Fine the bloody Cyclists!
Author
Discussion

knowley

Original Poster:

145 posts

296 months

Tuesday 17th February 2004
quotequote all
[RANT]
I almost killed a cyclist this evening!

I turned into an up hill one way street, a very sharp turn and the view was blocked by a lorry at the time.

A stupid tit on a push bike was flying down the ONE WAY hill the wrong way and almost had an unbooked appointment with my front bumper - had it not been for Vauxhalls ABS system I'd be in the nick right now!
(Bear in mind its been raining all afternoon here!)

After he'd changed his underpants he took out his headphones (so he couldn't even hear a car coming if he had been traveling in the correct direction) and swore at me. So I wound down the window and pointed out the blue one way sign and he didn't seem to care.

If I had killed him, would this have been my fault? (current motoring climate says YES)

Why don't people/safety partnerships/MPs push for a scheme to make Pedestrians and Cyclists OBEY the HIGHWAY F***ING code? (would save more lives than cameras)

They should bring in a penalty/fine/licence system for cyclists - I've had problems with them before but this guy almost killed himself and sent me to jail!
[/RANT]

Sorry... had to get it off my chest, and you people are the only ones who care about this sort of thing.

Its not all that bad... just the shock made me mad.

>>> Edited by knowley on Tuesday 17th February 18:43

Don

28,378 posts

302 months

Tuesday 17th February 2004
quotequote all
Wrong way down a one way street? If you'd killed him they'd have issued you with a medal...

What a twit. Its inconsiderate shites like that that give the rest of us cyclists (three days a week whenever possible to work and back) a bad name...

Don't tar all cyclists with the same brush, though. This guy was a w*nker. Chances are he's a w*nker behind the steering wheel too..

mybrainhurts

90,809 posts

273 months

Tuesday 17th February 2004
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Made my day today.

Micra lady stopped at roundabout.

Warrior cyclist behind didn't.......................

wolosp

2,337 posts

283 months

Tuesday 17th February 2004
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Don said:
Wrong way down a one way street? If you'd killed him they'd have issued you with a medal...

What a twit. Its inconsiderate shites like that that give the rest of us cyclists (three days a week whenever possible to work and back) a bad name...

Don't tar all cyclists with the same brush, though. This guy was a w*nker. Chances are he's a w*nker behind the steering wheel too..
I agree with you (being a cyclist, driver and one-time motorcyclist) you cannot blame all cyclists, but like some drivers, many cyclists pay little regard to road regulations (riding through red lights, no front/rear lights, riding on pavements etc,.). I recall once driving through Bristol and seeing a female cyclist in front riding in the middle of the road in the same direction as me - I sounded the horn to let her know I was approaching, but recieved a tirade of abuse for my trouble - apparently I had startled her as she didn't hear me approaching! I tried to explain that was exactly my concern, but she would not listen!

mybrainhurts

90,809 posts

273 months

Tuesday 17th February 2004
quotequote all
Don said:
Wrong way down a one way street? If you'd killed him they'd have issued you with a medal...



Come to Sheffield.

Unspecified cycle lanes the wrong way down one way streets. Only indication is the occasional white arrow painted on the road.

One such road is lined both sides with parked vehicles and just wide enough to get a car through.

Planners?............

safespeed

2,983 posts

292 months

Tuesday 17th February 2004
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mybrainhurts said:

Planners?............


No wonder your brain hurts.

andrew54

109 posts

261 months

Tuesday 17th February 2004
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knowley said:


I turned into an up hill one way street, a very sharp turn and the view was blocked by a lorry at the time.

If I had killed him, would this have been my fault? (current motoring climate says YES)

I don't think the present motoring climate would say it was your fault. Clearly the cyclist is to blame.

I do wonder though, just how fast you were going around this sharp turn with your view blocked by the lorry. If it was fast enough to kill him would you be partly to blame?

puggit

49,230 posts

266 months

Tuesday 17th February 2004
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andrew54 said:

knowley said:


I turned into an up hill one way street, a very sharp turn and the view was blocked by a lorry at the time.

If I had killed him, would this have been my fault? (current motoring climate says YES)


I don't think the present motoring climate would say it was your fault. Clearly the cyclist is to blame.

I do wonder though, just how fast you were going around this sharp turn with your view blocked by the lorry. If it was fast enough to kill him would you be partly to blame?
Cylcist could quite easily be doing 20-30mph down hill - knowlsey could quite easily have been doing 20mph safely = a big head on crash!

Personally I think you should have let Darwinian theory take it's course

knowley

Original Poster:

145 posts

296 months

Tuesday 17th February 2004
quotequote all
andrew54 said:
I don't think the present motoring climate would say it was your fault. Clearly the cyclist is to blame.


I wouldn't be too sure, all it needs is some numpty mummy with her kiddies in a parm as the cyclists witness!

andrew54 said:
I do wonder though, just how fast you were going around this sharp turn with your view blocked by the lorry. If it was fast enough to kill him would you be partly to blame?


OK I was exagerating a bit about the killing bit, thinking about it I was probably only doing 10mph, i.e. crawling in 2nd, so he'd probably have been badly bruised considering the speed he was going, abs did vibrate through the pedal though. Probably the shock made think "I could have killed him".

TBH I rarely see a cyclist who does obey the highway code.

Offences I see daily are jumping red lights, failure to give way on roundabouts and junctions, cycling on pavements, cycling on the road where there is a cycle lane and now wrong way down one way streets ... and only about two thirds are correctly illumianted at dusk!

busa_rush

6,930 posts

269 months

Tuesday 17th February 2004
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I almost mowed down a cyclist going the wrong way round a roundabout this morning.

I'll have to learn that we drive clockwise on roundabouts . . .

andrew s2

40 posts

260 months

Tuesday 17th February 2004
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cyclists, sigh!!!

WildCat

8,369 posts

261 months

Tuesday 17th February 2004
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Oh for a compulsory cycling test; compulsory bicycle insurance; on-the-spot fines (of £100 upwards) for cycling in a reckless manner; not using cycle lanes, puffin crossings; tripping red lights; cycling down the outside lane of a dual carriageway the wrong way; entering a yellow box junction CCTV footage used to persecute ( er, prosecute? !) them!



Is the moon made of green cheese?

knowley

Original Poster:

145 posts

296 months

Tuesday 17th February 2004
quotequote all
LOL

ZR1427

17,999 posts

267 months

Tuesday 17th February 2004
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Cycliist took out my front wing and bonnet on my cab last year when he came riding at full pelt out of a side turning ,it cost me £300 plus time off the road to put the damage right.

Yes i felt like throttling the Bd but that would of put my lively hood at risk if i had done so.

In my mind is it unreasonable for cyclists to pay a nominal tenner for insurance incase of these circumstances.

northernboy

12,642 posts

275 months

Wednesday 18th February 2004
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Don said:
Wrong way down a one way street? If you'd killed him they'd have issued you with a medal...

What a twit. Its inconsiderate shites like that that give the rest of us cyclists (three days a week whenever possible to work and back) a bad name...

Don't tar all cyclists with the same brush, though. This guy was a w*nker. Chances are he's a w*nker behind the steering wheel too..


While I agree that some cyclists misbehave, they do have a pretty miserable life from motorists not giving way, driving past to close, and overtaking them immediately before pulling back over to the left and slamming their brakes on.

My dad has been off his bike countless times, and been left bloodied and dazed in the road because some arse in a car has not thought it worthwhile to give way to the guy in the reflective top with the bright lights who was already on the roundabout. Often, the car drivers haven't even realised that they have to give way to a bike.

Drivers treat cyclists so badly near London that I've given up cycling alltogether.

streaky

19,311 posts

267 months

Wednesday 18th February 2004
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northernboy said:
While I agree that some cyclists misbehave, they do have a pretty miserable life from motorists not giving way, driving past to close, and overtaking them immediately before pulling back over to the left and slamming their brakes on.

[ ... ]

Drivers treat cyclists so badly near London that I've given up cycling alltogether.
Cause and effect maybe? After all, the authorities treat all motorists as criminals, so why shouldn't motorists treat all cyclists as idiots? Only (slightly) joking - Streaky

TSS

1,135 posts

286 months

Wednesday 18th February 2004
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Last year I met a cyclist coming the wrong way down the outside lane of a bit of (30mph) dual carriageway. Fortunately I avoided him. The day after I saw a very mangled bike and a lot of broken glass by the side of the road in about the same place. Don’t know if it was the same bike but I hope so.

kevinday

13,495 posts

298 months

Wednesday 18th February 2004
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ZR1427 said:
Cycliist took out my front wing and bonnet on my cab last year when he came riding at full pelt out of a side turning ,it cost me £300 plus time off the road to put the damage right.


Why not pursue the cyclist through the small claims court, if it was clearly his fault?

roop

6,012 posts

302 months

Wednesday 18th February 2004
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When I liven in London, I saw a guy on a bike slow down at a red light then deliberately ride through on red to go across the crossroads. His mistake was highlighted rather abruptly when he was slowed from 20mph to 0 in about six inches by a royal mail van. He flew off the bike and headbutted the side of the van before bouncing off and collapsing in a heap. I pissed my sides. With hindsight perhaps this wasn't an appropriate response as he looked a bit knackered. Still, his own fault. Idiot.

On the cycling vein, I had a guy on a bike ride into and bounce off the side of my Cinquecento in London (again) who got up and proceeded to mouth off whist wiping the blood off his head. If I'd have been in the wrong, fair enough, but I was parked up at a meter FFS. I got out stode round to him and politely requested in my best gruff Lancastrian tones that he shut the feck up before I broke his legs and he scurried off sharpish carring his bent bike. Pillock.

It's not difficult to ride safely and with respect to others and these few ruin it for everone else (including myself who has been known to cycle occasioanaly). Having said this, we only hear about the bad ones, most cyclists are considerate and have decent spatial awareness.

cptsideways

13,749 posts

270 months

Wednesday 18th February 2004
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WildCat said:
on-the-spot fines (of £100 upwards)for not using cycle lanes,


Cycle lanes round our way go round the outside lane of roundabouts!!!!!. This is so effing dangerous it's like some 90 year old granny designed them. How to kill yourself in one easy go, cutting across in front of the traffic not behind it.

Plus as a rule cycle lanes are not designed by cyclists they are designed by the same morons that design sainsbury's car parks, the road is often safer.


PS I've been a professional cyclist in my time & been riding bikes for 20 years so I know a little bit about the subject.