Why do cyclists run red lights?

[marzjennings]

People are waiting at red, you're flying through thinking to yourself "Look at me go, I'm da man. Eastenders double-bill tonight, must get home".

I'm rarely ever in a rush or attempting to race the other cyclists on the road. Plus I'm not sure I've ever watched Eastenders, well not for fun.

As mentioned, your opinion of me is just not that important.

 

[marzjennings]

It has consequences for other people.

What consequences to other people are there when it's 5.30am, there's no other traffic in view and I just can't be bothered to wait for the red light to change?

 

[bvpi157]

Folks - if you could attach something to your bike that could be read by traffic signals and enable them to respond to your presence, would this make a difference?

 

[slowmotion]

What consequences to other people are there when it's 5.30am, there's no other traffic in view and I just can't be bothered to wait for the red light to change?

I'm not sure how many desert islands have traffic signals.

 

[redcard]

I'm rarely ever in a rush or attempting to race the other cyclists on the road. Plus I'm not sure I've ever watched Eastenders, well not for fun.

As mentioned, your opinion of me is just not that important.

Don't worry, I didn't give it much thought.

Funny you felt the need to defend yourself though.

 

[redcard]

I'll just point out that the evidence shows a larger percentage of motorists jump red lights than cyclists...

You could quote the evidence rather than pointing it out.

 

[GrasB]

My feeling as to why cyclists jump red lights? For the same motorists do; they think they can get away with it. People will try to justify it with all kinds of reasoning but that's trying to justify the action.

 

[Hector]

If you have one foot on the ground scooting then it ain't red light jumping...

 

[marzjennings]

Don't worry, I didn't give it much thought.

Funny you felt the need to defend yourself though.

Not defending or excusing my behaviour. Actually attempting to give it some thought as to why, in difference to how I normally live and drive well within the law, on a bike I think feck it and ride,as some would call it, like an arseh@le.

 

[benb]

I think that in the vast majority of cases, RLJ puts no-one at risk except the cyclist. That's not the case with motorised traffic that RLJ, who tend to do so faster and far more dangerously than cyclists.

I personally would be in favour of changing the law to make red lights the equivalent of give way lines for cyclists.

I'm not saying people should break the law; I'm saying we should change the law.

 

[Hector]

Yes it is.

After looking at some case law it would appear that you are correct.

 

[redcard]

I'll try and dig it out when I get to work. It was an analysis of signal cameras done a few years ago.

There was a wonderful example a few years ago, when the London Evening Standard was in one of its 'let's bash cyclists' phases. It had run a series of articles about awful cyclists who jumped red lights. A reporter got the chance to go out with the BiB when they were doing a 'crackdown'.

The result? The BiB's haul was 3 cyclists... and 143 motorists. The London Evening Standard suddenly started talking about the menace of drivers running red lights and the 'ambler gamblers'.

I don't recall any blatant red light jumping from cars in the 6 months I've been cycling. Sure, you always get the scum taxi driver pushing through an amber, but I see oblivious cyclists doing it 3-4 times a day

 

[benb]

I don't recall any blatant red light jumping from cars in the 6 months I've been cycling. Sure, you always get the scum taxi driver pushing through an amber, but I see oblivious cyclists doing it 3-4 times a day

Well I see many more drivers RLJ, and far more dangerously, than cyclists. But I do not cycle in London.

 

[GrasB]

I don't recall any blatant red light jumping from cars in the 6 months I've been cycling. Sure, you always get the scum taxi driver pushing through an amber, but I see oblivious cyclists doing it 3-4 times a day

on my inbound commutes I have to treat green lights as give way signs due to the number of people completely ignoring the lights. On the A10 today I was stationary for the entire time my lights were green due to cars jumping the lights!

 

[marzjennings]

If you ride like an arseh@le then, despite your assessment of your driving behaviour, you are most likely to drive like an arseh@le as well. Being an arseh@le isn't dictated by the mode of transport.

Maybe.

My only infraction on my driving license was a speeding ticket about 15 years ago, but you're right, maybe I've just not been caught doing something stupid/illegal/irresponsible in over 20 years 15000 miles per year.

And I do distinguish between the two; doing something stupid in a car may kill someone else, where as doing something stupid on my bike may kill me.