Bad car driver

[geo]

WRONG.

It should become (be made) to be a problem for everyone on 4 wheels. It is not our problem that drivers dont look, it should become their problem.

This guy didnt look..it wasnt that he didnt see you ...he didnt look. If he did, he would have seen the two cyclists, one of which was a copper (pretend or not).

SMIDSY has got to become an acceptance of guilt. If someone uses this excuse they should be prosecuted for driving without due care immediatley, not let of with a "oh well that's okay then".

I couldn't argue a speeding ticket away by saying I had no idea what the speed limit was, its my responsibility to see and know.

Rant over

I totally agree but how do you "make" drivers see us ? I believe part of the problem is that the roads / junctions are so busy that drivers have a "quick glance" and then choose to go for the gap, rather than waiting for a decent gap in the traffic and having a proper look around for all road users.

I totally agree that it should be any drivers responsibility to check the road is safe before pulling out but how do we make this happen ? for whatever the reason if motorists dont see us then they will pull out.

As I said in my original post I think its a slightly better excuse than just pulling out because "its only a bike" I also dont think many motorists particularly the non cycling ones have the faintest idea how fast some people can go an a bike.

Until there is a huge change and even bigger government push to make the roads safer for cyclists, these close calls (or worse still accidents) will continue to happen far too often.

 

[craven2354]

I don't like this road as the driving test centre is just around the corner and I always get drivers who can't drive around cyclist on this road

 

[on the road]

I don't like this road as the driving test centre is just around the corner and I always get drivers who can't drive around cyclist on this road

That reminds me, once when I was out on the bike I seen a learner driver ahead of me, than they stopped at the side of the road and than as soon as I went past they moved off and overtook me, I notice the tutor/instructor had a clipboard and a pen marking the clipboard so I assumed at the time that it was a driving test and that the examiner saw an opportunity, they went quite close to me so I hope he failed her.

 

[craven2354]

That reminds me, once when I was out on the bike I seen a learner driver ahead of me, than they stopped at the side of the road and than as soon as I went past they moved off and overtook me, I notice the tutor/instructor had a clipboard and a pen marking the clipboard so I assumed at the time that it was a driving test and that the examiner saw an opportunity, they went quite close to me so I hope he failed her.

I'm sure it went more like "pull over a second target has been spotted" (on the road cycles past ) driving instructor: "CHARGEEEEEEEEEE" haha

 

[jonny jeez]

I totally agree but how do you "make" drivers see us ? .

You don't make them see us...you MAKE THEM LOOK

By making drivers aware that this type of excuse is used by crap drivers and is socially unacceptable. we pulled it off with smoking, lets do it with driving. Inconsiderate and irresponsible driving should carry heavier penalties. I say this as a very active driver and motorcyclist.

you get a lot of these types of excuses...
"He came out of nowhere"- really, is he magic then?
"I couldn't see him"- you didn't look properly
"I couldn't make out what he was"- then you should have waited until you could
"I couldn't fit past him without getting close"- then don't try

That sort of thing, all aimed at diverting the blame away from pure bad driving

Sorry, not ranting at you, I just dislike seeing us cyclists starting to take this stuff for granted, which felt like the tone of your mail.

Stay safe.

 

[paul04]

I was going to ask if you were wearing dark clothing which they tend to use as an excuse for not seeing you, but the CSO must have been in fluorescent yellow so no excuses i'd say! If i was the CSO i'd have had a word with the driver about driving without due care and attention. Not seeing someone in fluorescent clothing means they were not driving with due care and attention!

Hi, yes the CSO was wearing a yellow fluorescent jacket, I had a blue and white top on, and we was side by side (as I was slowly over taking her at the time) it was 3.30pm and dry and bright.
Hopefully the driver learnt a lesson, next time they just might look before pulling out.

 

[paul04]

I don't like this road as the driving test centre is just around the corner and I always get drivers who can't drive around cyclist on this road

I live just around the corner from the test centre, it can be a pain somedays to get home in the car, you will have 1 learner doing a 3 point turn,next road another learner trying to parallel park and another reversing round the corner

 

[TonyEnjoyD]

Problem is they are looking for cars when pulling out, not bikes.
Had this so any times, even last week in full hi-vs jacket and the car had stopped, just looked straight past me and pulled out.

 

[Peter88]

Had 3 or 4 similar experiences with cars pulling out of Brierley Ave while I am doing 20mph(ish). But as others have said it dosen't matter what you wear or how assertive you ride some drivers don't want to see or acknowledge that cyclists have a right to use the roads.

 

[geo]

Jonny Jeez, no offence taken I know your not ranting at me

You do make very good points, and I guess i am one of those cyclists who have accepted its dangerous at times and you are right I / We shouldnt take it as dangerous just because driving standards are questionable or just down right awful sometimes !!.

Its a driver education thing but in my opinion it will be a long road to educate some drivers.

I recently had a holiday in Greece and hired a bike for a couple of days and found driving standards and consideration towards cyclists a thousand times better than here in the UK. Is that down to a slower pace of life and a mediteranean acceptance that you dont have to get everywhere so fast or are their motorists educated better than we are.

Either way something needs to change here before the statistics for cyclists killed or injured starts to go in the right direction.
.

 

[Accy cyclist]

I had one yesterday. A car was waiting to pull out from my left as i approached at speed. She was waiting for me but i could see that she was a bit anxious, all because the car on the other side of the road was flashing her to let her out, while he was holding up about 5 cars. If she'd have pulled out as he was flashing her to do so, i'd have hit her side on, and at speed! Why did he assume that i didn't matter?!

 

[Globalti]

I agree with JJ that the words "Sorry Mate I Didn't See You" should be taken as an automatic admission of driving without due care and attention. We are educated by our motor insurers not to admit to blame or apologise if we have an accident even if we rear-end somebody, so why should an accident with a cyclist be any different?

As for high-viz jackets I don't believe they make any difference at all, especially as many are so faded that they have lost the ability to reflect that bright part of the spectrum. I view high viz jackets on cyclists and around the factory yard as the modern equivalent of the Saint Christopher medal on the dashboard - a superstitious icon, which instils a dangerous complacency. There is still no substitute for proper observation.

 

[GrasB]

I had one yesterday. A car was waiting to pull out from my left as i approached at speed. She was waiting for me but i could see that she was a bit anxious, all because the car on the other side of the road was flashing her to let her out, while he was holding up about 5 cars. If she'd have pulled out as he was flashing her to do so, i'd have hit her side on, and at speed! Why did he assume that i didn't matter?!

I once had this where someone tried to let me out but I didn't accept due to other traffic. For some odd reason he was really annoyed with me not accepting his offer. It turned out his brain hadn't registered that there was traffic coming from the opposite direction.

 

[Cyclopathic]

Sage advice from globalti.

Cover the brakes too.

Stand on the pedals if you think there's more of a danger than the norm.

This is something I've been doing more of recently. I think it certainly makes you more visible and has the advantage that if the worst came to it that you're in a good position to make a leap. (Don't let your bike know that bailing out is an option though)

 

[Cyclopathic]

Didn't see you. Balls.

They should man up and admit they simply didn't look properly.

I don't know why drivers can't see what an utterly feeble reason this is. The question remains and should always be put to them "Why didn't you see me?"