I think part of it is that there is now such a massive variation in the abilities of cyclists on the road. Ten years ago, you only got decent club riders or couriers. Now there are Sportives every weekend, more people are commuting by bike, in London you’ve got the Barclays Cycle Hire scheme and the riders using that vary wildly from competent to utterly insane.

So drivers simply don’t know what to expect or how to cope. A decent rider on a road bike can clip along quite happily at 20+ mph but the driver has just overtaken some dappy old bat on a shopper doing 5mph. It’s that fear of the unknown coupled with the very fact that you being there has caused the driver to have to do something other than sit there in bovine indifference – you’re an uncontrollable aspect of that drivers life and if the driver feels threatened or confused by you, some of them will react in the way we’ve all seen from the videos.

It always astonishes me though that drivers get so precious about their cars, bemoaning any slight scratch on them but they’re willing to slam it into the side of a cyclist… 😯

exactly. the best thing that’s happened round here is a 20 mph speed limit on all roads in Islington borough. drivers (who’ve realised at least) seemed to have calmed down a lot. just hoping Haringey and others will follow suit soon.

I’ve just started driving regularly again after 3.5 years. I think that the best approach is to drive with full respect everywhere, letting everyone out, giving cyclists loads of room etc. My area is actually full of considerate drivers so I’ll have to follow that example. When I go to Essex people drive considerably more aggressively and I find it unpleasant.

brakes, except for Hornsey Road north where it crosses Tollington Road. Drivers don’t like you coming in front to use the stop box. 2 recent arsiness issues there, both times the driver burnt off at 30mph+ then busted through late orange/red at seven sisters to avoid a further chat.

I think a repaint of the bike and the green background in the box would help people getting so cross when you use it.

I don’t like that junction much, or Hornsey Road in general, there’s always parked cars further up that cause a bit of a pinch if you don’t get away quickly and a crossing that narrows the road too much. Then the crossing at Seven Sisters is far too narrow.
I normally do the drag up Holloway Road all the way to Shepherd’s Hill as you get some good races in the largely empty bus lanes. 😀

I might give that a go. Just put the immensely lardy Fat Franks back on for the summer, bringing my road bike up to weighty DH bike levels. Can’t seem to be bothered to do much exercise outside the commute, so I figured I may as well make it as hard as possible. Hillclimbtastic.

just posted this in the southern softy springtime songthread, reminded me of your pigeon thread

A few years ago a taxi overtook and pulled in at the lights then indicated left, i took my camera out and took a picture, taxi driver junmped out and screanmed at me “wht you takin my pictur forr”, i calmly replied for my website, http://WWW.FATBASTARDS DRIVING TAXIS.COM.

Heh, like it Ned.
Pigeons have just come back so I’ll be out with my stick at dusk again scaring them off… they’re shitting on the wife’s new oil cloth so she’ll probably be shinning up the tree before long.

A guy in a tranny pulling a bloody hideous caravan tried to side swipe me on Sunday, his friends in the car behind suggested I and the other cyclists didn’t pay road tax, they were ‘travellers’, oh the ironing. It gave me the boost to finish off the rest of the 50 mile loop at speed though which was nice.

Christ the “don’t pay road tax” nonsense really is a millstone around the necks of cyclists isn’t it?

Really wish some of the cycling advocacy groups would get together and put that one to rest once and for all with a series of high profile adverts or something.