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

mr spuckler

I haven't posted here in a long time, largely as I've hardly been on the bike in the last 12 months+

Yesterday evening around 6:45pm as we cycled here, myself, my wife with nearly 2yo in a Weeride seat and our 5yo cycling his bike in the cycle lane, a car approached from Collins avenue on the left and intending to join the road heading towards Raheny, same direction that we were going.

The driver clearly just did not look at or see us. Even with the yield line maybe 10 metres away she continued at the same speed and clearly intending to proceed which would have resulted in her hitting me and the 5yo at least. I put out my hand and yelled at her to stop, which thankfully had the desired reaction.

Despite this, at no point did I see her actually make eye contact with me, even after she had reacted to my shout. She seemed to be completely in her own world and almost unsure of what had just happened. I watched for her to pass us to see if there'd be any acknowledgment at all - none forthcoming. Truly frightening and bizarre at the same time. I shudder to think what would have happened if I didn't yell at her or if I wasn't as assertive on the road as I am.

tnegun

I had a bizarre encounter yesterday here I was waiting at the lights to go straight ahead for the canal/greenway with a car waiting on the other side. The lights changed and a pedestrian stepped in front of the car which set him off beeping like mad, I started to cycle across the junction and as soon as the pedestrian clears the car he drives straight at me wanting to turn right(my left) with no indicator. I held up my hand signalling for to stop him as I had right of way and he rolls down the window to tell me to get the fcuk out of his way. I just laughed at him and cycled on but there are some proper nutters out there all this less than 20m from the Garda station.

MangleBadger

I was going through the roundabout between Cabinteely and Shankill. Just after I’d passed through a car decides to try overtake me even though there was plenty of oncoming traffic and clearly no room. As he got his nose in front of me he started to squeeze me in towards the kerb. So I gave his car a smack.
He puts the brakes on then and I pull up to his passenger window. He must have been in his 60/70s with I guess his grand daughter in the passenger seat.
He starts shouting at me that I was taking up to much room and should stick closer to the side or use the path.
I tried to tell him there was no room and he needs to give me room if he is overtaking.
It was then the 10-12 year old grand daughter started to shout abuse at me. Telling me to f*ck off and calling me a c*nt. So no point in continuing that conversation.
Caught up with them as they were waiting to turn right the far side of Shankill. Granddaughter with the passenger window open to hurl more abuse at me.
Interesting interaction.

MojoMaker

A 10yr old with a mouth like that tells you all you need to know about all generations of that family unfortunately MangleBadger.

The best strategy is usually just to steer well clear.

Seth Brundle

Anyone care to guess the percentages in Ireland?

https://twitter.com/NPRoadSafety/status/1391805406788345857

Fighting Tao

0%

Pinch Flat

Irlande null points

Mundo7976

-10% Gardai seem more bothered that you would ring them in the first place!

blackwhite

Beaver Row this morning, waiting at the lights to change to cross the N11 towards Anglesea Road. Pleasantly surprised to see that no cars are blocking the yellow box, until I notice that there's a Garda car (Road Traffic unit no less) waiting at the top of the queue on N11 inbound, so all others are on their best behaviour.

Lights for N11 traffic change to red, and lights for Beaver Row turn green. Both myself and another cyclist start to move, as well as a car in the right hand lane beside us, only for a taxi to blast through the red on N11 inbound forcing all of us to emergency brake and the car beside us to lay on the horn.

Despite happening right in front of the Garda car and the horn from the other car surely alerting their attention to it all, not a hint of them going after the c*nt.

ARX

blackwhite wrote: »

Despite happening right in front of the Garda car and the horn from the other car surely alerting their attention to it all, not a hint of them going after the c*nt.

I once pulled up behind a Garda car meekly queuing behind a line of vehicles illegally using the bus lane on the Finglas Road. The lights turned green and we all moved off to turn right onto Prospect Way. At the junction with Botanic Road the lorry driver immediately in front of the Garda car wants to turn left so up he drives onto the footpath to get past a bus on his right. No reaction from the Garda car. They really couldn't care less.

Mundo7976

Mundo7976 wrote: »

-10% Gardai seem more bothered that you would ring them in the first place!

-10% for the lad who reported someone and got a ticket for his troubles

Hurrache

blackwhite wrote: »

Despite happening right in front of the Garda car and the horn from the other car surely alerting their attention to it all, not a hint of them going after the c*nt.

I had a similar happen on the NCR a few years ago. 3 Gardai in the car had chosen to ignore it until myself and another that had to stop or be driven into it made exaggerated WTF gestures to them and at the car, and with a perceivable shrug and eye roll the Garda driver eventually decided maybe he should do his job and turned around and followed the car.

The driver of the car had actually dived down a side alley and jumped out and tried to look innocent so I figured there was more to it than breaking a red light. Garda probably pissed that it took them that bit longer to get back to HQ.

sy_flembeck

Fighting Tao wrote: »

0%

100% for me. 7 reported and 7 dealt with. I can have absolutely no complaints. Other than the sh*tshow that is the reporting system here but I can't blame them for that!

Effects

ARX wrote: »

No reaction from the Garda car. They really couldn't care less.

I was on the quays a few years back, loads of cars driving in the bus lane, skipping the queues.
I asked two Gardaí in a van in the lane next to me about it.
Their response was "what do you want us to do about it".
Some of them just don't care about enforcing some laws/rules of the road.

Steoller

Effects wrote: »

I was on the quays a few years back, loads of cars driving in the bus lane, skipping the queues.
I asked two Gardaí in a van in the lane next to me about it.
Their response was "what do you want us to do about it".
Some of them just don't care about enforcing some laws/rules of the road.

it's endemic. I know not all Guards are like this. I've had one trying and one good experience reporting issues to the Gardaí, myself, so I'm not willing to write them all off. But there are too many examples like the ones mentioned here for me not to suspect that it's cultural.

And then you see stories like this.

Tombo2001

Am thinking about the child killed yesterday in Kerry. And the social media comments you see about it. I dont know what happened. But frequently the comments refer to thinking about how awful it is for both the childs family, and for the driver.

The driver will have to live with this (they will). Every drivers worst nightmare.

The thing is -and I'm talking generally, not about this incident - if its every drivers worst nightmare then why do they drive they way they do. Its not their worst nightmare. Until it happens.

They dont drive like they believe this could happen.

Am struck by a comment on thejournal.ie on this news story.

"There are many houses immediately adjacent to this road & the speed limit is 80Km. Its such a dangerous road that it should be 60Km but all the locals drive at 100 & over! I’m regularly overtaken by idiots on solid white lines only to catch up with them a mile or so further up the road. Unfortunately this tragedy isn’t the first on this road & it will be repeated again & again. Every one is in a hurry to go nowhere!

This is describes a road in Kerry. And it describes roads all over Ireland. Speed limits are routinely higher than they should be. And drivers routinely drive above the speed limit on same road. Everywhere.

The culture of excessive speed is what kills people, particularly vulnerable road users. Its not an accident.

magicbastarder

a chap i know was the driver in a pedestrian fatality. he was held to be completely blameless, by both the victim's family and the gardai, and witnesses who saw the incident. he took it badly, as you might expect - he sold his house because he didn't want to have to drive that road again, but within a few years had moved back to the area. time heals, i guess.

Tombo2001

magicbastarder wrote: »

a chap i know was the driver in a pedestrian fatality. he was held to be completely blameless, by both the victim's family and the gardai, and witnesses who saw the incident. he took it badly, as you might expect - he sold his house because he didn't want to have to drive that road again, but within a few years had moved back to the area. time heals, i guess.

Absolutely it does.... there was a few kids in my primary school. Their dad was killed in a traffic accident. I didnt know them at all really, but I just remember their shocked faces. But the thing is, 40 years on, they havent seen their dad for 40 years......whereas I can still call out to see my dad.

Seth Brundle

What kind of wank3r thinks it is ok to endanger a bunch of children just to get to the next set of red lights quicker?

https://twitter.com/donna_cooney1/status/1392763555917832194

hots

Seth Brundle wrote: »

What kind of wank3r thinks it is ok to endanger a bunch of children just to get to the next set of red lights quicker?

https://twitter.com/donna_cooney1/status/1392763555917832194

How does it make them get through lights quicker? Slower surely as they all have to stick together at the slowest one's pace?

fixXxer

hots wrote: »

How does it make them get through lights quicker? Slower surely as they all have to stick together at the slowest one's pace?

He's talking about the truck putting kids in danger so it can get through the lights quicker, not the cycle bus.

hots

fixXxer wrote: »

He's talking about the truck putting kids in danger so it can get through the lights quicker, not the cycle bus.

jesus my bad

sy_flembeck

Seth Brundle wrote: »

What kind of wank3r thinks it is ok to endanger a bunch of children just to get to the next set of red lights quicker?

https://twitter.com/donna_cooney1/status/1392763555917832194

I was walking in Bray this afternoon, southbound on Castle Street towards the main junction at the bottom of the town centre (Main St/ Herbert/ Quinsboro' Roads). Got to the junction and the lights were green for the traffic on Main St. As I was intending crossing the junction diagonally I was mindful of a car stopped waiting to turn right onto Herbert Road. The cycle lane at Macari's chipper is closed due to roadworks and there is good signage to reflect this.

Coming down Main Street towards me I see a woman and a little girl, maybe 6yo, cycling towards me. Both wearing helmets and both in cycle lane. Mother slightly out to the edge in a protective manner (we've all done it). Then the woman in a white car behind them decides she wants to pass. On the junction. With the lights amber. And an oncoming stationary car (waiting to turn right). And a closed cycle lane. Bizarrely she passes giving them plenty of space but they are forced to move out due to the roadworks. So she is left going through a red light on the wrong side of the road facing an oncoming car. An utterly shocking manoeuvre. Absolutely no awareness of her surroundings - simply MGIF.

But it's what happens next that's the real sickener. She sits on the horn and frightens the life out of both cyclists - who up to that point were unaware of what was unfolding behind them.

However, the junction was very busy with pedestrians, many of whom were not shy in shouting their opinions after her (sadly of course the driver was completely oblivious to this and is doubtless still blaming the bloody cyclists).

While I found the reactions refreshing I couldn't help thinking that had that been me and one other male adult in cycling gear the reaction would most likely have been mute.

Effects

Three close passes today. I was driving.

Heading up a steep winding hill towards the Blue Light. Three cyclists ahead of me, and a blind corner, so I held back to give them room, until it was clear. As I was overtaking, a Black Peugeot further back decided to overtake me at the same time. Really dangerous if something had been the other side of the corner.

Heading back down towards Sandyford, passing over the M50, two oncoming cyclists riding two abreast. Driver swerves on to my side of the road to overtake them, leaving me having to swerve sharply into the bus lane on my side to avoid collision.

Final one was on the strand road in Sandymount. Articulated lorry coming towards me overtakes a cyclist at the same time as meeting me, so leaving them very little space.

Seth Brundle

Had this impatient muppet overtake me going into a bend with oncoming traffic on the Aylmer Rd between Lucan and Newcastle yesterday evening. I had put my arm out to indicate for them not to overtake but they continued anyhow.
The traffic before them also overtoook on the approach to a bend but nothing as bad as the cretin in the Hyundai...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FOabxj9YTIA

stoneill

https://www.reddit.com/r/IdiotsInCars/comments/nc0pxh/you_had_one_job_and_that_definitely_wasnt_it/


Not so much as a near miss as a I definitely got you!

Duckjob

Coming back from a lovely little ride around my local area yesterday

The road outside my estate has this little narrow chicane bit of about 50 yards which is one way at a time, so you need to yield to traffic already coming though it. Due to a bends at both ends, there's no thru visibility until you get to it, so you need to slow down and check if there's anything coming from the other end and stop if necessary.

Its a traffic calmed street with speed bumps etc.

Guy in a Toyota hatchback came up behind me as approached this section, me doing around 30kph.

Just as I was getting near to where you slow and stop if necessary, his patience runs out and he overtakes me.

At that moment, as anyone with 2 brain cells could predict might happen, a car comes around the bend exiting the one way bit and our genius has to hastily move back in in front of me while the other car had to stop dead to avoid a head on collision.

Our genius then goes for gold and charges on through the one-way section with another car already on its way through from the other side. The driver of that other car also has to stop dead in the middle of the section while our genius drives up on the footpath and around them and flies off.

Are they giving driving licences on the back of cereal packets these days ?

MojoMaker

Abject self-importance, no more.

We're all guilty of it, some manage it better than others.

magicbastarder

Effects wrote: »

Three close passes today. I was driving.

i was out in the car the other day and the level of bad driving was horrendous. coming onto the M50, a woman in a beemer could not wait to slip in behind me, and undertook me on the hard shoulder to get in front of me. and at the next junction (i only went one junction along), a lorry driver driving a large articulated flatbed indicated and pulled into my lane with me on the inside of him. i had to slam to avoid a collision.

riewomann

sy_flembeck wrote: »

Mother slightly out to the edge in a protective manner (we've all done it).

I've being noticing where a parent and child are cycling, the child will be in the cycle lane as normal and the parent cycling parallel to them in the traffic lane.

I appreciate their will to protect their child, although by cycling in the traffic lane they are holding up traffic. Even where it is a mandatory cycle lane.

This type of behaviour will only create further animosity amongst some motorists for cyclists. Surely if your child is ready to cycle then let them cycle, or if not take them off the primary routes where traffic is whizzing by.

I love cycling as much as the next person, but the optics of this are terrible. Its a big two fingers to everyone else and reeks of a "my child is the most important thing in the world, so if I have to incenvenience hundreds of people for them to have a spin, then so be it".

Rant over.