Hi All,
Haven’t posted here for a while, but couldn’t resist a quick comment…
Having been a cyclist for even longer than my 55 years as a motorist, I am struck by how low our road behaviours and aggression levels have sunk in the past few years.
The state of our road edges and ‘paint-only’ cycle lanes (frequently parked over on the roads near me) dictate that cyclists do have to ‘ride-out’ on occasions. Cyclists have an inalienable right to wobble and weave a bit, just to balance at times, but some car drivers (I won’t grace them with the title motorists) seem to think otherwise.
It makes me want to yell ‘CALM DOWN’ at times, and it’s not confined to city roads, either…
As a suggestion, one item I find very useful as a cyclist is a rear-mirror, mounted either on my right handlebar, or on the front downtube. It lets me see approaching traffic without turning my head, which inevitably causes a bit of ‘wander’ from a straight line, and gives enough time to get into single file on a busy road.
I recently fitted one to my daughter’s bike in London (rather against her will at first) and she now wouldn’t be without it, and has converted her boyfriend to using one as well.
Let’s hope it helps them survive the traffic better.
How many cyclists here also use one?
I tend to go out for a quick nip round Hassop or Bakewell in Derbyshire early on a Sunday to avoid the cyclists. This morning it was misty and few cyclists about. I nearly got taken out by a speeding oncoming 4x4 overtaking a cyclist on a bend. I was lucky that my instinctive swerve took me into an adjacent lay-by. Ironically there was a bicycle mounted on the back of the 4x4. I don’t have any problem with the cyclist sharing the road but the idiots who will overtake them leaving an 8 foot margin on bends, solid lines and similar.
As an avid cyclist and MX5er - I’ve probably done more miles on my bikes these past few months that in my cars - I see both sides of the argument.
I’m lucky to live on the edge of town in the Cotswolds and cycle for around 30 - 50 km more or less every second day. In my experience on these narrow, potholed roads, van drivers, lorry drivers, post people and farmers (in other words, professional drivers) are the most considerate and courteous. I in turn, always pull over to let them past whenever possible whilst exchanging friendly, knowing waves. The least considerate are drivers of SUVs (Stupid Unnecessary Vehicles) on their way to / from exercise classes / pilates classes / exercise classes / coffee mornings, with one eye on the road and the other on the clock. Ironically, most of these latter group are from my town and driving only a mile or two which they could easily cycle or walk.
Yep! Nail on the head! We’ve got a Virgin Leisure Centre/Gym just up the road with on constant supply of “Top of the Range” SUV’s and saloons, Bentley, Porsche, Range Rover, Mercedes, BMW, Jaguar etc., drivers, phone in one hand, can of “energy drink” in the other. No respect for anyone else at all!
Much as I regard such expensive places with a strongly negative view, if it was not for SWMBO going to our local tennis club (also with gym/pilates/micro-pool etc) we would not have the NC.
She saw a beautiful powder blue SLK in the car park and said “I want one of those.”
I looked up the real cost of SLK ownership and said “No.”
But I did leave open on the coffee table a copy of Which? where they said what a super little car the MX5 was.
Which is why six months later we bought the icy blue Niseko.
I to am an avid cyclist ♂ as well as a motorist, but if Boris and his mates want people back on two wheels, to help fight the nation’s overweight problem, they need to make councils build and repair cycling infrastructure and not paint a few lines and repair existing cycle paths, just one example of our local lanes, where I live.
I agree it looks pretty shoddy, you need a mountai bike with good suspension to tackle that, and there again a lot of roads look like that as well .
Someone mentioned in an earlier post that road tax isn’t used for maintaining roads etc, we’ll wherever the funding comes from, more money needs to be spent across the board on improving all our roads , tracks pavements etc, instead of councils spending money on unecessary road chevrons in places where there has never been any problems, or several huge road signs when one would do, then more money could be used on the repair and maintenance of things like cycle tracks and potholes , the latter affecting cars and cyclists alike.
Now we know you live in Colchester! It’s not until you cycle that you realise just how potholed, cracked and crumbling our roads are. They are covered in loose stones, most of which have hit the front of my mx-5 I don’t cycle as much as I used to because of the appalling state of our roads. I feel most for motorcyclists, having to keep a perpetual lookout for potholes etc must mean they can’t keep an adequate view ahead along the road.
As a teenager in Central Africa I was a member of the local road racing club (cyclists). The roads were superb, mainly because not much heavy traffic, no frosts or salt, and crucially no services under them, instead all services were alongside, and the other side of the deep storm drains (which often held an upside down car).
I came to UK in the 1960s to go to Uni and could not believe how bad the roads were: this was meant to be the civilised ‘mother country’, but in many ways it felt like stepping back into the middle ages. Knowing what I know now, I suppose it was.
That is why I gave up cycling. Generally speaking the local UK roads have only deteriorated further since then simply because the repairs cannot keep up with the damage.
Wow too many comments to catch up on! Most cyclists I speak to don’t want to share the pavement with pedestrians because this can be dangerous for both parties and also alters the cyclists right of way, i.e. the have to stop at each junction. So why is is that councils insist on widening pavements rather than putting the cycle lanes on the road, do they ever actually consult with the local cyclists first on the best solution? Most cycle lanes in my area are ignored by the cyclists for the reasons just stated and I have seen, as many of us, have various altercations between driver and cyclist regarding the cyclist being on the road and not using the cycle path that cost hundreds of thousands of pounds to put in.
I know this is going off topic a bit ,but as either a cyclist or an ex motorcyclist like myself , wet cobble stone roads took some beating , especially in Ye Olde days when they had tram lines in them as well , I only experienced this briefly as a lad on a push bike in London before they were Tarmaced over
Me too, in the mid '50’s on a biking weekend with a party from school - Dagenham/Brighton, Brighton/Hastings, Hastings/Dagenham, hit the wet cobbles with tramlines (Cable Street?) and did a complete purler, survived to finish the course, not so much traffic then!
The ones I remember were on the Battersea side of Battersea bridge , going from Chelsea , North of the river over to the south side, I think there used to be tram sheds there , and the cobbled part was Tarmaced in the late 60s I think.
Totally agree with John-M’s sentiment in all respects and, in fact, the style of riding he describes will be found in the highway code.
I’m a regular cyclist and a regular driver.
When I’m driving locally I tend to leave the narrower lanes and shortcuts for the cyclists, horse riders and walkers as far as possible, and pass them all wide and slow. If I can do it, you can do it.
These days when I’m cycling I go very wide around walkers to maintain social distancing, even when they are on footpaths.
These are all skills which we develop and maintain in our daily lives.
As well as the MX5, I use my wife’s Skoda saloon, a touring cycle and a Brompton folder. They are all vehicles as far as I am concerned, with people in or on them.
Can of worms topic, this one! Like a few on here, I love driving the MX-5 wherever possible, but I also enjoy getting on my road bike and eating up the miles when I can.
To try and answer the question originally posed:
Yes, the government absolutely should be looking at cycling as a means of transport, but actually enabling it rather than simply encouraging. As already implied, the funds should be used (where possible) to improve current infrastructure such a s segregated cycle lanes. Wouldn’t be a bad idea to improve public transport in towns and cities to reduce the number of short car journeys either. Who knows - maybe if we used our cars less, we would appreciate them even more when we do get behind the wheel?
I would argue, to a degree, that drivers should not be prioritised over all others - the roads are for everyone, and driving is a licensed privelege.
Quite simply, if we all look out for one another, the roads (and indeed the world in general) would be a much more pleasant place.
♂ as well as a motorist, but if Boris and his mates want people back on two wheels, to help fight the nation’s overweight problem, they need to make councils build and repair cycling infrastructure and not paint a few lines and repair existing cycle paths, just one example of our local lanes, where I live.
