annedonnelly
Girl from the North Country
- Location
- Blyth, Northumberland
What about the poor bus passenger sitting in the seat where he hit! That'd spoil your journey I think!
And some cyclists think it's safe to jump red lights....
- Thread starter summerdays
- Start date
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marzjennings
Guru
- Location
- Houston, Texas, USA
it looks like a fixie to me
I always see the problem as a very simple one....
If I approach a junction I expect road users to give way... I expect road users behind me to overtake me safely... I expect road users to stop at red lights
If all road users behaved properly according to the rules there would be less accidents
If I approach a junction I expect road users to give way... I expect road users behind me to overtake me safely... I expect road users to stop at red lights
If all road users behaved properly according to the rules there would be less accidents
nickyboy
Norven Mankey
- Location
- You want hills? We got hills
Care to explain why some road users should be alowed to exercise judgement regarding red lights and some should not?
young Ed
Veteran
calm down all! he's on a fixie he's invincible and nothing bad could ever happen to him what ever happens, oh and he's just too cool for red lights or brakes or common sense and logic! (not all fixie riders but generally the stereotypical 'hipster' fixie riders that ride 'modern, hip, cool and trendy' fixies for just those reasons)
road users, that would include cyclists then
Cheers Ed
jefmcg
Guru
Honestly, I think that shows the dangers of riding into the sides of a bus. If the light was green, you still shouldn't ride into the side of a bus.
No, because your own safety is not the only (or for cyclists, even the primary) consideration.
Brandane
Legendary Member
- Location
- Costa Clyde
Certainly.
I am not talking about Trafalgar Square in the rush hour here, but there are certain conditions where it is perfectly safe to excercise some common sense and pass through a red light, with due care, on a bicycle.
Take my local Tesco for example, where traffic lights were installed solely to control traffic at the T junction where their car park joins the main road. The shop is closed from 10pm to 8am, but the traffic lights are left on 24/7 going through the same light phases as the do during business hours. Crazy, and think of all that CO2 being burnt which Tesco claim to be concerned about - but that's for another day.
So, when I come to the red light on my bike at Tesco, at 2am and it is red; yet I can see for a fact that there are no vehicles, other bikes, or pedestrians anywhere near the junction, am I going to stop and wait for the lights to go through their sequence while I get cold and wet?
No, I am certainly not. I will slow down and carry out sufficient observations to make doubly sure it is clear, and I will ride through the junction. No qualms whatsoever. Would you sit there?
With regards to why I don't think other road users should have the same discretion..... Well in an ideal world I think they SHOULD be allowed to make such judgements (such as in the USA where right turning vehicles can go through red traffic lights if it is clear to do so). The problem being that drivers would abuse it and it would create a whole new problem for the courts to prove that conditions were such that it was not safe to go ahead on a red light. Far simpler to keep things as is; you go through a red light you get convicted. I will admit that on a bicycle I take full advantage of the fact that I have no registration number so I cannot be traced. Further, I have no cycling licence to lose.
There is also the fact that on a bicycle, I am much smaller, more manoeuvrable, and have much better vision of the junction than I do in a car or lorry. In the unlikely event that I have cocked up my risk assessment, it is much easier to get a bike out of the way than a 44 tonne lorry.
HTH..
Tony Raynor
Need for steeds
- Location
- Newcastle/Patrington Haven
Think you need to read the Highway Code. Part 69 specifically states you must obey ALL road traffic signs and red light signals.
https://www.gov.uk/rules-for-cyclists-59-to-82/overview-59-to-71
https://www.gov.uk/rules-for-cyclists-59-to-82/overview-59-to-71
young Ed
Veteran
because of course cyclists are more important then everyone else and a 12 ton or so double decker bus that has a stopping distance a hundred times great than a road bike with proper brakes
said with tongue firmly in cheek!
Cheers Ed
Brandane
Legendary Member
- Location
- Costa Clyde
Yep, I am aware of the law. I used to enforce it. But it would have been a very sad day for any Police Officer if they had stooped so low as to book a cyclist for going through a red light. Assuming it was done with common sense and taking into consideration the traffic conditions, as outlined in my previous post.
Do you have reflectors on your pedals?
