Gardi to tackle cycle menaces

Skrynesaver

JuliusCaesar wrote: »

While I'm quite glad that you are staying out of the cycle lane (named a cycle land, not a racing lane) where you're a danger to both yourself and others - yes, bus passengers are also allowed alight in safety; we are all sharing the road space - and I'm glad you have effective brakes,

So far we agree, though you really shouldn't make a habit of criticizing cyclists who want to make progress

JuliusCaesar wrote: »

the problem is that these brakes will not allow you to stop in a safe or stable a manner as a car's.

Well yes but I have a clearer view of what's going on than someone stuck in a cage does and have longer to modulate my speed. The combined weight of myself, the bike, the locks, pannier, laptop and office clothing is under 120Kg.

JuliusCaesar wrote: »

I had to make an emergency stop early on Sunday morning, doing 50kph in the car. While I remained in my seat as I was belted in, everything on the passenger seat fell into the footwell. I didn't fly over the steering wheel, and I didn't fall over, as the car has a stable four-wheel base. Are your brakes equally safe?

I'm glad you managed to stop in time, as a car, even @ 50kph, can kill.

dearg lady

Timothy Bryce wrote: »

It's on the N11 and there's a clear cycle lane on the pathway....despite this the stupid cnut decides to cycle in the middle of the buslane whilst the bus drives at a nice speed of about 6mph.

The cycle lane goes onto the road for about 10metres after the bus stop but most cyclists dont follow it back on to the pathway....

I don't cycle this way so I can't comment on the quality of the lane, but it is possible she's just an eejit who doesn't care. Don't judge all cyclists badly though. I witness some stupid behaviour from motorists, but most of them are grand

Run_to_da_hills

seamus wrote: »

There's a rumour going around that one of the cycle Gardai is a national TT champion. MTB or not, you'd want to get him on a really bad day to get away from him...

I also suspect most of the people who would try to run are the high-vis flappers cycling along with their knees at their ears, or schoolkids on their fixies, who really wouldn't have a hope. Fixies are good for riding in a straight line, not so much for the ducking in and out of roads at speed.

A lot of fixie's don't have brakes. :eek:

(They depend on the pedals)

"Premium Rush", good entertainment with some commuting tips for the cyclist.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1oBxSPohVzY

previous user

Speaking as a cyclist, yes, I agree that alot of cyclists need to stop going on footpaths, to be honest though the main city center should be pedestrianised for cyclists and pedestrians and tourism

CatEyed92

keith16 wrote: »

Last week, I was cycling down the road when the green light came on. Luckily, I stopped in the nick of time! I almost hit a pedestrian, who was walking blindly onto the road, despite the red man! And the scary thing was, they didn't even see what they had done! I was shaking afterwards!

I've seen them violate rules constantly but that was heartstopping!

Not really funny

mitosis

BostonB wrote: »

Take the canal about 70%+ cyclists (my guesstimate) break the lights along that route. There isn't daily carnage.

Which is just as likely to be down to the good driving skills of the motorists who manage to anticipate and avoid.

Maybe the reason there is only a small number of cyclist fatalities is not because the cyclists are not doing something endangering, but that motorists have adapted to expect them to behave recklessly.

The motorist is always at fault in a collision with a cyclist because she is supposed to expect the unexpected and react accordingly, because of the two, she is the one with training. Even when clearly not to blame, she is at fault. Like when a bike comes up the inside of a large vehicle at a left turn.

seamus

mitosis wrote: »

Maybe the reason there is only a small number of cyclist fatalities is not because the cyclists are not doing something endangering, but that motorists have adapted to expect them to behave recklessly.

Then somehow I consistently manage to avoid every single one of these motorists with their super "cyclist radar" and only encounter the ones who somehow seem incapable of seeing an 80kg man in multi-coloured clothing coming towards them.

I cross over the canal at Rathmines every day and without fail between 2 and 10 drivers (yes, ten) break the lights when they change, yet somehow nobody is injured. It must be because cyclists have developed excellent avoidance skills.

Or maybe it's down to the simple fact that nobody's quite so dumb as you seem to think and they generally don't take blind risks. People break lights because they know they can do so in relative safety.

reprazant

You seem to be mistaken, motorists don't break the lights, only cyclists do.

kylith

reprazant wrote: »

You seem to be mistaken, motorists don't break the lights, only cyclists do.

Really? Never? I must have hallucinated that guy in the hatchback who broke the lights this morning so.

BeanBeanGreen

There is a video channel on youtube claiming to show poor cycling by Boards user "Serialcomplaint" - dont know if its the same guy.

https://www.youtube.com/user/JanGabriel33/videos?flow=grid&view=0

magicbastarder

that is an exceedingly odd youtube channel.
there's a video on that channel called something along the lines of 'cyclist who claims to be a member of the labour party doesn't yield to pedestrians', and it shows a pedestrian crossing the road without looking.

seamus

Wow, that's a pretty pathetic youtube channel. A lot of effort there BeanBeanGreen.

BeanBeanGreen

Agreed - very odd

wandatowell

Who knew the Labour Party were such bad cyclists?

Pataman

mitosis wrote: »

Which is just as likely to be down to the good driving skills of the motorists who manage to anticipate and avoid.

Maybe the reason there is only a small number of cyclist fatalities is not because the cyclists are not doing something endangering, but that motorists have adapted to expect them to behave recklessly.

The motorist is always at fault in a collision with a cyclist because she is supposed to expect the unexpected and react accordingly, because of the two, she is the one with training. Even when clearly not to blame, she is at fault. Like when a bike comes up the inside of a large vehicle at a left turn.

What a pile of poo.
Every road user has equal responsibility for their and other road users safety.
Most cyclists seem to operate on the basis that someone else will look after their welfare with their careless attitude to their own safety.

And referring to motorists as "she" is entirely unfair to females.

John Mason

keith16 wrote: »

Last week, I was cycling down the road when the green light came on. Luckily, I stopped in the nick of time! I almost hit a pedestrian, who was walking blindly onto the road, despite the red man! And the scary thing was, they didn't even see what they had done! I was shaking afterwards!

I've seen them violate rules constantly but that was heartstopping!

last week, i was crossing the road with the green man, when a cyclist came through the lights, clipped me, and started yelling at me for not looking where i was going.

And the scary thing was, they didn't even see that they had broken the lights! I was shaking afterwards!

dearg lady

Everyone's very well behaved this week. Last week was a write off though

RobbieTheRobber

irishbird wrote: »

last week, i was crossing the road with the green man, when a cyclist came through the lights, clipped me, and started yelling at me for not looking where i was going.

And the scary thing was, they didn't even see that they had broken the lights! I was shaking afterwards!

In fairness you are suppossed to look both ways before crossing the road.
http://www.rsa.ie/RSA/Road-Safety/Campaigns/Current-road-safety-campaigns/Safe-Cross-Code/

humbert

irishbird wrote: »

last week, i was crossing the road with the green man, when a cyclist came through the lights, clipped me, and started yelling at me for not looking where i was going.

And the scary thing was, they didn't even see that they had broken the lights! I was shaking afterwards!

Wasn't a courier by any chance? Those guys are absolutely mental.

derb12

As a cyclist I welcome this. It's a no-brainer. Cyclists should obey the rules of the road - full stop.
I just wish it could be accompanied by some measures to educated idiot drivers who seem to see cyclists as inferior road users who have to yield to cars.
This morning a woman rolled down her window to give out to me as I had almost prevented her from catching the light to make a left turn at a t-junction. She successfully made her turn through the red light. The fact that I was in front of her was what annoyed her I suppose. I guess she felt that instead of indicating to switch to the right lane at the point where the road splits into 2 lanes about 20m before the junction, I should have anticipated that important cars would be in a hurry to get through the amber light and I should have just pulled up onto the footpath and let everyone through. No doubt this idiot is still seething at the temerity of cyclists!
Same deal at roundabouts. In the other "busy" cycling thread on AH a poster (who presumably has a full driving licence) thought that cyclists weren't allowed to use roundabouts! That explains that number of times that I've been cut-off when cars behind me try to go straight through a roundabout while I, on my bike in front of them am indicating that I'm turning left.
I hate to see stupid cyclists breaking lights, recklessly changing lanes or cycling at night without lights or any reflective gear. They will probably just kill themselves some day. I'm more concerned about stupid drivers killing me.

msg11

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rIr60JVVhAs

Excellent video !

humbert

BeanBeanGreen wrote: »

There is a video channel on youtube claiming to show poor cycling by Boards user "Serialcomplaint" - dont know if its the same guy.

https://www.youtube.com/user/JanGabriel33/videos?flow=grid&view=0

Having watched a few of those I feel like dumping my bicycle, learning to drive and buying a car just so I can go out and run him over.

positron

There are a few bad people everywhere - it's just the norm in this country. As a motorcyclist, this morning:

* This morning there was a norther reg Octavia right up my bum trying to scare me off the road
* There were at least two cars that changed lane without indicating while I was about to move into overtake them
* There were at least a few cars that was badly positioned in their respective lanes blocking me from filtering past at the traffic lights.
* There were at least one cyclist who zipped past me and then braked hard to stop at the middle of a junction. It was red.
* There were one guy cycling in the opposite direction on the cycle lane, and one cycling across the road at pedestrian crossings.

PS: And I must have annoyed a good few by filtering past them to the top of the queue as they sat waiting at the lights. I am sure I caught a lot of them by surprise despite my headlights and loud bike, and I am sure they are probably thought of as moron who should be off the road etc etc.

Such is life in Dublin.

AhInFairness

Have to laugh at the "cyclists don't hurt others" rubbish.

When I lived in the city centre I was hit by 3 separate cyclists all breaking the lights at Amien Street. Two of those incidents left me badly hurt and out of work for a number of days. And I got an earful of abuse from each cyclist for apparently not looking where I was going despite the fact that the lights were red and I had the green man.

I have seen it happen so many times to other people too. The complete arrogance displayed is infuriating.

Breaking the lights is rife among cyclists in the city centre. You only have to go over to the cycling forum and look at the posts justifying breaking the lights.

John Mason

RobbieTheRobber wrote: »

In fairness you are suppossed to look both ways before crossing the road.
http://www.rsa.ie/RSA/Road-Safety/Campaigns/Current-road-safety-campaigns/Safe-Cross-Code/

In fairness, i was over half across the road and clearly had the right of way

steve9859

derb12 wrote: »

I hate to see stupid cyclists breaking lights, recklessly changing lanes or cycling at night without lights or any reflective gear. They will probably just kill themselves some day. I'm more concerned about stupid drivers killing me.

I'll second that. Most drivers have no clue that they have to share the road.

On another note, I'd like to see the Gardai try to take the bikes from a bunch of 15 year old kids from the local estate firing up and down the footpaths and the wrong way down the road. Was mowed down by some kids coming the wrong way down Thomas Street the other day.....who then told me to FO when I gave out to them. These are the real cycling terrorists....teenagers and students on rustbucket mountainbikes. But as usual it will be the mostly law abiding cycle commuter who gets punished.

derb12

Funny, I encountered a woman cycling wrong direction in the cycle lane (which is an on-road lane) too.
Seconds later I had to move out of the cycle lane into the traffic to get past a car that was parked in a disability spot with its arse sticking out into the cycle lane.
There is a lot of crazy stuff on our roads. Both cyclists and drivers (and peds) have a case to answer!

juan.kerr

AhInFairness wrote: »

Breaking the lights is rife among cyclists in the city centre.

Along with going the wrong way on a one way street.

steve9859

AhInFairness wrote: »

Breaking the lights is rife among cyclists in the city centre.

And also rife amongst motorists. And I don't often see them getting pulled over.

No-one has the moral high ground here...not cyclists (who run red lights and drive on pavements), not motorists (who not only run red lights but actively speed up to try to make them, break speed limits constantly, and park illegally), not pedestrians (who walk around lost in their own i-pod world without paying any attention to anything)

humbert

AhInFairness wrote: »

Breaking the lights is rife among cyclists in the city centre. You only have to go over to the cycling forum and look at the posts justifying breaking the lights.

Breaking the lights is an anathema to most of the users on that forum.

Korvanica

BeanBeanGreen wrote: »

There is a video channel on youtube claiming to show poor cycling by Boards user "Serialcomplaint" - dont know if its the same guy.

https://www.youtube.com/user/JanGabriel33/videos?flow=grid&view=0

msg11 wrote: »

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rIr60JVVhAs

Excellent video !

Wonder which video JanGabriel33/BeanBeanGreen is featured in. He seems to be fairly sore. Why spend so much time putting up other peoples videos with new titles.

msg11

humbert wrote: »

Having watched a few of those I feel like dumping my bicycle, learning to drive and buying a car just so I can go out and run him over.

I'm a car driver near 90% of the time and that guy is in the right, fair play to him giving them a few words some of the stuff could have taken him off his time.

RobbieTheRobber

irishbird wrote: »

In fairness, i was over half across the road and clearly had the right of way

Where you wearing any high visibility clothing?
the RSA recommends that you do

To protect yourself make sure you:

Always wear a pair of reflective armbands, high-visibility belt or other reflective or fluorescent clothing which will help you to be seen from a distance
Carry a torch on country roads

http://www.rsa.ie/en/RSA/Pedestrians-and-Cyclists/Pedestrian-safety/

AhInFairness

steve9859 wrote: »

And also rife amongst motorists. And I don't often see them getting pulled over.

No-one has the moral high ground here...not cyclists (who run red lights and drive on pavements), not motorists (who not only run red lights but actively speed up to try to make them, break speed limits constantly, and park illegally), not pedestrians (who walk around lost in their own i-pod world without paying any attention to anything)

Oh I'm sorry, I thought this thread was about cyclists? I forgot though, that you can't discuss a single topic on boards without the usual bullshít of "what about drivers/pedestrians/motorised wheelchairs!!!"

In my experience of living in the city centre for a number of years I saw far more cyclists break the lights than cars. I've also never been hit by a car yet I've been hit by 3 cyclists. Funny that.

Oh and when cyclists start paying road tax and insurance they might be viewed with less disdain.

magicbastarder

i used to have a 14 mile bike commute to work. there were three 'turn left on red' junctions i used to go through on the way home.
the funny thing is, motorists usually like the idea of turn left on red, but plenty of them claim it's too dangerous a manouevre for a bike to make. if it's too dangerous for a bike, how the hell are cars supposed to do it safely?

RobbieTheRobber

AhInFairness wrote: »

Oh I'm sorry, I thought this thread was about cyclists? I forgot though, that you can't discuss a single topic on boards without the usual bullshít of "what about drivers/pedestrians/motorised wheelchairs!!!"

In my experience of living in the city centre for a number of years I saw far more cyclists break the lights than cars. I've also never been hit by a car yet I've been hit by 3 cyclists. Funny that.

Oh and when cyclists start paying road tax and insurance they might be viewed with less disdain.

Motor tax, motor tax, motor tax.
You should repeat that line until you learn what the tax is called.

humbert

msg11 wrote: »

I'm a car driver near 90% of the time and that guy is in the right, fair play to him giving them a few words some of the stuff could have taken him off his time.

He's just so sanctimonious and aggressive, I can't see it helping.

magicbastarder

AhInFairness wrote: »

In my experience of living in the city centre for a number of years I saw far more cyclists break the lights than cars. I've also never been hit by a car yet I've been hit by 3 cyclists. Funny that.

Oh and when cyclists start paying road tax and insurance they might be viewed with less disdain.

again, the first point comes down largely to the fact that once one motorist stops at a red light, (s)he prevents all other motorists behind from breaking it. a cyclist stopping at a red does not prevent other cyclists. so the issue is as much about ability as it is about will.

and if you tax cyclists or make them take out insurance, the one sure effect is that you will put more cars on the road.

reprazant

AhInFairness wrote: »

Oh and when cyclists start paying road tax and insurance they might be viewed with less disdain.

I am continuously shocked by how dim people make themselves look by mentioning 'road tax'.

AhInFairness

RobbieTheRobber wrote: »

Motor tax, motor tax, motor tax.
You should repeat that line until you learn what the tax is called.

How about a cycle tax then?? You want to use the road as a vehicle, pay tax like other road users. Insurance should also be mandatory, just like other vehicles, given the damage bikes can cause to people.

Korvanica

AhInFairness wrote: »

Oh and when cyclists start paying road tax and insurance they might be viewed with less disdain.

And yet again the circle starts.

AhInFairness

reprazant wrote: »

I am continuously shocked by how dim people make themselves look by mentioning 'road tax'.

Devastated. No really....devastated.

07Lapierre

derb12 wrote: »

As a cyclist I welcome this. It's a no-brainer.

+1, ALL road users must obey the ROTR. The Gardai enforce the law and if your caught (and its a big IF), your caught and must accept the penalty.

Korvanica

AhInFairness wrote: »

How about a cycle tax then?? You want to use the road as a vehicle, pay tax like other road users. Insurance should also be mandatory, just like other vehicles, given the damage bikes can cause to people.

Dont forget a walking tax.

Also Jogging, Sprinting, Shuffling, Rollerblading, Skateboarding, Longboarding, Dancing, Crawling..... You getting the picture yet?

I bet I could do more damage to someone with a longboard than with a bike. Maybe they should pay a higher tax than bikes.

RobbieTheRobber

AhInFairness wrote: »

How about a cycle tax then?? You want to use the road as a vehicle, pay tax like other road users. Insurance should also be mandatory, just like other vehicles, given the damage bikes can cause to people.

I'd love to see what an insurance company would set an insurance policy for a toddler on a new bike with training wheels at.

magicbastarder

reprazant wrote: »

I am continuously shocked by how dim people make themselves look by mentioning 'road tax'.

it's a commonly used term and is no reflection on intelligence, or lack thereof. it's a poor comment to use to denigrate someone's argument.
it'd be like slagging someone as stupid because they call children's allowance 'child support'.

seamus

AhInFairness wrote: »

When I lived in the city centre I was hit by 3 separate cyclists all breaking the lights at Amien Street.

One would think you'd have learned after the first time, to look before crossing the road.

That's not me being mean or trying to be funny, simply wondering how you managed to be hit 3 times at the same set of lights, yet I have managed to never be struck by a cyclist in the city center? I've had a couple of incidents where I saw a cyclist approach and I stopped to avoid being hit, but the only way I could be struck is if I walked across the road without checking if the way was clear.

I'm not saying you were in the wrong, but as someone else mentioned earlier in the thread, it's better to yield and walk away fuming, then get hit and not walk away at all.

reprazant

magicbastarder wrote: »

it's a commonly used term and is no reflection on intelligence, or lack thereof. it's a poor comment to use to denigrate someone's argument.
it'd be like slagging someone as stupid because they call children's allowance 'child support'.

It is only commonly used by the ill-informed. Anyone who uses it in an argument about the right of use of roads should have their argument discounted as obviously don't know what they are talking about. It has been repeatedly pointed out in this thread that there is no such thing as road tax yet people still coming piling in referencing it in rants, and it is always rants.

steve9859

AhInFairness wrote: »

How about a cycle tax then?? You want to use the road as a vehicle, pay tax like other road users. Insurance should also be mandatory, just like other vehicles, given the damage bikes can cause to people.

Sorry, ain't gonna happen. Try getting the local kids to pay tax or take out insurance. Or where do you propose drawing the line? Adults only? 16+ years? Only people that use their bikes on the road, rather than just the park? Only people with new bikes that can be registered?

Any law would be practically impossible to draft, let alone to enforce. Motorists have to be of a certain age, and pass a test, and drive only on the road (rather than the park etc) hence can be identified and are insurable and taxable. Bikes can be used by anyone, anywhere.

Edit: http://ipayroadtax.com/licensed-to-cycle/licensed-to-cycle/

Its apparently been considered by a load of countries and cities, including those with much higher cycling numbers, and all have found it completely impractical for the reasons outlined above. This quote from Toronto: “licensing of bicycles [should] be discontinued because it often results in an unconscious contravention of the law at a very tender age; they also emphasize the resulting poor public relations between police officers and children.”

magicbastarder

if you link motor/road/cycle tax to the maintenance of roadways, you're on a bit of a loser.
an engineer once told me (and if there are any listening, please correct me if i have this wrong) that the damage a vehicle does to the road surface is proportional to the cube of the weight per wheel. so a car, which has a mass of 400kg per wheel, will do one thousand times more damage to the road surface, per wheel, than a cyclist with a mass of 40kg per wheel.
edit: yes, i know i switched from weight to mass. but it was easier to work in KG.