Driver behaviour during the pandemic - my honest experience

[Milzy]

Driving standards getting worse. A Merc jumped a red light and went down the side of me about 1 mile from home.

 

[a.twiddler]

I've reported 30 so far in 2020, 17 for close passing or tailgating or similar, and 13 for using handheld mobile phone whilst driving. All of those have received some sort of corrective action from the police. 25 of these were during normal commuting hours though. Hopefully I'll have fewer to report in future if people driving are getting more used to coping with sharing the road with people on bikes. On the other hand it does seem that the real haters are raging a little more than they used to !

I'm impressed, even more impressed that the police have actually done something about it. Let us hope that this improvement continues.

 

[roubaixtuesday]

<I don't understand your last para, sorry.>

Sorry, that didn't make much sense, did it?

I meant that my perception of some drivers behaving worse during lockdown is backed up by data showing that speeding rates have increased.

 

[matticus]

But my point stands - a lot of people ARE taking more care as they drive near cyclists.

I wonder if that is due simply to the fact there are fewer cars on the road rather than to some 'Covid19 factor'?

Well we don't really know! But in one sense, I don't care - the result is the same, a more pleasant road environment for matt
As someone posted upthread, there will be less stress for drivers who are used to busy roads, so that will be a factor.

My own pet theory is that people are actually thinking differently. Two reasons:
- I ride 7-days a week, and at various times - early Sunday mornings can be quieter than a "COVID rush-hour" road, but I get the "super polite" weirdos in the rush hour. And
- The wide passing thing is really noticeable, and my theory is that people now have Social Distancing ingrained. They're driving to the shops, worrying about keeping that magic 2m gap - then they see a cyclist and sub-consciously they're thinking about spaaaaaace. And of course the fact that they are having to think AT ALL, means they are less likely to treat you like a pothole to be avoided by a few inches.

I know there is a "regression to the norm" effect that statisticians (and traffic experts) talk about, so it may be that even if we'd had 3 months of hard lockdown, drivers would eventually move to Autopilot.

 

[Deleted member 1258]

Traffic levels here a lot lower than normal, driver behavior about the same, but normally I rarely get more than the occasional close pass anyway.

 

[Johnno260]

Well yes, but I'd add "... if you let it." to the end of your second sentence.

OP, I agree. Dare I say there's been some camaraderie amongst different road users in recent weeks.

True, but depends on the issue at hand, having someone overtaking 2 cars doing probably 80+ in a 30 zone and coming at you head on when you have kids in the car kind of is a low point, and seeing people driving around drinking.

When I said mixed bag not all my issues have been on 2 wheels.

 

[Lozz360]

The wide passing thing is really noticeable, and my theory is that people now have Social Distancing ingrained. They're driving to the shops, worrying about keeping that magic 2m gap - then they see a cyclist and sub-consciously they're thinking about spaaaaaace. And of course the fact that they are having to think AT ALL, means they are less likely to treat you like a pothole to be avoided by a few inches.

That thought occurred to me as well. There have been a number of campaigns to try to educate drivers to give cyclists 1.5m of space when overtaking with limited success. I presume this is because there was no apparent benefit to the driver in giving the space, as it is about the safety of the cyclist only. We now have the pandemic and drivers are keen to give plenty of room when overtaking. Maybe because the 2m social distancing is now a habit, or some drivers are worried about the infection from a hot and panting cyclist, as the contagion seeps through car's air vents.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

@matticus You say driving is better but look at all the poor driving @Racing roadkill has posted about.

 

[matticus]

@matticus You say driving is better but look at all the poor driving @Racing roadkill has posted about.

I am sure he will see your post and tell us about all the lovely drivers he has also met. He might even have videos

 

[Banjo]

I would like to think drivers are giving us more space out of some new found concern for fellow human beings but strongly think it's because with less cars on the road it's easier for them to give us space .

The acid test will be if it lasts as when traffic levels get back close to pre Covid 19 levels.

 

[DaveReading]

you started by saying restricted to an hour...it never was, it was once a day, no legislated time limit

No, the legislation (in England, at least) never restricted exercise to only once a day.

 

[HLaB]

I found its been mostly two extremes thus far unbelievably polite drivers giving way/ cautiously waiting to overtake or speeding/ close passing/ GET OUT OF THE WAY prats. However, as traffic got busier though that gap has started to get filled in by oblivious/ do not care drivers; the folk who don't realise what they are doing is wrong :-/

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

Less traffic = less stress and a more relaxed and considerate attitude.

WVM / pick up man becoming more prevalent than earlier on in lockdown but behaving perhaps a bit better on average due to being in less of a rush as traffic ligher (still plenty of impatient nobbers, but fewer)

When traffic is congested and journey times are slow, drivers get irritable and bad-tempered and are not going to patiently wait behind anyone they feel is holding them up and delaying them more. That's why you get all the aggressive overtakes and close passes.

Over the last couple of months, journey times in many areas have literally halved as you get straight across junctions without queuing and the traffic has been generally just flowing freely. If a driver sets out and looks at their watch and realises they are running early and will arrive easily before they need to, a cyclist or other hinderance such as a dustcart just does not wind them up to the same degree as normal. Make the most of it though, as I am seeing traffic levels in London increasing again, the amount of numpty road behaviour is also increasing - including some idiot cyclists.

 

[RichardB]

Since lockdown started in the UK I have commuted every-day mainly on A/B roads, and have seen far more examples of considerate driving towards cyclists. I don't just mean drivers sticking to the rules, I mean drivers giving us twice the recommended passing space, or slowing right down before passing, even giving way when they don't need to; stuff like that.

When I am driving, I always do this. I hang back, wait for a safe space to overtake (round here that can be half a mile doing 12 mph), pass wide and slow, and generally treat cyclists with kindness and good manners. I very rarely get any kind of acknowledgement from the cyclist, which I feel is a shame. It makes sense for us to reward good behaviour, if only for purely selfish reasons - the driver who gets a friendly wave is more likely to treat the next cyclist he/she meets with goodwill. I always give a wave or a thumbs-up if a motorist has been courteous, and I often get a nice wave back. It improves my day.

 

[PaulSB]

When I am driving, I always do this. I hang back, wait for a safe space to overtake (round here that can be half a mile doing 12 mph), pass wide and slow, and generally treat cyclists with kindness and good manners. I very rarely get any kind of acknowledgement from the cyclist, which I feel is a shame. It makes sense for us to reward good behaviour, if only for purely selfish reasons - the driver who gets a friendly wave is more likely to treat the next cyclist he/she meets with goodwill. I always give a wave or a thumbs-up if a motorist has been courteous, and I often get a nice wave back. It improves my day.

A very similar outlook to myself as both a driver and cyclist. When I'm riding I will always acknowledge a driver who has shown me extra courtesy. I say "extra" because I find the majority treat us with respect, pass correctly etc. It's those which sit back rather than forcing through, those who stop/slow to let us turn right etc. who get the wave or thumbs up. Usually there is an acknowledgement back. Many of the people I ride with do likewise.

Clearly there are drivers who fail to respect cyclists but I think this is s declining number.

I think your post highlights that some cyclists can be selfish in their approach, a smile or wave costs nothing but is probably a rare thing from many riders.