Cycle races on dual carriageways !

Cycle races on dual carriageways !

Author
Discussion

JDMDrifter

Original Poster:

4,039 posts

164 months

Sunday 13th April 2014
quotequote all
Hi all,

Bit of a rant and a general question really.

Yesterday I was driving from derby to stoke along the A50, for those of you who don't know this road its very fast and features many HGVs using it. So as I'm driving I'm noticing the signs for the cycle face and Marshall's stood around, joyous rolleyes .

As I go to pull onto the A50 I meet the first cyclist, in the middle of the slip road entering at a slow speed, this slowing me up and a line of cars behind me. He doesn't move over and insist on taking up all road until we join, I overtake and carry on. Further up the road I see a steady stream of them, now this is just plain dangerous as they are taking up lanes thus causing HGVs to swerve quite erratically into Lane 2 causing faster moving traffic to slow down very quickly. This carries on for 5-10 miles and I also witness a cyclist swerving around causing the car behind to take evasive action whilst trying to overtake.

My question really is why is this allowed on such busy/dangerous roads?

Edited by JDMDrifter on Sunday 13th April 15:46

0836whimper

974 posts

197 months

Sunday 13th April 2014
quotequote all
I wouldn't cycle on there, but if HGV's are 'swerving' into lane 2 at the last minute then they are driving too fast for the conditions (what they can see ahead). That's the dangerous part.

Like any road, drive to the conditions and expect cyclists on a Sunday morning especially. The A50 is neither busy or dangerous in itself.

powerstroke

10,283 posts

159 months

Sunday 13th April 2014
quotequote all
JDMDrifter said:
Hi all,

Bit of a rant and a general question really.

Yesterday I was driving from derby to stoke along the A50, for those of you who don't know this road its very fast and features many HGVs using it. So as I'm driving I'm noticing the signs for the cycle face and Marshall's stood around, joyous rolleyes .

As I go to pull onto the A50 I meet the first cyclist, in the middle of the slip road entering at a slow speed, this slowing me up and a line of cars behind me. He doesn't move over and insist on taking up all road until we join, I overtake and carry on. Further up the road I see a steady stream of them, now this is just plain dangerous as they are taking up lanes thus causing HGVs to swerve quite erratically into Lane 2 causing faster movng traffic to slow down very quickly. This carries on for 5-10 miles and I also witness a cyclist swerving around causing the car behind to take evasive action whilst trying to overtake.

My question really is why is this allowed on such busy/dangerous roads?

My sympathy would be with anyone who had an accident with these arrogant idiots
Just because it is sort of leagal dosent make it safe or sensible...

kambites

67,461 posts

220 months

Sunday 13th April 2014
quotequote all
Why would it not be allowed? Cyclists have more right to use non-motorway dual-carriageways than drivers do.

Having said that, I've always been a bit dubious of actual racing on the road, if that's what they were doing.

Edited by kambites on Sunday 13th April 15:55

JDMDrifter

Original Poster:

4,039 posts

164 months

Sunday 13th April 2014
quotequote all
It just seems very dangerous due to the difference in speed, I suppose the same applies to mopeds on DCs.

Talksteer

4,843 posts

232 months

Sunday 13th April 2014
quotequote all
First of all that wasn't a cycle race it was a time trial hence why they weren't riding in a bunch. They were riding in 2 minute intervals and should have been easy to drive around.

What was causing the disruption was crap drivers failing to plan ahead and move out into the outer lane early, instead they ended up getting up the arse of the cyclists, having to slow to nearly the same speed which made it even more disruptive and dangerous for them to pull round the cyclist.

dxg

8,122 posts

259 months

Sunday 13th April 2014
quotequote all
The hobbyist, lycra-clad cyclists in this part of the world (I'm near you) seem to have a bit of an agenda, shall we say. And now that the sun's back, they're out in force.

Yesterday, for example, I was stuck behind a group of three in a 30 zone. They were riding two-abreast and taking a while to make their way up a hill. I elected to stay behind them, as it was a busy road and, due to the brow of the hill I couldn't see far enough ahead to give them enough space.

I got a pile of abuse for my trouble when I finally was able to move into the oncoming lane to pass them at the top of the hill.

150 yards later and I'm waiting at traffic lights waiting to turn left. The lights turn green and I'd fully seen this group approaching up the inside at speed. I didn't even move off when the lights changed to green as I knew what was coming.

Sure enough, another pile of abuse, with added hand gestures, this time. And my car hadn't even moved.

I guess I should count myself lucky I still have my passenger wing mirror. I suppose I do, because I was actually using it.

And this is not an isolated incident. On their own, they're like the horse riders round here - fine. But put them in a pack and a story changes...

jayemm89

4,003 posts

129 months

Sunday 13th April 2014
quotequote all
Followed a group of a dozen cyclists yesterday, along fairly narrow country roads.

Despite knowing I was there, they made certain to block the whole road for a mile. Most shockingly, at a couple of unsighted corners one of them also used the entire road (both sides) to get around the bend. He was very lucky there was nothing coming because there is a lot of traffic here which is not great at picking their speeds on blind corners! The benefit of a bicycle should be you take up less of the road, not more!

I would have pointed this out to him, but didn't fancy being verbally abused by a dozen cyclists. It is a shame, one of my best friends is a keen cyclist and I know most of them are quite well behaved.

I used to live (and still do to some extent) very close to the A14. Lots of cycle races on there. No way I'd go anywhere near that road on a bicycle, it is suicide.

0836whimper

974 posts

197 months

Sunday 13th April 2014
quotequote all
powerstroke said:
My sympathy would be with anyone who had an accident with these arrogant idiots
Just because it is sort of leagal dosent make it safe or sensible...
Let's hope you never get called for jury duty...

kambites

67,461 posts

220 months

Sunday 13th April 2014
quotequote all
JDMDrifter said:
It just seems very dangerous due to the difference in speed, I suppose the same applies to mopeds on DCs.
Only if the drivers don't know how to drive. "Stop in the distance you can see to be clear" is about the most fundamental thing there is to road driving.

jayemm89

4,003 posts

129 months

Sunday 13th April 2014
quotequote all
kambites said:
Only if the drivers don't know how to drive. "Stop in the distance you can see to be clear" is about the most fundamental thing there is to road driving.
And let's be brutally honest here, how many of us see huge lines of HGVs with about 15 foot, if that, between them? Even if one lorried pull out of the way, the one behind wouldn't in time.

And as I have quoted to several people - being right doesn't help you if you're DEAD. I don't care how much it is my RIGHT to cycle on a dual carriageway, the moral high ground will do me no good when someone has to use a spatula to get me off the front of a lorry.

kambites

67,461 posts

220 months

Sunday 13th April 2014
quotequote all
jayemm89 said:
And let's be brutally honest here, how many of us see huge lines of HGVs with about 15 foot, if that, between them? Even if one lorried pull out of the way, the one behind wouldn't in time.

And as I have quoted to several people - being right doesn't help you if you're DEAD. I don't care how much it is my RIGHT to cycle on a dual carriageway, the moral high ground will do me no good when someone has to use a spatula to get me off the front of a lorry.
Agreed, but that doesn't mean the cyclists shouldn't be on the road, it means the lorry drivers should have their licences taken away.

Maybe the solution should be to remove a lane from the road and make it into a cycle-lane/footpath, but I don't think that would go down well here either, somehow. hehe

surveyor

17,768 posts

183 months

Sunday 13th April 2014
quotequote all
kambites said:
jayemm89 said:
And let's be brutally honest here, how many of us see huge lines of HGVs with about 15 foot, if that, between them? Even if one lorried pull out of the way, the one behind wouldn't in time.

And as I have quoted to several people - being right doesn't help you if you're DEAD. I don't care how much it is my RIGHT to cycle on a dual carriageway, the moral high ground will do me no good when someone has to use a spatula to get me off the front of a lorry.
Agreed, but that doesn't mean the cyclists shouldn't be on the road, it means the lorry drivers should have their licences taken away.

Maybe the solution should be to remove a lane from the road and make it into a cycle-lane/footpath, but I don't think that would go down well here either, somehow. hehe
Are there not enough non 70mph roads for cyclists to use instead of mixing with much faster traffic? I'd have thought that if this was an organised using such a road would be a identified as a significant risk that can easily be mitigated by taking a slower road.

anonymous-user

53 months

Sunday 13th April 2014
quotequote all
I live near one of the fastest 10 mile time trial routes in the country (it uses the A63 east of the M62)

A contributor to the fast times achieved is the volume of traffic - the cyclists get 'sucked' along by the passing trucks - hence they ride a bit further out in the carriageway than they otherwise might.

Now, I am a cyclist too and have ridden my share of events on such roads.

But I really wouldn't now. It is simply too dangerous to take a bike onto a trunk road in the way that riding such an event encourages imo.

So, whilst it is legal and I can full understand why cyclists do it, I can easily see the drivers' perspective too and am inclined to agree with that more than the cyclists' POV

I think it is a bit of Darwin in action. As traffic conditions continue to get less conducive to such cycling, a few cyclists will pay - with very serious injuries or death.

And then bikes will be banned from (more) trunk roads.

Sooner the better imo

Edited by anonymous-user on Sunday 13th April 16:25

jayemm89

4,003 posts

129 months

Sunday 13th April 2014
quotequote all
I agree, but sadly the cyclist in the scenario is always going to lose.

What baffles me is that it is perfectly legal to cycle the A14, but not a motorway which has a hard shoulder that (IMHO) makes it far better suited to cycling on.

I suppose the issue with a cycle RACE too is that they are traffic that really doesn't need to be there. If any of us petrol-powered things were openly RACING on a public road, we would be in all sorts of st. Yes, I know it is quite a different thing, but the point remains. If we want to race, we must do it on a closed course.

0836whimper

974 posts

197 months

Sunday 13th April 2014
quotequote all
That's correct. A bike race and a car race are two very different things, putting RACE in capitals doesn't make them similar.

I was in a bike race this morning, over 60 riders on relatively quiet roads, held near Mickleover. 24.4 mph average, all was fine.

A car race equivalent wouldn't have been.


johnnyBv8

2,417 posts

190 months

Sunday 13th April 2014
quotequote all
kambites said:
Cyclists have more right to use non-motorway dual-carriageways than drivers do.
Erm, why do they have more right?!

s p a c e m a n

10,752 posts

147 months

Sunday 13th April 2014
quotequote all
It's thrill seeking on a public highway which in my opinion should only be done on a closed road. If moterised vehicles were doing this there would be police helicopters in the air and flashy blue lights everywhere, as shown by the London tunnel run last night. hehedriving

Do the clubs have to contact the police and ask permission for this, because whenever someone tries to do that with cars around here it is met with dispersal orders regardless of who is asking and how well organised it is.

powerstroke

10,283 posts

159 months

Sunday 13th April 2014
quotequote all
jayemm89 said:
I agree, but sadly the cyclist in the scenario is always going to lose.

What baffles me is that it is perfectly legal to cycle the A14, but not a motorway which has a hard shoulder that (IMHO) makes it far better suited to cycling on.

I suppose the issue with a cycle RACE too is that they are traffic that really doesn't need to be there. If any of us petrol-powered things were openly RACING on a public road, we would be in all sorts of st. Yes, I know it is quite a different thing, but the point remains. If we want to race, we must do it on a closed course.
Yes exactly..

Johnnytheboy

24,498 posts

185 months

Sunday 13th April 2014
quotequote all
kambites said:
Having said that, I've always been a bit dubious of actual racing on the road, if that's what they were doing.
I hope they weren't cycling furiously, because that'd be illegal. laugh