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Why is there so much animosity towards cyclists in Sheffield?


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I also had to go through a red light yesterday to go over the road crossing for one of the reasons highlighted above - I missed the green light, so stopped & waited, but the induction loop didn't trigger, so after a couple of cycles (no pun intended) had to go through the light to use the road crossing

 

Get off, walk round the lights, re-mount. Simple: no law-breaking, no risk to pedestrians and perhaps even faster for the cyclist sometimes?

 

You cannot do this in a car, so despite the humiliation of having to behave as a pedestrian, a cyclist can still feel morally superior to a car driver.

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Get off, walk round the lights, re-mount. Simple: no law-breaking, no risk to pedestrians and perhaps even faster for the cyclist sometimes?

 

You cannot do this in a car, so despite the humiliation of having to behave as a pedestrian, a cyclist can still feel morally superior to a car driver.

 

 

zero pedestrians, dropped kerb next to light ...no danger to car drivers :)

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I was honked at aggressively in Rotherham yesterday by a guy on the opposite side of the road ... can only think it is because I was cycling on the shared pedestrian / cycle way and he thought it was a pavement ??

 

I also had to go through a red light yesterday to go over the road crossing for one of the reasons highlighted above - I missed the green light, so stopped & waited, but the induction loop didn't trigger, so after a couple of cycles (no pun intended) had to go through the light to use the road crossing

 

A little tip if you do have to cross a junction that you know sometimes doesn't pick you up

 

Stop at the induction sensor, if you can see it. Put a foot on the ground and lean the bike over so that the front wheel is over at 45 degrees or more directly over the sensor, rather than being perpendicular to the ground. The big circular rim is much more likely to register.

 

If you have carbon fibre rims, ignore what I just said

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Do you use roads that don't go where you need to go? Or require you to get out and push your car along, or travel at two thirds of your available speed? Or that are full of obstacles?

 

 

NO! But I do pay road tax.

 

---------- Post added 13-07-2015 at 07:26 ----------

 

Unless they're going side to side across two whole lanes of traffic, then the fact that you can't pass is probably a sign that it's wouldn't be safe for you to pass there.

 

 

Strangely enough, I actually passed my driving test, I DO know when it is or isn't safe to pass a vehicle:roll:

 

I am always considerate of other road users and I keep well back from any in front of me. This one knew I was signaling to pass but kept moving to the right of the lane then back again and the looking back and grinning. Held up traffic for ages. Then cyclists wonder why drivers get peed off.

 

Just for the record I do have a bike which I use when I go cycling with my grandson. On the cycle tracks.

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---------- Post added 13-07-2015 at 08:55 ----------

 

NO! But I do pay road tax.

 

---------- Post added 13-07-2015 at 07:26 ----------

 

 

 

Strangely enough, I actually passed my driving test, I DO know when it is or isn't safe to pass a vehicle:roll:

 

I am always considerate of other road users and I keep well back from any in front of me. This one knew I was signaling to pass but kept moving to the right of the lane then back again and the looking back and grinning. Held up traffic for ages. Then cyclists wonder why drivers get peed off.

 

Just for the record I do have a bike which I use when I go cycling with my grandson. On the cycle tracks.

 

I think that saying "I pay road tax" should be made illegal and punishable by attending of a course to tell you why you don't pay road tax - no one does. http://ipayroadtax.com/ goes some way to explain this.

 

And given that you ride on the cycle tracks you will understand how absolutely awful they are, that is why I do not ride on them. It is also my right to ride on the road and I will continue to do so for my own safety and convenience. I have equal right to be there as you do.

 

Also, I will ride on the middle of my lane when it is not safe for you to pass and I will pull over to the left when I consider it safe for you to pass. I do not trust people to make that judgement correctly. This is what you call riding "side to side". It is the taught method of riding safely in the new national cycling standard which replaced the cycling proficiency and also just makes sense. If i sit and hug the curb people squeeze through extremely close, I have been clipped by a wing mirror before. If i take control then people give me space.

Edited by TimmyR
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NO! But I do pay road tax.

No you don't. You pay Vehicle Excise Duty. Just like I do for my car.

Can I have a refund for the days I'm using my bike instead?

Then cyclists wonder why drivers get peed off.

Are you confusing 1 cyclist with all cyclists? Do you have the same problem with motorists?

 

And if you use cycle tracks you'll know that there are good reasons not to use them sometimes.

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Strangely enough, I actually passed my driving test, I DO know when it is or isn't safe to pass a vehicle:roll:

 

I had assumed that you had passed your driving test, I think that's a reasonable assumption to make about the vast majority of drivers on the road.

 

Having said that, having passed a driving test doesn't stop many drivers from driving worse than a typical learner - presumably having a driving licence for some reason lulls them into a false sense of security.

 

I regularly encounter drivers who attempt to overtake when it's not safe - often when there's parked vehicles on one side, and opposing traffic or street furniture on the other; or else they just pass too closely (see rule 163). In the situation you've described, it sounds like if there was really enough space for you to overtake safely, then the cyclist wouldn't have been in your way when they were staying within the single lane.

 

Some motorists seem to think that they have a God-given right to overtake cyclists, regardless of whether it's safe to do so. On my commute this morning I encountered this twice - first there was a guy in a cherry-red Evoque who pulled the manoeuvre, somehow not noticing that actually I was travelling faster than the car which was not very far ahead - as soon as he'd completed the overtake, he had to slam on his brakes to avoid going into the back of the car in front, and I had to do the same to avoid the Evoque; complete stupidity.

 

The second occasion was when a BMW overtook me without spotting that there was a car coming straight at him in the oncoming lane. As the BMW passed me I could see him actually bracing himself for the impact. Amazingly he managed to pull in, without cutting me up too much, but he could have saved himself the panic and from coming very close to a serious accident.

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