Cycling on paths and other cycling issues (updated title)

It's dem curly moustaches sporters that grind my gears.... Always the same behavior from them.

Could never understand why Griffith Avenue had no cycle line - it must be about half a mile wide.

More of a WTF I had been wondering what was up with the bike lights at the brand new junction in Maynooth with the Kilcock road. The lane isn't much more than paint but at least it's marked and is at the road level but the lights controlling it stay red when cars get the green light to proceed in the same direction.
I ignore this and continue on straight as they often just stay red but I figured it out today they're controlled by the pedestrian crossing at least some of the time! So while traffic can proceed straight, cycles cannot and must wait for a pedestrian to press the button!!!

I swear I must have a neon sign over my head saying "Please cycle into this person!"

I come out of Stephen's Green Centre this lunchtime. Stand at the pedestrian lights. They turn green for pedestrians. Step out into the road and there's a cyclist there. Cycling through a pedestrian crossing. Going the wrong way down a one-way street. No reaction from the stupid **** when they were called a stupid ****, not even a mumbled sorry, I think they were so oblivious they didn't even register it.

If I hadn't been stopped and had walked straight out on a green pedestrian light, one or both of us were on the floor.

But still. Nobody died, eh?

TaurenDruid wrote: »

I swear I must have a neon sign over my head saying "Please cycle into this person!"

I come out of Stephen's Green Centre this lunchtime. Stand at the pedestrian lights. They turn green for pedestrians. Step out into the road and there's a cyclist there. Cycling through a pedestrian crossing. Going the wrong way down a one-way street. No reaction from the stupid **** when they were called a stupid ****, not even a mumbled sorry, I think they were so oblivious they didn't even register it.

If I hadn't been stopped and had walked straight out on a green pedestrian light, one or both of us were on the floor.

But still. Nobody died, eh?

Just another one a*sehole of many on our roads.

Like the one in a Skoda that I encountered last week. Sped up to charge through a red light that my eight yr old daughter had already begun to cross on her bike with the green man there.

Very same type of a*sehole, very different set of potential consequences.

TaurenDruid wrote: »

I swear I must have a neon sign over my head saying "Please cycle into this person!"

I come out of Stephen's Green Centre this lunchtime. Stand at the pedestrian lights. They turn green for pedestrians. Step out into the road and there's a cyclist there. Cycling through a pedestrian crossing. Going the wrong way down a one-way street. No reaction from the stupid **** when they were called a stupid ****, not even a mumbled sorry, I think they were so oblivious they didn't even register it.

If I hadn't been stopped and had walked straight out on a green pedestrian light, one or both of us were on the floor.

But still. Nobody died, eh?

Thats terrible!
Were your wearing a Helmet and Hi-viz/day glow?
Why were you crossing the road when the light had "Just" changed to green?
I mean seriously, the sooner we have road crossing lessons for peds the better!

AndrewJRenko wrote: »

How much Garda time would you like to divert away from reducing the death toll on the road caused by motorists, just to give you a laugh?

Whataboutery.

Never mind the roads - trampolines and houses are the real death traps, did you not hear the minister last night?

And the garda on foot patrol around the city centre is well capable of pulling up the cyclist who is on the footpath, going through red lights, or cycling the wrong way down a one way street, without interfering in any way with the traffic corps who are manning checkpoints or have patrol cars out on the N7.

But you know this.

TaurenDruid wrote: »

Whataboutery.

Never mind the roads - trampolines and houses are the real death traps, did you not hear the minister last night?

And the garda on foot patrol around the city centre is well capable of pulling up the cyclist who is on the footpath, going through red lights, or cycling the wrong way down a one way street, without interfering in any way with the traffic corps who are manning checkpoints or have patrol cars out on the N7.

But you know this.

My 5 year old niece will be cycling on the footpath to GAA practice on Saturday morning.

Get onto the Guards to organise squad car to Mobhi road in Glasnevin to put her in cuffs and down to the local station.

what_traffic wrote: »

He is a paid motoring lobbiest who also just happens to cycle to work. He respresents the interests of those (motorists) - who at end of the day pay his salary.

I think the word you're looking for is "lobbyist". It might help if you learn to spell when you're calling people names. :rolleyes:

TaurenDruid wrote: »

I swear I must have a neon sign over my head saying "Please cycle into this person!"

Nothing special about you, I'm afraid, dealing with lawbreakers on two wheels is just a hazard you have to live with as an Irish pedestrian.

But still. Nobody died, eh?

Indeed. Like virtually all of the speeding that Andy drones on about. And the majority of other crimes that do not result in death.

AndrewJRenko wrote: »

Every cyclist they pull is one less driver they pull.

You must think everyone here is a special kind of stupid, that anyone would believe this.

Most speed enforcement is done by means of civilian contractors like GoSafe, and more is done by permanent cameras (like at the Port Tunnel), all of this being much easier because motor vehicles have registration plates. Gardai cannot even do speed enforcement without being stationed somewhere and using speed monitoring equipment. They are totally separate problems.

It's incredible that you actually think people are stupid enough to believe this nonsense.

And those who call for clampdowns on cyclists know this very well. A cynic might think that this distraction is a big part of their motivation in calling for clampdowns on cyclists.

No, we don't "know this very well" because it's a load of cobblers. But the cynics among us might suggest all this whataboutery by cyclists to distract from the appalling behaviour of cyclists is somewhat self-serving. :rolleyes:

TaurenDruid wrote: »

Don't have a problem with under 16s cycling on the footpath, and I've said so on this thread before. it's perfectly legal for them to do so.

No it's not.

breezy1985 wrote: »

I didnt call for a clampdown on cyclists I called for a clampdown on breaking red lights.

A few years back I worked right by one of the new cycle superhighways and when it was built the police spent a couple of days at a busy junction on and off at rush hour and pulled every red light breaker and car parked in the bike boxes in a drive to raise awareness of the laws and I thought it was a good idea.

Did they pull every driver who broke the speed limit on that stretch? And every driver who had their phone in their hand too?

SeanW wrote: »

Nothing special about you, I'm afraid, dealing with lawbreakers on two wheels is just a hazard you have to live with as an Irish pedestrian.

Funnily enough, there really does seem to be something special about yourself and Tauren, who seem to live is some kind of Bermuda Triangle parallel universe that the rest of us just don't seem to see, like your 'menacing with intent' cyclists on the pavement and your mostly unavoidable road deaths.

This seems to be a good distance from the reality of the roads/paths in Ireland.

SeanW wrote: »

Indeed. Like virtually all of the speeding that Andy drones on about. And the majority of other crimes that do not result in death.

That's correct - the majority of crimes do not result in deaths.

Unfortunately, the corrollory is not true. The majority of road deaths do relate to traffic law offences; speeding; drink/drug driving, phone use.

SeanW wrote: »

You must think everyone here is a special kind of stupid, that anyone would believe this.

Most speed enforcement is done by means of civilian contractors like GoSafe, and more is done by permanent cameras (like at the Port Tunnel), all of this being much easier because motor vehicles have registration plates. Gardai cannot even do speed enforcement without being stationed somewhere and using speed monitoring equipment. They are totally separate problems.

It's incredible that you actually think people are stupid enough to believe this nonsense.

No, we don't "know this very well" because it's a load of cobblers. But the cynics among us might suggest all this whataboutery by cyclists to distract from the appalling behaviour of cyclists is somewhat self-serving. :rolleyes:

Yes, most speed enforcement is done by cameras.

That doesn't change the fact that a Garda who chooses to pull a cyclist at any time could instead be pulling a motorist, given that it is motorists that kill people on the roads each week.

That's a fact. There is no option not to believe a fact. It's a fact.

kenmm wrote: »

There is a lot of whstaboutary on these threads, from ALL angles. But one thing that wind me up is the grouping/homogenisation of groups of people.

It's not the same cyclists that are defending the dick head cyclists.

If this is aimed at me, I'd challenge anyone to point out a post where I defended dickhead cyclists?

AndrewJRenko wrote: »

If this is aimed at me, I'd challenge anyone to point out a post where I defended dickhead cyclists?

Defended? I can't remember. Can't be arsed going back through this thread again.

Deflected, changed the subject, indulged in whataboutery?

All. The. Time.

AndrewJRenko wrote: »

Did they pull every driver who broke the speed limit on that stretch? And every driver who had their phone in their hand too?

As for the phones I could not tell from across the street where I worked
The campaign was specifically related to raising awareness of the rules surrounding the new cycle lanes so there was no speed cameras from what I could see.

TaurenDruid wrote: »

But still. Nobody died, eh?

Well, you're right, that's the criterion for being able to complain about it, according to zealots like Renko on here.