Viewing 40 posts - 1 through 40 (of 62 total)
  • A centimetre from a very serious accident
  • geetee1972
    Free Member

    Yesterday I almost got knocked off my bike by a Parceline lorry with a separate unit attached as a trailer. He overtook me as if he were a single vehicle (on a carriage way with a double solid line down the centre) and even then with not much room. As he cut back in to the carriage way, suddenly, there was the trailer, large and looming on my shoulder. I swear it was not more than a few centimeters from my shoulder and I was already hard up against the verge.

    I’ve had some close calls before but that was more than close; it was terrifying. I was screaming with fear and I’m not easily spooked. The driver of that lorry almost made orphans and a widow out of my family.

    All I want to do is ride my bike and feel that I have as much right to the road as anyone else. I had to put up two other idiots who seemed to think that because I was on a bike, I was a second class road user. I almost wished they had seen fit to try and back up their menace so as to give me a damn good excuse to knock seven bells of shit out of them.

    When is this bullying of cyclists going to stop?

    fourbanger
    Free Member

    Joined CTC? Written to your MP?

    meehaja
    Free Member

    Interviewer #1: Champ, do you feel remorse for your crime?
    Drederick Tatum: Oh, yes. Believe me, my god, if I could turn back the clock on my mother’s stair-pushing, I would certainly, reconsider it.

    Interviewer #2: Drederick, ah, what do you think of Homer Simpson?

    Drederick Tatum: I think he’s a good man. I like him. I got nothing against him, but I’m definitely gonna make orphans of his children.

    Interviewer #3: Uh, you know, they do have a mother, Champ?

    Drederick Tatum: Yes, but I would imagine that she would die of grief.

    but yeah, a lot of people need to adjust their attitude to cyclists. I had a chat at work with someone who had “buzzed” some cyclists at the weekend. Genuinely didn’t believe it was dangerous!

    lemonysam
    Free Member

    When is this bullying of cyclists going to stop?

    It’s not necessarily bullying. On the ride home on Monday I was riding in the middle of the left hand of two lanes toward a narrowing of the road and junction (the roadworks at the top of Neville Street, Newcastle) and a woman floored it past in the lane to my right. At the last second she realised she was going to filter off right and so slammed across left, missing my front wheel by about 6 inches. She then immediately slammed on the brakes to pull up behind a bus stopped at the lights (which I was already slowing up for). over the course of five seconds she’d nearly floored me twice.

    I went up to the open window and mentioned that she should maybe leave more room in future. She hadn’t seen me.

    She hadn’t seen me in spite of having been in a lane behind me, then overtaken me on the right and then nipped back into my lane. I was in her immediate eyeline for at least a minute. If she hadn’t thought she was going right she’d have gone straight through the back of me.

    She didn’t think this was a problem as she didn’t hit me. I really wasn’t sure what to say so I rode off as she gave me a cheery thumbs up.

    Markie
    Free Member

    You have my sympathies – it is truly terrifying. 🙁

    With the below I do not mean in any way to suggest that you were at fault for the incident, just thinking aloud on ways to try to reduce the chances of similar happening to any of us…

    You write you were hard up against the verge; perhaps being in a more commanding position on the road would have helped? I’m always very uncertain about where to locate myself, too close to the edge and people always figure they can ‘just squeeze past’ (even if this involves crossing double whites!), but a meter off the side a I spend my time waiting for a car up my backside.

    Dreadful. I guess I’m figuring that changing road users attitudes is a long game, in the short term what works best to control their behaviours at some (perhaps subconscious) level?

    Again, sorry this happened to you – when it happened to me and my first thoughts were of my family it made me realise I am now truly a middle-aged family man – and that I should stick to bridleways!

    ton
    Full Member

    in busy traffic area’s like leeds city center, i ride on the pavement. 😯

    davidtaylforth
    Free Member

    I thought this might have been about how you’d been trying to fit your bike and you’d moved your saddle a little bit to far forward.

    But it sounds like you genuinely did have a blood close call.

    Best thing to do is just ride in the middle of the lane if it’s a narow road and there’s oncoming traffic.

    kayak23
    Full Member

    I was in Peru last month, cycling along the edge of the highway. A large bus approached me from behind, a truck was coming the other way, then a car went to overtake that truck. 3 vehicles and me on a regular sized road.

    The bus started to pull over on top of me, completely oblivious to me. Pushed me off the road and into the dirt.
    I was ******* fuming! I saw it slow ahead to take a speed hump, hoofed it to try to catch up and knock some awareness of me into the driver but it sped away. Gutted.
    Peru is awful for lack of respect for cyclists. Glad I manage to avoid the roads mostly over here.

    martinhutch
    Full Member

    Who are Parceline these days – is it DPD?

    If so, they are a Dutch company now, I think, so should have a slightly more enlightened approach to cycling culture.

    Write to a couple of this lot (CEO/Operations manager), copying in the transport manager at the local depot.

    https://www.dpd.com/nl_en/home/about_dpd/the_company/board_of_directors

    with details of time/date/location asking them to remind their drivers about the vulnerability of cyclists.

    notmyrealname
    Free Member

    I’d be contacting Parcel line about it. Even if you don’t know the registration of the truck, knowing the road it was on and what time would give them some idea of which vehicle it was and therefore who was driving it.
    At least that way they’d be able to speak to the driver about it and do something about it.

    I know that when we get complaints at work about someone’s driving they usually manage to trace it back to the driver and have words with them.

    geetee1972
    Free Member

    You write you were hard up against the verge; perhaps being in a more commanding position on the road would have helped?

    It’s a good point. Actually this is what I had been doing. I’d pulled out of a T-Junction when the lorry was about 250m down the road then realised that the road was narrow and had the double white line with a hump back bridge coming up.

    I moved into a position where the lorry could not have passed me and put the hammer down to try and clear the narrow section as quickly as possible. I even turned around and put a hand up to the driver to acknowledge that I would likely hold him up and say thanks for his patience.

    I was still in a ‘commanding’ position on the road when he over took and I ended up on the verge as a result of being forced onto it. I was at the point where I was riding over dirt, to the left of the line with no more tarmac left. I guess I could have bailed into the ditch but at the time I was just concentrating so hard on not wobbling or straying by even a fraction from my line because if I had I would have been under his wheels.

    geetee1972
    Free Member

    I’d be contacting Parcel line about it.

    You know I tried to do just this, this morning. I can’t find a number for them. Looks like they are part of Interlink?

    I figured that even without the registration their vehicle tracking technology would be able to identify the driver.

    davidtaylforth
    Free Member

    Sounds like you did your best.

    I prefer just to hold traffic up if it’s a narrow road, although instead of them trying to squeeze past, they just perform mad over taking moves when there’s oncoming traffic.

    martinhutch
    Full Member

    http://www.dpd.co.uk/content/careers/company-history.jsp

    Suggests that DPD head office may be the right place. Unless there is another Parcel line operating now, which is possible I suppose.

    scratch
    Free Member

    I’m getting sick of this to, just seems like a matter of time….

    There’s been 3 deaths in the local area over the summer, none have been reported to have been the cyclists fault, all hit from behind.

    I’ve had 2 near misses in two weeks and I stick to back roads, one DHL lorry overtaking on a corner, another was a bus trying to squeeze ahead of me on Monday, I’d had enough of it by then and rode the next half mile so the bus couldn’t pass on purpose.

    Feels crap to just let the idiots win…

    davidtaylforth
    Free Member

    I’d had enough of it by then and rode the next half mile so the bus couldn’t pass on purpose.

    That’s the best way to do it. If everyone did this then we’d have far fewer problems I reckon.

    scaredypants
    Full Member

    She hadn’t seen me in spite of having been in a lane behind me, then overtaken me on the right and then nipped back into my lane. I was in her immediate eyeline for at least a minute. If she hadn’t thought she was going right she’d have gone straight through the back of me.

    SMIDSY actually means “**** off and leave me alone; you’re still alive aren’t you?”

    (adds: more good work from dt 😀 )

    trail_rat
    Free Member

    honestly think that part of the driving test should be to spend 1 year on a moped limited to 30mph.

    perhaps the memory of being a vunerable road user will make people adjust their attitude – dutch and french drivers are much more curteous to cyclists ime and i believe it stems from many of them being cyclists or motorcyclists them selves at one point in their life.

    geetee1972
    Free Member

    Just spoken to a very helpful and sympathetic lady at DPD. Unfortunately it seems that Parceling was acquired and discontinued as a brand over six years ago and there are now no more vehicles out there with Parceline branding.

    This shows the fallibility of memory, especially when stressed. I was sure it was Parceline but I am more sure that the lorry was green and I could have sworn it had yellow etching/writing on the side.

    I know this is all a bit flaky but if this sounds familiar to anyone speak up. The lady at Parceline would have been very ready to take the issue seriously and follow up with the driver (and she would have been able to do that with just a time and location), which is really encouraging.

    scratch
    Free Member

    If this was on a none cycling forum it would be full of ‘lycra louts’ ‘RLJ’ers’ and I’d be the first to say the standard of cycling by the majority is bloody terrible (I saw a guy yesterday riding along a busy road on his phone) even on a club run you see some shocking stuff due to lack of awareness.

    I think all road users need to be better educated tbh

    It just sucks, you obey all the rules, do everything you can to stay out of trouble and still end up in crappy situations.

    Sorry to hear you had a scare OP, I know how it feels…

    mattjg
    Free Member

    Scary story, we’ve all been there. I’ve had enough close calls not my fault that I’m at the stage where I wonder if riding on the road is being irresponsible. Shouldn’t be that way, but it is.

    There’s as much chance, perhaps more, that it was incompetence or inconsideration rather than bullying.

    Bunnyhop
    Full Member

    glad you’re o.k. gt. very scary indeed.
    riding on the road has become so bad ,that i’m sticking to mtbing as much as poss.
    idiot drivers have even tried to overtake us on our tandem, without realising they just don’t have the room to get back in.

    martinhutch
    Full Member

    ?

    City Link are also Green/Yellow, but with more emphasis on the yellow.

    Gotama
    Free Member

    So you pulled out in front of a lorry which was travelling on the main carriageway whilst bearing in mind it doesn’t take a lot of time to cover 250m at 30-40mph. This was before a section where the road narrows and there wouldn’t be space for two of you, effectively forcing him to brake and slow down quite considerably for you. To add to this you then pulled out into the middle of the carriageway and wafted your hand at him (gesture quite easily misconstrued but very few other ways to apologise when on a bike). Whilst not excusing his stupid and wreckless actions it doesn’t sound like the best bit of cycling from you. IMO road cycling requires consideration from both cyclists and car/van drivers, a lack of which from both parties is the main cause of friction. Would it have delayed you that much to wait for him to pass before pulling out the t junction, perhaps also allowing you to judge the road ahead better?

    cr500dom
    Free Member

    I`ve had too many close calls over the years to ride near the kerb now.

    Because they will overtake and forget you are there when they run out of room.

    If they have to definitely wait for a gap in the oncoming traffic to pass then there is a chance they will register the existence of a cyclist, which then makes it a conscious decision to have a collision with the oncoming car, brake or potentially knock off the cyclist.

    Most people wont intend to hurt you, wont consciously knock you off, but you have to register in their consciousness first.

    That’s my responsibility as a cyclist, to put myself in a position where I have to register to the drivers, and they have to consciously take action.

    I`m glad you are OK Geetee, and I still remember the terror of the situation, its awful.
    Take care out there folks

    geetee1972
    Free Member

    There’s as much chance, perhaps more, that it was incompetence or inconsideration rather than bullying.

    No I’m quite sure it was this; the bullying issues were from the other two idiots.

    So you pulled out in front of a lorry which was travelling on the main carriageway whilst bearing in mind it doesn’t take a lot of time to cover 250m at 30-40mph.

    He was more than far enough away for my pulling out not to have to cause him to brake to slow down so there was nothing on my part that I did wrong and I can only assume you don’t ride on the road very much?

    funkrodent
    Full Member

    Had a very near miss SMIDSY on my regular commute into work the other day. But to my horror I was the driver, not the cyclist!
    Was driving ’cause needed the car for later, in no particular hurry. Approached roundabout I cycle round every day, looked right, nothing there, pulled out and a guy on a racer flashed by in front of me.
    Nearly had a heart-attack! 😯
    Don’t think he realised how close it was, but I genuinely didn’t see him. He was on a black bike in black/grey gear and going very fast.
    Since then I now commute at all times with a high-vis vest and 2 of those small flashing lights on the bars.
    Not saying what happened to the OP was in any way his fault – far from it by the sounds of it – but we would all do well to make ourselves as visible as possible to other road users..

    geetee1972
    Free Member

    Not saying what happened to the OP was in any way his fault – far from it by the sounds of it – but we would all do well to make ourselves as visible as possible to other road users..

    +1

    beicmynydd
    Free Member

    That sounds terrible and that’s why in too scared to ride to work.
    Been thinking lately in situations such as the one you encountered although hard to do sometimes just easing off the pedals on a slight dab on the brakes will reduce the time exposed to danger and give a truck more time do move back.
    It may cost a few seconds or loose a kom but you will get home in one piece

    geetee1972
    Free Member

    I think you’re right beicmynydd – to be honest at the moment it was all happening, I was just concentrating on not deviating from my line.

    I also try to avoid A roads as much as possible and have cut back the amount I commute for this reason. I just get out early doors and try to stay on the back roads. This incident happened on one of only two stretches of A road I was on in 50 miles yesterday.

    scratch
    Free Member

    I’ll stop in a sec! But, I go around roundabouts very slowly making eye contact with every driver to let them know I’m a person.

    Oh and the dashed line means give way, not creep out…

    +1 for visibility, currently deciding between adding an Exposure Flair or one of these

    davidtaylforth
    Free Member

    IMO road cycling requires consideration from both cyclists and car/van drivers

    It’s easier if you just assume the car/van drivers aren’t going to be considerate.

    Gotama
    Free Member

    He was more than far enough away for my pulling out not to have to cause him to brake to slow down so there was nothing on my part that I did wrong and I can only assume you don’t ride on the road very much?

    Close to 7 years of commuting through London on both pedal bike and motorbike, majority by pedal bike.

    If you didn’t hold him up by pulling out then agreed, he was just a twunt and probably thought he would cut you up to scare you, most likely forgetting about the trailer on the back. Ridiculous behaviour. But i find it hard to believe you pulled out of a t junction and accelerated to 30+ mph (ignoring whether he was speeding) in the time it took him to get to you, at which point he couldn’t easily get round you because of the narrow bridge? Given the short distance to the bridge could you have read the road and traffic better? Lorries and road cyclists aren’t exactly known for being a blend made in heaven after all.

    scaredypants
    Full Member

    I have to say, if I waited for gaps bigger than 250metres before joining a road I’d never go anywhere

    aracer
    Free Member

    If this was on a none cycling forum it would be full of ‘lycra louts’ ‘RLJ’ers’ and I’d be the first to say the standard of cycling by the majority is bloody terrible

    Except it isn’t; the standard of cycling by the majority is just fine, as is the standard of driving by the majority (otherwise there would be a lot more of us splattered on the road). People looking for bad behaviour by cyclists only see badly behaving cyclists.

    The other thing is, as pointed out on BSNY concerning the woman who lost a leg when run over by a taxi this week, people might complain about cyclists, behaving badly but if a cyclist runs you over you’re unlikely to lose your leg.

    Gotama
    Free Member

    I have to say, if I waited for gaps bigger than 250metres before joining a road I’d never go anywhere

    Me too, but when joining an A road which is presumably derestricted or 50mph limit, on a narrow section where you occupy a ‘commanding’ position on the road?

    I’m not having a dig at geetee directly although i fear it may be coming across that way. It’s more a frustration that round us a lot of road cyclists take the ‘I own the road’ approach which, in my mind, smacks of exactly the same consideration to other road users that squeezing past a cyclist when in a car does, albeit one is considerably more dangerous than the other.

    trail_rat
    Free Member

    its not the i own the road approach

    its the you will not have the chance to kill me by not seeing me if im here position.

    thetallpaul
    Free Member

    I sympathise with all who have had incidents like this.
    Some people on the road (all types of transport) are just in too much of a rush to get to their destination. I have felt like this in a car myself, so I make the conscious decision to cycle commute every day.
    The most effective things I have found from a safety point of view are to ride in a primary position on the road, use lifesaver looks a lot and use powerful front and back lights even in broad daylight.
    I use Smudge’s Luminator on the front in epileptic flashy mode and people definitely know I’m there.
    The number of incidents I have had just encourage me to find more fun, quieter routes to and from work. Mileage is up from 7 miles to 11.5 one way.

    Gotama
    Free Member

    its not the i own the road approach

    It is when a group of 15-20 riders pull out of a side road and ride down the A25 at 15-20mph making it very difficult for any traffic to get past.

    Or two riding side by side having a chat despite holding up a car which they wouldn’t be doing if they were single file.

Viewing 40 posts - 1 through 40 (of 62 total)

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