Cyclists

[Le Havre Oswald]

You sure its not the sheer volume of cars with single occupants? That's what slows me down to a crawl on the M60 when i travel in my car. (On my own granted). It takes me twice as long to get to work in the car as it does by bike. Go figure!



I think you have though. More motorists jump lights, speed, drive whilst holding their phones than cyclists who jump red lights. Do you know that if you don't stop at the first stop line at lights (ASL) you have technically jumped a red light. I'd say 75% of drivers don't know this law based on the volume who drive into it, roughly around the same who don't drive in a bus lane outside its operating hours through complete ignorance of the law. You can have as many tests as you like, from what i see every day it doesn't make many people better drivers.



I pay for the roads as i pay council tax. So long as its legal i'll cycle where it's safe. I'll keep left when it's safe and if the road is full of pot holes or there is insufficient room to pass me safely i'll go primary (central to the road).

do you stop at red lights?

 

[manchester blue]

do you stop at red lights?

I can genuinely say, hand on heart, yes I do. If not just for a rest!

Do you ever speed in your car? I drive as well and could not put my hand on heart with that one.

 

[Cityfan]

You get idiots using just about any form of vehicle and I don't think that cyclists are intrinsically better or worse behaved than car drivers. They are certainly less dangerous to others though as bicycles are intrinsically less powerful than cars.

 

[hilts]

You get idiots using just about any form of vehicle and I don't think that cyclists are intrinsically better or worse behaved than car drivers. They are certainly less dangerous to others though as bicycles are intrinsically less powerful than cars.

Problems are caused by people not thinking about consequences of their actions, we all do it to some degree. A cyclist riding around a pot hole or my pet hate periodically riding on the pavement then joining the road to dodge traffic may only seem to be a danger to the cyclist himself but it isn't true. The one big difference is that the idiot car driver has a number plate whereas a cyclist can just ride off into the sunset blissfully unaware.

 

[BlueMoonRisin’]

Having just done a bit of cycling I have noticed that a lot of car users, mainly women and the old, seem to completely have no idea how wide their vehicle is.

that is true Bimbo a lot of the time. Many women drivers(and some coffin dodgers also) stare at the road gripping the steering wheel with white knuckles of fear etched into their faces. It's as though they have blinkers on, oblivious to other road users and how wide the car they are driving is. I've flashed many out of a junction, and seen a few bizarre Hitler type salutes of thanks, before gripping their wheel again to then drive like miss Daisy.

I'm not being sexist here, plenty of good women drivers out there who put many of us men drivers to shame.

 

[Fat Chance]

Problems are caused by people not thinking about consequences of their actions, we all do it to some degree. A cyclist riding around a pot hole or my pet hate periodically riding on the pavement then joining the road to dodge traffic may only seem to be a danger to the cyclist himself but it isn't true. The one big difference is that the idiot car driver has a number plate whereas a cyclist can just ride off into the sunset blissfully unaware.

I've had the thumbs-up from a copper before today for doing just that ^ move, whilst i well realise a cyclist could well come unstuck with such a performance i know that there are plenty of motorists red-rotten about being sat still in traffic with a cyclist taking advantage of mile after mile of empty pavement without a walker, pram or scooter in sight. What is harder to articulate is when a scenario turns a little moody, when motorists are queing and the light is falling with damp in the air..one gap and they'll drive faster, to get home faster. If under such circumstances a little cyclists femme decided to bail the road and cycle the empty pavement we'd probably consider that the right move...which may suggest there is actually more complicated shit at play.

 

[hilts]

I've had the thumbs-up from a copper before today for doing just that ^ move, whilst i well realise a cyclist could well come unstuck with such a performance i know that there are plenty of motorists red-rotten about being sat still in traffic with a cyclist taking advantage of mile after mile of empty pavement without a walker, pram or scooter in sight. What is harder to articulate is when a scenario turns a little moody, when motorists are queing and the light is falling with damp in the air..one gap and they'll drive faster, to get home faster. If under such circumstances a little cyclists femme decided to bail the road and cycle the empty pavement we'd probably consider that the right move...which may suggest there is actually more complicated shit at play.

Going on and off the pavement in itself is not dangerous it's how you do it, these threads always boil down to common sense and people not realising the consequences of their actions. It may sound harsh but if a cyclist puts himself back on the road and under a truck or bus my sympathy is with the drivers or the passengers. If people don't give a fuck about their own well being then I suppose we can't expect them to give a shit about others.

 

[Fat Chance]

Going on and off the pavement in itself is not dangerous it's how you do it, these threads always boil down to common sense and people not realising the consequences of their actions. It may sound harsh but if a cyclist puts himself back on the road and under a truck or bus my sympathy is with the drivers or the passengers. If people don't give a fuck about their own well being then I suppose we can't expect them to give a shit about others.

Going on and off the pavement in itself is not dangerous it's how you do it, these threads always boil down to common sense and people not realising the consequences of their actions. It may sound harsh but if a cyclist puts himself back on the road and under a truck or bus my sympathy is with the drivers or the passengers. If people don't give a fuck about their own well being then I suppose we can't expect them to give a shit about others.

That's ^ very correct Hilts and my pet hate is motorists who drive off the road and onto the pavement splattering whoever is unlucky enuf to be there cause of something that is/was very avoidable, i've seen it more times than i've seen splattered pavement hopping cyclists, one motorist pavement encroaching **** could'nt wait to finish the arguement he had been having with his back seat passenger after hitting two people at a bus stop...i put the **** to sleep and took the charge

 

[hilts]

That's ^ very correct Hilts and my pet hate is motorists who drive off the road and onto the pavement splattering whoever is unlucky enuf to be there cause of something that is/was very avoidable, i've seen it more times than i've seen splattered pavement hopping cyclists, one motorist pavement encroaching **** could'nt wait to finish the arguement he had been having with his back seat passenger after hitting two people at a bus stop...i put the **** to sleep and took the charge

I agree some motorists deserve hanging up by their bollocks although this particular thread is about cyclists the clue is in the title, I'm not sure cyclists delflecting is of much use not that this was your intention mind.

 

[Cityfan]

Problems are caused by people not thinking about consequences of their actions, we all do it to some degree. A cyclist riding around a pot hole or my pet hate periodically riding on the pavement then joining the road to dodge traffic may only seem to be a danger to the cyclist himself but it isn't true. The one big difference is that the idiot car driver has a number plate whereas a cyclist can just ride off into the sunset blissfully unaware.

Avoiding a pothole is sensible ,cyclists need to be given room, dodging on and off pavements often isn't but the likely harm to others is generally no more than a bit of scraped paint, cars kill and maim.