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news
Close lorry pass (image from West Midlands Police)Mumsnet debates close pass crackdown
Mumsnet, the social forum for parents, has been discussing a topic slightly removed from the usual day to day minutiae of parenting; close passes.
One user, GilMartin, posted a road.cc article about 16 police forces rolling out a sting operation on drivers passing dangerously close to cyclists, titling it: “Am I being unreasonable to be glad that *some* police forces are going to tackle the dangerous overtaking of cyclists?”
It generated a lively debate, with one user asking: “what has always confused me is whether you need to leave as large a gap when overtaking cyclists in a cycle lane?”
One responded: “I think cycle lanes may have caused some confusion. Most are in 30mph limits, so I slow down and give as much room as possible. In cities there is no other choice really. “
The initiative as reported by this site seemed widely welcomed, with a woman responding: “Oh, this is good. I think a lot of people have absolutely no idea how close they are, which is quite scary. Round here there are lots of cyclists, and someone posted his cycle-cam on a local news site - you could see drivers flicking past with a hair to spare. But what was really worrying was a lot of drivers responded saying they'd no idea that was a problem.”
Another said: “I'm really pleased, we had a nasty spate of cyclists being knocked off by dangerous overtakes - three in one week. Two broke bones, the other died, leaving his pregnant wife behind. I was pregnant at the time myself, I asked my husband not to go out road riding (we're both mountain bikers normally, where the only thing to worry about is your own stupidity!) “
But of course there were the haters, Dowser being a user who wrote: “It really scares me cyclists are on the road.”
She was shot down by another user, who said: “Where would you like them to be Dowser? Up trees?
“I treat cyclists like they are taking up as much space as a car, I will only overtake when I would overtake a car, I give them the car width, then overtaking space.
“This is both selfless & selfish. I don't want to kill them & I don't want to have to live the rest of my life knowing I've killed someone. If people behind me don't like it, they can fuck off. Plus I end up feeling protective of the cyclist - with my car in between them & knob driver.”
Originalmavis added: “So many cyclists appear to have no bloody road sense. my heart is in my throat in some parts of town as they swarm around your car - under taking, over taking, cutting across your nose at queued traffic. No laws on lights or safety equipment. Fly through red lights, over zebras and pavements…”
One more said: “ I think all bikes should have some form of number plate and be registered to the owner.”
But many more of the posters took a very measured tone. Museums said: “ Our city has a lot of 20mph roads now when there are lots of cyclists. It took some getting used to driving that slow but I must admit it helps, there's far less stress holding back behind a cyclist going at 12mph when all the traffic is only going at 20 anyway.”
But Brokenbiscuit said: “I must admit, my heart sinks when I see a cyclist in front of me on a busy road. I am completely clear that I will not put them at risk, and so I will drive behind them until it is genuinely safe to overtake. I remember being told that you should leave enough space so that you would be able to clear them even if they suddenly fell off their bike and into the road, so I use that as my guide. They are very vulnerable. But god, I hate the impatient buggers who sit behind waiting for you to edge past with an inch to spare. Selfish bastards just have to wait.”
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27 comments
mungecrundle is the best username I've ever seen.
I wonder if the UK government would ever consider something like the Australian (and yes, they have a somewhat dubious relationship with things on 2 wheels) advertising campaign of 'Distance makes the difference'?
http://www.executivestyle.com.au/distance-makes-the-difference-in-cycle-...
The talk of bad cycling infrastructure reminded me of this road near Stoke-on-Trent. I never cycled on it but could imagine the disaster of trying to get down the suggested bike path, at speed and in the wet.
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What a terrific idea for an innovative new cycling product. Some sort of stretchy, cheap, disposable and biodegradeable (latex might fit the brief) material that can be fashioned into a sort of hood and that can be stretched over one's cycle helmet to keep it dry when conditions get a little too moist and clean if one decides to go off road and up some dirt trails.
I hear that they have dirt trails at centre parcs.......
I just love the comment that bicycles on the road scare someone: I'm trying to understand how those terrifying bicycles manage to intimidate all those three tonne SUVs...
Overtaking cyclists who are in cycle lanes seems to be a common problem. In my experience, painted cycle lanes seem more of a problem than roads without.
Cycling in a cycle lane cars pass within inches of the handlebars, unless I cycle with my tyre on the line in which case I get shouted at and punish passes.
Cycling on a similar road nearby but without a cycle lane, less close passes and never shouted at.
perhaps there should be some sort of formal analysis on them, as I'm sure it's not just anecdotal evidence.
now these 'lanes' just encourage stupid passes...
https://goo.gl/maps/CXSUcqZuTNp
it's impossible to negotiate the refuges without going into the painted bits...
What on earth is the logic there supposed to be? It seems like it's just telling cyclists to get out of the way and not even _think_ of 'taking the lane'. It's actively trying to lure them into a dangerous position.
Surely in a workplace, putting in signs or markings that encouraged people to put themselves in danger ('please walk here, right in the way of the rotating knives') would attract legal penalties? Why not in cases like this?
Indeed... this is a prime piece of shockingly dangerous "infrastructure" designed by someone who hasn't ridden a bike since they were five.
If I lived in the area I'd make a fuss about it to all the local councillors, council highways departement, local papers and anyone who might listen.
So true. There are many drivers who genuinely seem to think that the boundary of the painted cycle lane represents all of the space a bike needs...
Was that news?
i preferred the mumsnet centreparcs thread...
For my part I would swap all of the marked cycle lanes in my town for "Do not overtake" zones on the 50m run ins to mini roundabouts and other pinch points.
Well, it did produce on of the great threads on the internet.
http://www.mumsnet.com/Talk/mumsnet_classics/a1875847-Do-you-dunk-your-p...
Wow. I'm wondering why such an important topic has not been discussed on here? Or have I just missed it as one of those things that regularly get boght up in the helmet debate?
Agreed; I recall seeing another good pair - one on centre parcs (& what to do there) & one regarding a trip up the OXO tower - neither SFW, as one might imagine.
Seems road.cc are especially short on content when an entire article is based on a thread on mumsnet. Can valued readers look forward to pieces based on 99p bidons tipped on HotDealsUK?
There's a subsection somewhere on there with all the "classic threads", the ones that have gone viral or been reported in the press. There was a very funny one from a fundamentalist Christian parent trying to argue that dinosaurs were poor role models for kids and all just a conspiracy theory since it was obvious that God would never kill off any of His own creations.
Still can't work out if it was genius trolling or epic stupidity.
Shall we start a debate about MMR vaccination?
No-one would need vaccinations if they wore helmets.
You mean no one would need vaccinations if they wore protection over their helmets
why don't we just start a Mumpsnet !
I was referring to a different kind of protection for a different kind of helmet
What, you mean we have to get our bikes vaccinated as well these days?!?!
Maybe that's true but having read the article it looks like most of the posters have a sensible attitude towards vulnerable road users
Mumsnet. A wretched hive of scum and villany. Well a wretched hive anyway.
My wife used to be on it every 5 minutes when we were in baby and toddler stage because obviously if there's something wrong with your child, asking people on the internet with barely any literacy seems the best place to go?!?! It was just full of idiots who'd always had some worse case scenario happened to their darling child because they didn't take go straight to the doctor ever time the child had a spot or something. No wonder the NHS is fucked.
If you want to get in a paranoid mindset about parenting and be full of confirmation bias, mumsnet is the place to go.
and yet, the opinioins as reported in thi piece seem so much more sensible than the words cpoming from the genral public on most forums regarding cyclists.
thought the same. A Dadsnet equivalent (perish the thought) would have deteriorated instantly into cycle-maiming boast of Jeremy Clarkson wannabes