Cyclists - Please stop at red lights

[Moodyman]

Never mind, someome else have a go

 

[Moodyman]

These are fine rules for those who need such things. If however you have seen the light change green to red and you know that this means you have got 45 seconds, say, to get clear in front, why shouldn't you go up the inside?

No reason other than space. Unless there's a cycle lane, there is usually too little space between vehicle and kerb to filter comfortably.

 

[Boris Bajic]

These are fine rules for those who need such things. If however you have seen the light change green to red and you know that this means you have got 45 seconds, say, to get clear in front, why shouldn't you go up the inside?

Well said. I do this a lot when riding in London and other cities...

However, I become a real mother hen when my children are riding with me in these situations. Their lack of experience makes this sort of riding a scary thing to witness.

I have no issues with them having their elbws brushed by close passes on NSL country roads, but seeing them nearside filtering on Holloway Road induces cold sweats.

You're quite right here though, in my book. If you have confidence that you won't be squashed, do it.

 

[Red Light]

Not so: the cause of a many of those has been poor positioning by the cyclist:

Follow cycle craft and never allow another large vehicle to share your lane at lights:

Arrive first = stop in primary at the head of the queue, if a lorry stops close behind, move forward a little to be visible by the driver.
Arrive later = stop in primary in the queue well behind the next vehicle and wait.
NEVER EVER stop hard left against kerb/railings at a traffic light.
NEVER EVER ride up the inside of any large vehicle stopped at a junction.

Ah, so its all the womens' fault that they got killed by the trucks is it?

 

[Pat "5mph"]

A wee story: my work exit is next to a taxi rank, after a few hundred meters you get to a junction. The taxis RLJ there all the time. I don't But the other day I had one right behind me, deserted streets on a Sunday, got the jiby jibis 'cose I don't like black taxis behind me jumped the red light leaving behind muddy tire tracks: the cheeky so and so had the effrontery to beep at me!

 

[PK99]

Ah, so its all the womens' fault that they got killed by the trucks is it?

I agree with the may comments made by Gaz on his videos to and about riders going up the inside of HGVs.

IMO riding up the inside of an HGV or stopping hard left against railings or kerb at lights is the equivalent of auditioning for a Darwin Award.

Refusing to acknowledge that for cycling-lobby/PC reasons obstructs the education and informing of those cyclists most in need of the advice and contributes to the cause of the deaths.

 

[gaz]

Is jumping the red light ever the safest thing to do?

 

[Fab Foodie]

Is jumping the red light ever the safest thing to do?

Sorry, but when somebody starts an explaination with 'Quite Obviously' I turn off....

 

[subaqua]

Ah, so its all the womens' fault that they got killed by the trucks is it?

tell you what, i will ride round not jumping red lights , and following the advice in cyclecraft about where to put yourself at lights and you can continue doing WTF you want looking like a complete twunt

 

[Red Light]

tell you what, i will ride round not jumping red lights , and following the advice in cyclecraft about where to put yourself at lights and you can continue doing WTF you want looking like a complete twunt

That would make you look like a complete twunt too since I don't jump red lights either (as posted ^). But hey, don't let facts get in the way of a good rant.

 

[Red Light]

Is jumping the red light ever the safest thing to do?

Pity your conclusions are at odds with the evidence.

 

[Red Light]

I agree with the may comments made by Gaz on his videos to and about riders going up the inside of HGVs.

IMO riding up the inside of an HGV or stopping hard left against railings or kerb at lights is the equivalent of auditioning for a Darwin Award.

Refusing to acknowledge that for cycling-lobby/PC reasons obstructs the education and informing of those cyclists most in need of the advice and contributes to the cause of the deaths.

So tell me, if you are stopped at the white line at a red light and a truck pulls up right on your back wheel what do you do? Do you follow your rules and move forward across the white line, which legally is jumping the red light, so the driver can see you? Do you rapidly dismount and drag your bike out of the way of the lorry while hoping the lights don't change?

And from your reply I can see that you do indeed blame women cyclists for getting killed by trucks even though in the vast majority of cases they were not at fault.

 

[gaz]

Pity your conclusions are at odds with the evidence.

Hardly 'evidence'

 

[subaqua]

That would make you look like a complete twunt too since I don't jump red lights either (as posted ^). But hey, don't let facts get in the way of a good rant.

oh the irony. can you point me to where i said in that post that you jump red lights. or are you reading things that are not there. looks like the avatar has it fairly close

 

[Boris Bajic]

This was a light-hearted but informative thread about the wisdom or otherwise of hopping red lights.

Full of disagreement but largely good natured and not without wit.

The recent addition of bizarre and repeated accusations that a poster is blaming cycists for the collisions that killed them seems tasteless, cheap and undignified.

I know that's often the currency of the online forum, but this can start to look tawdry.