Westland Row

Raam

On an infrequent trip into town on my bike this morning I had to go past Westland Row and the Davenport Hotel. Is it completely normal for pedestrians to just step out into the cycle lane without looking? Is it also completely normal to cross en-mass against the lights just because one person managed to run across the road, again without bothering to look to see if anything is coming?

I know it's busy around that spot, but come on, give yourself the best chance at survival and look before you cross the road.

Bicyclegadabout

I do it every day. Usually they step down onto the road and then hop back onto the path when they see me. There is the occasional idiot though, crossing the road blindly, cyclists going the wrong way down the track etc. Cars and motorbikes parking on the track is a constant irritation.
It's defo the most annoying part of my commute.

I guess it depends, if you go down that road from town in the morning, peds will be walking south from the station, and so might be inclined to step onto the track, and might not look when doing so.
Whereas I go down it in the evening, when everyone's walking back to the train station, so when they step on the track they see me coming toward them and step off again.

niceonetom

Raam wrote: »

On an infrequent trip into town on my bike this morning I had to go past Westland Row and the Davenport Hotel. Is it completely normal for pedestrians to just step out into the cycle lane without looking? Is it also completely normal to cross en-mass against the lights just because one person managed to run across the road, again without bothering to look to see if anything is coming?

I know it's busy around that spot, but come on, give yourself the best chance at survival and look before you cross the road.

you seem to be making the elementary mistake of thinking of pedestrians as rational beings. they're not. they're guided by instinctive rules of thumb, group-think, and sheer bloody mindedness. the movement of medium to large groups of pedestrians are best described by fluid-dynamics. seriously. individually they're likely to be normal, cogent human beings, but put more than 3 or 4 on a kerb and it's best to think of them as large semi-bald lemmings. actually deaf lemmings would be more accurate (thank you apple co.).

Bicyclegadabout

OH NO!


One of the days they might just decide to all blow themselves up.

Raam

You have it in a nutshell!

HJ Simpson

I work in Fenian Street and cycle across the junction in the mornings from Lincoln Place. I can confirm that the pedestrians around there are in fact lemmings!

Raam

I had to let out a few roars, which is most unlike me. I was quite surprised by how loud I sounded. They probably thought I was a bit of a Nazi but what can you do? I was only trying to protect them and myself...but mostly myself.

Gavin

Use a bell. Cycle in the middle of the road.

Raam

Verb wrote: »

Use a bell. Cycle in the middle of the road.

The middle of the road is exactly where I usually cycle unless I'm holding up traffic, or traffic is holding me up. As for a bell, I'll stick to shouting, it's louder and more effective

Danbo!

Raam wrote: »

Is it completely normal for pedestrians to just step out into the cycle lane without looking?

Cycle tracks are only there to provide a buffer between the kerb and traffic so that pedestrians can step off the kerb and wait to cross; thus not holding up other pedestrians by staying on the path. It is also provided as a zone in which to park a buggy while waiting to cross the road (dear god i hate those mothers)


On a more serious note, it is unfortunate, but all pedestrians are idiots*. anyone who has to contend with leeson street bridge over the canal in the morning knows exactly what im talking about.


*not a generalisation. FACT.

flickerx

Worse spots at the end of Dawson Street heading northbound and turning left, and then a few metres later at the bottom of Grafton Street crossing, near Judge Roy Beans and the Sound Cellar. They wait for the buses to go past, then herd en masse straight into your path despite the fact they are staring you STRAIGHT IN THE FACE deer-in-the-headlights style.

markpb

flickerx wrote: »

Worse spots at the end of Dawson Street heading northbound and turning left, and then a few metres later at the bottom of Grafton Street crossing, near Judge Roy Beans and the Sound Cellar. They wait for the buses to go past, then herd en masse straight into your path despite the fact they are staring you STRAIGHT IN THE FACE deer-in-the-headlights style.

I'll vote for this one. Gets me so annoyed absolutely every evening. I've stopped being careful and slowing down but I do usually roar at them.

blorg

We were all pedestrians ourselves at one stage you know... Some still are from time to time...

doozerie

I regularly encounter pedestrians along that stretch too. Quite often they continue to walk/run straight towards me in the cycle track, even though they have clearly seen me. Apparently, their urgency (to catch a train I presume) outweighs my safety as they seem to expect me to pull out in front of moving traffic to leave the cycle lane free for them.

I usually tend to be considerate, or stupid depending on how you look at it, and pull out to the edge of the cycle track to leave room for the pedestrians. Sometimes though, this isn't safe (for me) as the traffic beside me doesn't always leave a lot of room for me to start with. Other times, I just keep on going straight, giving myself plenty of room and leaving the pedestrians to make their own room somewhere other than in front of me. The most ignorant of them tend to give you an offended look in those circumstances, as if you'd just pissed in their soup - better that they learn that dirty looks don't stop a moving vehicle in those circumstances, I guess, rather then learning this when they next try to walk directly towards moving cars (or maybe they rediscover their mortality when dealing with something bigger than a bicycle...) .

I recently encountered a mass of people there walking on the cycle path and road towards the church. They were walking behind a coffin being carried by six men. They were all oblivious to all forms of traffic, despite the danger they were putting themselves in. Maybe the funeral home were offering a group rate.

Randomness

i think the basic problem here (westland row) is that when lectures end at ten to the hour you can have anything up to 300-400 people exiting goldsmith hall and walking back into campus.

at the same time 300-400 could be going to a lecture in goldsmith.

see when you have around 500-600 people on a strip of concrete in the middle of a busy road it's always going to cause problems i think.

blorg

flickerx wrote: »

Worse spots at the end of Dawson Street heading northbound and turning left, and then a few metres later at the bottom of Grafton Street crossing, near Judge Roy Beans and the Sound Cellar. They wait for the buses to go past, then herd en masse straight into your path despite the fact they are staring you STRAIGHT IN THE FACE deer-in-the-headlights style.

I cycle this way regularly. I am a fast cyclist in general. I slow down at these pedestrian crossing points; almost never have to stop outright, just slowly and carefully weave through. Often see what I would consider to be _absolute ****_ bombing through at max speed at pedestrians who are crossing. I was such a wanker myself once. Slowing down at these junctions might cost me 5 seconds per instance. And I haven't just imprinted another 30-40 people with a lifelong hatred of cyclists. Just my 2c.

Ciaran B

Another problem on Westland Row is when you can hear a Dart pulling into the station. Then as well as people stepping into the cycle lane the sprint down it, running straight at you.

doozerie

Randomness wrote: »

i think the basic problem here (westland row) is that when lectures end at ten to the hour you can have anything up to 300-400 people exiting goldsmith hall and walking back into campus.

at the same time 300-400 could be going to a lecture in goldsmith.

see when you have around 500-600 people on a strip of concrete in the middle of a busy road it's always going to cause problems i think.

You may well be right. However, the people that I encounter are travelling from Merrion Square direction and are not students judging by age and clothing - probably working professionals that consider themselves to be upstanding members of society.

Raam

blorg wrote: »

I cycle this way regularly. I am a fast cyclist in general. I slow down at these pedestrian crossing points; almost never have to stop outright, just slowly and carefully weave through. Often see what I would consider to be _absolute ****_ bombing through at max speed at pedestrians who are crossing. I was such a wanker myself once. Slowing down at these junctions might cost me 5 seconds per instance. And I haven't just imprinted another 30-40 people with a lifelong hatred of cyclists. Just my 2c.

I would never condone bombing through at full speed, but I believe that a cyclist needs to make the pedestrians aware of what they have done. If there is a collision when someone steps on to the road without looking, and remember, this is the reason for my original post, both parties are going to be physically hurt. How a cyclist makes that point is a matter for debate. Some people like to be reserved and wait for everyone to move, but I think that's too easy and therefore wrong as it gives the incorrect impression that what the pedestrians are doing is safe and OK. Personally I taper my speed, but keep on moving through the group letting them know that I am there. If this makes people hate cyclists, then fair enough, but at least it reminds them not to step out in front of cyclists.