domd1979 said:
Checking the mirrors properly and seeing that it is clear to pull out isn't "failed to spot". You can't expect the driver of a large vehicle to see everywhere at once. A responsible cyclist would be aware of that for their own safety - most sensible cyclists wouldn't go up the inside of an HGV, so I don't see why its seen as OK to try and overtake a bus which is moving out when you could well be in a blind spot on starting to attempt an overtake.
All of which makes that initial error quite understandable. Bigger vehicles have a bigger blind spot, more mirrors to check that are further apart, its easy to miss something. Doesn't make it anything other than an error to pull out in front of another vehicle.
And as we don't know where the bike came from, we just can't judge whether the cyclist came out of the blind spot, or from around the corner and Nethalus just didn't see him. Both happen.
And I haven't
ever said that the cyclist is without fault here. We know that cyclists make mistakes too, but we also know that there are many
valid reasons to go past a bus that is stopped, even if it is signalling. But as the cyclist isn't here, as we have no information to go on there, we just can't judge. Besides, no one asked us whether the cyclist was at fault, and that has no bearing on whether subsequent behaviour by the driver was any good. Or do you believe that you can do what you like to punish other road users for their mistakes?
It would have been obvious to the cyclist from some distance that the bus was about to pull out, or was in the process of pulling out, and it would have been extremely easy for them just to ease off pedalling slightly and let the bus out without any difficulty. I don't want a lecture on it being the "cyclists decision" either...
If you don't want to hear the valid answer to a point then don't make one. Its not your call as to whether it was appropriate for that cyclist to overtake, its his. You know it, I know it, Nethalus knows it, we all know it. The cyclist could have been right, could have been wrong, but because he could have been right that decision has no further bearing on whether behaviour by Nethalus was correct or not.
If you had a proper appreciation of driving a large vehicle or had experience of it, I think you may well view the whole situation in a slightly different light - i.e. a realistic one.
You'll find that silly assertion has been dealt with already. More to the point, if you'd read my posts you'd know that the initial error, i.e. not seeing the cyclist, was never my prime concern here. Its an understandable thing that can happen, its what you do
next that matters.
