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joemarshall - Member
I have one point on my commute where the road is narrow (just room for 2 lanes), there's a completely blind corner, and it is on an uphill. At the corner it is if anything more narrow than normal, so I can't ride far enough out that someone could safely pass.So cars are coming down the hill at 40-45mph (40 limit), I'm riding my bike up the hill at about 12mph. Now, however far out in the road I ride, people will still try to overtake me right on the corner. It's got a lower speed limit than the rest of this A road because it's an accident blackspot, it has double white lines, it has 'slow' signs and 'slow' written on the road, it is just blatantly obviously a really dangerous place to overtake. People just won't stop overtaking me there.
i sympathise similar near me and no reasonable alternatives- the council cycling map has it marked as "dangerous" - i'm lucky as not a commute so i can pick other routes for fun - but reading the sustrans iniative - i know it is a lot safer to drive to nearest shops rather than ride - every time i come up the hill - you hit the bend - it narrows - cars/trucks behind can see FA but they still pass and then squeeze you into the kerb as they meet oncoming vehicles - at most a 15 second wait
on this topic a mate of mine scared me badly overtaking cars on some double whites (and at time i was driving 30K a year)- his explanation "i come this way every day"
On the way home from work tonight I was driving up behind a bloke on a bike. There was a cycle lane, but as usual it was full of parked cars. So I slowed down and patiently sat behind him as he got past them. We were probably still doing 15-20mph (in a 30).
After literally ten seconds at this speed the taxi behind me starts driving up to my bumper, revving his engine, flashing his lights and signalling to me to get on with it. There was no where near enough room to overtake safely but clearly he thought I should just run the guy off the road.
Does my tits in that.
The confusing bit regarding the dual carriageway thing is I believe the definition of dual - people aren't sure whether it's dual lanes (i.e. two lanes in one direction) or dual roads (i.e. divided). The uncertainty of NSL on a dual carriageway is apparent when there are cameras with some car drivers slowing to 60mph.
There are many things that divide the road (grass, barriers, kerbs, cables) but as far as I'm aware they're all valid 'divisions' with the exception of a stripe of paint i.e. A556 at Mere in Cheshire (which I believe has a 50 limit??).
The confusing bit regarding the dual carriageway thing is I believe the definition of dual
Only confusing to people who don't bother to read the HC, and to be blunt they shouldn't be allowed on the road.
http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/TravelAndTransport/Highwaycode/DG_070308
"A dual carriageway is a road which has a central reservation to separate the carriageways."