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.

You’ve lost me 😂

Why isn’t that the same as what?

@WellPlaced you say YOU can judge if it's OK to go through a red light, but there are some situations where you think a red light should be stopped at. That's very subjective, do you think everyone should be entitled to their own version of 'this red lights ok to run'?

I've cycled through a red light as follows:

1. Bikes don't trigger green so I'd be there for the rest of my life if a car didn't come along.
2. Someone following me on a bike in an area where bag snatching and knifing have been know to happen to cyclists.
3. Pedestrian lights have gone red, no pedestrians crossing, my light is going green next and I am ahead of the traffic so start as soon as I see the pedestrian light go red.

I don't use clips but I used to cycle with my DD on a tandem on the back and we were very slow to get started. I've had cars try to get round me and her in a bike box (two lanes) because we can't get started fast enough. She and I are both at risk if the car decides e.g. to start by going round us to the right or left (especially left if we are going straight). If we could see the light was about to go green we wouldn't go through it but we'd go very very slowly up to it to avoid stopping and starting again.

I'm a cyclist and didn't actually understand your examples. I've given my own though and I think one of them is the same.

We have 4-way stops, 2-way stops, and traffic lights here. Cyclists tend to ignore all but the lights operating on the main streets. I have a dashcam and a lot of footage of dangerous biking. The fact more cyclists don't end up dead is thanks to careful and conscientious drivers.

Look anyway as a car could be jumping the lights.
But no youren ot wrong, they don't give a shit as they're rarely caught or punished, can't be identified, no tax or registration or insurance you see

They just go on the pavement and straight through the red lights in my experience. I really like it when cyclists stop at red lights. It does show consideration for other road users, and is safer.

Look anyway as a car could be jumping the lights.

This is really unlikely when there is a green man like in the OP. When cars jump lights at pedestrian crossings it tends to be just after they turn from amber to red, so before the green man comes on. Cyclists do so while the green man is lit.

This evening I got home and it was my 11 year olds first time coming home on the bus from school on his own. I asked him how the journey went. “Fine” he says “except I nearly got hit by a cyclist when I crossed the road.” I asked him why he didn’t look and obviously his response was an indignant “it was a green man!” And to be fair to him, whether he looked or not his view would have been obstructed by cars/ buses so he he probably couldn’t have seen a cyclist weaving through.

I mean...you should definetely still look before crossing a road no matter what lights are involved. A cyclist is one thing but there are plenty of others that could hit you that you likely would be worse off from 🤷‍♀️ and in answer to the op question. I've never seen a cyclist not stop if someone was waiting but then I guess its a statistics game as I've seen plenty of cars run reds so maybe just more cyclists means more chance of the same ah behind the wheel of a car also being in a bike

In London it’s very common (and wrong). They even zip about on the pavements. Worrying.