Protesters against “reckless” cyclists – including a mother who says her son was left with a facial scar after he was knocked over by someone on a bike who immediately rode off – have blocked a street in the London Borough of Hackney.
Residents of the Blackstone Estate, which borders London Fields, are calling on the local council to put a bike lane in the park itself to avoid conflict between cyclists and pedestrians outside their homes, reports the Hackney Gazette.
The newspaper reports that yesterday morning, some of the people living on the estate, holding placards, put up fences on London Fields West Side, meaning that cyclists either had to make a diversion or dismount to get through.
They also asked passers-by – whom the Hackney Gazette described as “confused” – to sign a petition campaigning for a cycle path to be installed so that people can ride through the park itself – although as we have previously reported here on road.cc, there have been concerns about people riding too fast there, leading the council to install speed monitors.
One resident said: “Children come out here on their way to school and they can hear a car but they can't hear a bike. Kids have fallen down and been injured badly.”
Another, Jacqueline Hoilett, spoke of how her son had been knocked over by a cyclist who rode off afterwards.
She said: “He literally just stepped onto the path and the bike just hit him and he went flying over the handlebars and fell in the middle of the tarmac. The cyclist was an adult man and just cycled off. He has a scar on his head now.
“I understand bikes are good for the environment, but the council aren't thinking about the crossover between the environment and people's immediate safety,” she added.
According to the Hackney Gazette’s report, the council has proposed putting shrubs and flowerbeds outside the houses, but the protesters do not think that will resolve the situation.
Cyclists trying to make their way through acknowledged that while there may be a problem at the location, targeting them wasn’t the solution.
One said: “This is a public highway, and there's no sign to say it's not. There's clearly a lot of issues here with regard to what this space actually is, but lone cyclists really aren't the problem. What you're doing here is segregating yourselves.”
Another, Andy Wilkinson, said: “I can see their perspective and it is a really busy area. There needs to be a bit of infrastructure here that helps both sides, but cyclists are generally really considerate people.”
In 2017, we reported how parents of children at London Fields Primary School, which lies across the park, had different concerns – calling for cars to be banned at the time students arrive at the school and leave it, due to air pollution.
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45 comments
I think you've wandered into the wrong forum, mate
I think you've wandered into the wrong forum, mate
I think you clicked 'post' too many times, mate
I missed the bit where they're petitioning for the road to be closed to all vehicles for the safety of their children... Oh, right, just want the pesky cyclists banned, then...
The crass stupidity of the masses makes me despair.
The World Health Organisation reported 1.35 million people killed by vehicle operators in 2016 (Global status report on road safety 2018 WHO/NMH/NVI/18.20), the majority by use of excess speed, intoxication and 'distraction' caused by the use of mobile devices.
But these thick c**ts want bikes banned.
Any other human activity which resulted in the death of 3,699 deaths every single day, would be a public health emergency in every country on earth. But it's vehicles and their operators, so well... LOOK, A CYCLIST ISN'T WEARING HI-VIZ!!!!!
And don't forget the number of children made ill by the pollution from cars. But let's ban cyclists.
Yes lets understand the residents point of view.
They don't want cyclists there because a few of their children have been injured because they could not be bothered to teach their children to Stop Look and Listen. Because it is easier to blame cyclists rather than take responsibility for their own failings.
I can't wait for them to protest to stop electric cars going down their street because one of their children steps out in front of one. Because I bet it will be the drivers fault not the childs fault.
As a cyclist there is only so much you can do to avoid accidents. There may be some of the incidents that are the fault of the cyclists but equally some the fault of the people walking in front of them. I can pretty much guarantee that at least once on every commute to work that I will have someone (most likely a teenager preoccupied on their phone) will walk out on the road in front of me on a 300m section of quiet one way road..... because they simply don't look.... they just listen
I agree entirely with this, and disagree entirely with the tone and content of most of the posts.
We DO rely on our hearing as well as sight for our road safety. In that respect (but obviousy not in many other respects) cyclists do present a greater, or at least different risk to pedestrians.
Children do pay less attention than adults.
If adults do not hear any cars, they may be less concerned about little Mohammed or Jane stepping off the pavement.
I don't think it is a helpful approach, to, in effect, put all the blame on the pedestrians/ children. All road users need to cooperate to maximise the safety of all.
I agree; but there is another point of view too. I know I keep banging on about it here, but what about road design?
Looking at the photo, it appears that the pavement on the right stops after a short distance. From then on, the properties give directly onto the road. Anyone emerging from a gate will step right into the way of any vehicles on the road. There is a pavement on the opposite side of the road, and parking is permitted on the opposite side so that traffic is forced over to the right-hand side as we look at it, i.e. close to those entrances.
The solution seems obvious: move the pavement to the other side of the road so that pedestrians step out of their properties onto a pavement where there will be no wheeled traffic of any description. Take away the pavement on the other side and move the parking bays into the same space -- they can probably be fitted in between the existing lampposts, keeping the cost of the project fairly low.
Sensible design versus thoughtless design -- and as always, the people involved blame each other rather than the planner.
Duplicate post - sorry
Except that as soon as the council proposes to do that, these Very Same People will - I have no doubt - start protesting that that's dangerous, too ("Oh, won't somebody think of the children?"
I trust the Met came and had a stern word with these people who were stopping other people from making lawful use of the highway...
I wonder how many of those same pedestrians forget all about road safety in their cars?
'“Children come out here on their way to school and they can hear a car but they can't hear a bike. Kids have fallen down and been injured badly.”'
I wonder are there a lot of blind children in the area, going around injuring cyclists?
'She said: “He literally just stepped onto the path and the bike just hit him and he went flying over the handlebars and fell in the middle of the tarmac. The cyclist was an adult man and just cycled off. He has a scar on his head now.'
I don't see much path on the photo, mainly a road, is she saying her child stepped into the road without looking and knocked someone off their bike? Her child apparently landed 'in the middle of the tarmac' which suggests he ran into the road. Also who went over the handlebars, I can't imagine an collision where a 7y/o pedestrian colliding with a bicycle would go over the handle bars.
They definitely need some improvements there to protect cyclists from under-supervised children.
If they teach their kids to cross the road only by listening then they are in for a nasty surprise with the increasing numbers of electric cars!
Parents: its called "The Green Cross Code". Be responsible parents and f'king teach your kids it!
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