Bristol bus driver 'used vehicle as a weapon' to ram cyclist off road.

Run_to_da_hills · 17-02-2012 12:12am #1

"A bus driver who used his vehicle 'like a weapon' to ram a cyclist off the road has been jailed for 17 months. Reckless driver Gavin Hill, 29, swerved into cyclist Phillip Mead after a road-rage bust-up in Bristol. Mr Mead was catapulted 10ft across the road and suffered a broken leg and fractured wrist".

I always thought buses and cyclists got on as they usually share the same patch on the road.

How do bus drivers in Dublin get on with cyclists?

I had a few run in's in the past as a cyclist going to college, usually when a bus over takes and then pulls infront immediately after to pick up passengers cutting me off. thank God I ride a motorbike more often and can keep ahead of any bus even on a bus lane. :pac:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-17063165

cbl593h · 17-02-2012 12:28pm

A lot of Bristol cyclists deserve a flog of an Optare Solo.

Ask me about 2 bust ribs and 3 weeks off work due to a pavement clown with no lights.............

Bristol city council extol in the fact that Bristol is the UK's first "cycling city"........ But on the ground (literally for many pedestrians) its anarchy.

That report doesn't say the cyclist pulled off the bus's wipers at the previous set of traffic lights and if you look closely at the fillim you'll see that just before he mashed yer man the bus driver tried to overtake but the cyclist swerved the same way.............

Run_to_da_hills · 17-02-2012 12:53pm

Do these busses have forward facing CCTV?

I am normally against CCTV but in these instances you can justify their uses.

Your man will probably come out with substancial damages against the bus company.

ceannair06 · 17-02-2012 2:30pm

I hope he gets nothing.

Look again at the footage, it's clear the cyclist was in the wrong.

I regularly walk from Abbey St up to St Stephen's Green and particularly around the College Green/O'Connell Bridge areas, cyclist do not stop at red lights, do not care if they hit you as you are crossing and generally speed everywhere.

Dame Street is even worse, they're going down hill there and reach a fair old lick.

Cyclists are NOT blameless and the soon they realise they might be in danger because of their attitude and behaviour the safer they may be.

LordSutch · 17-02-2012 2:46pm

The footage seems to show the cyclist acting the maggot! No excuse though for the bus driver to lose his cool.

Run_to_da_hills · 17-02-2012 3:11pm

Both should have their licernses revoked for a long time. You can lose your driving license here over a serious road traffic offense even if yoiu don't have one it will carry on to when you get one.

droidus · 17-02-2012 3:21pm

I was in altercation with a jogger once. I was driving down the country and he was running along the road as there was no footpad, I was angry that he was slowing me down so I overtook him then cut him off. At the next set of lights we got into an argument and he hit the bonnet of my car, so when the lights changed I drove up right behind him, pretended to overtake him and then swerved to the left knocking him 10 feet into a field before I drove off.

I always felt a bit guilty about it, but Im glad there's a few intelligent souls out there who think I did the right thing!

SoapArtAvenger · 17-02-2012 3:49pm

I sincerely hope that's just a well-crafted troll. Otherwise:

Absolutely no part of that post indicates you were doing the "right thing". You should feel guilty about it; that's an awful thing to do to anyone.

coolbeans · 17-02-2012 3:54pm

SoapArtAvenger wrote: »

I sincerely hope that's just a well-crafted troll. Otherwise:

Absolutely no part of that post indicates you were doing the "right thing". You should feel guilty about it; that's an awful thing to do to anyone.

warning, sarcasm detector failure

n97 mini · 17-02-2012 3:56pm

Cyclist should have been jailed aswell.

After he felt the bus was too close to him on a roundabout he got off the bike and propped it against the front of the bus and stood there, blocking the bus from moving.

In the video he's clearly trying to cycle out in front of the bus.

While the bus driver got jail, the cyclist should get jail too.

Stark · 17-02-2012 3:59pm

n97 mini wrote: »

While the bus driver got jail, the cyclist should get jail too.

Jail for what? Reckless endangerment of the bus's paintwork?

SoapArtAvenger · 17-02-2012 3:59pm

coolbeans wrote: »

warning, sarcasm detector failure

coolbeans · 17-02-2012 4:01pm

n97 mini wrote: »

Cyclist should have been jailed aswell.

After he felt the bus was too close to him on a roundabout he got off the bike and propped it against the front of the bus and stood there, blocking the bus from moving.

In the video he's clearly trying to cycle out in front of the bus.

While the bus driver got jail, the cyclist should get jail too.

Why? Cyclist didn't assault anyone. Assault equals jail.

rich.d.berry · 17-02-2012 4:06pm

cbl593h wrote: »

That report doesn't say the cyclist pulled off the bus's wipers at the previous set of traffic lights and if you look closely at the fillim you'll see that just before he mashed yer man the bus driver tried to overtake but the cyclist swerved the same way.............

Wrong. The cyclist pulled at the wiper to lift it from the glass (as you would if you were washing your car's windscreen) but did not damage it.

The report here states:

"The driver, Gavin Hill, had been involved in an altercation with Phillip Mead after the rider had cut in front of him in Bristol city centre. During the argument Mead reportedly parked his bike at the front of the bus and pulled one of the wipers on the bus."

And here states:

"Around 8.30am on April 5 last year, there was an altercation which saw the cyclist park his bike against the front of the bus, and tug at one of its windscreen wipers."

Surely you're not trying to suggest that the cyclist swerving in his lane somehow justifies the actions of the bus driver. It is clear that there is insufficient room for both the cyclist and the bus in the lane and therefore the bus driver has to:

maintain a reasonable following distance, which he clearly fails to do
overtake properly

ceannair06 wrote: »

Look again at the footage, it's clear the cyclist was in the wrong.

Please point out where exactly the cyclist is in the wrong? I cannot see anything that he does which is a traffic offence.

LordSutch wrote: »

The footage seems to show the cyclist acting the maggot!

How is the cyclist acting the maggot? The bus driver has nearly driven on top of him and you accuse the cyclist of acting the maggot because he swerves slightly within his lane? If you were driving in a car and a bus drove that close to you, would you feel safe? Would you not also take avoiding action?

monument · 17-02-2012 4:13pm

cbl593h wrote: »

A lot of Bristol cyclists deserve a flog of an Optare Solo.

Ask me about 2 bust ribs and 3 weeks off work due to a pavement clown with no lights.............

Bristol city council extol in the fact that Bristol is the UK's first "cycling city"........ But on the ground (literally for many pedestrians) its anarchy.

What has this to do with a bus driver using his bus as a "weapon to bully and intimidate" and clearly harm the cyclist?

cbl593h wrote: »

That report doesn't say the cyclist pulled off the bus's wipers at the previous set of traffic lights and if you look closely at the fillim you'll see that just before he mashed yer man the bus driver tried to overtake but the cyclist swerved the same way.............

And you're not saying why the cyclist says he did this?

ceannair06 wrote: »

I hope he gets nothing.

Look again at the footage, it's clear the cyclist was in the wrong.

I regularly walk from Abbey St up to St Stephen's Green and particularly around the College Green/O'Connell Bridge areas, cyclist do not stop at red lights, do not care if they hit you as you are crossing and generally speed everywhere.

Dame Street is even worse, they're going down hill there and reach a fair old lick.

Cyclists are NOT blameless and the soon they realise they might be in danger because of their attitude and behaviour the safer they may be.

He deserved getting hit by a bus then, did he?

doozerie · 17-02-2012 4:23pm

The vindictiveness demonstrated by some posts in this thread is alarming. Some people can obviously think coherently enough to manage to type a few words yet seem unwilling or unable to think about the implications of what they are writing.

Take another scenario - if you were on a moving escalator and the person in front of your stepped off and stopped right there blocking everyone behind them (yeah, you people know who you are...) would you cheer for their right to punch you in the snot if you were to ask them to move? 'Cos those arguing that the bus driver was justified are basically saying that any degree of violent response is justified if someone has the audacity to annoy you. Thankfully you are completely at odds with most of the rest of the world and you might want to take a look at the people sharing that world view with you 'cos they're likely not the most pleasant of company to be keeping.

coolbeans · 17-02-2012 4:33pm

Alarming alright. The logical fallacy seems to be along the following lines; Some cyclists run red lights therefore I hate all cyclists and reserve the right to run them all down and the bus driver was right to assault the cyclist.
One cyclist hit me on the footpath and therefore they all deserve a flogging. If an errant motorist had done the same would you demand the same flogging with an Optare Solo (whatever that is)? Nah, I didn't think so. Try thinking before you type guys. Generalisations are fun but they don't help you win any arguments.

rich.d.berry · 17-02-2012 4:37pm

coolbeans wrote: »

...Optare Solo (whatever that is)?

n97 mini · 17-02-2012 7:02pm

Stark wrote: »

Jail for what? Reckless endangerment of the bus's paintwork?

Reckless endangerment, of himself and others.

n97 mini · 17-02-2012 7:05pm

rich.d.berry wrote: »

cyclist of acting the maggot because he swerves slightly within his lane?

Slighty? He swerved as hard as he could in an attempt to get his bike back in front of the bus after he was overtaken.

corktina · 17-02-2012 7:10pm

whereas the bus driver deserves jail for violently losing his temper, somehow, i can't have any sympathy for the cyclists broken leg. I daresay he'lldo well on the compo though

rich.d.berry · 17-02-2012 7:29pm

n97 mini wrote: »

Slighty? He swerved as hard as he could in an attempt to get his bike back in front of the bus after he was overtaken.

I don't know what you were watching. The cyclist in the video I watched moved maybe 2 foot to his right but still stayed within his lane. And at what point was he overtaken? The proper way to overtake is to only return to the lane when well clear of the vehicle being passed (yes, in Irish law a bicycle is classed as a vehicle). I don't think the bus completed the overtake properly.

I believe that Specsavers are offering a special at the moment, perhaps you should avail of it. :rolleyes:

n97 mini · 17-02-2012 8:50pm

rich.d.berry wrote: »

I don't know what you were watching. The cyclist in the video I watched moved maybe 2 foot to his right but still stayed within his lane. And at what point was he overtaken? The proper way to overtake is to only return to the lane when well clear of the vehicle being passed (yes, in Irish law a bicycle is classed as a vehicle). I don't think the bus completed the overtake properly.

I believe that Specsavers are offering a special at the moment, perhaps you should avail of it. :rolleyes:

The cyclist swerved towards the bus, simple as. Go on, tell us, what was the good intention he had?

monument · 17-02-2012 9:14pm

n97 mini wrote: »

Stark wrote: »

Jail for what? Reckless endangerment of the bus's paintwork?

Reckless endangerment, of himself and others.

Where do you see the cyclist recklessly endangering anybody?

n97 mini wrote: »

rich.d.berry wrote: »

cyclist of acting the maggot because he swerves slightly within his lane?

Slighty? He swerved as hard as he could in an attempt to get his bike back in front of the bus after he was overtaken.

At no point in the video does the bus overtake the cyclist, unless you're counting when the driver knocks him off the road.

n97 mini wrote: »

rich.d.berry wrote: »

I don't know what you were watching. The cyclist in the video I watched moved maybe 2 foot to his right but still stayed within his lane. And at what point was he overtaken? The proper way to overtake is to only return to the lane when well clear of the vehicle being passed (yes, in Irish law a bicycle is classed as a vehicle). I don't think the bus completed the overtake properly.

I believe that Specsavers are offering a special at the moment, perhaps you should avail of it. :rolleyes:

The cyclist swerved towards the bus, simple as. Go on, tell us, what was the good intention he had?

The cyclist swerved towards the bus?!

You are the one who would defend anything.

1hnr79jr65 · 17-02-2012 9:28pm

Personally i think it is about high time that cyclists be made take out insurance for being on the roads and have a cyclist license. I drive, cycle yet i dont act like a prick when doin any of those.

But there are those that drive who shouldnt be on roads, there are cyclists who equally should not be on the roads because they are flippant to other road users, dont use proper hand signals for turning, running lights, riding on footpaths and the list goes on.

My vote is for cyclists to be held accountable for their actions like motorists are, have to take insurance and have a license. If they break the rules, cause accident on road or by knocking down a pedestrian they should suffer similar consequences to motorist.

n97 mini · 17-02-2012 10:33pm

Well I suppose both sides got justice, but one side got it a bit rougher than the other.

n97 mini · 17-02-2012 10:34pm

monument wrote: »

The cyclist swerved towards the bus?!

You are the one who would defend anything.

Yes, even the people who are defending the cyclist can see that... :rolleyes:

monument · 18-02-2012 1:18am

Sour Lemonz wrote: »

Personally i think it is about high time that cyclists be made take out insurance for being on the roads and have a cyclist license. I drive, cycle yet i dont act like a prick when doin any of those.

But there are those that drive who shouldnt be on roads, there are cyclists who equally should not be on the roads because they are flippant to other road users, dont use proper hand signals for turning, running lights, riding on footpaths and the list goes on.

My vote is for cyclists to be held accountable for their actions like motorists are, have to take insurance and have a license. If they break the rules, cause accident on road or by knocking down a pedestrian they should suffer similar consequences to motorist.

WOW! Here's hoping you're taking the piss, but in case you're not...

A license and insurance really helped the bus driver act accountable?! :rolleyes:

The motorists around Dublin are mostly all licensed, insuranced and they even have licence plates. It's all works brilliantly. You don't see motorists on a daily bases from running lights, parking partly or fully on footpaths, and blocking pedestrian crossings/bus lanes/cycle lanes/clear ways/junctions/advance stop lines etc. Oh, no. Actually, all of those things are done by motorists on a huge scale on a daily bases. :rolleyes:

n97 mini wrote: »

Well I suppose both sides got justice, but one side got it a bit rougher than the other.

It's a bit sick and twisted calling a bus driver using a vehicle as a weapon to ram cyclist off road "justice".

And this isn't cyclist vs motorist, there isn't sides here for me. I'd say the same thing for a cyclist using their bike a weapon against pedestrians just because the pedestrian annoyed the cyclist or dared to try to cross the road -- sick and twisted!

Would you be saying it's "justice", "rougher" or otherwise, if some somebody on a bicycle assaults a bus driver or another motorist? I would not, I don't agree with your sick and twister form of "justice".

n97 mini wrote: »

Yes, even the people who are defending the cyclist can see that... :rolleyes:

Again: Where do you see the cyclist recklessly endangering anybody?

doozerie · 18-02-2012 1:19am

Sour Lemonz wrote: »

My vote is for cyclists to be held accountable for their actions like motorists are, have to take insurance and have a license. If they break the rules, cause accident on road or by knocking down a pedestrian they should suffer similar consequences to motorist.

Cyclists can already be held accountable for their actions, the rules of the road apply to us as much as to motorists, we are all classed as vehicles under the rules. And yes the rules are applied. Whether the gardai actively enforce those rules enough is another matter entirely, you'd have to talk to the gardai themselves about that. While you are at it you can remind them that they often don't seem that pushed about enforcing the rules of the road on anyone, be they cyclists, motorists, or pedestrians.

As for insurance and a license, I have both of those as does anyone else who is a member of Cycling Ireland. You seem so keen on both requirements that I'm surprised that you are not already a member in order to avail of them - you can register here. Ask and you shall receive.

doozerie · 18-02-2012 1:21am

n97 mini wrote: »

Well I suppose both sides got justice, but one side got it a bit rougher than the other.

Ah, a proponent of the homeopathic approach to common sense.

Pkiernan · 18-02-2012 2:04am

This whole incident is a perfect example of the two laws of life:

1. The Law: Bus driver got sent down for 17 months, and proper order too.

2. The Law of the Jungle: The cyclist was clearing escalating the situation, and winding up the driver. Cyclist got what he deserved too - in this case fractured legs. Next time, he probably won't try to tangle with a 10 ton bus. FACT - Very stupid behaviour has very dire consequences.

Even though I cycle to work daily, I had a good laugh at this video.

doozerie · 18-02-2012 2:12am

Pkiernan wrote: »

2. The Law of the Jungle: The cyclist was clearing escalating the situation, and winding up the driver. Cyclist got what he deserved too - in this case fractured legs. Next time, he probably won't try to tangle with a 10 ton bus. FACT - Very stupid behaviour has very dire consequences.

Even though I cycle to work daily, I had a good laugh at this video.

FACT - your moral compass is fooked.

cbl593h · 18-02-2012 6:37am

Well that was a nice bunfight I didn't mean to start !!!

Sourlemonz has it right and beat me to the draw. Until there's registration and insurance the cycling lobby/nazis will fight this "struggle" versus the tax paying motorist. That bus has reg plates,all yer man had to was make the call to either the feds or to the bus company. But no,"we are cyclists and we are tough" applied. Someone said somewhere "have you ever seen a cyclist with a headcam who isn't angry......".

monument · 18-02-2012 12:17pm

cbl593h wrote: »

Well that was a nice bunfight I didn't mean to start !!!

Sourlemonz has it right and beat me to the draw. Until there's registration and insurance the cycling lobby/nazis will fight this "struggle" versus the tax paying motorist. That bus has reg plates,all yer man had to was make the call to either the feds or to the bus company. But no,"we are cyclists and we are tough" applied. Someone said somewhere "have you ever seen a cyclist with a headcam who isn't angry......".

Seioursly, again, with so much over the top, it's hard to tell if this is for real or a parody.... Just in case...

He had a headcam? Where does it say that? And there are plenty of cyclists who use helmet cams who are not "angry", and anyway people tend to rightly or wrongly get angry when somebody else hits them or attempts to knock them down.

He was going to call the bus company or the police over a close pass? Lol! What do you think they would have done?

Why did the apparently professional bus driver not turn off his engine and call the police?

Most important: Why are you defending somebody who used a bus to knock another person down?

cocoshovel · 18-02-2012 4:14pm

I agree cyclists can be egotistical pain in the fúcking arse when driving, and when I cycle I am totally submissive to traffic etc. Not because I am afraid of them, but because I dont feel the need to try own the road when I clearly take up far less space than everyone else and dont have to hold up traffic.

Anyhow, some of the posts in the thread are outright ridiculous and alarming to say the least. You come across as a right bunch of irrational nutjobs.

Pkiernan · 18-02-2012 5:50pm

doozerie wrote: »

FACT - your moral compass is fooked.

FACT - I am not stupid enough to tangle with a 10 ton bus.

Obviously, the cyclists moral compass was not enough to stop him getting knocked into the gutter like a piece of rubbish.

The cyclist was 46 years old, surprised he lived that long being so stupid.

Mess with the bull - get the horns.

monument · 18-02-2012 6:01pm

Pkiernan wrote: »

doozerie wrote: »

FACT - your moral compass is fooked.

FACT - I am not stupid enough to tangle with a 10 ton bus.

Obviously, the cyclists moral compass was not enough to stop him getting knocked into the gutter like a piece of rubbish.

The cyclist was 46 years old, surprised he lived that long being so stupid.

Mess with the bull - get the horns.

Wow! You're blaiming the victim again!

corktina · 18-02-2012 6:23pm

monument wrote: »

Wow! You're blaiming the victim again!

well he is at least aprtly to blame is he not? It's never cut and dried when two fools act like this.

rich.d.berry · 18-02-2012 6:52pm

corktina wrote: »

well he is at least aprtly to blame is he not? It's never cut and dried when two fools act like this.

And your evidence for this is based on?

I saw nothing in the verdict statement that apportions any blame to the cyclist. The only one going to jail is the bus driver.

I suppose your twisted logic would include a statement about a rape case and sentencing something like this:

"Well, if she hadn't worn that short skirt then there would not have been the temptation for him to rape her. She is at least partly to blame!"

corktina · 18-02-2012 8:52pm

did you not see the video or what?

The cyclist was clearly attempting to stop the bus passing , reportedly as an escaltion of whatever nonsense had been going on at the lights previously.

It takes two to tango

SerialComplaint · 18-02-2012 9:10pm

corktina wrote: »

The cyclist was clearly attempting to stop the bus passing

How did you come to that conclusion? Where do you expect him to cycle - in the gutter?

Dowee · 18-02-2012 9:18pm

I'm genuinely disgusted by the number of people on here defending the actions of the bus driver.

It doesn't matter what the hell the cyclist did, swerving, delaying a bus by a couple of seconds etc. he did not deserve to be hit by a bus. It may not have been a wise decision to tangle with the bus but that is largely irrelevant.

If I threw a snowball at a farmer with a shotgun and he turned around and shot me, by your logic I deserved it!! Think about it folks. Yes, annoying someone with a shotgun mightn't be wise, but the punishment of being shot is possibly slightly over the top, no?

You people really need to consider some of the analogies mentioned above and look past the fact that this is a motorists V's cyclist issue in your minds.

Dowee · 18-02-2012 9:22pm

corktina wrote: »

did you not see the video or what?

The cyclist was clearly attempting to stop the bus passing , reportedly as an escaltion of whatever nonsense had been going on at the lights previously.

It takes two to tango

So what if he was trying to stop him passing? Maybe I missed the class where it was explained that stopping a bus passing results in being ok to be hit by said bus.

Last I knew, tangoing didn't involve being side swiped by a bus, I guess I'm out of touch these days, I must be getting old.

monument · 18-02-2012 9:46pm

corktina wrote: »

did you not see the video or what?

The cyclist was clearly attempting to stop the bus passing , reportedly as an escaltion of whatever nonsense had been going on at the lights previously.

It takes two to tango

Given that you are so blind by the cyclist/ motorist thing, try answering this one:

If a cyclist gets annoyed with a motorist and then pulls the motorist out of their car or bus or whatever and beats the living daylights out of them, would your view still be "it takes two to tango"?

How is it acceptance to attack somebody using a bus just because they annoyed you?

n97 mini · 18-02-2012 10:25pm

monument wrote: »

Given that you are so blind by the cyclist/ motorist thing, try answering this one:

Jeez everyone on this thread has problems with their eyesight, except you.

The cyclist decided to tango with a bus and came out the worse off for it. Seriously, I'd have sympathy for him if he wasn't acting the bolix, but he was.

Dowee · 18-02-2012 10:48pm

n97 mini wrote: »

The cyclist decided to tango with a bus and came out the worse off for it. Seriously, I'd have sympathy for him if he wasn't acting the bolix, but he was.

Out of interest do you have a line beyond which you consider someone to have gone too far in dealing out retribution to someone else who was "acting the bollix"?

corktina · 18-02-2012 11:01pm

the point is the Bus Driver got his just deserts for having an insane temper tantrum BUT had the cylists not been acting the maggot, it would never have happened. I haven't read anyone defending the bus drivers insane behaviour.

Dowee · 18-02-2012 11:38pm

corktina wrote: »

the point is the Bus Driver got his just deserts for having an insane temper tantrum BUT had the cylists not been acting the maggot, it would never have happened. I haven't read anyone defending the bus drivers insane behaviour.

Not that I agree with you that this is the point at all, but to take you logic back a step, the cyclist wouldn't have been "acting the maggot" if the bus driver had given him enough room at the previous junction.

Not too difficult to poke holes in your logic is it?

galwaycyclist · 18-02-2012 11:58pm

I have watched this video several times and the first thing that stands out is that the bus driver appears to have been attempting to "race" the cyclist to a traffic signal (with an ASL) that was going to be red by the time either of them got to it. There was no way the bus driver could lawfully get in frontof any reasonably fit cyclist and then hope to stay in front in the space and time available.

While in law you may not unreasonably obstruct another road user, there is to my knowledge no obligation on any road user to indulge another in a manifestly pointless overtaking exercise.

Also it seems to me that the cyclist may have been attempting to merge into the right turn lane.

bk · 19-02-2012 9:30am

I don't know, watching the video, it looks to me that he is trying to get away from the bus, perhaps to move into the right hand turning lane and go right.

Even if he wasn't, nothing justifies doing this, NOTHING.

Anyone who says otherwise has a seriously fecked up moral compass.

corktina · 19-02-2012 9:32am

Dowee wrote: »

Not that I agree with you that this is the point at all, but to take you logic back a step, the cyclist wouldn't have been "acting the maggot" if the bus driver had given him enough room at the previous junction.

Not too difficult to poke holes in your logic is it?

nope, but it doesnt make me wrong though.

Behaviour of the sort shown by both of them has no place on the roads.

.

Bristol bus driver 'used vehicle as a weapon' to ram cyclist off road.

Comments