Why does the UK hate cyclists?

[Sasahara]

I've only ever come across one cyclist who had steady lights on instead of flashing.

It's so much more difficult to judge your distance from me if your lights spend as much time off as they do does on.

I initially thought it was a a requirement that you have at least one steady light on either end but apparently not. What a joke.

I use a steady front light, cause the flashing light is bloody annoying when riding the bike. But a flashing back light, but it's a dual alternate light so there is always one on, it's never off.

 

[Vonhelmet]

I give up. If you can't be bothered to read 3 posts, I cba to even bother replying.

You said cyclists cycle like nobs and put themselves in danger every five minutes, and offered one anecdote in evidence of this. Excuse me if I'm not convinced.

Hence my question of whether we are happy to disregard all the drivers who put cyclists in danger. Even I, as a cyclist doing 100-150 miles a week, wouldn't claim that a car driver puts me in danger every five minutes but it certainly happens several times a week.

 

[Dewotter]

That’s a subject of debate. Have their been studies on how easy it is to judge the distance?

At least you didn’t fall into the trap of telling us that flashing lights are illegal.

Anecdotal of course, but I find it a lot easier to follow a steady light than one that is flashing as a lot of the push bike lights I see around here aren't very bright to begin with - especially if there are a lot of cars whose headlights vastly outshine them.

 

[Vonhelmet]

I've never seen a cyclist move over to allow people to pass...

I see it all the time. Confirmation bias.

On my commute which is mostly rural, I see tractors doing it all the time. Trucks too.

Jolly good. It happens, but you don't seem to be so willing to generalise about the behaviour of those road users, even though some of them are troublesome.

 

[Vonhelmet]

Brakes failed, yea right. Because everyone keeps going the same speed in a straight line when notice they are unable to stop..

So you find it hard to believe that, on finding he was unable to slow down, he didn't slow down? Incredible.

I can probably count on one hand the number of cars I've seen properly jump a red light (not just narrowly get through on amber). I see cyclists blatantly go through reds almost daily on the crossroads at the end of my road.

I saw one this morning. I was driving, so I guess it doesn't count. My light was red/amber and he drove through from the other road, so he jumped the light. I see this a lot.

 

[Vonhelmet]

I do agree with this. My front light is constantly on, and my back light is static with a brighter pulse. I don't understand why on unit roads some people choose to have their very bright front lights on pulse.

I tend to use a combination of static and flashing, which means two lights upfront. Rear light has a pattern to it, so it's constantly flashing 5 LEDs in a sequence.

 

[Nasher]

If you want to be visible, bright blue is the best colour. But that may not be allowed, even on a bike.

 

[Vonhelmet]

If you want to be visible, bright blue is the best colour. But that may not be allowed, even on a bike.

I know there's laws about using retroreflective surfaces, like the ones they have on police cars/ambulances/fire engines, and I'd imagine blue lights would fall into a similar area.

 

[topgun06]

I know there's laws about using retroreflective surfaces, like the ones they have on police cars/ambulances/fire engines, and I'd imagine blue lights would fall into a similar area.

I was under the impression that this was the case. Still see the odd car with chavvy blue/red/green leds up front though.

 

[Diddums]

I love watching the world burn.

 

[KillBoY_UK]

Both Cyclist and drivers are as bad as each other really when it comes do doing stupid and illegal things on the road risking the safety of them self's and others

 

[Ocean Breeze]

I only cycle on country lanes. Too many idiots in towns and cities.

If a car comes up behind me and it’s too narrow I pull over and let them by. If a car stops for me up ahead i’ll speed up.

Its not about whether you are a cyclist or a driver it’s whether you are a thick impatient idiot or not.

 

[ZXSpectrum]

I don't think they do hate all cyclists.. what many people hate is that there are, like drivers, idiots that give the rest of them a bad name. From riding at night with no lights, illegally jumping red lights, wearing headphones reducing their awareness, no insurance, no way to track if they ride out of a alleyway into the middle of the road causing an accident and riding off to the cycle warriors that KNOW they are right in EVERY single circumstance.

 

[divergent]

I'm a car driver and a cyclists. I hate both car drivers and cyclists (well the daft ones)!

 

[MikeTheNative]

I don't hate all cyclists just hate the inconsiderate ones, same as all other road users. What I don't understand about some cyclists though it's so easy to get into a small mistake with a car and die so why do they ride like they don't fear death?

I didn't mean cycle in general but cycle like such a complete nob to get yourself in danger every 5 mins. I was going round a roundabout the other day when a cyclist just cycled straight onto it without even slowing, was pretty close to hitting her.

You said cyclists cycle like nobs and put themselves in danger every five minutes, and offered one anecdote in evidence of this. Excuse me if I'm not convinced.

Hence my question of whether we are happy to disregard all the drivers who put cyclists in danger. Even I, as a cyclist doing 100-150 miles a week, wouldn't claim that a car driver puts me in danger every five minutes but it certainly happens several times a week.

You are right I clearly said all cyclists

 

[Vonhelmet]

You are right I clearly said all cyclists

OK, fair play, fault admitted.

 

[ubersonic]

Brakes failed, yea right. Because everyone keeps going the same speed in a straight line when they notice they are unable to stop..

Well, in fairness that muppet from a couple of months back who took the brakes off his fixie then killed a pedestrian did. Even maintained it was all her fault even after he got sent to prison lol.

 

[Vonhelmet]

Well, in fairness that muppet from a couple of months back who took the brakes off his fixie then killed a pedestrian did. Even maintained it was all her fault even after he got sent to prison lol.

She stepped out less than 7m in front of him while looking at her phone. He was travelling at 18mph. Even with two working brakes he’d have probably hit her, as would a car, based on the “official” stopping distances - stopping distance for a car at 20mph is 12m, which is coincidentally the same distance it took him to stop. If anything that shows a second brake would have been utterly redundant...

He went down because the lack of a front brake made it a slam dunk even though it had no bearing on the outcome of the collision.

I’m not saying it’s ok take the brakes off your fixie on the roads, but that’s not why she died.

 

[Sasahara]

Well, in fairness that muppet from a couple of months back who took the brakes off his fixie then killed a pedestrian did. Even maintained it was all her fault even after he got sent to prison lol.

Well they were both a fault, she was crossing a busy road while using her moblie, not looking at all, but they seem to down play this aspect. It could have just as easliy been a legal method of transport that killed her.

 

[grudas]

Well, in fairness that muppet from a couple of months back who took the brakes off his fixie then killed a pedestrian did. Even maintained it was all her fault even after he got sent to prison lol.

yeah because crossing the road without looking while on a mobile phone is perfectly normal? cmon it was 50/50 on that.