Those damn cyclists again!

OldNotWIse wrote: »

Yeah, they're all perfect. Poor poor cyclists. Never break red lights. Never almost kill people at pedestrian crossings as the fly through on red.

In my 15 years cycling in Dublin, I have seen quite a few near misses with cyclists and pedestrians, 2 actual collisions, both ended up with the cyclist (who was at fault in only one of them) in an ambulance. I have seen many near misses with cars and pedestrians, one with a pedestrain so drunk he stumbled away after stepping out in front of the car, but several more where an ambulance had to be called.

Point being, nothing to do with cyclists or motorists, problem is a small subset of people who don't pay attention.

I saw a woman ferrying her entire progeny to school a few mornings ago. She was cycling and had one child in a seat on the back, another resemled ET in a fuucking basket at the front, and a kid about 7 or 8 cycling behind her - all on the footpath Out of Momma Bear's way!

Children under the age of 12 are allowed on the footpath for their own safety as it is realised they might not have the sense to interact with traffic and are small enough not to do any damage to pedestrians. I can't imagine they were bombing it along, and considering the behaviour of some road users on the road, I can't say I blame her.

OldNotWIse wrote: »

And her adult sized bike?

?

jimgoose wrote: »

They'd slow up a fair bit if they observed traffic signals.

I observe lights, still faster than a car in rush hour traffic, faster than a bus too, often get delayed by buses moving slowly on the Donnybrook Road, I tend to sit in traffic though rather than give out about them as they have as much right as me to be there. I solve the issue of the delay by leaving my house earlier, simples.

They don't crack down on it anything like enough.

I often get beeped out of it for stopping on red as the car behind me felt that they should have been allowed run the light like the cars in front of me. Donnybrook junction is a comedy of errors all day long with this, Garda station just up the road, there is never a crack down, I often see a squad car in the traffic blissfully ignoring the law breaking. In the last two weeks I have seen every form of road user break the lights there, pedestrian, cyclists, car, van, bus. If they want a crack down, its not hard, motor vechicles are easily identifiable and cameras on the traffic lights can be used to track cyclists and peds, creatures of habit, its likely that the law breaker uses the same route regularly, get a picture of routine offenders, pull them off their bike, not hard done.

It isn't compulsory though. It should be.

In your opinon, the effect it would have on people cycling (lowering public health), the cost of administration, the fact that it is unnecessary due to the fact that the damage caused by cyclists in accidents is significantly lower and usually more to themselves than the other party.

cournioni wrote: »

Driving on my way home last night at traffic lights at a T-Junction on a one way two laned street (one going left, one right onto a two way street). I waited as usual at the lights to turn right onto the two way street. Light turns green and two cyclists (both without helmets) went straight through their red light. I lay into the horn, one of the cyclists looked visibly shook and the other laughed while both of then cycled across two lanes of traffic who obviously had the right of way.

Infuriating.

I worked nights for 12 years, every night I would see taxis fly through red lights in the middle of the night even though I had a green and a light as bright as a motorcycles on my bike, or even when I was driving.

jimgoose wrote: »

The point, as you well know, is answered, and the answer is that a bicycle is no quicker than a motorcycle in an urban setting when the pedaller plays by the same rules as everyone else.

All previous comparisons were to cars, where did the motorbikes come in, I imagine they are quicker than cyclists in many scenarios.