Seeing a bright flash-flash just a few minutes ago (London Road speed camera at Dalziel Place) and hearing a screech of tyres I look out the window to see a motorcycle U-turning at the top of the road. It then accelerates back down the road, pulls a wheelie and triggers the camera again. He then burns rubber as he skid to a stop again, U-turns and then wheelies back through it for the 2nd time (although didn't get a flash that time). There were 2 cyclists in the bus lane and a few cars on the road. Completely bonkers and with that sort of reckless attitude they either just don't care, or are riding a vehicle not registered to themselves so are unlikely to ever be caught.
CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Debate!
Today's rubbish driving...
(11330 posts)- Started 13 years ago by Stepdoh
- Latest reply from fergus
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Posted 9 years ago #
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Passenger in a car threw coffee at a club-mate of mine (and missed, thankfully) as she was cycling to the swimming session yesterday evening. It was possibly the same car that came flying past me as I was cycling in from a different direction - I only noticed the car because of the speed it was doing.
Posted 9 years ago # -
Haymarket was so bad this morning with buses and trams and badly positioned cars that I just walked through on the pavement instead of cycling, just can't be bothered with it anymore. They want it to be a transport hub but the current set up but doesn't have the space for all the buses and taxis' and badly driven cars.
Posted 9 years ago # -
Oh yes, Haymarket seemed very jammed up yesterday. I had the Dalry and Gorgie Roads almost to myself on my way home, as if nothing had come through the junction.
Posted 9 years ago # -
Not sure what was up with Haymarket this morning - the turn-right-into-Torphichen-from-West-Maitland light didn't go green for two cycles when vehicles in that lane were already backed up to Haymarket Terrace. A FirstBus had attempted to emerge from Dalry Road into NO SPACE and was therefore occupying the eastbound tram track; a tram was heading along (the otherwise empty) Shandwick Place westbound but I gave up and walked to the side of the road, across the crossing then remounted so didn't see if it could make it.
Posted 9 years ago # -
It does seem throughout the city centre area, that the traffic lights lock at red when a tram is expected. The system however doesn't seem clever enough to know when a tram is stuck - so red lights stay red, often missing their green phase several times over.
Posted 9 years ago # -
Yeah the issue comes I think when a car/bus/lorry blocks the tram from moving but it's already passed the previous go sign (which I assume counts as a "trigger" for launching a change in the phase of lights). I've ended up stuck at end of morrison street for up to 5 or more minutes waiting for a tram that never comes.
Sometimes just walk across frankly. Advantage of being on a bike.
Posted 9 years ago # -
Was brought to you by the huge Dutch Lorry who close passed me on St John's Road this morning despite there being oodles of space to his right.
I assume that it was due to uncertainty of where his right hand side was compared to the centre line meant he was driving based on his left hand side, which I'd put in the 'uncomfortable' category rather than 'truly terrifying'. But in a giant truck it is a fine line between the two a
I gave him the 'you scared me' routine so hopefully he will think about his positioning.
Did remind me of one of the worse set of close I had. At the end of the Tour of Britain stage up Pen-Y-Pass I was cycling home and overtaken by numerous left hand drive tour vehicles heading to the next stage.
Posted 9 years ago # -
@Hankchief giant Dutch lorries are generally the overnight flower delivery expresses straight from the cut flower markets. They clearly have no problem with the idea of sending massive 6-axle lorries into congested city centres, and why should they? All modern European capital cities have great traffic-free cycling networks to keep cyclists safe from motor vehicles. Right?
Posted 9 years ago # -
Those huge Dutch flower lorries scare the **** out of me and I have never actually had anything personally scary happen to me with them.
Posted 9 years ago # -
The must be something in the mini driver's water this week. Yesterday I watched on merrily pirouetting and on Maybury Roundabout. They then decided the best solution was to drive the wrong way round the roundabout, thankfully traffic was light so chaos didn't ensue.
The day before's mini numpty was a classic MGIF overtaking on the approach to the red light at Barnton.
Neither is a patch on the one nevelbell's boss encountered though.
Posted 9 years ago # -
Driver of Lothian Buses service 12 who ignored the red light at the pedestrian crossing on Meadow Place Road as I went to cross.
Reported to them online.
Lothian Bus driving standards are definitely slipping.
Posted 9 years ago # -
I can assure you, as a Mini driver, that my download link from the BMW mothership obviously is on the fritz.
Agreed on Lothian Buses - disappointing really.
Posted 9 years ago # -
I'm sure the majority of Mini drivers are perfectly capable drivers and it's just a case of planets aligning.
Posted 9 years ago # -
crash-driver-banned-after-forth-road-bridge-delays
I'm sure very few people would argue that this sentence was excessive. But once again it shows that traffic flow is king. Shut an arterial road for a few hours overnight and you'll get a stiff sentence. Run someone off the road causing actual injury and at worst you'll get a black mark on your insurance.
Posted 9 years ago # -
The majority of drivers are perfectly capable, but there are definitely some marques and models that seem more susceptible to bad driving. Unfortunately I do think Minis are one of those marques....
Posted 9 years ago # -
I didn't want to mention it WC, but new mini's are on my 'warning radar'.
Posted 9 years ago # -
Given the hideous ugliness of the new models this is most likely to be our last, so soon I won't care ;)
Posted 9 years ago # -
Normally I wouldn't differentiate between (new) mini's and other BMW models, although I suspect it's more confirmation bias and I only notice the brand after an incident.
It's never a good idea to assume someone is a competent driver just because of the car they are driving.
Posted 9 years ago # -
It's never a good idea to assume someone is a competent driver.
Unfortunately the best approach is to assume that they're all incompetent and cycle accordingly! Or more politically correct, always cycle/drive defensively.
Robert
Posted 9 years ago # -
If you have an expert witness to muddy the waters, you can discredit the polis expert witness AND an eyewitness
Posted 9 years ago # -
@le-soigneur, that is a very sad tale.
Posted 9 years ago # -
That really is desperately sad, and does seem a massive disparity in the expert witness accounts (cyclist stopped and truck doing 10mph versus cyclist travelling at 16-20mph and truck at 38mph). Odd that the eyewitness would be so discounted.
But whatever the truth of it, that man has to live with the fact that he was effectively directly responsible (whichever tale is correct) for the death of his own son.
Posted 9 years ago # -
"The trial heard earlier that Craig would have survived with only a sore neck and head if he had worn a crash helmet."
I know it has come up before, but why is this even raised as an issue in such a trial? Are killed or injured pedestrians or drivers regularly upbraided/blamed in the courts for not wearing hi-vis or full face helmets? Of course not.
I personally genuflect the way of the polystyrene hat gods when riding, but IMO the likelihood of it improving matters if I'm knocked off by an incompetent driver is vanishingly small.
Posted 9 years ago # -
why is this even raised as an issue in such a trial
[conjecture]
perhaps his brief told him the lack of helmet could be held responsible if he insisted his speed was only around 10mph
[/conjecture]
Posted 9 years ago # -
Got passed closely at high speed by a horn-blaring black 4x4 on the A703 this morning, on the way back into Edinburgh. Nothing in oncoming lane - absolutely crazy behaviour.
Posted 9 years ago # -
I was crossing Colinton Rd from mid-gillland to south gillsland when a silver estate car
OVOL FKROV07 FKR (thanks algo!) which was stopped on the side of the road suddenly and with no warning accelerated backwards straight at me - leaving me to either accelerate into his path or brake abruptly and sit in the middle of colinton rd with 4yo on the bike, and oncoming traffic.Turned out driver thought it was very clever to reverse at speed into south gillsland so as to then pull across onto mid-gillsland.
He obviously has a high regard for cyclists and their ability to mindread. and of all the kids at nursery/school there not to run out onto the crossing while he reversed over it from around the corner.
Won't surprise you to hear it was a middle aged bloke in a suit, with an ego to match his driving style.
Posted 9 years ago # -
@SRD - sounds pretty terrifying. I know what you mean about people expecting you to be mind readers with no realisation of the vulnerability you feel and immobility you possess on a stationary bicycle (especially with passenger). Not important, but that's a very odd (and I don't think real) number plate - the first 4 characters anyway
Posted 9 years ago # -
that's what it 'looked' like to me. Ov0l maybe?
thanks for the empathy algo. needed it this morning!
Posted 9 years ago # -
as a general rule with cars post 2000 - two letters, then either a 0,1,5 or 6 then a number, then three letters. The best bet I have on yours is OV07 FKR (that makes it a posh Merc - but a saloon not an estate). I'm just mentioning this as it helps to constrain your memory if in future you really need to remember a number plate.
Cars between 1983 and 2000 are letter, 1,2 or 3 numbers, and three letters.
Cars before that are three letters, 1,2 or 3 numbers, and a letter.Posted 9 years ago #
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