What do you make of this story? http://cambridge-news.co.uk/news/city/2007/10/18/7c2fa58d-d59d-428d-887c-463e7612c3e9.lpf
The driver was waiting to turn right, he was flashed by another driver to proceed when a gap appeared, but hit a cyclist passing on the inside? That doesn't make sense does it? Surely if he's turning right the only time he could hit her would be when she was overtaking on the outside.
I think it means she was overtaking the car that was flashing i.e. she was coming from the opposite direction
No, the cyclist was cycling on the inside of the car coming the other direction. I'm a bit surprised that he got four points on his license though.
Oops, sorry people, just me being stupid. Ignore my previous post. PS - You've definitely got to be careful filtering on the inside, keep your eyes open folks.
she maybe should have asked herself 'why is this car slowing down?'. Not saying it was her fault though, but I don't think i would have just ploughed on through past a car that was stopping seemingly for no reason.
Yep - saw a bloke go over the bonnet of a car that someone had let turn right into a side road off West Hill in Putney. To be honest, I know the driver was technically in the wrong and should have been aware but so should he - in rush hour on a busy road you should be know that thats a possibility.
The flashing of car lights has no legal meaning. It is accepted that it usually means 'after you' type of thing. It can also mean 'watch out' or 'look out' as a warning type of thing.
I had the same thing happen to me many years ago ... a stream of traffic was passing me and a car in front of me slowed and stopped (I had assumed to turn right) but was actually letting someone in. I *almost* missed them. Swerved, caught the back bumper and flew over the handlebars. It resulted in a few grazes, but my front forks were bent in the wrong direction after that... Had to carry the bike home, and I don't think I ever rode it again.
This happened to me a few years ago when I wasn't so savvy about how invisible I was to other road users. 6 days later at the very same junction, someone flashed a driver out when I was within about 6ft of the car, you got it, I hit that car as well!!!!!!! That's when I started overtaking!!! BTW just out of interest, the 2nd driver didn't even bother to stop. Charming!
Surely flashing the lights means 'Go NOW' ? Seriously though I get really annoyed when you flash someone out, nothing else is coming and they just sit there, and then when you just start to accelerate again, then they decide to go B)
This is a common incident on journeys in and around towns. Car drivers are not expecting anything undertaking a car that has stopped to let them through. That is why it is better to overtake cars in the middle of slow moving traffic to be more visible to other road users (more room there too). Even though I disagree with elderly people driving (slow reactions, vehicular control...yada yada yada) but 4 points seems a little harsh, he might be dead by the time they are removed from his license.
Remember, this is in Cambridge. The bloke is a local. If you're not expecting to see bikes undertaking in Cambridge then you really, really should. I'm not trying to say that the cyclist was smart here, I mean you have to be really careful at turn offs and keep your wits about you and it sounds a little like the cyclist didn't. But at the same time, it really doesn't work for me that a local motorist didn't see that coming.
I do a lot of filtering, and this scenario is one I am alert to. It was dark, I'd certainly have noticed the car I was passing flashing it's headlights and realized what it signified. But Flashing lights means nothing in law or the Highway Code and it is therefore incorrect to use it as a signal. Any interpretation of it is no more than a guess, the turning motorist should not has assumed that anyone was stopping for them on the basis of this. Traffic turning should watch out for and give way to all oncoming traffic, so the Court was right to penalize the motorist. Not to have done so would set a legal precedent that would work against cyclists in future.
