My son said none of the bikes stop at reds where he works.
I ride a track bike occasionally and a motorbike and I know if I didn't stop it could be fatal.
My son said I should have looked right ,was I in the wrong?
Just interested.

My friends Dc, crossing the road in a green man was hit by a cyclist going through the red light.

Being hit by a cyclist is not a minor thing. I had broken bones after being knocked down by a cyclist on the pavement.

I know cyclists are horribly vulnerable to traffic and bad drivers but please please don’t ‘pay it forward’ and endanger pedestrians.

I hate cyclists in London. Half of them skip red lights! It is the biggest hazard on the roads now - for pedestrians first of all, for car drivers and for themselves if they are that stupid. There should be a way to fine those who cycle recklessly when it is red for them.

You don't treat cyclists as a car, you treat them as more vulnerable road users and allow as much space as you would overtaking a car, because cyclists sometimes wobble and fall and there's less chance of them being run over if you allow plenty of space.

Cyclists by and large follow the rules. However only a dim witted cyclist would fail to observe that they are often an afterthought in road layouts and following the official directions could place them at greater harm.

For example, my city installed very flimsy little bollards to make cycle lanes. They get knocked down and the fallen ones are a hazard in themselves, plus once they're knocked out delivery vans park in the lane. So you'd be stupid to use the bike lane as you'd need to stop and enter the stream of traffic to overtake a parked vehicle. But you have to look ahead and make a decision about that. Cycling involves a lot of double think to figure out what the official course of action is, then figure out if it is smart or safe - and it's a judgment you have to make fast.

Would this be an OK thing for a car driver to do? A lorry? And if not, why not? And why is it ok for a cyclist to do it?

Yes, it's called a law! You could use the same arguments for a car driver, having to stop, say, at a pedestrian crossing where the lights are red, but there aren't any pedestrians. ALL road users need to abide by the laws. Cyclists aren't exempt!

I will continue to make the best and safest decisions for me as an equally experienced cyclist.

Just for the record though. I don’t agree with the cyclists jumping the lights in the OP’s situation.

So something similar happened to me once and I posted about it on another forum.

A cyclist genuinely argued that it was better for him to not stop at pedestrian crossings as the car behind would get annoyed when it took him a while to get going again and possibly go into the back of him. Therefore, it was perfectly reasonable (in his mind) to risk hitting a pedestrian by not stopping.

That's the mentality you're dealing with.

I feel equally fluffy and had to go and check myself. Hope you’re fully caffeinated now

I see we have some of the arrogant cyclists commenting here.

They are so much more entitled than we plebs.

I'm not really defending people jumping red lights, I'm a cautious and law abiding cyclist (and driver) myself. I might occasionally jump a red in the dead of night when there is zero risk to anyone. And the guy you jumped a red in London sounds like a twat, you do need to be extra careful in London traffic.

I would say though, that as a cyclist you need to do that double think about whether using the road as directed is actually safe and make a smart choice for yourself. There was a great blog about this with crap cycle infrastructure, if anyone has some time on their hands:

http://wcc.crankfoot.xyz/facility-of-the-month/

I am truly amazed at the number of cyclists to are quite happy to admit to breaking the law here. And why is everyone going on about how drivers do it too? Because I can’t remember the last time I crossed the road on a green man and nearly got hit by a car (never happened) but it was yesterday that I nearly hit by a cyclist.

Ok. Let’s spin this.

You’re an adult pedestrian wanting to cross the road. The road is incredibly quiet, no traffic and there’s a pelican crossing. Would you push the button and wait for the green man, or look and cross on the red?

That’s kinda what I getting at here.

Well...

• 85% of UK drivers break speed limits https://www.forbes.com/sites/carltonreid/2023/08/24/85-of-car-drivers-break-20mph-speed-limits-reveals-uks-department-for-transport/?sh=3ddc9d1e5c9a
• 10% of cyclists admit jumping red lights but 14% of car drivers do so at least twice a month https://beyondthekerb.org.uk/laws-whos-breaking-what/
• One in six drivers admit to using their mobile phones while driving https://www.brake.org.uk/how-we-help/raising-awareness/our-current-projects/news-and-blogs/over-a-million-drivers-admit-to-using-their-phones-behind-the-wheel-on-every-journey

I’ve made it clear that I don’t agree with it in the OP’s situation, but the question has been asked and I think it’s important to explain why, on occasion, we do.

It is necessary when pedestrians have right of way.
Cyclists demand (and rightly so) that cars pass them safely because they are the more vulnerable road user, but so many cyclists dont offer the same consideration to pedestrians, who are more vulnerable than them. Be it London or countryside footpaths (not bridle ways) I'm fed up with agressive cyclists thinking that only they matter. Utter bastards the lot of them.

The link in the article for the 14% of drivers who jump red lights doesn’t work so not sure that fact can be backed up. It certainly doesn’t fit with my experience as a pedestrian.

Hence why I said sometimes, have you read my comments?

You ruined your argument with your last comment. No one will take you seriously now

There's no law against a pedestrian crossing a road.

There IS a law against cyclists/motorists going through a red traffic light.

See the difference????

Jay walking isn’t illegal in this country. Jumping a red light is. But regardless the scenario here is one where there are pedestrians about and cyclists still plough on and is a common one in London.

i don't see so much red-light jumping as i see other people report from UK (I'm in Germany so cycling is a very different proposition most of the time)

I am always baffled by this absolute refusal to stop and put their feet down. Is this because they "must" have those ridiculous pedal clips?

I know that

I was attempting to explain our reasoning but never mind. Closed minds and all that

I know the scenario here and have agreed it’s out of order. I was just answering the question asked in the OP

My point was that cyclists sometimes break the law by jumping reds. But a lot of the people all up in arms on here are probably motorists who do the same - breaking speed limits, using mobile while driving. It's just a proportion of people being a bit shit as road users, whatever vehicle they're using.

As a cyclist I have on many occasions been next to a car at lights, driver is on phone and doesn't realise lights change, they look up startled and start off without a tiniest bit of observation to check if a cyclist is beside them.

It’s a slippery slope though isn’t it? The cyclist that nearly hit my seven year old son yesterday probably thought he was making a sensible risk based decision and didn’t realise that the pedestrian crossing was on green. Unless it’s 2am and there’s absolutely no one about it’s safer for everyone if you follow traffic laws.

I agree, the city is especially bad, most go straight through red lights at speed.