Near misses - mod warning 22/04 - see OP/post 822

amcalester

ED E wrote: »

I dont agree at all.

He wasn't undertaking the truck, he was parallel and when the truck hit him he was ahead. Probably poor road craft but if I was holding the gavel Id be puttin 100% blame on the trucker.

Remember its SOP for cyclists to have straight through rights along with buses and taxis on left only lanes. Thats how our cycle infrastructure is designed. London is full of CSs that do that but usually with a "head start" light for the cyclists.

The fact that there were enough cyclists to block access to the ASZ screams add more infrastructure.

It was a left turn only lane not a left turn except cycles and buses. The cyclist was 100% in the wrong.

seamus

mr spuckler wrote: »

i say that because it worries me that if it took me so long to reach this conclusion then what hope do we have for people who pretty much see driving as a civil right?

Automated vehicles are going to absolutely annihilate this way of thinking.

Within a generation, private vehicle ownership will plummet to a minority and people living in urban and suburban zones will realise it makes no sense to own a vehicle so that it can sit outside waiting for them 95% of the time.

RayCun

papu wrote: »

That is silly from the cyclists, the truck driver is right, cycling up the inside of an Arctic like that is asking for a darwin award.

You'd hope a truck driver might realise that if there were some cyclists he could see in the lane beside him, there might be some more he couldn't see.

But betting your life on what a truck driver might realise :rolleyes:

seamus

RayCun wrote: »

You'd hope a truck driver might realise that if there were some cyclists he could see in the lane beside him, there might be some more he couldn't see.

But betting your life on what a truck driver might realise :rolleyes:

Clearly everyone there was hoping that everyone else was paying attention. The cyclist who got hit made no attempt to check if it was safe to move right before moving right. Even though he knew a truck was there. The truck driver knew the bikes were there but presumed none of them were dumb enough to go up his inside.

The reason they're all shouting is because they all just got scared sh1tless. I have the most sympathy for the truck driver. For a brief second there he thought he just killed someone. In his position I'd be shouting too.

Camera guy defence of their behaviour is terrifying though. Apparently going up the left-hand side of a truck is OK because "This is London". If you cycle under the assumption that others are watching out for you, you're going to come a cropper sooner rather than later.

shootermacg

Looks to me like the driver actually meant that. Regardless, it was a bad move by the cyclist, but that driver must have been aware of it.

RayCun

seamus wrote: »

If you cycle under the assumption that others are watching out for you, you're going to come a cropper sooner rather than later.

I remember an Australian driving ad with the implicit message that people get away with bad driving because other people are paying attention and compensate.
But inevitably two bad/inattentive drivers will meet, and you get an accident.

It's scary how many cyclists you see relying on other people to pay attention...

ThisRegard

I'm tending to agree with the artic driver in this.

axer

Annie get your Run wrote: »

One yesterday and one today, in the exact same spot on the quays (below). I'm in the bike lane and am going straight, the cars want to go left at the lights ahead. Yesterday a woman cut right across me and had I not braked I was toast, of course the lights were red and there was a long line of cars and her window was open so we had a 'chat'. Same conversation as yer man last week 'I had my indicator on' she whined, I reiterated that her indicator does not give her the right of way, she then said 'I didn't know you were going to move out' I said I didn't move out, I stayed in the bike lane which as you can see goes straight on, eventually she apologised and I asked her to be more careful in future. This morning it was a guy, I was on my guard but he came from behind me and as he drew level he started to move over on top of me, I let a roar and another cyclist said something to him as well but he wouldn't roll down his window and he just gesticulated at me to go away.

Time to remind drivers that their indicators are not some sort of super power that allows them to go where the hell they want never mind who's already in the road :mad: This morning's one really gave me a fright, even though I was watching for it there was a split second where I thought OMG it's gonna happen.

I cycle that road everyday. Never assume you will be given right of way by continuing on straight on that cycle track. It is a very dangerous design. I look at the traffic beside me and indicate right with my arm to show I am staying on the cycle track part going forward and never pass the part where the track splits while at the side of a motor vehicle - slow down and or speed up before hand to so that you are ahead of vehicles or can see their left indicator or that they are starting to move left. Assuming that cars will know you are going straight on and that you won't be sticking to the edge of the road will get you injured or result in plenty of near misses.

Roadhawk

RayCun wrote: »

It's scary how many cyclists you see relying on other people to pay attention...

I completely agree. You need to have your eyes open no matter what your mode of transport is.

Pinch Flat

Cyclists 100% incorrect. Cycling up the inside of the blind spot of a 40 tonne truck from the left only lane to trying to outrun him and nearly getting crushed is not the brightest of moves. Still see so many cyclists doing this daily.

Annie get your Run

axer wrote: »

I cycle that road everyday. Never assume you will be given right of way by continuing on straight on that cycle track. It is a very dangerous design. I look at the traffic beside me and indicate right with my arm to show I am staying on the cycle track part going forward and never pass the part where the track splits while at the side of a motor vehicle - slow down and or speed up before hand to so that you are ahead of vehicles or can see their left indicator or that they are starting to move left. Assuming that cars will know you are going straight on and that you won't be sticking to the edge of the road will get you injured or result in plenty of near misses.

I wasn't assuming anything, hence I wasn't hit. I always pay attention there (and everywhere) I hate that part of the road, just pissed me off that two days in a row the 'reason' given by the drivers was that they were indicating and therefore had full rights to pull across my path.

I remember an Australian driving ad with the implicit message that people get away with bad driving because other people are paying attention and compensate.
But inevitably two bad/inattentive drivers will meet, and you get an accident.

Totally agree with this. Always assume everyone on the road around you will not do the right thing.

AndrewJRenko

shootermacg wrote: »

Looks to me like the driver actually meant that. Regardless, it was a bad move by the cyclist, but that driver must have been aware of it.

I agree - based on his reaction afterwards, it looked to me like the driver knew exactly what he was doing.

Weepsie

Truck Driver may have meant it, may not have, it doesn't excuse the fact that every single one of those cyclists is a complete and utter moron.

buffalo

seamus wrote: »

The reason they're all shouting is because they all just got scared sh1tless. I have the most sympathy for the truck driver. For a brief second there he thought he just killed someone. In his position I'd be shouting too.

I'm not sure I have sympathy for any of them, but least of all the truck driver*. The cyclist was a complete idiot to go up the inside of a truck, but he was only going to get himself killed. The truck driver ploughed on and was lucky not to kill someone else. It's obvious he was aware there were cyclists on his inside, but didn't do much to avoid running one over. That doesn't deserve any sympathy.

*maybe the guy with the camera? Comes in swinging for a cyclists vs motorists fight no matter what the nuance.

I love Sean nos

check_six wrote: »

I got a taxi recently where the driver didn't move his head from a laser gaze out the front windscreen for the whole journey. :eek:

Professional driver...LOL. :pac:

tomasrojo

This might be an important development internationally:
Driver's not-guilty plea in a close-pass prosecution in the UK has lost.
https://twitter.com/i/web/status/884400992950910976

Maybe it's just a UK thing. Not-guilty plea for this sort of driving rarely (never?) gets defeated, it seems. (Not 100% sure what the importance really is, but reliable people on Twitter seem very happy.)

I really should have know better than to have read the comments on that at this hour.

Kaisr Sose

The comments there are just like here. Road tax, forcing motorist to risk overtakes, putting them in harms way having to cross over to over take

Outstanding !!

What chance a verdict like that in Ireland ? I tried to tell a District Court judge in Dun Laoghaire that cyclists don't have to ride in the gutter (quoting the RSA advice to prevent a close pass) and she said she was not interested in what the RSA said! Said cyclists were a nuisance when they rode all over the road. Never asked the driver why he made a deliberate pass at about 20cm that resulted in him nearly knocking me off. So kind to the motorist. I mentioned vulnerable road user and she said she was tired hearing that. Totally anti-cyclist. Her attitude shocked me.

tomasrojo

When I die it will be found engraved on my heart: Don't Read the Comments

tomasrojo

That's terrible about the judge. Nothing you can do when you run into someone like that, I guess. That sort of prejudice isn't amenable to logic or argument. Or compassion.

tomasrojo

tomasrojo wrote: »

That's terrible about the judge. Nothing you can do when you run into someone like that, I guess. That sort of prejudice isn't amenable to logic or argument. Or compassion.

Like I always say, you can have an alphabet of letters after your name and years of education and still be an absolute idiot.

CramCycle

I read the replies on twitter. Social media is where civilisation went to die.

Weepsie

Kaisr Sose wrote: »

The comments there are just like here. Road tax, forcing motorist to risk overtakes, putting them in harms way having to cross over to over take

Outstanding !!

What chance a verdict like that in Ireland ? I tried to tell a District Court judge in Dun Laoghaire that cyclists don't have to ride in the gutter (quoting the RSA advice to prevent a close pass) and she said she was not interested in what the RSA said! Said cyclists were a nuisance when they rode all over the road. Never asked the driver why he made a deliberate pass at about 20cm that resulted in him nearly knocking me off. So kind to the motorist. I mentioned vulnerable road user and she said she was tired hearing that. Totally anti-cyclist. Her attitude shocked me.

She isn't fit to be a judge to be honest and but for the cost I would be chasing it higher up.

Vel

Wow, just wow!

I stopped at the lights this morning at about 7.25am at the bottom of Charlemont Road where there are two lanes, one which takes you on down towards South Circular Road and the other which then take you into two lanes for the city centre. There are two other cyclists waiting at the lights as I pull up. I stop a good bit to the right of and a bit behind one of them.

I tend to watch the lights coming from the other direction at that junction and just as they turn orange I usually take off to get a tiny bit ahead of the cars as drivers tend to act like d*cks there. I did the same this morning, taking off probably less than a second before our lights turned green and am aware of the other two cyclists taking off maybe a half a second after me.

The next thing I know the guy who I had been alongside comes at me from my left and starts tipping his bike wheel into mine trying to knock me off the bike. At first I thought it was an accident but no he is really trying to do it. I stop and he takes off up to the next set of lights. I follow up and ask him 'what the f*ck' he was doing. He starts telling me that I had 'cut him up'. He then tells me that it was an accident and he hadn't seen me because I had 'cut him up', which clearly wasn't the case, and that was certainly proved as once again when we took off at the lights he tried to take me off the bike again!!

We came to the next set of red and I am just flabbergasted enquiring if he gets his kicks from trying to knock people half his size off their bikes, asking why he is so angry etc. We pop off to the next set of lights and I decide to try to take a photo of him. He sees me getting the camera out and goes mad, first cycling in circles so I can't take it and then putting his hand on my arm and telling me that he will knock it out of my hand if I attempt to take his picture.

This guys is really scaring me now. He's not angry or shouting but his manner is pretty intimidating so I drop back and manage to get a photo of him from behind, but its not very good. I'm not sure whether to follow up with the Guards on this case of road rage but am happy to warn people of the really tall, big, bald guy cycling around Dublin 6 and Dublin 2 who has some serious anger issues and if he perceives that you have 'cut him up' at the lights he might try to knock you off your bike! This morning he was in a vest top and shorts, with a sunglasses on and a black backpack with three reflective strips on it. I headed off left at the lights at the end of Georges Street and he went right.

Probably not allowed to post my photo??

I love Sean nos

Vel wrote: »

Probably not allowed to post my photo??

Best not. There are rules about posting bad photos of really tall, big, bald guys on bicycles from behind.

If there aren't, there should be.

Vel wrote: »

I'm not sure whether to follow up with the Guards on this case of road rage

I wouldn't bother. The Gardai don't give two ****s about people in 2 tonne landrovers endangering people on bikes, they'll barely give half a ****e about another person on a bike doing it.

Your best bet is to let Finian McGrath know about it. He hates people on bikes. Problem is that you, the victim, were also on a bicycle. Finian will probably have to lie down in a dark room for a bit to square that circle mentally.

Vel

I love Sean nos wrote: »

Best not. There are rules about posting bad photos of really tall, big, bald guys on bicycles from behind.

If there aren't, there should be.



I wouldn't bother. The Gardai don't give two ****s about people in 2 tonne landrovers endangering people on bikes, they'll barely give half a ****e about another person on a bike doing it.

Your best bet is to let Finian McGrath know about it. He hates people on bikes. Problem is that you, the victim, were also on a bicycle. Finian will probably have to lie down in a dark room for a bit to square that circle mentally.

Yeah, I don't know, I've been the victim of close passes and d*ckish behaviour from drivers but this was someone trying to intentionally knock me off my bike. And he may have done it in the heat of the moment without thinking, in the first instance, but he then did it again a second time after we had both stopped and exchanged words. He also had no qualms about placing his hand on my arm to try to stop me from taking the photo.

That to me is someone who clearly needs words had with them before they lose the rag and really hurt someone. Might make them think twice before doing it again. Maybe they are just a bully who thinks they can get away with trying to intimidate a woman half their size and might not try it on with someone the same size as them but who knows.

Anyway, I'm pretty sure there is no point reporting it based on the quality of the photo I have but I certainly think I would if the photo had been better.

I hope he is in work now hanging his head in shame at his behaviour on the roads this morning. I'd be absolutely mortified if I had reacted the way he had. Scarleh for him!!!

I'd likely have been hauled off in handcuffs had I witnessed that :mad:

Disgraceful behaviour.

CramCycle

CramCycle wrote: »

I read the replies on twitter. Social media is where civilisation went to die.

I mostly gave up on Twitter recently. It's bad for my mental health.

I love Sean nos

Vel wrote: »

That to me is someone who clearly needs words had with them before they lose the rag and really hurt someone.

On mature reflection, as Mr Lenihan once said, you're absolutely right. Report it.

Danjamin1

Does anyone else find it's consistently the slower and less aware cyclists who feel the need to move to the very front of the queue at every set of traffic lights (if they feel the need to stop)? I find myself repeatedly overtaking the same people after every light change on my commute, they just seem oblivious or indifferent to the fact they're pushing to the front. Have never said anything to anyone about it but it really irks me!