Chaotic Butterflies

[garrilla]

This one, in her autumnal purple fleece and riding her 'comfort bike' on the pavement in amongst the pedestrians, decides to cross at the pelican crossing while its red. She couldn't have know that though as she didn't look. If she had looked, its of the new type that are situated such that they force you look at the oncoming traffic, she would have seen me hurtling towards the crossing at 20+mph.

She sailed across, oblivious. I put the anchors on and started manouvres to avoid her. Following her from the crowd of peds at the crossing was guy with server disabilities in a motorised wheelie chair.

Front brake slam, an inch from his chair, up on one wheel. Luckily controlled my bucking bronco down to the ground. Wheelchair guy is in a daze but trying to apolgise. He had foolishly followed Purple Lady across the lights.

BY this time, all of 2 or 3 seconds later, Purple Lady is on the other side of the crossing and pootling along the pavements without a care in the world. I was one of handful of people to call out to her but she could have heard us as she didn't look back.

 

[downfader]

Crikey, sounds close. You didnt hit the guy then I take it. I can well imagine due to his low height in the chair that he might have had visibility issues and thought it was safe after she'd made the decision to go.

 

[purplepolly]

This one, in her autumnal purple fleece ...

Purple Lady is on the other side of the crossing and pootling along ...

Have you got something against purple? Well? eh?

 

[purplepolly]

I can well imagine due to his low height in the chair that he might have had visibility issues and thought it was safe after she'd made the decision to go.

the red man would have been at eye level to a wheelchair user

 

[downfader]

the red man would have been at eye level to a wheelchair user

True, but legally he's allowed to cross. I just think theres a chance that he assumed it safe to after seeing our POB friend barrel across, lol.

 

[garrilla]

the red man would have been at eye level to a wheelchair user

He was behind a lot of bodies.

I'm not absolving him, btw, being a wheel chair doesn't abrogate his responsibilities. He should have took his signal from the peds, but I'm pretty sure he took his signal to go from the purple-fleeced lady.

If she hadn't been so blithe, nothing of note would have happened. And thats how I would have preferred my journey home to have been.

Nothing against purple, Polly, just using the colour of her jacket as a metanym.

 

[garrilla]

Crikey, sounds close. You didnt hit the guy then I take it.

But I was very close. When I was up in the air, I was over him. Which can't have been anything other than scary for him.

 

[purplepolly]

He was behind a lot of bodies.

That's the fundamental design flaw in those lights. They're fine when there's only one or two people waiting but anymore and they can't see the green man. Add into that dozy-head who's the only one who could see the light but isn't actually watching...

which is why at busy crossings, most of the peds just ad-lib

 

[dondare]

Those of us who aren't fools, those of us who do pay attention, have to watch out for everyone else who are and don't.
And very, very occasionally, when we do something a bit foolish or a bit careless, we hope that they'll be watching out for us.