Near Misses Volume 2 (So close you can feel it)

Steoller

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122239756#Comment_122239756

Bandit country. Thought I recognised the road. Once you pass the Carrick roundabout on the N2 heading north, all bets are off on the driving you'll see.

Paddigol

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122240761#Comment_122240761

Surely a public education campaign on the point of cycling two abreast would help to alleviate a lot of the grief and stress on the roads. Even for drivers - presumably a good proportion of them would relax a bit more if they understood that the cyclists in front of them weren't just being ignorant asshats?

1. If they were to single out, they'd single out more or less in line with the outermost rider (in other words, you'd still have the same space for an overtake). Why? because that's the safest line to ride a) so as not to be run into the ditch, b) so as not to invite dangerous overtakes, and c) so that you're not cycling in kerbside detritus likely to increase your chances of a mechanical.
2. If 6 cyclists two-abreast were to single out, you'd need to cover approx. 20 metres for an over take instead of just 10. The opportunities to make such a pass on secondary roads are much lower.

Like, its been done to death on here - countless posts over the years trying to talk sense into someone who comes on for a rant. We all understand the logic, but try having that reasonable, calm conversation with the likes of your Merc SUV driver above… pointless. I know from experience, most family and friends who don't cycle are oblivious to the reasoning for two abreast in groups.

VonLuck

Question about close passes and cycle lanes. If I am cycling in a cycle lane with dashed white lines (I think it's officially called a cycle track?) and a car is driving past, do they still have to give 1.5m distance from me legally speaking? I'm not sure if it's considered overtaking as they are technically in a different lane, but the risk is still the same.

It happens all the time where people see the dashed line and then drive tight to it.

magicbastarder

they don't have to give you 1.5m as it stands, unfortunately - the proposed change to the law to stipulate that was not passed, and it remains a guidance only.

if it's not actually considered an overtake, i suspect the law is silent on it.

CR 7

Crossing a narrow bridge(on foot!) yesterday evening, the SUV coming from behind just couldn't wait for me to make it the less than 50m to the other side and just had to squeeze me into the stone wall to avoid the oncoming van that had stopped(due to the narrow bridge). All in a 50km/h zone.

He then happening to be driving back out of my estate when I got there a few minutes later so I flagged him down and tried to have the polite conversation with him.

"You should try to leave a bit more space when overtaking pedestrians."

"I do loads of cycling and I thought I gave loads of space, I consider myself a very good driver."

"I could have put my hand out and touched the car as you passed."

"You know, I'm actually a cop..."

"Then you should have even more awareness around more vulnerable road users."

He drove off then, obviously had been expecting me to apologise for daring to question a "cop"...

I know I was jogging and not cycling, but there's no equivalent thread and it's the same basic issue anyway, a lack of care towards anyone not in a car. It's a narrow bridge I have to cross if I want to run from home without driving to start somewhere. There's no footpath on the bridge, but it's only wide enough for one modern car at a time anyway so traffic generally waits at either side to give way and that leaves enough space for pedestrians/cyclists. The footpath is only on one side of the road either side of the bridge so you have to go on the same side of the road in both directions.

I'm still undecided on whether I'll bother to report it, he didn't seem like the type to accept there's a better way to behave around pedestrians/cyclists.

De Bhál

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122258146#Comment_122258146

If I had to live in the same estate as him I wouldn't be reporting it to be honest. You've highlighted to him face to face how he was wrong and you'd hope if he was anyway decent he'd wait behind the next time this happens.

"You know I'm actually a cop"…. not someone I'd want dealings with really. Did he say "cop"?

CramCycle

Do you know people who say "do you know, I am a cop", are more often than not, not actually cops. If it was me I'd have taken the reg and report to the local Super that someone is impersonating Gardai in order to be intimidating. What he is, but didn't say, is a bit of a Walter Mitty type but at least Walter kept his fantasies in his head.

magicbastarder

i've had that too myself. a woman who nearly ran me off my bike on st martin's row in chapelizod and objected when i slapped the side of her car to let her know i was there. there was some exchange about calling the gardai, and she said 'i am a garda'.

she floored it when i said 'right then, i'll call the gardai and also tell them you were impersonating a garda'.

blackwhite

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122258342#Comment_122258342

I've yet to meet a Garda who would refer to themselves as a "cop"

AndrewJRenko

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122257763#Comment_122257763

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122257768#Comment_122257768

There is a specific offence of dangerous overtaking of a cyclist, and another general offence of overtaking causing inconvenience. Neither specify a distance.

Hurrache

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122258146#Comment_122258146

Vast majority of my running is on lanes and I find if I think someone is going to cut it close despite enough room or skim at speed I find holding my arm out to the side(not like I'm trying to flag a taxi, just a 45 degree angle) usually gives them pause for thought and they usually make eye contact and see me as a person again.

Although I may reconsider if I ever get my hand broken at some point!

Wildly Boaring

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122258885#Comment_122258885

Yeah I also do a lot of running on the road. Same experience, the behaviour changes completely when you male eye contact.

I'm also a demon for going a car a rap on the side if it's too close, i'd not advise that. Have had 2 men stop to explain how shite they are at driving.

As with cycling I find that "taking the lane helps". I run a couple of feet out from the ditch. Not in the middle of the lane but enough to stop a genius from squeezing past me.

I get more space on the bike than running generally. Running and walking are a right eye opener for phone and touchscreen use.

CR 7

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122258630#Comment_122258630

That's exactly what I was thinking as he said it, any "cops" I know don't go around using it as a get out of jail card. Also, I was already skeptical of his claim of doing "loads of cycling" without the physique to match...

sy_flembeck

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122258678#Comment_122258678

Speaking as someone relatively recently retired from the Guards, we'd have collectively called each other many things. 'Cop' was never one of those things. If that was the wording he used then he's not what he says he is

standardg60

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122257763#Comment_122257763

A dashed cycle lane is a shared lane, so realistically it may as well not be there in terms of a safe overtake. The point of them is to emphasise the right of a cyclist to be there in the first place, but unfortunately some drivers think once they overtake without encroaching across the lines it is a safe overtake.

Wildly Boaring

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122266286#Comment_122266286

In fairness to the solicitor they're answering very professionally and essentially saying yo all the dopes that thru broke the law.

The excuses are hilarious. Lanes splitting, roads too narrow, roads narrowing, other cars appearing out of nowhere.... Nice to get a view into how these numpties think. Never their fault. Never reading the road.

standardg60

That is hilarious 😁

'it was Father's Day and I was with my 15 yr old daughter' was my favourite.

Unrealistic

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122269902#Comment_122269902

My jaw dropped at the driver whose excuse was that the cyclist moved closer to him while he was overtaking because the cycle lane ended and that if the cyclist had stayed in his lane (the one that had ended) he wouldn't have close passed him. It think it involved a traffic island forcing him to stay left too, so to obvious infrastructure changes coming up that should have prompted him to delay his overtake but he missed them both.

elchupanebrey

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122270879#Comment_122270879

I've had drivers abort overtakes at the last second in the past when their other 2 choices were hit me or hit the kerb on an island. Thankful abort was the option they chose. Probably plenty of drivers out there that go for the hit the cyclist or force them into the opposite kerb option

magicbastarder

that happened me several times on strand road - drivers doing a rushed overtake, to find they were heading straight for a traffic island. twice here; i see they've removed the islands (if you choose the 2018 imagery, they're there) and replaced them with something less likely to damage a car:

https://www.google.com/maps/@53.3253872,-6.2071464,3a,75y,176.64h,71.03t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1shUR7BP5m3txIYy7q35x3XA!2e0!5s20230601T000000!7i16384!8i8192?coh=205409&entry=ttu

Unrealistic

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122271363#Comment_122271363

There's a very scary but very satisfying video around somewhere of a driver trying to overtake a cyclist as they approach a traffic island on the outskirts of Galway. Thankfully they didn't try to take out the cyclist and instead hit the island at speed and blew out their driver side front tyre.

Paddigol

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122270879#Comment_122270879

No surprise at all at that attitude. It's the reason why you don't cycle a foot out from the kerb, why cycling two abreast is good practice and why I don't use a certain type of cycle lane (i.e. the ones that require you to yield at every turning point/ side road or the ones that spit you out onto the road without any regard to fitness for purpose) - a lot of drivers (as anyone who cycles regularly will appreciate) simply have that attitude of cyclists being second class road users and cars having right of way. If you give an inch, if you cycle defensively, they will pretend they don't see you and expect you to give way - essentially bully you off the road.

CramCycle

Holy crap, after 2+ years of barely anything of note on local roads, 10 close passes in one commute. 3 were into head on into oncoming traffic were I had to haul on my brakes and so did the approaching car. Most of the rest done it on bends and 5 of them I could touch as they went by. Must be something in the air. I would normally blame tourists but most were local reg plates.

hans aus dtschl

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122285857#Comment_122285857

I saw a load of mad driving the last day or two too. Yesterday a woman in traffic tried to aggressively cut me off at the kerb and when I passed on the driver-side she shouted at me to "be careful" :D

I used to work in nightclubs a lot and we would always say you'd see the weirdest of behaviour around a full moon. Full moon is today apparently. The superstition continues!

Boardnashea

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122285857#Comment_122285857

Full moon - always brings them out!

VonLuck

I had a minor encounter with a pedestrian this morning. I was cycling along a shared path and there was a couple walking single file in the same direction as I was cycling. As I was about to overtake, the woman stepped out in front of me. I was going slow enough that it wasn't a problem so I politely rang my bell to warn her. She scrambled to get to one side and apologised, but then the man said "F*ckin hell! How much space do you need!".

It's a path that may be wide enough for 3 people walking abreast, but when two people are walking side by side you can't pass safely on a bike. I guess when you're a cyclist you're just always in the wrong!

magicbastarder

one reason i don't use a bell. by the reports i've heard it's 50/50 whether it'll be viewed as polite, or passive-aggressive.

CramCycle

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122334066#Comment_122334066

Bells are a trigger for some people, I don't use one as I have had some nasty reactions in the past. People seem to take it in the same vein as someone blasting their horn to get you out of the way. Personally, I freewheel and slow on approach, usually enough and a nice wave and thank you as I pass. If they don't hear the freewheel, I'll say excuse me and then thank you but I'm sure some will take this the wrong way.

The bell thing is probably not helped by the way some, not all, use it. Walking through work and a cyclist came through blasting her bell but not even remotely slowing as she went through a shared space. She wasn't trying to be an ass but she was. She just kept going, smiling to herself as if her behaviour was acceptable, oblivious to what an asshat she was.

Paddigol

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122334066#Comment_122334066

As per above posts, we just don't have a cycle-commuting traditioon in Ireland. Bells are very common in the low countries and Germany from experience, and they are seen for what they are - a way of indicating your presence in shared spaces where another cyclist or pedestrian may not realise you are approaching.

Whereas here they are seen as the cycling equivalent of the car horn. And we all know what the car horn is used for - basically everything that your driving instructor tells you it's not for… anger, remonstration, bullying.

So that guy's response probably tells you more about what kind of driver he is and how he views cyclists than anything else.

CramCycle

It should be also noted that there are some people who will react badly no matter what you do.

magicbastarder

that was purely about shifting blame; an 'i know i'm the one in the wrong, but i'll pick a minor detail to shift blame back on to you' approach.

Paddigol

Christ. Some people just shouldn't be allowed outdoors. I'd say she's never admitted to being at fault/ in the wrong for anything. Had you rang a bell you'd have been admonished for being aggressive no doubt.

VonLuck

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122334264#Comment_122334264

I had a very similar incident a while ago when I didn't have a bell on my bike and someone complained that I should have. I ended up putting one on and then I get this reaction this morning. You just can't win!

CramCycle

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122334272#Comment_122334272

I had a guy do this outside work after he pulled a dangerous maneuvre. Me having or not having a bell was irrelevant to the event. I then, thanks to too much time on boards, got to inform him about being adapted for racing and that he was incorrect. It is no different to the people who nearly hit people in the middle of the day but blame no Hi Vis, or at night with good lights but its the lack of Hi Vis is why they nearly killed someone, not them being dangerous.

magicbastarder

yeah, i mentioned here before about a lad apologising to me a year or two ago, for pulling out in front of me without even looking, and then stopping beside me at the next lights to archly declaim 'when i cycle, i wear a helmet and hi-vis'.

hi vis is not much use to me when you don't look, pal.

Paddigol

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122338491#Comment_122338491

That's a good result. Fair play for the effort in following up. Good to hear a positive experience with the Gardai. Hopefully the stress of having Gardai knock on his door, having to engage solicitor and barrister, deal with the paperwork, take time off work to attend court, wonder if a Judge will come down like a tonne of bricks, the cost of defending the prosecution and the fine, and the penalty points and the endorsement on his record, the impact on his insurance premium will give him pause to think next time he decides to treat the roads as his personal race track.

magicbastarder

good result, and it only took two years!

magicbastarder

they did in the comments on the youtube video!

micar

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122339051#Comment_122339051

Were you hoping you were going to spring the signs on the barrister?

Pawwed Rig

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122334264#Comment_122334264

I had that one day. Was on one of the Dublin bikes and a guy in a work van did a very dangerous manoeuvre. He just started shouting at me that I had no high vis or helmet. It is just deflection and being unable to accept responsibility of their actions. Fairly minor issue in your case so bit weird that she made an issue of it.

On the bell issue I tend to give it a ring when well back to alert people of my presence. 9 times out of 10 they have headphones on or head in phone and they don't hear it or react.

TheHouseIRL

I forgot to turn off my invisibility cloak this morning

https://streamable.com/lj277j

Smee_Again

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122367619#Comment_122367619

They could say the same thing.

Be right back

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122367619#Comment_122367619

It seems to me that you made no real effort to slow down until the last minute.

Quango Unchained

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122367619#Comment_122367619

She's legally not required to be aware of her surroundings if she's operating a mobile phone whilst walking. He's clearly visually impaired - hence the sunglasses on such a gloomy day.

TheHouseIRL

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122367912#Comment_122367912

and you’d be wrong

Paddigol

as an aside, amazing quality footage… have heard mixed reviews about cycliq cameras - has reliability improved in recent times? A bike camera is next on my shopping list

TheHouseIRL

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122368378#Comment_122368378

Wasn’t entirely sure what traffic (if any) was in the lane to my right, and that junction to the left is terrible for sight lines so have to keep half an eye on that at all times. On top of all that, there was always a chance that they’d stop short of the bike lane and cross after I’d passed instead of blindly continuing across (as the guy did when he started crossing and then stopped to let an e-scooter past)

The Cycliq camera is pretty good alright. Low light performance isn’t great. I’ve had it for about a year and use it in all weathers, but have found a little bit of water has worked its way past the seal on occasion.

CramCycle

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122368088#Comment_122368088

I dunno, two wrongs don't make a right, you could see them long before you had to heavy brake, why not slow earlier?

standardg60

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122368549#Comment_122368549

My two cents, you're completely in the wrong there. They were already crossing so have priority, it would have been different if they'd stepped off the kerb from the left.

Why would you think they should have stopped short of the bike lane? It's just another lane same as the others so needs to be viewed as if you'd been in a car, they're not a special entitlement to plough on.

TheHouseIRL

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122369113#Comment_122369113

You’d be wrong.

46. (1) A pedestrian shall exercise care and take all reasonable precautions in order to avoid causing danger or inconvenience to traffic and other pedestrians.

https://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/1997/si/182/made/en/print#article49

Your argument would be correct if I had moved off from stationary and they were already crossing per:

(2) When starting from a stationary position a driver shall yield the right of way to other traffic and pedestrians.