Journalism and cycling

CramCycle

Pinch Flat wrote: »

"how will my engine manage this" - all comments from social media.

From a practical point of view, and ignoring the safety aspect of this, if someone is unable to drive at 30kmph due to their own abilities or their cars. Then either they need their license revoked due to lack of ability or their car needs to be removed from the road for repair or dismantling.

plodder

ThisRegard wrote: »

So limits on such roads therefore should also be reduced so that motorists can stop immediately.

I didn't say that. Limits are already generally lower in places where you find pedestrians, and I support the 30km limits in the places in Dublin where they are. In a lot cases, that I know (eg Marino) it's not really that easy to drive faster than that anyway. I think it's diverting from the point we were discussing though. What I'm saying is you shouldn't be driving or cycling, asserting what you think are your exclusive "rights" whether that be driving up to a speed-limit, or taking ownership of a cycle lane, regardless of what else is happening around you.

Pinch Flat

CramCycle wrote: »

From a practical point of view, and ignoring the safety aspect of this, if someone is unable to drive at 30kmph due to their own abilities or their cars. Then either they need their license revoked due to lack of ability or their car needs to be removed from the road for repair or dismantling.

Maybe they'll have some sort of grant scheme to allow engines and gear boxes to be swapped out with those they use in other EU countries where 30 km/hr limits are prevalent. Irish drivers seem to be incapable of driving at 50, never mind 30.

magicbastarder

tomasrojo wrote: »

(assuming it's not all made up).

given the strength of privacy laws in france, i would be very sceptical if they were able to use photos of people who did not consent to being photographed in an ad campaign.
plus, the quality of the photos are possibly a *little* too good.

tomasrojo

CramCycle wrote: »

From a practical point of view, and ignoring the safety aspect of this, if someone is unable to drive at 30kmph due to their own abilities or their cars. Then either they need their license revoked due to lack of ability or their car needs to be removed from the road for repair or dismantling.

I know that in a Ford Fiesta, if you put the car in third and lightly press the accelerator, you'll go about 30km/h. Not difficult to do. I find it easier than driving faster, personally.

plodder

magicbastarder wrote: »

http://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/american-cyclist-killed-in-collision-at-gap-of-dunloe-1.3101980?j=h

again, the 'cyclist collided with the vehicle' phrasing.

That's terrible, as well as the recent death in Mayo. I hope there is a proper investigation into both cases. Was only just looking at doing a trip down to Kerry, after someone mentioned it here.

I agree on the peculiar phraseology in those reports. It reads a bit like the cyclist was out of place, or caused it in some way.

Fian

I love Sean nos wrote: »

There's a scheme underway right now in France or Italy. If a pedestrian crosses the road at a pelican crossing, but against the light, even if there's nothing coming, a loud screeching sound is played and a photo of the terrified pedestrian is taken and publicly displayed.

Seriously.

I've disappointed that the whole installation hasn't been vandalised. This is France, where the farmers dump produce and set it on fire when the mood takes them.

Unbelievable stupid. Wait until someone gets a heart attack, an elderly person takes a fall and breaks their hip or a pregnant woman gets a shock and miscarries. Not to mention a breach of privacy to use their image on add campaigns without their consent. This is just unbelievably stupid.

magicbastarder

plodder wrote: »

I agree on the peculiar phraseology in those reports. It reads a bit like the cyclist was out of place, or caused it in some way.

from a separate discussion with some friends - one was speculating that saying the car collided with the cyclist (despite the technical equivalence of the phrasing) would create a much greater implication of cause or guilt than phrasing the sentence the other way around, as people will not assume that the cyclist died as a result of simply cycling into a car.

V-man

After Nicky Hayden's death, Formula One driver Daniel Ricciardo reconsiders cycling on roads

Ricciardo, who has often tweeted his cycling adventures from the roads and hills around Monaco, says while cyclists have to be aware of their surroundings, some drivers clearly need to change their attitude when on the road.

"I think it is just awareness. A lot of drivers [are bad]. It kind of depends what country [you're in]," Ricciardo said. "You have got some countries [I've] cycled and there is massive respect for cyclists. It is kind of the culture, but then in others it is honking your horn and yelling abuse.

"So it is a little bit cultural at the moment, but unfortunately that proves how dangerous it can be and how obviously drivers - and on the bike you have to be aware as well - but the drivers really need to have respect. It is hit and miss unfortunately, some have massive respect for us and some don't."

AndrewJRenko

magicbastarder wrote: »

http://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/american-cyclist-killed-in-collision-at-gap-of-dunloe-1.3101980?j=h

again, the 'cyclist collided with the vehicle' phrasing.

plodder wrote: »

That's terrible, as well as the recent death in Mayo. I hope there is a proper investigation into both cases. Was only just looking at doing a trip down to Kerry, after someone mentioned it here.

I agree on the peculiar phraseology in those reports. It reads a bit like the cyclist was out of place, or caused it in some way.

magicbastarder wrote: »

from a separate discussion with some friends - one was speculating that saying the car collided with the cyclist (despite the technical equivalence of the phrasing) would create a much greater implication of cause or guilt than phrasing the sentence the other way around, as people will not assume that the cyclist died as a result of simply cycling into a car.

You could always ask the author if her phraseology is accurate;
https://twitter.com/LuceyAlucey

Pinch Flat

https://www.irishtimes.com/news/crime-and-law/courts/high-court/cyclist-loses-damages-claim-over-injuries-in-collision-with-car-1.3103092?mode=amp

Irish Times are on a roll of late - the comments on this should be interesting, although cycling without lights in the dark is stupid and illegal.

Note the judges comment on helmets.

magicbastarder

to be fair to the IT, the tone is fairly neutral there.

mr spuckler

Pinch Flat wrote: »

https://www.irishtimes.com/news/crime-and-law/courts/high-court/cyclist-loses-damages-claim-over-injuries-in-collision-with-car-1.3103092?mode=amp

Irish Times are on a roll of late - the comments on this should be interesting, although cycling without lights in the dark is stupid and illegal.

Note the judges comment on helmets.

negligent for failing to wear a helmet, jesus wept.

Pinch Flat

mr spuckler wrote: »

negligent for failing to wear a helmet, jesus wept.

Wonder does that apply to cars where a head injury is sustained?

Or if he had lights on, would he still have been held partly negligent because he didn't have a helmet on.

AndrewJRenko

mr spuckler wrote: »

negligent for failing to wear a helmet, jesus wept.

And the classic "satisfied Mr Lyons had had no chance to avoid hitting Mr Duffy" - I'm mean who could possible be prepared for the possibility of somebody (bike or car) turning right at a junction, or that pedestrian might even cross against the lights?

Chuchote

Odd that the length of skid markings don't seem to have been brought forward in evidence. It's surprising that a car would be going fast enough there to hurt someone so badly; it would have just driven through two big junctions, one of them lights-controlled.

The judge's point about a helmet is a personal opinion; he's absolutely right, though, about the lights - sunset was 8pm that night and this was 9.15pm. (https://www.timeanddate.com/sun/ireland/dublin?month=9&year=2014)

Same judge, different case, no helmet

http://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland/14m-for-woman-who-slid-on-grapes-398104.html

€1.4m for woman who slid on grapes

magicbastarder

Copenhagen cycle jams tackled with electronic information panels

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/may/31/copenhagen-to-install-information-panels-to-reduce-cycling-congestion

Chuchote

The cycling cubs atin' the walkers have reached Iceland:

LHM‏ @LandsHjolreidam

Um samskipti hjólandi og gangandi - þetta er sko írskur húmor. Sýnum tillitsemi segir LHM og grínast ekki með þetta.

josip

mr spuckler wrote: »

negligent for failing to wear a helmet, jesus wept.

Cycling in daylight without a helmet - not negligent.
Cycling on the 8th of f***ing September at 9:15pm without lights and a helmet - negligent bordering on Darwin award.
FFS.

Moflojo

Chuchote wrote: »

The cycling cubs atin' the walkers have reached Iceland:

LHM‏ @LandsHjolreidam

Um samskipti hjólandi og gangandi - þetta er sko írskur húmor. Sýnum tillitsemi segir LHM og grínast ekki með þetta.

I must get onto the Mammy and let her know I've gone global. Please pray for me as I explain to her how to use Google Translate...

I love Sean nos

josip wrote: »

Cycling on the 8th of f***ing September at 9:15pm without a helmet - negligent bordering on Darwin award.
FFS.

Why the 8th of September?

CramCycle

I presume josip meant without lights, not sure what the helmet has anything to do with.

I love Sean nos

CramCycle wrote: »

I presume josip meant without lights, not sure what the helmet has anything to do with.

This is why one should just throw out all of the usual canards at once. One of them is bound to fit, even if it still doesn't make sense.

Chuchote

Seville's bike network

http://www.peopleforbikes.org/blog/entry/landmark-study-from-seville-shows-massive-power-of-a-bike-network

Which is more important to making a city great for biking: the number of high-quality bikeways, or whether they're connected to each other?

A new study from Spain offers an unexpected answer: The amount of biking actually tracks most closely with the number of bikeways, while the safety of biking tracks most closely with the connectedness of bikeways.

(snips throughout)

The paper by R. Marqués and V. Hernández-Herrador, published this month in the journal Accident Analysis and Prevention, provides one of the first academic studies of one of the largest rapid bike-infrastructure investments in world history.

In 2003, the 2,200-year-old Spanish city of Seville (population 700,000) voted more Communists than usual onto its city council. (Yes, this is a thing that happens in Seville.) The left-wing party had pledged a major investment in bike transportation — and after they joined a coalition with the center-left Socialist party, they delivered. In 2007 alone, the city built 40 miles of protected bike lanes, a 542 percent increase to the existing 7 miles citywide. It created an imperfect but connected network through the central city.

Another 46 miles were installed over the next six years, along with a popular new bike-sharing system. (These six years overlapped, it's worth noting, with the global financial crisis and a particularly deep recession in Spain — national unemployment peaked at 27 percent in 2013. Seville's tourism-heavy region, Andalucia, had the worst job market in the country, and the city itself fared only a bit better.)

Two things started happening in Seville almost immediately: the number of bike trips soared and the risk of a bike trip plummeted.

Generally speaking, every additional mile of protected bike lane somewhere in the city improved safety. But network connections improved safety most.

Chuchote

Irish Times letter from John Thompson of Phibsboro:

http://www.irishtimes.com/opinion/letters/new-speed-limits-and-traffic-lights-1.3104501

As part of the plan to reduce speed limits in Dublin city to 30km/h, will the council at the same time alter the traffic light sequences to reflect this? At present traffic light sequences in central Dublin are configured to favour drivers travelling at the prescribed speed limit. In theory, at least, drivers who go too fast would be frequently halted by red lights, while those who cruise carefully at the speed limit would experience fewer stops.
In practice, cars at rush hour frequently move at average speeds of less than 10km/h approaching the centre, and so this fine-tuning of sequences makes little real difference.
This policy is, however, extremely disruptive to forms of transport that typically travel below the 50km/h limit or which have to stop between lights, such as buses, bikes, heavy good vehicles, etc.
In fact one of the main reasons cyclists give for breaking lights is that frequently the light is red for no apparent reason, other than to regulate the flow of cars, which are at a virtual standstill anyway. Were traffic light sequences to be reconfigured to reflect the average cycling speed (about 20km/h) then frustrations might be reduced all around.

mr spuckler

"Cycling is underfunded admits Minister Ross"

magicbastarder

“What the Deputy said about cycling facilities being underfunded is fair. I intend to address that after the mid-term capital review and, if possible, before that,” said Minister Ross at the end of the debate.

well, we'll see what changes varadkar (well, barring a big upset, it'll be varadkar) makes to the cabinet. he'll probably have a few favours he wants to dish out.

Chuchote

This involves targeting cyclist and motorist attitudes and behaviour, an education programme, the provision of cycle tracks and the rolling out of the Cycle Right campaign

Doesn't sound like he has any notion of what's needed.

I love Sean nos

Chuchote wrote: »

Doesn't sound like he has any notion of what's needed.

That's unfair. He's identified that more meetings are needed.

As a result of what is a crisis of fatalities on our roads, we have doubled the number of those meetings per annum in recent times.

magicbastarder

what does doubling the number of meetings actually take us to? four? eight?