Cyclists Who Block Traffic

I used to commute by bicycle. Some motorists risked killing me with deliberate close passes. I have video of their eager faces showing it was aimed and deliberate.

I've just seen two late night bicycle commuters. They had the opportunity to let the car behind them pass. They continued on, blocking the car's progress when it would have only cost them a second to move aside and let the car go on its way. If I was driving a slow vehicle I would let following traffic pass. Why won't these cyclists do the same? Scared of getting home twenty seconds late?

Cyclists who insist on exercising their rights, and don't even pull aside for a second to let following traffic safely pass, are the cause of much stress. Other cyclists, who may be more co-operative on the road, suffer from the resulting aggressive driving.

a reply to: Kester
At least they were riding on the road, where they belong, and not on the footpath.
More than once, as a pedestrian, I've had young gangs of cyclists riding down at me and expecting me to move out of the way (I used to call their bluff).

a reply to: DISRAELI

Some of them ride on the road even when the road runs alongside the cycle path. Sometimes in the mornings there's a whole line of slow moving traffic behind one cyclist. Other cyclists using the cycle path agree these are the anti-social riders who cause drivers to become so irate they risk our lives.

Remember that you have your nice, smooth, paved streets, roads, and highways because of cyclists more than a hundred years ago.

Not sure you can put youths in the same boat as the guy using his bike for a 9-5 commute, Fact is on a bike you do not have mirrors and most car drivers are stupidly impatient, think overtaking then getting stuck in a long line of traffic or turning sharply infront of you..

I hold a European driving licence UK, Full Motorcycle licence and I have passed my Bus driving test and class 1, I also cycle about 6000 miles a year all over the world. I can say the issues are normally road layout, drivers not understanding how close to the curb or parked cars is safe or they are just rage machines trying to get everywhere 1 minute quicker. In London I could have a argument everyday but in Thailand or Majorca (Spainish Island) the drivers are very very courteous and I have not had so much as a close pass...

A road that I use daily has a cycle lane of about 2 feet yet it is covered in glass and has massive pot holes, I get screamed at for "not riding where I should".. This is on a wide road not some country lane, people like to make noise because they can and if they think they are taking the moral high ground regardless of how ignorant then so be it..

Most cyclist I know will stay out of the way of cars but there are some situations where a cyclist will see a danger and the driver will not, this is paramount in a place like London..

Just like a motorcyclist will read the road way different to a car driver, its a skill set and a education thing..

RA

a reply to: Lazarus Short

Don't misunderstand my view of bicycles. The fifties style bikes were designed to last a hundred years with proper maintenance. Stored under a piece of tarpaulin in the yard and regularly oiled they could keep the country running.

Then the bankers used Raleigh to buy up most manufacturers, moved production under one roof, then steadily made bicycles less comfortable and reliable. Just look at the pained facial expressions on most cyclists. Put them on a nice Raleigh Superbe or similar and they smile and take their time, steadily making progress while sitting upright and comfortable.

The bankers made modern bicycles uncomfortable so people would drive cars instead.

I had one the other day in front of us and he wouldn't go to the side where the bike lane is. he had traffic l slowed down when we got to the two lane we all passed him. Every car that went by gave him a honk some a little more.

I think the disrespectful cyclists on the road are just the same as they ones driving in the car..
As soon as they are on a pair of wheels, they become different..

Ugh... I hate those bicyclers that purposefully stay in the middle of the road, pedalling slowly while the traffic racks up behind them!
There are very few things in life that get me raging mad, but that is one of them.

I used to ride a bike back in California, it's not like I hate all people that do, it's just that I don't understand the people who make an effort to be a problem.

a reply to: slider1982

Recently we found ourselves behind around thirty cyclists on a country road. Only two of them made the very minor effort to let us past. The others all pushed on and on, past all the passing places where they could have hesitated for a second. Some of them were wearing club jerseys so I looked up their website. It said they were going out for a "meander in the countryside". Nice. People live in the countryside. They have children with appointments who need to be ferried etc. Meandering along in a club jersey and not having the common country courtesy to let following vehicles pass safely doesn't engender respect.

On another recent occasion we were stuck behind five cyclists. I was a passenger so I started filming them. Five minutes of video with no attempt to let us past in any of the numerous gateways and passing places. Eventually we got past and I leaned out of the window filming their faces as we passed. Three looked very embarrassed and hung their heads in shame. Two looked smug.

Some cyclists enjoy upsetting drivers. As a result of that bicycle commuters like myself have our lives put at risk.

a reply to: ChesterJohn

Often the cyclists excuse is something along the lines of car drivers being in such a hurry. But then they won't sacrifice one or two seconds of their own progress to enable easier and safer overtaking.

The two things I want from cyclists are an extremely bright front light and an extremely bright rear light. An extremely reflective vest like road workers use isn't unwelcome either. Strobe lights work best because they attract your attention, including in daylight. I can see those lights well before I can make out that there is a bicycle ahead. It gives me time to prepare, to react, that I don't have when some idiot wears dark clothing with no lights and suddenly I'm right there almost on them with a three ton machine (Chevy 2500) doing 50mph.

Otherwise, cyclists, prepare to earn a Darwin Award. In case you don't get it yet, it's for idiots who kill themselves.

a reply to: schuyler

Even then I've had a sleepy truck driver come within inches of me.

Something reflective on the lower legs or feet works well because of the up and down movement.

3M reflective tape stuck to the frame also works well.

I'll just leave this here...

I beeped at a guy in a convertible once and he just about jumped out of his seat. 120 dB

a reply to: Kester

The bankers made modern bicycles uncomfortable so people would drive cars instead.

wow , just wow.. Maybe they made space shuttles so bumpy that everyone bought a ticket for the new Star wars movie?

a reply to: kalulu

It's all there if you study the timeline and effects.

a reply to: Kester

real world, please real world.. Timeline and effect? to what?

originally posted by: Kester
a reply to: schuyler

Even then I've had a sleepy truck driver come within inches of me.

Something reflective on the lower legs or feet works well because of the up and down movement.

3M reflective tape stuck to the frame also works well.

Hmmm! As a truck driver myself I'd like to say something about this nonsense of the "Sleepy truck driver".

In the cab is a tacho, it records everything! VOSA constantly do spot checks on us. Get caught over hours and its bye bye license!
Four and a half hours and we must take a break for 45 mins, then we can do another 4.5 hours.

The "sleepy truck driver" is the product of propaganda.
The "pedo truck driver" is the product of propaganda.
The "eating his lunch while driving" is the product of propaganda.

Truck drivers have the power to hold a country to ransom, without them everything stops! Hence we see so much bs being spewed about them, that way nobody likes the truck driver and they get no support from the public.
Divide and conquer is the name of the game!

As for coming close to you, theres reasons for that that are out of the drivers control. More often he would be trying to give you room but the asshats coming the other way fail to give him room to move over.

I'd bet you for every time a truck comes close to you, theres at least ten cyclists that ride up the side of a truck in the blind spot!

As for the mind set of many cyclists these days, I'd agree with you, its almost like they ride for the sole purpose of finding something to shout about.

originally posted by: Kester
a reply to: schuyler

Even then I've had a sleepy truck driver come within inches of me.

Something reflective on the lower legs or feet works well because of the up and down movement.

3M reflective tape stuck to the frame also works well.

Agree 100% ANYTHING you can do to increase visibility is a good thing, and movement is a key factor there, which is one reason I just love those bright strobe lights.