I’ve just been watching Ian Collins LBC, he was talking on BBC breakfast about a piece written in The Times, about undercover police cycling around targeting bad drivers and their lack of safety and courtesy towards cyclists.
Collins immediately assumed from the title it was the other way round, stating that cyclists are mad and go around not wearing helmets, no rules and regulations for us and we can just jump on two wheels and ride on the same roads as vehicles. Idiot.

Of course imo some cyclists are letting us down, however most do it because we want to stay fit, save money, be more environmentally friendly and are not mad.
He did admit from his comments that he would never cycle on our busy roads and couldn’t understand why cyclists would.
In a nice roundabout way he was saying that we shouldn’t be on the roads “not paying tax” or causing inconvenience to other road users. Maybe he should have a go.

I for one think the police doing this is wonderful.

Ignorance on that scale must surely by now be wilful. To quote from WMP Traffic’s excellent blog when they started their “Close Pass” initiative-

“Now for those who will no doubt be spitting out their finest percolated roasted bean brew at this moment screaming “what about the cyclists !” well…….statistical analysis shows they aren’t to blame, innocent in the majority of KSI collisions it would be a waste of our time, and thus public time and money to concentrate on cyclist behaviour. The figures speak for themselves…….driver’s don’t let your prejudices get in the way of the truth……”

saw that….. in fairness Naga Munchetty pretty quickly put him back into his box that only a few cyclists behave in the way he was insinuating, although he did try to persist with the line that cyclists must be mad for wanting to be on the roads with all the cars.

That’s kind of the point Mr Collins…… if drivers are more considerate then we wouldn’t need to be as ‘mad’

There’s still a massive problem with how the ‘general public’ perceive cyclists. IMO most people think cyclists shouldn’t be on the road ‘holding up’ ‘proper’ road users!

Facebook, other forums I use, the attitudes the same.

Even at work I’ve arrived at work after riding in and colleagues have said they would ride to work themselves if it wasn’t to dangerous and they wouldn’t want to get in the way of car drivers!! 🙁

And if more people cycled, there would be less pollution and healthier people.

And more people would be able to get into the centre of large cities that were never designed for the volume of metal boxes traveling in and out every day.

If more people cycled, there’d be fewer people acting like tools when they got back in their cars afterwards.

If more people cycled there would be more happiness and that is what it is all about !

The most annoying thing about this ‘debate’ is the label cyclist. The % of people who ride bikes, who also drive must be pretty high, and the % of drivers who are also pedestrians is 100%.

I regularly commute (by car) along a 20 mile stretch of road between two towns. The area is generally pretty rural with a lot of farm land. Given the time of year that’s in it it’s no surprise that there are a lot of tractors on the road but what amazes me is hundreds of drivers willingness to sit behind a fleet of tractors doing 20mph for 15 miles without so much as a toot of their horn but you know they would be absolutely livid if they had to travel the same distance and the same speed behind cyclists.

I think that to some extent people’s vehicles become a subconscious extension of their importance, and cyclists become the lowest level on the totem pole by default.

And horses. Half of them positively genuflect when they overtake horses IME

I saw that piece on BBC breakfast. I know his job is to promote debate and if necessary by posing as an idiot. He did a great job. But how a tool like that can be allowed to spout that bullshit on the BBC, that I’m paying for, is beyond comprehension.

Such a great initiative – so many drivers behave like complete tools. Round here there’s a short section of main road (A919) that an under-cover police cyclist would have a very busy day on, as it seems to turn every single driver into a homicidal maniac.

And horses. Half of them positively genuflect when they overtake horses IME

I think you’ll find that motorists who show consideration when passing horses will get a wave of acknowledgment, and will respond in kind, because acting like a complete knob when passing a horse aggressively is quite likely to result not only in the death or serious injury of the rider, but could just as easily result in the best part of 4-500Kg of horse kicking its way through the windscreen of either the dickhead doing the driving, or more likely another motorist innocent of being a dickhead.
Unlike most cyclists, who will likely either mouth obscenities at the transgressors or make obscene gestures, horses can spook at a piece of litter blowing in the wind, or their own shadow.

CountZero

could just as easily result in the best part of 4-500Kg of horse kicking its way through the windscreen of either the dickhead doing the driving, or more likely another motorist innocent of being a dickhead.
…………horses can spook at a piece of litter blowing in the wind, or their own shadow.

What could possibly go wrong!

Total waste of resources for a non-issue.

The police should all be deployed to London Borough of Newham.

Do some proper criminal catching would make them more useful …

It’s West Mids Police I believe and they have cameras on a bike and then ride it around waiting for truckers or cars to come a bit too close. They produced the floor matt showing the safe passing distance as well.

It’s a good initiative and I know a lot of the traffic officers are roadies so often see for themselves the issues.

Total waste of resources for a non-issue

Remind me where you live again?…

I think you’ll find that motorists who show consideration when passing horses will get a wave of acknowledgment, and will respond in kind, because acting like a complete knob when passing a horse aggressively is quite likely to result not only in the death or serious injury of the rider, but could just as easily result in the best part of 4-500Kg of horse kicking its way through the windscreen of either the dickhead doing the driving, or more likely another motorist innocent of being a dickhead. Unlike most cyclists, who will likely either mouth obscenities at the transgressors or make obscene gestures, horses can spook at a piece of litter blowing in the wind, or their own shadow.

I’ve a few issues with this.

Motorists who show consideration when passing horses will receive the same reaction if they passed cyclists with the same consideration. I doubt that a horse rider met with “transgressors” would tug their forelock and go “well driven there, sir” or that cyclists would “mouth obsenities” at a driver who passed them safely.

Passing both and a cyclist aggressively is equally likely to result in the “death or serious injury of the rider” so you’re suggesting that the only difference between the two here is fear of retribution because cyclists tend to take out wing mirrors rather than cars?

Horses and cyclists are actually very similar road users. Both are relatively vulnerable, both are relatively slow-moving, both “don’t pay road tax.” If motorists viewed the two in the same light then this problem would go away overnight. Comapre “a horse, shit, better slow right down…” with “a cyclist, **** it, I can squeeze past at 50mph with a couple of inches of clearance so long as I swing into oncoming traffic for a bit.”

This is a cycling forum. C’mon.

Do some proper criminal catching would make them more useful …

I’m sure the families of every cyclist who’s been killed under the wheels of someone who’s then walked away scott free in court would totally agree with you that it’s not a proper crime.

Dingbat.

Total waste of resources for a non-issue.

Non issue?

Illegal dangerous behaviour impacting the lives, safety and health of tax-paying citizens. Sounds like a pretty reasonable issue for police to spend time on to me.

When I drive I slow down and give far more space to horse than cyclists.

I don’t feel I need to be treated the same as as horse when I ride my bike.

Cyclists are less prone to getting startled and bolting, but I try to give them as much room as possible (e.g. going fully into the other lane to pass them).

It’s often a bit overkill, but I figure if the guy in the car behind me does half of that then we’re still winning.

It’s West Mids Police I believe

The initiative started with West Mids but has made it on to BBC Breakfast because the Met are starting too.

Total waste of resources for a non-issue.

Your opinion differs from that of several police forces who have carefully looked at the issue and decided that this is a sensible and cost-effective use of their resources. It’s difficult to know who to believe…

Chewie now posting on a bike forum? He usually sticks to politics and similar on the chat forum where he is…..well, I really don’t know other than to say he is generally ridiculed.
Anyway, his recent post on this thread – he refers to Newham but has strongly indicated he is based in the North East and has some connection with Malaysia or near there.
Anything he posts should be ignored as all he/she/it wants is a reaction.
As for who Chewkw is and where he is based – I believe that Brant of this parish can inform the STW community……….

As for who Chewkw is and where he is based – I believe that Brant of this parish can inform the STW community……….

Does he work in a shoelace factory in the north of England
In a town that once made 90% of the worlds shoe laces, but now there is just one shoe lace factory left.
Until it was recently saved from closure, it was only making one shoe lace a week. But now it’s back up to full capacity, and shoelace town is booming again.

Please tell me that it.

Remind me where you live again?…
[/quote]

Under a bridge I believe

When I drive I slow down and give far more space to horse than cyclists.

I give the same space (a lot) to horses and cyclists but I slow down a lot more for horses.

Close passing is not so much the issue where I am (although it still happens). I don’t have roundabouts, traffic lights etc, living rurally so the drivers I would be catching are those that overtake going into blind corners, blind brows, racing to squeeze through a narrowing (oncoming and passing)