Nearly had a punch up last night

[jonny jeez]

Pedestrian stepped out in front of me last night on horsegaurds parade (dark section of road between the mall and birdcage walk)

easy mistake for him to make, its quite (so you may tend to listen for traffic more than look) and dark, so easy to do a SMIDSY.

problem is...and this is where I lost my rag...having caused me to lift my rear wheel from the sudden braking (I dont know how I missed him as he jumped back and forth in a panic)

he then proceeds to chuck a string of insults at me, like I did something wrong.

This turned things from a nasty near miss into a matter of principle and I went back for a chat.

All ended OK, neither of us really had the appetite for a proper row, we chucked a few pretend blows, threw a few insults (my dads bigger than your dad kind of stuff) and went on our way.

But it so nearly kicked off...for absolutely no reason.

Why not just say..."blimey, sorry mate" and it would have passed as a non-event

 

[fossyant]

Hang on - Quote 'I went back for a chat'.

Fail. No-one admits fault these days, pedestrian, cyclist, driver. You are both at fault !

PS Pedestrians do have right of way, no matter how dangerous. I just grin 'nearly' if anyone does that.

 

[fossyant]

Did you have to take your headphones off to speak to him, or were they still on and you were shouting ?

 

[HLaB]

The one time I hit a ped both he and me were apologetic and the whole thing diffused almost instantly; if only more encounters could end that way!

 

[Linford]

Hang on - Quote 'I went back for a chat'.

Fail. No-one admits fault these days, pedestrian, cyclist, driver. You are both at fault !

PS Pedestrians do have right of way, no matter how dangerous. I just grin 'nearly' if anyone does that.

I see two trains of thought here
1) (vehicle) Always travel at a speed which you can stop within the distanceto be safe

2) (pedestrian) You have a duty of care to minimise the risk to yourself (and others)

Take your pick

 

[fossyant]

Ah, but the mistake was to go back for a 'chat'.

 

[Moodyman]

The one time I hit a ped both he and me were apologetic and the whole thing diffused almost instantly; if only more encounters could end that way!

Ahh yes...but your from bonnie Scotland where everyone is nice. They talk with their fists down in Larndon

 

[Moodyman]

Ah, but the mistake was to go back for a 'chat'.

Difficult to avoid sometimes, but yes, I agree, chats seldom achieve anything.

 

[jonny jeez]

Ah, but the mistake was to go back for a 'chat'.

Nope, the mistake was to shout abuse when we were clearly both in the wrong.

shouting abuse requests a response...to which I merely obliged.

 

[jonny jeez]

The one time I hit a ped both he and me were apologetic and the whole thing diffused almost instantly; if only more encounters could end that way!

precisely

 

[BSRU]

I do see a few pedestrians relying on their hearing to decide if it is safe to cross.
Not to clever in low speed areas when hybrids are deathly quiet using their electric motors.

 

[gambatte]

I'm never quite sure about this "pedestrians have a right of way, no matter what."
If we went with that then no one would travel by bike, car whatever at more than 5mph. Just incase a ped was to jump backwards and sideways into the road as you're about to pass.
There has to be a point where you say "it wasn't your fault, there was nothing you could do. He/She is a tit"

 

[HLaB]

Ahh yes...but your from bonnie Scotland where everyone is nice. They talk with their fists down in Larndon

Actually it was Ranelagh, South Dublin

 

[BentMikey]

I'm never quite sure about this "pedestrians have a right of way, no matter what."
If we went with that then no one would travel by bike, car whatever at more than 5mph. Just incase a ped was to jump backwards and sideways into the road as you're about to pass.
There has to be a point where you say "it wasn't your fault, there was nothing you could do. He/She is a tit"

Sure, I see your point of view, and there certainly must be a point when it becomes the pedestrian's fault. OTOH my impression is that many vehicular road users are far from taking the necessary care around pedestrians when it comes to conflict. They don't slow down enough, they don't ride/drive far enough from busy pavements, etc.

Obviously I exclude Jonny here as I think he rides very well and considerately. I've no doubt the pedestrian really wasn't careful enough.

 

[thefollen]

Peds have the right of way in the sense that if they're already crossing or in the road as you approach, you should give them right of way. I.e you can't dangerously swerve or crash into them thinking that it's your road and their fault they're in it. Same for drivers. On my driving lessons back in the day I was bollocked for turning into the mouth of a road where a pedestrian was about to cross.

If they walk out suddenly or you don't see them there's not much you can do. Blame depends entirely on the circumstances.