CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Debate!

Cyclists & anything bigger than a car

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  1. 559
    Member

    Used to do a huge amount of cycling 30years ago, didn't cycle much until about 6 years ago, in between did a lot of driving. The only reason this is relevant is it provides some differing perspectives on traffic interactions. Although Iam sure many others on this forum share similar experiences.

    An issue which has unfortunate consequences is how cyclists and large vehicles interact. We as cyclists should never go up either side of such vehicles, during bend situations, their size means that they have to take bends in straight segments, which at certain points means there will be no space. This coupled with their poor side visibility......

    Posted 13 years ago #
  2. Uberuce
    Member

    That's why I don't overtake cars on bends. Now, if more would just return the favour...

    On a related note: kudos, props, respect and thanks to the van driver who did have the patience to hang back as I made it up a bend on the A702 yesterday.

    Posted 13 years ago #
  3. Dave
    Member

    I think being a driver provides a valuable perspective.

    I don't do much compared with some (190 miles a week on average) but more than many. I love to play games with cyclists I see, the foremost amongst them is "will they look around before moving further out into the lane".

    Perhaps one difference between myself and a non-cycling driver is that I see a cyclist approaching a parked car and I don't expect them to crash into the back of it - so it doesn't matter when they don't check, because I've prepared for them not to crash into the back of it ;-)

    However, I get a lot of messages from it that other motorists must hate - for example, quite often I'll hold back behind a cyclist when there's enough of a gap (in a physical, but not a safety sense) to squeeze past, and I think to myself, "yep, need to be really wide in the road there". It's rare - almost nonexistent - that I think "he was too assertive, there was no need to be in the way"). Contrast with EEN commenters or the public in general!

    Posted 13 years ago #
  4. Min
    Member

    It is funny how people instantly forget how common the left hook is when it comes to cyclists and lorries, or how common it is for lorry drivers to overtake you with the cab then swing the trailer in at you. If that was to happen when you are passing, say a parked car the consequences would be obvious.

    Is it some sort of "it could never happen to me" type reaction that makes people always try to make out that the cyclist MUST have ridden up the side of the lorry? It must be their fault somehow and therefore it could never happen to me.

    Posted 13 years ago #
  5. Bhachgen
    Member

    "how common it is for lorry drivers to overtake you with the cab then swing the trailer in at you"

    I often get the impression that some lorry drivers unthinkingly perform the same manoeuvre when passing a cyclist as they do when passing a parked vehicle or similar obstruction. Meaning that they pull out to pass and then start to move back in as soon as the cab is in front of the "obstruction". Forgetting that the cyclist is typically moving 12-25 mph faster than a parked car would be.

    Might explain this behaviour, though it doesn't excuse it...

    Posted 13 years ago #
  6. Claggy Cog
    Member

    Car drivers do not check when passing parked cars and if you are a cyclist in a dominant road position then why should you have to check every time you need to pass a parked vehicle...you would be spending most of your time looking over your shoulder, and as a cyclist I have a great many other things to worry about which affect car drivers less, like potholes, the state of the road, weather conditions...

    I remember taking out some people returning to cycling and this one woman in particular kept on going in towards the pavement every time she overtook one parked car only to have to weave out again a couple of seconds later, now this was dangerous, and I told her to take a positive road position and keep going in a straight line, she was fine after that but it was scary being behind her initially, because she was also tempted to come to a complete stop before swinging out past yet another parked car, which by the way were all parked on a cycle lane.

    And yes, it seems that it is always the cyclist at fault for going up the inside of long vehicles, what else can you do when they make up a large part of the traffic on the road, and also are you supposed to wait in the queue at lights when there is a cycle lane or enough room for you to get through, just because there is a lorry at the head of the queue, followed by a bus or two or three, plus LWB vans, etc.

    Posted 13 years ago #
  7. Nelly
    Member

    Liz, I think you make a valid point about new/returning cyclists.

    Passive and riding in gutter are a recipe for disaster imo.

    I was out on bike doing some shopping today, and the standard of some cyclists roadsense was awful - I do sometimes wonder why there are not more serious incidents - esp at this time of year, poor or non existent lights etc.

    By the way, I am not excusing other road users here, I just think until we turn into copenhagen, I will continue to ride assertively and not do anything stupid (up inside a lorry at lights) - self preservation.

    Posted 13 years ago #

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