Captain Caveman 76:
“Jurors were told it is not illegal for a cyclist to come up the inside of a lorry, but the Highway Code recommends not to do so.”
“Jurors were told there is nothing in law to say that a driver must indicate, but the Highway Code says they should.”
This doesn’t sit right with me, it almost removes responsibility from the cyclist and places it on the driver.
Regardless of my opinions, it’s a very sad situation.
The highway code also refers to anticipating large vehicles taking a lot of room and being in the wrong position to make a turn ( 221 ).Or overtaking let alone undertaking through junctions ( 167 ).As for the double standards as I said the outcome seems to be trying to set a precedent that removes all responsibility from the cyclist regarding those rules and places it all on the driver based on the cyclist’s ‘vulnerability’.
It simply ought to be illegal for a cyclist to drive up the inside of a truck - if none of them did, an easy half of cyclist deaths would be avoided.
However, cycling seems to be untouchable. In CM there was a report of a company that had designed and manufactured a flashing sign that said something along the lines ‘Cyclists do not undertake this vehicle’ or some such wording. A few companies had bought it at £600.00 a go and then a cyclist campaign group complained that it was instructive, so FORS etc said it did not comply with their code of practice, where signs need to be advisory and fluffy, saying things like ‘Take care’ and ‘Please’
albion:
where signs need to be advisory and fluffy, saying things like ‘Take care’ and ‘Please’
You can’t educate or persuade stupid, being dead but in the right appears to be preferable to them so long as they win the propaganda war.
You might be onto something with ‘fluffy’ though, in the bad old days when a lorry bumper was steel and there for vehicle protection not a fashion accessory and lorries sounded like lorries, then i wonder if self preservation was the order of the day for other road users.
The sides of tipper bodies weren’t smooth skinned they had reinforcing sections sticking out along the whole length, any one of which you wouldn’t want beside your ear hole, anyone with an ounce of sense kept well away.
In more recent years we’ve gone for pretty and mage, which IMHO is bit bloody pointless on a working vehicle thats inevitably going to get the odd knock, if it looks soft and squishy then maybe self preservation isn’t triggered in the same way.
If it looks like its going to hurt its natural to avoid it (even in our own lorries we avoid getting too close to a low loader for instance, no crumple zones on one of those nor it usual load, nothing is going to bend or give)), thats not bullying or any other stupid term these PC fools would try on, its common self survival sense.
You can put as many mirrors and cameras on a lorry as they will carry, but until human beings are born with more than one pair of eyes it is pointless as you cannot look everywhere at once.
come and sit outside my house around 0545 to 0615 - 1745 to 1830 and 2200 to 2300 , busy double staggered junction near a railway station , poor street lighting etc,(reckoned to be the most dangerous junction in Wellingborough) its all- up the inside , up the outside, straight across cutting both corners , double breasted riding up the path, no lights - no hi viz - no helmets (even the geezer on an electric moped) , I left my house at 05:50 one morning , turned left went to turn right and out of the dark (usual no front light - no hiviz - no reflectors) loomed a numpty on his bike on his way to K+N (most of them work there), bearing in mind the council at the time had switched every other light off, very nearly got took him out as the headlights swept over him left to right .
Evil8Beezle:
My fear is one sneaking up my inside while I’m waiting to turn left, never one I’ve approached…
I had this on test, (of all times for it to happen) approaching a roundabout, making a left turn, and the kerb kicks out a bit too so it gets tight. Wed been in a queue of slow moving trafiic, Im indicating left and all over the mirrors and I glance in the left mirror again to see a cyclist coming up my inside, and he stops about half way down my curtain, he cant get any further due to the kerb kicking out, twice I gently moved forward, (whilst stating out loud there was a cyclist to the inside of me, in only about a foot of space) twice he came forwards too, sitting in the same place! So I stopped and didnt move again til he was in front of me (took a couple of minutes, but he did eventually get the jist) and for that I got a mark for hesitation. Go figure?!
Evil8Beezle:
My fear is one sneaking up my inside while I’m waiting to turn left, never one I’ve approached…
I had this on test, (of all times for it to happen) approaching a roundabout, making a left turn, and the kerb kicks out a bit too so it gets tight. Wed been in a queue of slow moving trafiic, Im indicating left and all over the mirrors and I glance in the left mirror again to see a cyclist coming up my inside, and he stops about half way down my curtain, he cant get any further due to the kerb kicking out, twice I gently moved forward, (whilst stating out loud there was a cyclist to the inside of me, in only about a foot of space) twice he came forwards too, sitting in the same place! So I stopped and didnt move again til he was in front of me (took a couple of minutes, but he did eventually get the jist) and for that I got a mark for hesitation. Go figure?!
Lesser of two evils… you probably would have failed if you’d moved off
Evil8Beezle:
My fear is one sneaking up my inside while I’m waiting to turn left, never one I’ve approached…
and for that I got a mark for hesitation. Go figure?!
Had he failed you for that it would have been grossly unfair, its bad enough knowing what to do when a clot on a bike tries their best to de-limb themselves, or worse, on the side of your motor when you’ve been driving a lifetime, must be a bloody nightmare having to deal with one on test.
For what its worth i would do today exactly as you did on your test, in such a case i apply the parking brake fold me arms and sit back and wait to see what the fool does next, if they just sit there in harms way i turn the engine off to make it plain the lorry isn’t going anywhere, if they are intent on doing themselves harm then nothing you can do to stop them, hopefully someone (including the lorry’s OBC) will bare witness that you’ve done all you can do to save the twit from its own stupidity.
Manager at a Kwik Save store got the arse with me one day cos i refused to move the lorry into place when a young boy was riding his bike around their loading area, he wouldn’t tell the lad to bugger off, even if that lad had fell off his bike 20 yards from and nothing to do with me, by the time ClaimsRus had finished flowering it up the lorry driver will be at fault for not taking due care.
Evil8Beezle:
My fear is one sneaking up my inside while I’m waiting to turn left, never one I’ve approached…
I had this on test, (of all times for it to happen) approaching a roundabout, making a left turn, and the kerb kicks out a bit too so it gets tight. Wed been in a queue of slow moving trafiic, Im indicating left and all over the mirrors and I glance in the left mirror again to see a cyclist coming up my inside, and he stops about half way down my curtain, he cant get any further due to the kerb kicking out, twice I gently moved forward, (whilst stating out loud there was a cyclist to the inside of me, in only about a foot of space) twice he came forwards too, sitting in the same place! So I stopped and didnt move again til he was in front of me (took a couple of minutes, but he did eventually get the jist) and for that I got a mark for hesitation. Go figure?!
Did you ask the examiner what he would have done different, as I think we all would have done the same…
The way I see it is these stories make headlines and so the rest of the cyclists must see these stories but they honestly believe the onus is on others to keep them safe not their responsibility not all cyclists are ■■■■■ but the majority are. Many are alive today because I was paying attention not them.
How many cyclists have to be killed by others before they catch themselves on. Too many are dying and yet they continually do the wrong thing. That girl paid the penalty sad but real.
Evil8Beezle:
My fear is one sneaking up my inside while I’m waiting to turn left, never one I’ve approached…
and for that I got a mark for hesitation. Go figure?!
Had he failed you for that it would have been grossly unfair, its bad enough knowing what to do when a clot on a bike tries their best to de-limb themselves, or worse, on the side of your motor when you’ve been driving a lifetime, must be a bloody nightmare having to deal with one on test.
For what its worth i would do today exactly as you did on your test, in such a case i apply the parking brake fold me arms and sit back and wait to see what the fool does next, if they just sit there in harms way i turn the engine off to make it plain the lorry isn’t going anywhere, if they are intent on doing themselves harm then nothing you can do to stop them, hopefully someone (including the lorry’s OBC) will bare witness that you’ve done all you can do to save the twit from its own stupidity.
Manager at a Kwik Save store got the arse with me one day cos i refused to move the lorry into place when a young boy was riding his bike around their loading area, he wouldn’t tell the lad to bugger off, even if that lad had fell off his bike 20 yards from and nothing to do with me, by the time ClaimsRus had finished flowering it up the lorry driver will be at fault for not taking due care.
Thanks for that, it actually helps knowing youd have done the same thing with the cyclist. I only got a mark for the cyclist (Hesitancy) 4 minors over all. Failed on due to another car driver, bugger all I could do about it, tried arguing my case that even mistic meg wouldnt have seen that one coming, but the mark was already in the box. Never mind, I`ll have another crack at it lol
