Have you ever hit someone on your commute?

[dantheman]

In a civilised society, in a public place, the greater responsibility is assigned to the party who brings the greater risk (the larger vehicle, the faster vehicle, the heavier vehicle).

I'll teach my children to be cautious crossing the road because sadly we don't live in a civilised society, but that doesn't mean it's right, and it certainly doesn't mean I'll be a party to endorsing the wrongness.

That was very well put, and I agree fully. You do say greater responsibility - so to a degree all parties have a responsibility.

Anyway, it seems a little that I've hijacked my own thread... Some of these posts have made me feel a little better, dare I say even smile slightly.. Please do share anybody who hasn't.

 

[Alan O]

That was very well put, and I agree fully. You do say greater responsibility - so to a degree all parties have a responsibility.

Anyway, it seems a little that I've hijacked my own thread... Some of these posts have made me feel a little better, dare I say even smile slightly.. Please do share anybody who hasn't.

Opening ourselves up in public to unfortunate events like this can be quite cathartic, and I raise my hat to the people who've shared their stories with us in this thread. Every single one of them, I've thought "That could have been me", and they've reminded me about my own need to respect others with whom I share the road.

Only last week, on the way home along a canal towpath, I saw two horse riders crossing a narrow metal-clad canal bridge ahead of me. There was plenty of room for me to pass between the two of them, but I stopped well back from the crossing and waited.

I'm glad I did, because there was a man sat just beyond the bridge and I hadn't spotted that he had a dog with him, and just at that moment the wretched animal jumped up and ran barking at the second horse. The horse shied back, almost unseating its young rider, and being on that narrow bridge didn't help. Fortunately she was able to control the horse, but it was a close call - and on that canal bridge especially, a fall could have been nasty. The dog owner only then thought he'd better control the dog, and ran after it and got hold of it. He was apologetic, but... he was on a canal with horses approaching, and he wasn't smart enough to think to get hold of his dog before it launched its assault?!

Anyway, my point is that had I been riding forward at the time and further encroaching on the horse's vision, things could have been worse.

I always give priority to horses especially (being aware that I'm a brightly-coloured moving thing), and walkers, especially those with children and dogs, and I try to never underestimate the potential stupidity of some parents and dog owners. I really wish I had the proverbial pound for every time I've passed a dog/child owner whose dog/child is still ahead of us, where I'm fully aware of where that dog/child is and going slowly enough to negotiate it safely, only to have the dumb human/parent shout out to it and make it dart in a random direction in front of me.

Trying to allow for the whole range of potential human stupidity is a lost cause, but we do the best we can.

 

[mjr]

... a dog/child owner ...

You never truly own a dog/child. You just look after them for a while. I agree that trouble seems to come mainly when the dog/child heeds their carer instead of carrying on with unpredictable but easily forseeable activities.

 

[Richard A Thackeray]

I came close a few days ago, in the centre of Wakefield (as I'd nipped in before work)

It was on Union Street, just by the new bus station
There is a pelican crossing, in the gap between the railings (as shown in 'ISV' link)
She chose to step out, maybe in her late 50s(?), just by the start of the 'zig-zags'
I'd shouted, more of a "STOP!!", than anything rude
I did lock up the rear, & thankfully she did halt

Apologetic, & possibly(??) surprised that I was polite/suggested a more considered crossing next time - or maybe even used the pelican itself
After all, it could have been a bus, or a taxi, from the 'black & white' rank a few dozen yards further on

https://www.instantstreetview.com/@53.685185,-1.496995,187.42h,-21p,0z

 

[andrew_s]

I have had a pedestrian collision , a couple of times, both in the same way, and the same place, give or take 100m.

A cycle lane on the left, stationary queued traffic in the adjacent car lane, and a pedestrian crossing from the other side of the road immediately in front of a vehicle too large to see over/past (bus one time, jumbo 4x4 the other). In such situations I generally ride at 10-12 mph, as being a compromise between actually getting somewhere and any impact not being severe enough to be serious.
In one case the ped was in a hurry and just got up and carried on running, and in the other the ped apologised to me.

In the case of something like Richard's close call, just above, the stored up remark is "did your mother never teach you to look before stepping out into the road?", ideally to be issued when the ped has an accompanying child.