CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Debate!

Today's rubbish driving...

(11253 posts)
  • Started 12 years ago by Stepdoh
  • Latest reply from neddie
  • This topic is sticky

  1. alanr
    Member

    Well, I just called up the police station and was told that the officer is next on duty tomorrow morning from 07-00 until 18-00 so maybe I'll phone them tomorrow morning. I just don't want to rat them off by chasing them too much, but I would be keen for them to make some progress. What does everyone think?

    Posted 11 years ago #
  2. chdot
    Admin

    "I just don't want to rat them off by chasing them too much, but I would be keen for them to make some progress"

    I think that's more than reasonable!

    Having a 'dedicated officer' is all very well, but you'd think the police would learn from well publicised cases about 'failing to secure the evidence'...

    Let's hope she delegated the case to someone else while on holiday.

    Posted 11 years ago #
  3. alanr
    Member

    Thanks for your thoughts, chdot. By the way, if anyone is interested, laidback has put some photos showing the damage to my trike on his flickr site at http://www.flickr.com/photos/66067108@N08/ (picture dates are June 13th and June 15th).

    Posted 11 years ago #
  4. gembo
    Member

    Alanr - sympathy going out to you. Looks like you have been bumped down the queue despite the trauma to you and the departure from the scene of the crime. Galling but you basically need to hound the fuzz to get them to do anything here.

    Posted 11 years ago #
  5. recombodna
    Member

    What gembo said. It's unfortunate that you have to hound them but keep at it.Good luck.

    Posted 11 years ago #
  6. custard
    Member

    I just can't believe with a reg number, that a beat cop can't go to the registered address the day of report?

    Posted 11 years ago #
  7. gembo
    Member

    I think the polis have quite a lot of work on and will prioritise hence the need to push our issues with them

    Posted 11 years ago #
  8. sharpie
    Member

    Step forward white 3-series cabriolet BMW driver licence number LT11 LLY.

    I was cycling up South Gyle Broadway in the left hand lane towards the Gyle Centre with the intention of travelling straight on at the roundabout with South Gyle Crescent when a driver in the right-hand lane turned left sharply in front of me into S Gyle Crescent causing me to brake hard. I thought nothing more of it until I was over the roundabout and continuing along S Gyle Broadway when the driver appeared alongside me with his passenger window down and started shouting at me so he must have pulled a quick u-turn on the Crescent. He was driving at the same speed as I was cycling and was dangerously close to my bike. This carried on for maybe 100 metres. He accused me of being in the wrong lane at the roundabout and when I suggested it was him that was at fault he threatened to get out of the car and assault me. When I laughed at him he drove off.

    Email sent to LBP police with the hope that he at least gets a letter.

    Posted 11 years ago #
  9. SRD
    Moderator

    Good for you sharpie (emailing that is). We should not have to put up with either the dangerous (ignorant?) driving, or the harassment.

    Posted 11 years ago #
  10. earthowned
    Member

    Sorry to hear that sharpie. That's precisely the reason I wear a headcam - I know it's not for everyone.

    Take some consolation knowing that the BMW 3 series is the new Ford Mondeo (more sales last year apparently). All those people buying them thinking they are cool and exclusive are not as cool and exclusive as they originally thought.

    Posted 11 years ago #
  11. alibali
    Member

    Maybe he meant you should have been in the red strip-of-death painted on the roundabouts in the Gyle area?

    Probably sore because he couldn't afford a white Audi..

    Posted 11 years ago #
  12. sharpie
    Member

    No danger of me sticking to the token red strips on those roundabouts. Centre of the lane is the safest way to avoid any confusion.

    It's just a shame that the nice quiet cycle route I use dumps me out at the Gyle where non-motorised traffic is a distant thought.

    Posted 11 years ago #
  13. sharpie
    Member

    I've been told I need to make a statement at a local police station so could stop past Costorphine after work. Any idea how long this will take? 30 minutes no problem but I don't want to be stuck there for hours. Guess it depends on workload.

    Posted 11 years ago #
  14. lionfish
    Member

    minimoth had a horrible encounter with a taxi who overtook her (punishment pass?) near Haymarket. She was in the bike lane and his wheels were on the line of the bike lane as he passed her. There was nothing oncoming so he had plenty of space. Clearly the whole purpose was to threaten her/harm her.

    I really start to wonder what to do when people threaten my friends and family. There's little the police can do, and I don't approve of vigilantes. But clearly he should not be on the road.

    Taxi number: 985.
    Time: approx 7:35pm 18/06/12
    Location: Near Haymarket

    Posted 11 years ago #
  15. kaputnik
    Moderator

    @lionfish - report it to the inspector of taxis

    @sharpie "the Gyle where non-motorised traffic is a distant thought" - couldn't agree more. I don't think there's a single pedestrian crossing on South Gyle Crescent and I can think of only two on South Gyle Broadway. Poor, poor show.

    Posted 11 years ago #
  16. lionfish
    Member

    @kaputnik: will do. (they've not replied regarding our last complaint yet!).

    Maybe there should be a big REPORT TAXI button at the top of the forum? :)

    Posted 11 years ago #
  17. SRD
    Moderator

    Two Saturday mornings ago, I was returning from the farmer's market at 10.20 or so with both kids on the tandem and trailer in tow, going up Yeaman place in primary and signalling a righthand turn into Temple Park Crescent, when a black cab reg number VIII CAB overtook me....

    Posted 11 years ago #
  18. soulcycles
    Member

    @ SRD
    Thats definetly worthy of a complaint to the license dept at the council. All complaints have to be investigated. Even if it comes to nothing the cabbie in question will get a grilling. At least that may be some recompence

    Posted 11 years ago #
  19. PS
    Member

    Lady piloting SL11GWA, silver Nissan Micra on loan from Duddingston Coachworks (which is not a surprise if the driving I saw tonight is anything to go by).

    I'm sitting in the middle lane at the stop line at the traffic lights from Randolph Crescent onto Melville Place because the lights are red. SL11GWA pulls up in the right hand lane, but stops a full bike length back, which was nice. She's stopped, so I can only assume she has seen the red light.

    She must have been stationary for at least 5 seconds. Then, with no warning, she sets off, through the red light (and green man). It wasn't even close to RLJ'ing; it was RLignoring.

    There was some queued traffic across the junction that had moved off, so I can only assume it moving set off some reaction in her subconscious that caused her to put foot to accelerator. Either that, or she's taking the panicky there's-a-bike-in-front-must-overtake instinct to new extremes.

    Posted 11 years ago #
  20. SRD
    Moderator

    @soulcycles and others - can someone give me the details of the taxi person I am supposed to report stuff to? I wasn't sure if I needed the taxi number, not the plate number, which I wouldn't have remembered if it had not been so distinctive.

    Posted 11 years ago #
  21. Arellcat
    Moderator

    SRD, this is the page you need:

    http://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/downloads/file/841/taxi_and_phc_complaint_advice

    and you put your complaint in writing to:

    Complaints Officer
    City of Edinburgh Council
    249 High Street
    Edinburgh
    EH1 1YJ

    You should get an acknowledgement letter from CEC stating that the complaint has been copied to the Council Cab Inspector, and you should get a follow-up letter from CEC in due course relating to any actions taken.

    The main caveat is that you do generally need the taxi number, rather than the vehicle registration number. The main reason I know this is because I had to complain about a taxi driver earlier this year; normally I let it go but when it affected my confidence as a road user and spoiled my whole day into the bargain, I was fuming.

    Posted 11 years ago #
  22. chdot
    Admin

    "
    The main caveat is that you do generally need the taxi number, rather than the vehicle registration number.
    "

    Presumably they would be able to cross reference - cant imagine that you can transfer plate without notifying cab office.

    Posted 11 years ago #
  23. crowriver
    Member

    Myself and 3 year old daughter were out and about in the rush hour traffic this morning, and the post rush hour delivery/bin coillection mayhem, on our way to and from the Spokes Bike Breakfast.

    Edinburgh's drivers took the opportunity to put on a display of aggressive and/or incompetent driving for us to mark the occasion.

    First up, a red Corsa overtook us on Regent Road and then cut us up severely (necessitating an emergency stop with daughter's helmet banging gently into my spine). Their urgent destination? The entrance to the Scottish Government car park at St Andrews House! If the civil servants and ministers drive like tools, what hope is there?

    Next we were attempting to advance to the ASL on Waterloo Place on the approach to North Bridge, except there was a 37 bus (Lothian Buses) occupying the ASZ. Vehicles can get caught there, it's a tricky junction, but not very nice to be caught out in rush hour like that.

    There was another Lothian bus in the ASZ later on, this time on North Bridge going the other way. Both I and the lady in the recumbant alongside were very critical. As we rounded the corner towards Waterloo Place, a big skip lorry full of building rubble fully occupying the ASZ. I know the sequence of the lights there and it is not really possible to be caught out there as a motorist: you have to deliberately occupy the ASZ.

    I'm really looking forward to the day when the police start enforcing these ASZ/ASL zones!

    Posted 11 years ago #
  24. recombodna
    Member

    I saw a council road marking lorry fully in the ASL at forrest road.... I mean... they paint the bloody things onto the road surely THEY know what they are???

    Posted 11 years ago #
  25. SRD
    Moderator

    'lady in the recumbent' stealth arellcat spot?

    Posted 11 years ago #
  26. ARobComp
    Member

    I got shouted at while taking a photie of two private hire cabs in the ASZ at cameron toll coming back into town from Liberton last week. They pulled into the ASZ quite deliberately. I thought it was a fairly good example of this sort of thing so tried to take a sneeky photo. Got some angry shouts :( Plus the photo was RUBBISH.

    Posted 11 years ago #
  27. Snowy
    Member

    @kaputnik You're correct about South Gyle Crescent, no crossings at all, and a road surface which is positively lunar. A pedestrian was killed crossing the road at 9am, March 2011 I think.

    Worth noting that once you get into Edinburgh Park, the lamposts have repeater signs for 20mph on them, but there are no 'large' 20mph signs at the entrance to Edinburgh Park so I'm unsure of the legal validity of the 20mph sections.

    Regardless, some of the buses hurtle to/from Edin Park rail station at 35-40mph which have prompted a couple of emails from me this month!

    Posted 11 years ago #
  28. crowriver
    Member

    @SRD, entirely possible. Not so much of a spot as a short ride together in the same direction (though she was a fair bit faster than us). She seemed to know some other CCE bods earlier at the Spokes breakfast. However, I'm increasingly of the view that keen cyclists nearly all know each other in this city*. At least those who turn up to 'activist' events during Bike Week...

    * - 'Edinburgh's a village' notwithstanding.

    Posted 11 years ago #
  29. le_soigneur
    Member

    Taxi overtaking a cyclist at the Balgreen Rd traffic lights on green at 7:45pm on Thurs eve. He had the whole empty lane outside him, yet insisted on a punishment pass. The cyclist with panniers and rain-gear shook his head after feeling the wind of a close encounter.
    Taxi Plate 1248.

    Posted 11 years ago #
  30. Arellcat
    Moderator

    @crowriver @SRD: yes, that was me. :)

    Posted 11 years ago #

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