Near Miss ?

[sidevalve]

Got passed t'other day by a farm truck [said I were a slow old git] and it set me thinking [again].
He was pretty close but he did give me all the room he could [narrow road] and neither of us was going very fast so no big deal. However, ignoring the idiots who strip the handlebar tape with their door handles how near is near. I mean my idea of near isn't the same as yours or the guy who's only cycled twice round tesco's car park. It depends on relative speeds, size of vehicle, time of day [night or day] weather, road surface even if you've just seen the thing coming and are expecting it.
I drive a car, I suppose a lot of you do too and I give cyclists as much room as possible, as much room as I would want if it were me, but is that enough for him ? I don't want to get into a row over a "near pass" with someone who recons anything in the same lane is too close [ok exageration there].
I aint defending any stupid people here [drivers or cyclists] nor offering any answers just thinking this is a hell of a tricky minefield.

 

[fossala]

I never have problems with people giving me space. In my 4 months of commuting I have only seen 1 idiot.

 

[MrHappyCyclist]

When I'm driving, if I can't give a cyclist at least 5 feet of clearance, then I wait until I can. It probably costs me less than 3 minutes out of every year of my life. I don't see why any other driver should be any different.

 

[Boris Bajic]

I am not consistent in my assessment of what constitutes a close pass. I seem to display bias occasionally, basing it on vehicle type or similar.

In the wet or cold, when I have less confidence in available grip, my 'close pass whiskers' become longer and more sensitive. I mutter inaudibly to cars as they approach, asking them not to pass until I'm through a puddle, round a curve or down a steep drop.

Similarly, at high speed or when descending at what I think a reasonable speed, I get a little more squeaky. Just as scary as the close pass is the thoughtful driver who decides not to pass on a balls-out descent, but sits instead a foot or two behind your rear tyre.

In London, I commit far more cycling close passes on motor vehicles than are committed against me. For me, all bets are off in London. In slow traffic I get all 'courier' and do not help myself one little bit.

In the country I find that tactors with trailers or with heavy equipment dangling off their twin arms often give me relatively little space, but the speed differential is slight. They don't freak me out, but I sometimes shudder when I see the blades they are lolloping along with at my head height...

I think the one that always provokes something like a response from my lower gut is the artic or rigid truck with a trailer who passes closely on NSL single carriageway and then slams the door rather too close to my handlebar after the pass.

Am I alone in this. or do we all shudder when we hear a 4x4 behind us and detect the slightly clangy rattle of a big, wide trailer behind it? Trailer axles wider than the towing vehicle are a fabulous mobile pinch point.

 

[snorri]

It is indeed a minefield, there are so many variables.

 

[calibanzwei]

Walking (I can hear the gasps!) home last night, I had a 'regular joe' cycling commuter on the opposite side heading one way, a car behind him being impatient which took it upon himself to try and pass exactly at the moment another car was heading the other way - cyclist 'just' wobbled clear.
I mouthed my distaste at Mr. Impatient as he passed me (along the lines of 'you f***ing w***er), which he saw and looked completely bemused at.

 

[jdtate101]

I count a close pass as being within arm reach. If I could have touched the wing mirror with an outstretched hand, then that for me is a close pass. Again it varies with speed and size of vehicle. I would be equally unhappy with a lorry passing at high speed at a greater distance, as it's vortex will cause problems. I guess it's all subjective really.

 

[Xiorell]

Well in a way none of it matters. What counts and what doesn't I mean.
Drivers are gonna give whatever space they are going to give, be it 5 inches or 5 miles, not a vast amount we can do about that, just got to go out and get on with is in as safe of a fashion as we can.

Should be a standard yes, but of course there isn't :S

 

[MrJamie]

I dont think id be very comfortable with some of the city traffic, purely by volume of passes.

I tend to sit far enough out, usually about where the passenger in a car would be so they cant squeeze between me and oncoming traffic at all, then cars tend to slow on approach and then overtake from a lower relative speed. As they start overtaking, if its just one car i tend to drift in maybe upto a foot so ive always got a bit more space than they give. Im always watching oncoming traffic too, pinch points etc, so if theyre doing a risky or late overtake i usually brake while theyre alongside so i wont get squeezed. I still wobble a little bit when i shouldercheck, which im pretty sure gets me a little more space too.

Sometimes its like im spending the whole ride visualising traffic, thinking worst case scenario - where id go, figuring out where im going to get overtaken, if the overtakes safe or blind, watching side roads, driveways, stationary traffic - to the point that if it is a bit busy i feel mentally drained after a ride!

 

[Dragonwight]

Anything closer than arms length is likely to get some abuse, I could never do London cycling I would lose my voice. The highway code of course states you should give the same room as a car which probably would never work in the city. What mega bugs me is when there is an empty road and they still want to be 6 inches away from you its like parking in an empty car park and some tw*t parks right next to you.