Essex police: If cyclists were more safety-conscious they wouldn’t get killed

Scoob_84 wrote:

But a main point you missed is visibility. I don't agree with how Essex police have gone about this, but their point is still valid, cyclists need to take more responsibility for themselves. I saw 3 ninja cyclists riding home tonight wearing stealth black and with no lights. They're almost inviting an accident there.

well no-one is advocating riding without lights at night,the highway code is quite clear you must use lights after dusk,so Im not sure the point you are making there. A "safety" campaign that tackled cyclists riding without lights at night, would be far more likely to achieve the success Essex police are looking for, and it would likely get alot more cyclist community support for it too.

but they arent doing that...

But a main point you missed is visibility. I don't agree with how Essex police have gone about this, but their point is still valid, cyclists need to take more responsibility for themselves. I saw 3 ninja cyclists riding home tonight wearing stealth black and with no lights.

Note the above comment "I saw 3 ninja cyclists".
Wow. Amazing - no lights, dressed in black at night- and you still saw them!!!!!!
Don't tell me, it waa the carrot juice what done it.

Hensteeth wrote:

But a main point you missed is visibility. I don't agree with how Essex police have gone about this, but their point is still valid, cyclists need to take more responsibility for themselves. I saw 3 ninja cyclists riding home tonight wearing stealth black and with no lights.

Note the above comment "I saw 3 ninja cyclists".
Wow. Amazing - no lights, dressed in black at night- and you still saw them!!!!!!
Don't tell me, it waa the carrot juice what done it.

Because I was cycling just behind them. But a car pulling out might not have.

Wired post, and you got several likes as well.

Scoob_84 wrote:

Hensteeth wrote:

But a main point you missed is visibility. I don't agree with how Essex police have gone about this, but their point is still valid, cyclists need to take more responsibility for themselves. I saw 3 ninja cyclists riding home tonight wearing stealth black and with no lights.

Note the above comment "I saw 3 ninja cyclists".
Wow. Amazing - no lights, dressed in black at night- and you still saw them!!!!!!
Don't tell me, it waa the carrot juice what done it.

Because I was cycling just behind them. But a car pulling out might not have.

Wired post, and you got several likes as well.

Fair comment. I was of course assuming you were in a car. I was trying to make the point that if you are looking then you will see, ninja cyclists included. However I myself wouldn't dream of cycling without lights at night. Also with reflective but not necessarily high viz clothing.
I also despair of the ninjas, but still manage to see them - up till now anyway!

Scoob_84 wrote:

Goldfever4 wrote:

Quote:

"And there is certainly no basis for telling cyclist that they are responsible for their own safety. That is like saying that they should wear a bullet proof vest in case a gunman is on the loose.”

This.

Or if your working on a building site, wear PPE.

Not really, no. Why do you think that makes any sense as an analogy? Who are the motorists in your building site analogy? You seem to have erased them from the picture.

Scoob_84 wrote:

Goldfever4 wrote:

Quote:

"And there is certainly no basis for telling cyclist that they are responsible for their own safety. That is like saying that they should wear a bullet proof vest in case a gunman is on the loose.”

This.

Or if your working on a building site, wear PPE.

Except the wearing of a hard hat on a building site is a totally different scenario. These hats are not worn to protect you in a fall. They exist to protect your head from falling objects and from penetration of said objects. A much more dangerous outcome of head injury.

All the Essex Constabulary are achieving is alienating the cycling community. By all means target those cycling without lights during the hours of darkness, jumping lights, weaving in traffic etc. but do not target cyclists who are not wearing perceived PPE. If they really wish to save lives maybe they should be targeting motorists in a more regular and obvious manner. But then again, that would be waging war on the motorist and we can't be having that then, can we.

Goldfever4 wrote:

Quote:

"And there is certainly no basis for telling cyclist that they are responsible for their own safety. That is like saying that they should wear a bullet proof vest in case a gunman is on the loose.”

This.

Or, given this is the UK and not the US, just a stab-proof vest in case of being knifed! Lets not go over the top!

Anyway, the comment from the police woman that opens the article is quite outrageous.

After years of scandal about their treatment of rape victims and of course the whole Stephen Lawrence farrago, its pretty obvious the police are not exactly at the 'cutting edge' when it comes to thinking through social and moral issues properly. I guess this is just in the nature of a police force (to be fair, I don't think you could find one country anywhere in the world at any historical era where this wasn't the case).

The statement the officer makes is simply demonstrably false. No matter how 'safety conscious' cyclists become, they will still be at risk. The recent cases reported here of cyclists in high-viz with helmets doing nothing wrong yet being killed or injured by motorists who 'had the sun in their eyes' or 'were distracted by a kicking unborn baby', surely illustrate that beyond doubt?

mrchrispy wrote:

OMFG...its not a million miles away from the old tosh of "If girls were more dressed more appropriately they wouldn’t get sexually assualted"

How about target the source of a danger and not the victims

I'm looking forward to their next anti-rape campaign. Let's see how many times short skirts and chastity belts get a mention...