She came at me to knock me down

scorn

There must be something in the air these days.

I've been commuting in Ireland for 5 years now, and generally don't get pestered too much by cage drivers, but the last few days there seems to be a renewed aggression in some drivers attitudes to me.

A couple of times after filtering, I've pulled back into the line of traffic only to have the car behind accelerate and close the gap - even though I was already in there. I can't count the number of times that I have done this before with no cause for alarm.

Admittedly I would normally accept my fate if I felt that I pulled in to an unsafe gap, but in these instances there has been plenty of room and the traffic flow speed has been slow.

Odd behaviour - including the OPs experience. Maybe with the bit of sunshine we've had lately, cagers are a little jealous?

Keep vigilant out there folks!

faceman

While the OP was technically breaking the law, he is not 100% at fault.

If he was driving in a bus lane and was knocked down, would it be his fault because he was breaking the law by driving in the bus lane?

Without having seen the incident it sounds like both of you were at fault. She should have took corrective action and the OP shouldnt have been filtering in oncoming traffic.

While the high horse brigade are telling the OP that he is damned to hell for breaking the law, the VAST majority of bikers that I encounter filter on solid lines. However the variance in behavior differs when there is oncoming traffic.

pa990

faceman wrote: »

While the OP was technically breaking the law, he is not 100% at fault.

If he was driving in a bus lane and was knocked down, would it be his fault because he was breaking the law by driving in the bus lane?

Without having seen the incident it sounds like both of you were at fault. She should have took corrective action and the OP shouldnt have been filtering in oncoming traffic.

While the high horse brigade are telling the OP that he is damned to hell for breaking the law, the VAST majority of bikers that I encounter filter on solid lines. However the variance in behavior differs when there is oncoming traffic.

But he wasnt in the bus lane., however if a car or bus was driving the wrong way on that bus lane.. who would be wrong ?? .. ...... The person driving the wrong direction for that particular lane.


He filtered where there was a solid white line.
I'll let you find out the rules regarding a white line yourself.
If an accident occurred and it was discovered that one of the vehicles was traveling on the incorrect side of the road, across a white line, who do you think would be found to be more wrong.

No high horse here, i am a biker myself, but see too many bikers doing stupid things

PCPhoto

Jackasaurus rex wrote: »

far as I know you can be fined for using the bus lane but not points. anyone know better?

€60 fine and no penalty points

Occam

faceman wrote: »

While the OP was technically breaking the law, he is not 100% at fault.

He was on the wrong side of the road. Insurance would *always* place 100% of the blame on the overtaking driver, no matter if its a car/motorbike/lorry etc.

faceman wrote: »

She should have took corrective action and the OP shouldnt have been filtering in oncoming traffic.

Of course morally she should have taken corrective action, and legally every driver should do their utmost to avoid a collision but if there had been a collision the motorcyclist would be legally at fault, likely more injured and possibly facing a charge of dangerous driving. The car driver would claim that she came round the corner, under the speed limit and had no way of avoiding a head on collision.

Case below involved an overtaking motorbike hitting oncoming car....granted he had no insurance etc as well...

http://www.nationalist.ie/news/local/motorcyclist_drove_on_wrong_side_crashed_into_car_1_2234591

jameshayes

PCPhoto wrote: »

€60 fine and no penalty points

60 quid well spent if you ask me - sometimes the safest place to be

blorg

Occam wrote:

if there had been a collision the motorcyclist would be legally at fault, likely more injured and possibly facing a charge of dangerous driving. The car driver would claim that she came round the corner, under the speed limit and had no way of avoiding a head on collision.

Not necessarily. If it was a he said, she said, that is likely. If it could be shown through witnesses that the car driver deliberately drove at him, she would be liable. If it looks deliberate to the guy on the bike there is a good chance it looks deliberate to other witnesses also.
You can't just drive into other people because they are driving illegally (try knocking down a ped crossing on a red man and see how far you get.)

Sids Not

Should-a..would-a ..could-a...I would have done exactly what most others would do......NOTHING....;)

Just learn from it....nothing actually happened...:)

Spoon Fed

Ok, I will give this one more go...(thanks to all the support posts, the incident shook me and I justed wanted to get some confirmation that this type of thing should not happen. As for the rules of the road brigade, get lost, I know the rules of the road for God's sake. Bus lane and solid line, come on, these are the basics. Go onto a thread and preach to those who don't know how to drive on a motorway or a round about)

Ok so here it goes..(by the way it would be extremely helpful if you know the actual stretch of road before replying)

I was filtering down Rathmines Road towards the Portobello end. Its a wide enough road which narrows into the lights.
However, I was a good 50-60 yards away from the lights when the car turned the corner.
The car came around the corner and straightened up before then turning in towards the centre of the road where I was.
Grant it by this stage I was outside the solid line but it was clear to me and I guess anybody watching that she deliberately came at me to knock me down.

It's fine, I'm over it and will keep inside the white line from now on (well for a while anyway)

Occam

Spoon Fed wrote: »

She came around the corner wide ...She however continued to come down the road close to the centre line. The road at this point is quite wide so I suspected she was coming at me.

Spoon Fed wrote: »

The car came around the corner and straightened up before then turning in towards the centre of the road where I was.
Grant it by this stage I was outside the solid line

I'm afraid you are giving two conflicting versions of your own story.

If she came around wide, and continued to stay close to the white line (holding her line) its a very different thing to moving from the center of her lane out towards you.

Its one or the other I'm afraid.

Spoon Fed wrote: »

The road at this point is quite wide so I suspected she was coming at me.

Spoon Fed wrote: »

it was clear to me and I guess anybody watching that she deliberately came at me to knock me down

In the first post she was coming down the road towards you, holding her position and you suspected she was coming at you. Yet by the your latest account it was clear to you and everyone watching that she had changed her course in order to "come at" you?

Another contradiction.

Spoon Fed

I repeat..(by the way it would be extremely helpful if you know the actual stretch of road before replying)
Have a look at it on Google.

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en&sll=53.325429,-6.265088&sspn=0.007862,0.006295&ie=UTF8&ll=53.3296,-6.264123&spn=0.000557,0.001203&t=k&z=20

DeepBlue

Spoon Fed wrote: »

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en&sll=53.325429,-6.265088&sspn=0.007862,0.006295&ie=UTF8&ll=53.3296,-6.264123&spn=0.000557,0.001203&t=k&z=20

The road there is two lanes wide which later merge into one lane. There is no reason for her to be so close to the centre line (effectively on the outer lane if the road was actually marked as two lanes).
Either she's an extremely incompetent driver or a completely reckless one.

If I was a biker I would have gone after her and had it out with her.
Then again I suspect that if I had been in your situation I would have been too shocked to do that at the time and of course later is too late.
Is there any CCTV in the area and would it be possible to check it? Was she driving some old rust bucket that didn't have power steering (no excuse really given the width of the road)?

Occam

Spoon Fed wrote: »

I was a good 50-60 yards away from the lights when the car turned the corner.

DeepBlue wrote: »

The road there is two lanes wide which later merge into one lane.

No its not.

50 yards from the lights is at the bus stop painted on the road, where the road has narrowed considerably, and is most definitly not two lanes wide.

Either the OP proceeded on the wrong side of the road, having crossed a continuous white line, in the face of oncoming traffic or stopped and tried to pull back in when he saw the car, which means the incident must have occured where the road has narrowed.

Sids Not

OP...its a bit like me complaining that an oul one stepped out onto a pedestrian crossing while i was in the middle of a brilliant wheelie and nearly caused me to crash.......:rolleyes:

If you're on the wrong side of the road you have to expect these things to happen...maybe she was blinded by the early morning sun and didnt even see you....:o

Some drivers perception of the width of their cars vs. the width of the actual road can be frightening sometimes...

everyday taxi

As a very experienced biker, ive been in this situation a few times. If you simply eyeball the driver, you can tell what their intentions are. If they are looking at you....they are been arseholes and are trying to frighten you, if not, they just most likely dont see you. (TOP-TIP), if they are been arseholes.....most car door mirrors come off with the slightest persuasion, the whore wont do that again.

3DataModem

I'm very familiar with that bit of road, on bike and in car.

OP you were executing a dangerous manuveure on a busy stretch of road. You are probably right that this driver was teaching you a lesson, but it is possible she was avoiding a pedestrian, a puppy, blinded by something, etc.

When you turn left against a long line of stationary traffic you don't expect someone on the wrong side of the road.

Bottom line; yes she may be a wagon, but you were taking a huge risk filtering in that spot.

JohnnyCrash

Regardless of who may be in the right or wrong in these types of situations,I dont think anyone on here should be condoning the swiping off of wing mirrors.

everyday taxi

JohnnyCrash wrote: »

Regardless of who may be in the right or wrong in these types of situations,I dont think anyone on here should be condoning the swiping off of wing mirrors.

No more than they should condone "teaching people a lesson".

PaudyW

JohnnyCrash wrote: »

Regardless of who may be in the right or wrong in these types of situations,I dont think anyone on here should be condoning the swiping off of wing mirrors.

maybe youre right just a wee ding in the door or wing they, mirrors are easy replaced

everyday taxi

PaudyW wrote: »

maybe youre right just a wee ding in the door or wing they, mirrors are easy replaced

great minds.....

JohnnyCrash

everyday taxi wrote: »

great minds.....

Think alike??? And do you really want me to finish off that saying??
Ye're really giving bikers a good name saying its alright to be knocking off mirrors and denting doors and wings etc..

P.C.

everyday taxi wrote: »

As a very experienced biker, ive been in this situation a few times. If you simply eyeball the driver, you can tell what their intentions are. If they are looking at you....they are been arseholes and are trying to frighten you, if not, they just most likely dont see you. (TOP-TIP), if they are been arseholes.....most car door mirrors come off with the slightest persuasion, the whore wont do that again.

PaudyW wrote: »

maybe youre right just a wee ding in the door or wing they, mirrors are easy replaced

Suggesting violence/damage to other peoples property is not on.

Warnings given.

Then next one will be a ban.

CourierCollie

Spoon Fed wrote: »

What do you do in that situation????

I'd avoid putting myself in that situation (most of the time). And on the odd occasion when I do, I'd just thank my lucky stars I didn't have to spend the next few months in hospital.

Funnily enough, was involved in an accident in that exact same spot 24 years ago on pushbikes. Friend had his leg cracked in two (bones protruding and all). He got a reasonable claim out of it, though I'd imagine he would have preferred to have an intact leg, and not the time in hospital.

everyday taxi

JohnnyCrash wrote: »

Think alike??? And do you really want me to finish off that saying??
Ye're really giving bikers a good name saying its alright to be knocking off mirrors and denting doors and wings etc..

Lets just say people who are arseholes for no reason, deserve their come-uppings.

seanybiker

everyday taxi wrote: »

Lets just say people who are arseholes for no reason, deserve their come-uppings.

In every walk of life. Karma is a killer