Taxi Driver (not the movie)

littlejp

Just wanna share this.
I was cycling home today up the Phibsborough Road towards Phibsborough around 4 o'clock today. Just going along, in the bus lane, minding my own business when a Taxi flew past me way too close for comfort and beeping at me too. I reacted by giving him the finger. He pulled in up ahead of me and I stopped to ask him what his problem was. He started telling me that I should "get the **** off the road" and that I have no right to use the bus lane, that I should cycle against the curb. The usual crap.
I got bored of this conversation pretty quick and cycled off. He came up behind me really fast again and passed me so close that his wing mirror hit my handlebars and bent back completely. I wobbled a little but was fine. Got his License and Taxi Plate numbers. He got stuck in traffic a bit ahead and I stopped and told him I had his details and would report him. He told me that I was in the wrong for cycling out from the curb and he had a witness who would say the same (the passenger). Left it at that.

Thoughts? Similar stories?

kenmc

report him. that was a hit and run. you are only obliged to cycle as close to the kerb as you deem to be safe to do so. And if I'm not mistake, pretty much all bus lanes also have a bike on the sign too, least any I've ever seen.

Morgan

Report that straight away.

Garda Trafficwatch number is 1890 205 805

littlejp

Just rang that number there and reported it. Didn't want to make an official statement but at least he'll get a warning.

Dirk Gently

similar thing happened me this morning. bus lane again, I was close to the kerb though. A driver sped past me and was furiously beeping his horn at me. It was just after 7am so he shouldn't have even been in the bus lane at all as it was just a private car. He almost crashed as he turned left just as the lights went red further up. I was gutted me made the turn.

Some drivers just hate cyclists.

Is it true there is no obligation to hug the kerb? I generally slow down to nothing to roll over shores and broken surface close to the kerb. Always paranoid about coming off but generally don't swerve out to avoid them, just slow down instead. If I was out about a foot more I'd have no problems.

TinyExplosions

littlejp wrote: »

Just rang that number there and reported it. Didn't want to make an official statement but at least he'll get a warning.

I'd make it official. If his mirror actually hit you, it's hit and run, or possibly attempted assault with a deadly weapon!

niceonetom

i'd report him to the carriage office too. that level of ignorance is scary for a taxi driver - considering how much time we have to spend sharing a lane with them.

Bambaata

I'd make it official too as he'll get little or no warning too and will basically get away with it completely. whether u were in the wrong or not he endangered u and hit you so that in itself is a serious offence.

littlejp

When I rang the Gardaí line I asked the Garda to verify the rules regarding bus lanes and he said that cyclists are entitled to use the entire bus lane, whatever your comfortable with.
There are lots of drains, potholes and broken glass near the curb. We shouldn't have to put up with all that.

littlejp

TinyExplosions wrote: »

I'd make it official. If his mirror actually hit you, it's hit and run, or possibly attempted assault with a deadly weapon!

Bambaata wrote: »

I'd make it official too as he'll get little or no warning too and will basically get away with it completely. whether u were in the wrong or not he endangered u and hit you so that in itself is a serious offence.

Don't want to make it that serious. Maybe he was having a bad day. Don't want to ruin his life just for being a dickhead. Karma will get him eventually.

TinyExplosions

littlejp wrote: »

Don't want to make it that serious. Maybe he was having a bad day. Don't want to ruin his life just for being a dickhead. Karma will get him eventually.

While that's fair enough, if he went so close as to hi the OP with his mirror, that's a small margin from knocking him off his bike. Why should OP's day be ruined by a taxi man being a dickhead. If it was a close shave, I'd leave it, but cos he was actually hit makes want him taken to the fuc*in cleaners

Dirk Gently

littlejp wrote: »

When I rang the Gardaí line I asked the Garda to verify the rules regarding bus lanes and he said that cyclists are entitled to use the entire bus lane, whatever your comfortable with.
There are lots of drains, potholes and broken glass near the curb. We shouldn't have to put up with all that.

Does the same apply when not in a bus lane?

niceonetom

littlejp wrote: »

Don't want to ruin his life just for being a dickhead. Karma will get him eventually.

you won't ruin his life no matter how hard you push this, just teach him a (needed) little lesson. karma (if it exists) works through the agency of people like you and me.

niceonetom

clown bag wrote: »

Is it true there is no obligation to hug the kerb? I generally slow down to nothing to roll over shores and broken surface close to the kerb. Always paranoid about coming off but generally don't swerve out to avoid them, just slow down instead. If I was out about a foot more I'd have no problems.

take the lane when you feel it's necessary. meek kerb hugging cycling sends a message to drivers that it is our job to get out of their way - it's not, it's their job to overtake us safely. you are genuinely safer if you ride assertively.

DirkVoodoo

littlejp wrote: »

Don't want to make it that serious. Maybe he was having a bad day. Don't want to ruin his life just for being a dickhead. Karma will get him eventually.

Your name isn't Earl by any chance is it? Don't cross this one off your list!

Seriously, your doing the rest of us a favour, if he carries on with that attitude towards other road users then its only a matter of time before someone else gets injured.

daymobrew

littlejp wrote: »

Don't want to make it that serious. Maybe he was having a bad day. Don't want to ruin his life just for being a dickhead. Karma will get him eventually.

If you make a statement then he will have to make a statement - an nice bit of inconvenience for him.
Then the statements will go up to a senior officer to decide whether it is worth prosecuting. None of the many statements I've given have ever gone beyond that. So, make the statement. Be descriptive/dramatic in describing your fear (though some Gardai only want the boring, clinical details).

If I was the passenger I'd be annoyed with the driver taking up my time by getting involved with another road user.

I can't say I believe that karma ever gets back at the people that deserve it.

DirkVoodoo wrote:

Seriously, your doing the rest of us a favour, if he carries on with that attitude towards other road users then its only a matter of time before someone else gets injured.

Agreed.

markpb

littlejp wrote: »

Just rang that number there and reported it. Didn't want to make an official statement but at least he'll get a warning.

littlejp wrote: »

Don't want to make it that serious. Maybe he was having a bad day. Don't want to ruin his life just for being a dickhead. Karma will get him eventually.

If you tell the Gardai you're not willing to make a statement or press charges, the file will be closed and they'll almost definitely not even mention it to the driver. A caution or warning would be nice but they don't operate like that. I'm surprised they didn't tell you that on the phone.

You might be right, the guy might just have had a bad day. Or maybe he has a chip on his shoulder and hates cyclists. Maybe tomorrow he'll buzz another cyclist who'll be badly injured or worse. If you do nothing, it'll be partly your fault when that happens. I'm not trying to be melodramatic but there are enough dangerous drivers on the road who get away with things like that all the time.

SerialComplaint

niceonetom wrote: »

i'd report him to the carriage office too. that level of ignorance is scary for a taxi driver - considering how much time we have to spend sharing a lane with them.

I think such complaints would now go to the Taxi Regulator rather than the Carriage Office.

niceonetom

SerialComplaint wrote: »

I think such complaints would now go to the Taxi Regulator rather than the Carriage Office.

you're the expert.

Limestone1

littlejp wrote: »

He told me that I was in the wrong for cycling out from the curb and he had a witness who would say the same (the passenger). Left it at that.

Thoughts? Similar stories?

If there was a separate (compulsory) cycle lane then he has a point. If not , he was technically overtaking you and the responsibility was on him to perform the manouevre safely. There is no legal stipulation about where any road user should 'sit' within a specific lane. As per niceonetom's post, it is sometimes safer to take control of a lane by moving into the middle of it if it is narrow or to prevent fast moving traffic overtaking within inches of you.

markpb

Once he deliberately threatened your life by hitting your bike, I'd imagine the gardai will turn a blind eye to your transgression.

gzoladz

littlejp wrote: »

Just rang that number there and reported it. Didn't want to make an official statement but at least he'll get a warning.

Why do you go half way? Does it make you feel guilty?

Don't expect respect in the future if you don't do anything to earn it.

You won't be ruining his life, he is doing it himself.

rp

clown bag wrote: »

Is it true there is no obligation to hug the kerb? I generally slow down to nothing to roll over shores and broken surface close to the kerb. Always paranoid about coming off but generally don't swerve out to avoid them, just slow down instead. If I was out about a foot more I'd have no problems.

Hugging the kerb is generally a dangerous thing to do (and doing dangerous things is forbidden by the ROTR/RTA/RTR):
1. You could hit a pot hole / drain and loose control
2. Debris makes punctures more likely -- again, loss of control
3. If a car/bus/taxi/motorbike passes you without giving adequate clearance (1m/1.5m in case law), you've nowhere to go, no buffer space

Additionally, anecdotal evidence suggests cars pass you with the same clearance that you have to the kerbside: ride six inches from the kerb, and thats the clearance carsl give you. Not pleasant.

blorg

littlejp- I hope you change your mind and make a formal statement.

It is very unlikely to "ruin his life" in any way. IMHO he should be charged with assault but the absolute worst that he is likely to get is dangerous driving and some points on his license (and even this I would reckon is unlikely.) Even if you do make a statement it is unlikely he will be charged unless his passenger or another witness turns up. He might get a warning, which could be a help.

This story does _not_ sound to me like someone who was having a bad day, it sounds like someone who has an irrational hatred of cyclists (there are plenty of them out there.) Worse, while most with this hatred will just rant on about cyclists this guy seems willing to actively harm them out on the roads.

Even if you were breaking some rule or being inconsiderate (and I don't think it sounds like you were) this would be no excuse for someone DRIVING INTO YOU with their car. There is a legal obligation to overtake safely and you have to behave with care towards other road users irrespective of what you think of their behaviour.

Many, probably most cyclists would have come off the bike in this situation; this driver sounds like a maniac TBH and you really need to pursue it for all our sakes.

meanmachine3

the only people that have the right to enforce the rules of the road are guards not bus drivers and especially not taxi drivers. by the way O.P. as far as i'm aware the only time taxi's can use bus lanes are when they have a fare or are on a call out to pick up a fare. you dont mention whether he had a fare or not . it's worth bearing this in mind in case he hadn't a fare.

DirkVoodoo

He said the taxi driver was using a passenger as a witness. I'm guessing this was a fare.

SerialComplaint

gzoladz wrote: »

You won't be ruining his life, he is doing it himself.

You won't be ruining his life at all at all. Absolute worst-case scenario for him is that the case goes to court, he gets a fine (maybe a couple of hundred quid if the judge is feeling particularly cranky) and maybe 2-4 penalty points.

Even if you make a formal statement, it is fairly unlikely that it will go to court. He will however have to take an hour out of his day to go down the station and give his statement - the inconvenience of that might make him think twice next time he sees a cyclist in front.

BostonB

I find taxi drivers to be the worse drivers on the roads. I've had to report a few over the years. If you don't report them they might end up killing someone. Have you not seen Spiderman I ?

meanmachine3

DirkVoodoo wrote: »

He said the taxi driver was using a passenger as a witness. I'm guessing this was a fare.

sorry i missed that bit.:eek:
however if that was me personally i'd also be using that passenger as a counter witness to the taxi driver due to the fact that this passenger must also have witnessed the hit and run if they allegedly saw what happened.

BostonB

AFAIK you can't use a witness thats inside a vehicle involved in the incident. Has to be independent.

TinyExplosions

BostonB wrote: »

AFAIK you can't use a witness thats inside a vehicle involved in the incident. Has to be independent.

Unless the rules have changed in the last 10 years I don't think so -my old man was ran into by a car in Harolds Cross which pushed him into the back of a cab, and the driver used a fare to claim that he'd felt my Dad hit the car first, before the bigger impact from the shunt -nearly ruined the insurance claim... but as I said this was some time ago.

Also, do you really think the cabbie took the fares details? Probably has no way of finding his excellent 'witness'