Drivers Swerving at Cyclists

NeedMoreGears

I've never experienced a motor vehicle swerving at me thankfully. I have, however, seen an increasing amount of stupid overtakes. (i) the one where it is only 15m to the next vehicle, (ii) the one where they pass really slowly and are close to me for too long (sometimes related to (i) when they realize there's nowhere to go), (iii) the overtake with a red light 50m up the road and one of my personal favorites (iv) the sortofa left hook - where I'm signaling a left turn about 25m from the turn, they pass, brake, and go left causing me to brake hard but not scary hard.

Lemming

Well I experienced something somewhere between "punishment pass" and "swerve" this morning, and then my first ever punishment pass/turn-left-in-front-of-cyclist by a knob on a scrambler although I suspect he was just doing that simply for his own amusement than any perceived slight and to show off to his mate behind who notably did not do the same thing. The incident this morning saw me at the front of lights at a T junction to turn right, with the car behind me deciding to overtake extremely closely once the junction was cleared; but the manner in which he moved suggested that he had veered over to do it because he met the apex of his little manouevre about five feet in front of me before moving back into a centre-lane position. All of this on a not particularlly wide section of urban road.

Here's where it happened: link, with the traffic turning right onto the A6135 from the B6082. The junction itself is wide enough that traffic can get past me whilst making the turn assuming that I go wide enough (which I do), but it gets a lot tighter very quickly for the next few dozen metres simply because it's a busy stretch of road.

What can I say? Some people are dicks.

Chuchote

Lemming wrote: »

What can I say? Some people are dicks.

…and some people watch a lot of Bruce Willis movies and think they're real life.

Lemming

Chuchote wrote: »

…and some people watch a lot of Bruce Willis movies and think they're real life.

Don't be so hard on yourself. Just stop screaming "Yippykayayy" and you'll be grand.

Chuchote

I was, of course, speaking of the swervers.

Chuchote

http://www.csindy.com/coloradosprings/cyclists-say-their-lives-are-at-risk-from-road-raging-motorists/Content?oid=4023564

This piece cites an international close call database for cyclists:

http://closecalldatabase.com

2RockMountain

Chuchote wrote: »

http://www.csindy.com/coloradosprings/cyclists-say-their-lives-are-at-risk-from-road-raging-motorists/Content?oid=4023564

This piece cites an international close call database for cyclists:

http://closecalldatabase.com

Here's the Irish version;

http://www.dublininquirer.com/2015/10/20/bicycle-collision-tracker/

prinzeugen

2RockMountain wrote: »

Here's the Irish version;

http://www.dublininquirer.com/2015/10/20/bicycle-collision-tracker/

Not going to subscribe, sorry! Can you give us the just of the article?

prinzeugen

Lemming wrote: »

Well I experienced something somewhere between "punishment pass" and "swerve" this morning, and then my first ever punishment pass/turn-left-in-front-of-cyclist by a knob on a scrambler although I suspect he was just doing that simply for his own amusement than any perceived slight and to show off to his mate behind who notably did not do the same thing. The incident this morning saw me at the front of lights at a T junction to turn right, with the car behind me deciding to overtake extremely closely once the junction was cleared; but the manner in which he moved suggested that he had veered over to do it because he met the apex of his little manouevre about five feet in front of me before moving back into a centre-lane position. All of this on a not particularlly wide section of urban road.

What can I say? Some people are dicks.

You should reconsider how you use the roads.. Punishment passes etc.. If they get close it usually means someone has got close to them.

A Scrambler?? Dont think so, unless it is unreg. Or did you see it on youtube in the UK??

Enduro/motocross bikes are almost impossible to get road legal here..

Too many cyclists with a "special snowflake" syndrome.

Road traffic Act is the Law.. Not the ROTR.

Chuchote

prinzeugen wrote: »

Not going to subscribe, sorry! Can you give us the just of the article?

You don't have to subscribe. The Dublin Inquirer puts up a subscription request, but when you click into the article the box disappears.

prinzeugen wrote: »

Too many cyclists with a "special snowflake" syndrome.

We're all special snowflakes, darling - cyclists, drivers, pedestrians. Each one of us a precious life that all the others must mind and care for.

Weepsie

prinzeugen wrote: »

You should reconsider how you use the roads.. Punishment passes etc.. If they get close it usually means someone has got close to them.

A Scrambler?? Dont think so, unless it is unreg. Or did you see it on youtube in the UK??

Enduro/motocross bikes are almost impossible to get road legal here..

Too many cyclists with a "special snowflake" syndrome.

Road traffic Act is the Law.. Not the ROTR.

Just because they're not road legal l, doesn't meant they're not on the road. More common than you'd think

Fighting Tao

prinzeugen wrote: »

A Scrambler?? Dont think so, unless it is unreg. Or did you see it on youtube in the UK??

Enduro/motocross bikes are almost impossible to get road legal here

There are loads of motocross bikes in the country. Thankfully most people use them only on tracks or in fields. They are not an uncommon. Site in the north inner city on footpaths, going the wrong way up one way streets and without helmets. Just because something is not road legal doesn't mean it's not on the road!

cython

prinzeugen wrote: »

You should reconsider how you use the roads.. Punishment passes etc.. If they get close it usually means someone has got close to them.

A Scrambler?? Dont think so, unless it is unreg. Or did you see it on youtube in the UK??

Enduro/motocross bikes are almost impossible to get road legal here..

Too many cyclists with a "special snowflake" syndrome.

Road traffic Act is the Law.. Not the ROTR.

On the bolded - what a pile of steaming horse manure! Probably the majority of close/"punishment" passes indicate nothing other than the stupidity and small-mindedness of the person executing them, as well as their total disregard for the lives of others. Most of the time the "punishment" is for having the audacity (in the mind of the passer) to use a public road, and not a whole lot else :rolleyes:

Chuchote

"Cyclist-induced" road rage!

http://motherboard.vice.com/blog/technology-shouldnt-be-used-to-enable-bad-drivers

2RockMountain

prinzeugen wrote: »

Not going to subscribe, sorry! Can you give us the just of the article?

No, I jist can't do that.

Lemming

prinzeugen wrote: »

You should reconsider how you use the roads.. Punishment passes etc.. If they get close it usually means someone has got close to them.

A Scrambler?? Dont think so, unless it is unreg. Or did you see it on youtube in the UK??

Enduro/motocross bikes are almost impossible to get road legal here..

Too many cyclists with a "special snowflake" syndrome.

Road traffic Act is the Law.. Not the ROTR.

I'm in the UK ..... :rolleyes:

Chips Lovell

Several cards dished out to people who ignore the earlier mod warning.

Please read the charter and bear in mind that this isn't a forum for having a go at cyclists in general.

Be polite and don't abuse people on thread. If you've a problem with a post, report and don't make the situation worse by pouring petrol on the fire.

Thank you.

Ray Palmer

So on Friday I had two more incidents of swerving and blocking.
Huge tail back on Collins Avenue and a car just pulls into the the curb blocking me. The left turn was at least 200m ahead of her and there is no way she was going any where and all her movement meant was her tyre was now against the curb. She just did it to stop me.
Then on the way home in the pouring rain there was a cyclist was on the road while I was in the cycle lane. She had missed the ramp to the cycle lane so a taxi is tailgating her revving and then she gets another chance to get on the cycle lane. The taxi slowed to match her and then speeds into a puddle drench us both. Taxi and passenger laughing away. This was during very heavy rain.
I am getting a little freaked out by the continually aggression and threats.

Chuchote

Ray Palmer wrote: »

So on Friday I had two more incidents of swerving and blocking.
Huge tail back on Collins Avenue and a car just pulls into the the curb blocking me. The left turn was at least 200m ahead of her and there is no way she was going any where and all her movement meant was her tyre was now against the curb. She just did it to stop me.
Then on the way home in the pouring rain there was a cyclist was on the road while I was in the cycle lane. She had missed the ramp to the cycle lane so a taxi is tailgating her revving and then she gets another chance to get on the cycle lane. The taxi slowed to match her and then speeds into a puddle drench us both. Taxi and passenger laughing away. This was during very heavy rain.
I am getting a little freaked out by the continually aggression and threats.

A family member asked me the other day whether it was legal for cyclists to cycle up the inside of a line of traffic :eek: She's been driving for 50 years (and before that was cycling for 10); she simply didn't know it was correct cycling :eek:

West Midlands police are on the ball tackling driver aggression; they're sending out plainclothes coppers and promising instant prosecution:

http://road.cc/content/news/204164-west-midlands-police-use-cycling-officer-target-close-passing-motorists

Ray Palmer

Chuchote wrote: »

A family member asked me the other day whether it was legal for cyclists to cycle up the inside of a line of traffic :eek: She's been driving for 50 years (and before that was cycling for 10); she simply didn't know it was correct cycling :eek:

West Midlands police are on the ball tackling driver aggression; they're sending out plainclothes coppers and promising instant prosecution:

http://road.cc/content/news/204164-west-midlands-police-use-cycling-officer-target-close-passing-motorists

The one that gets me is people shouting that you should be in the cycle lane. Had people do that when there was no cycle lane around which is even stranger.

My own mother always says a driver must keep to the left as much as possible and doesn't get that she can driver on the road leaving space on the left without hitting cars on the other side of the road. You know when you are cycling along beside blocked traffic and there is one car tight to the curb out of line of all the other cars? That is my mother but at least she does drive in commuter traffic.

stacybeauchamp

Chuchote wrote: »

Take the number, bring it immediately to the nearest garda station and make a report. Then go and buy a helmet cam.

Nonsense - too many Nazi cyclists on the roads these days. And what is the point of going to the Gardai? What can they do? There is no evidence?

The past two days I had so many close calls with inexperienced cyclists who were swerving into and out of traffic - not even in cycling lanes.

As Michael o Leary said, I like cyclists but I wouldn't eat a whole one.

m5ex9oqjawdg2i

stacybeauchamp wrote: »

Nonsense - too many Nazi cyclists on the roads these days. And what is the point of going to the Gardai? What can they do? There is no evidence?

The past two days I had so many close calls with inexperienced cyclists who were swerving into and out of traffic - not even in cycling lanes.

As Michael o Leary said, I like cyclists but I wouldn't eat a whole one.

This thread isn't about inexperienced cyclists who are "swerving into and out of traffic" but about "Drivers swerving at cyclists".

Where the cyclists you came across avoiding glass or potholes maybe? Or were they completely reckless in their ways?

It's also not nonsense, the Gardai can do something about it and in my experience, they have done something about it if you get the right Guard in the station.

stacybeauchamp

Kayla Poor Thief wrote: »

This thread isn't about inexperienced cyclists who are "swerving into and out of traffic" but about "Drivers swerving at cyclists".

Where the cyclists you came across avoiding glass or potholes maybe? Or were they completely reckless in thir ways?

It's also not nonsense, the Gardai can do something about it and in my experience, they have done something about it if you get the right Guard in the station.

If cyclists were to stay in the cycling lanes, they would have no problem with swerving, save for junctions and merging traffic lanes. The problem is they are often out of the cycling lane, and because the cycle so fast end up in drivers blind spots. I've never hit a cyclist thank god, and any close call has been the cyclists fault.

As for the gardai, I think they have more urgent priorities, unless the cyclist has been injured or their bike damaged. If we were to apply the same logic to motorists, I would be calling to gardai everything I am overtaken.

Ray Palmer

stacybeauchamp wrote: »

If cyclists were to stay in the cycling lanes, they would have no problem with swerving, save for junctions and merging traffic lanes. The problem is they are often out of the cycling lane, and because the cycle so fast end up in drivers blind spots. I've never hit a cyclist thank god, and any close call has been the cyclists fault.

As for the gardai, I think they have more urgent priorities, unless the cyclist has been injured or their bike damaged. If we were to apply the same logic to motorists, I would be calling to gardai everything I am overtaken.

You really don't get the point. The thread is about drivers intentionally threatening cyclists.

I would never claim I have been faultless in ever incident I have had while cycling or driving there are only two kind of people in my view who would say that those who are lying and those who are wrong.

stacybeauchamp

Ray Palmer wrote: »

You really don't get the point. The thread is about drivers intentionally threatening cyclists.

I would never claim I have been faultless in ever incident I have had while cycling or driving there are only two kind of people in my view who would say that those who are lying and those who are wrong.

While I don't condone such aggression or profanity, it is a sad reality that there is a growing minority of drivers that are extremely aggressive on the road. Every morning I am overtaken several times while driving at the speed limit.

Ray Palmer

stacybeauchamp wrote: »

While I don't condone such aggression or profanity, it is a sad reality that there is a growing minority of drivers that are extremely aggressive on the road. Every morning I am overtaken several times while driving at the speed limit.

There is a huge difference between being over taken and having somebody threaten you with a car while you are not inside a similar safety cage.

You are condoning the actions by casually seeing it a somewhat reasonable. The suggestion from what you are saying is cyclists should keep out of the way and that will prevent homicidal reactions from drivers. I am not going to go on about why people don't use cycle lanes but the simply don't exist in places so there is nowhere for the cyclist to go. If you read the thread you would see it also happens in the cycle lanes as it did to e on Friday.

You are victim blaming.

Darkglasses

stacybeauchamp wrote: »

Nonsense - too many Nazi cyclists on the roads these days. And what is the point of going to the Gardai? What can they do? There is no evidence?

The past two days I had so many close calls with inexperienced cyclists who were swerving into and out of traffic - not even in cycling lanes.

As Michael o Leary said, I like cyclists but I wouldn't eat a whole one.

stacybeauchamp wrote: »

If cyclists were to stay in the cycling lanes, they would have no problem with swerving, save for junctions and merging traffic lanes. The problem is they are often out of the cycling lane, and because the cycle so fast end up in drivers blind spots. I've never hit a cyclist thank god, and any close call has been the cyclists fault.

As for the gardai, I think they have more urgent priorities, unless the cyclist has been injured or their bike damaged. If we were to apply the same logic to motorists, I would be calling to gardai everything I am overtaken.

You have completely ignored this mod note - http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=100955429&postcount=79

So do not post in this thread again.

cajonlardo

stacybeauchamp wrote: »

The problem is they are often out of the cycling lane, and because the cycle so fast end up in drivers blind spots.

Wrong.

If someone SWERVES AT a cyclist then they can see them. Talk of blind spots is bolllllllllllllllllllllocks.

the problem is cowards safely cocooned n their cars INTENTIONALLY ENDANGERING a human being.

That is psychotic behaviour

I've driver for 38 years, mostly professionally in emergency vehicles and also as a Close Protection Officer. Nothing ends up in my "blind spot" because I am constantly watching, constantly accessing and constantly taking care. Anyone who cannot afford that duty of care to other persons should take the bus ( or buy a bike)

Chuchote

According to the Daily Mail (a trusted source of medical advice :P ) road rage is a danger to the health of the rager:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-3867820/How-short-temper-road-rage-making-SERIOUSLY-ill-Long-lasting-anger-cause-infection-heart-disease.html

Danbo!

Chuchote wrote: »

According to the Daily Mail (a trusted source of medical advice :P ) road rage is a danger to the health of the rager:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-3867820/How-short-temper-road-rage-making-SERIOUSLY-ill-Long-lasting-anger-cause-infection-heart-disease.html

Ha, good. I used to be a bit aggressive in any sort of incidents, particularly years back before I knew how to drive. Now, I just let them get aggressive or shout, and I just smile, wave, wink, whatever. It can be tough not to argue your case but the majority of the time these aggressive road users won't listen anyway. Its not worth the stress at all.

It's especially fun when you have a chance to talk to them, for example if they shout "get off the road" or whatever, reply with "Thanks I just bought it, I wasn't sure if it suited me" while pointing at helmet or jacket or whatever.

Basically, this calm guy is my spirit animal (NSFW language)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rym5unx0ZCo