Driving too Close to Cyclist offence

Some cyclist do ride around with a chip on their shoulder looking to find fault with peoples driving.

Equally some drivers are idiots and only care about themselves and are dangerous to not just cyclists but other drivers as well. (not saying this is the opening poster BTW)

Totally depends on the individual on the bike or at the wheel.

I'd be fuming if I got one of these, I'd always give bike space but to get done for what could be 0.1/0.2 of metre is very harsh especially if you are being sensible and safe in the overtake. I understand its the law before people start but the law is asking people to judge a specific distance in a moving vehicle, so similar with speeding fines there has to be margin for allowance in that.
 
Priv said:
I reckon if you pro rata it by numbers, there probably isn’t alot of difference in the percentages of d1ckheads on bikes or in motor vehicles.

Seem to come across plenty of idiots on/in both.
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It’s a tough one isn’t, there are certainly aTONNE of bad drivers in the road. The issue that gets me is the self righteousness of the cyclist though. The ones that do skip red lights believe they do nothing wrong and will defend themselves to a ridiculous extent on the internet. Most bad drivers, when pulled up will admit they are bad. Even if they get stupid angry to begin with
 
JackG said:
"
Many people misunderstand the Highway Code, which is not of itself a statement of the law, but a combination of both advice and mandatory rules which apply to all road users in Great Britain, although there is a different version for Northern Ireland.

Where a HC rule is expressed as something you ‘must’ or ‘must not’ do, the rule reflects a legal requirement imposed by legislation, breach of which is a criminal offence.

Where a HC rule is expressed in advisory terms, using words such as ‘should/should not’, or ‘do/do not’, the rule doesn’t reflect a legal requirement. A failure to comply with such a rule can however be used as evidence in both criminal and civil proceedings.

For example, a driver’s failure to comply with advisory overtaking rule 163 when overtaking a cyclist too close is relevant to whether they have or have not committed a careless driving offence. Similarly, in civil compensation claims, non-adherence to HC rules is often raised when liability (who is to blame, and who should pay) is determined."

Extracted from What's Legal - and What's Not - on your Bike which I'd linked to in #21
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That’s all fine and dandy in theory, but the fixed penalty system has more or less blown it out out of the water in practice and given the guidelines close to force of law.

If you receive a notice of intended prosecution for a careless driving offence, with an offer of a small penalty or an education course, and you choose instead to argue before a magistrate that 1.4 m was a safe distance having regard to all the circumstances then you will:
Almost certainly be convicted;
Almost certainly get a more severe punishment than the fixed penalty on offer;
Certainly end up paying out more, even in the event of a successful defence, than the fixed penalty would have been.
 
Malaguena said:
Dear me this thread is full of cyclists who think that a) the world revolves around them, and b) basic courtesy on the road doesn't apply to them - both of which are a major part of the problem
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You sir, are a c0ck.
Sorry, but that’s my assessment from your comment.
Edit: the cyclists posting here are as quick to criticise poor cycling, especially urban, as the pedestrians.
 
Bristolboro said:
The same thing happened to me (I started the last conversation on this topic). The reality is you'll get 3 points or option for a safe driving course, and a £100 fine (I think).
The police will send you evidence next - a picture of your offence, with your fine options. My offence picture was taken by a the cyclist behind the one I was overtaking. Looking at the picture I was puzzled to think that the cyclist was in any danger.. I would estimate the distance I gave him to be about 1.4 m. very marginal, but that is now the law and tbh, I think there are cyclists out there with a point to prove. I am also a cyclist and would never bother reporting unless I really felt in danger.
I was driving a motorhome in a rural area. Here in Bristol you'd be on 12 points before lunch time if every bike had a camera and used it to report vehicles overtaking. It's just not a realistic law in the city. A lot depends on where you are.
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Did you post photos of overtaking on a blind bend or was that someone else
 
I’m not a cyclist but I’ve driven past hundreds of them who are idiots. Equally I’ve seen hundreds of drivers who are idiots around cyclists.

If everyone took care and was respectful, 99% of problems would be avoided.

The biggest difference is the obvious one - cyclists will always come off worst in a collision. If a cyclist chooses to be an idiot, he’s endangering himself. If a driver chooses to be an idiot, he’s endangering others. I would argue that the car driver therefore has more of a duty to try and be safe.
 
There needs to be a law where cyclists get fined and points for cycling directly in the centre of the road for mile after mile on country roads purely to **** off the cars behind them
 
Gunslinger said:
There needs to be a law where cyclists get fined and points for cycling directly in the centre of the road for mile after mile on country roads purely to **** off the cars behind them
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Because of course that's why they do it, and not because:-

1) it's safer
2) the gutters are full of rubbish / glass / potholes etc

It amazes me how self important the majority of drivers on here seem to be. What does it add to your journey, a couple of minutes at most ?
 
Gunslinger said:
There needs to be a law where cyclists get fined and points for cycling directly in the centre of the road for mile after mile on country roads purely to **** off the cars behind them
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Some cyclists for sure absolutely look for trouble, I had a car journey last year where a couple of cyclists were causing me a problem just because they could. They actually made things worse for themselves as well.

But equally, plenty of drivers will see a cyclist ahead and see red.
 
viv_andersons_nana said:
I did make a post earlier than was sort of daft as it may have derailed the thread, but as the issue of nuisance cyclists has come up…

This morning I crossed Charing Cross Road and had to wait in the middle of the road as the TWO cyclists that jumped the red light travelled past, otherwise one of them would’ve gone straight into me. At lunchtime a bike travelling the wrong way down a one way street in Soho had to break sharply as I’d had the temerity to cross the road as there was no traffic, until this doyle hurtled around the corner. And literally less than 10mins later, a knob head on a Lime bike had to break sharply as they sped around a corner I was turning. On the pavement! Luckily they braked, if not then that would’ve been the second time I’d been by a bike since June.

I’m not meaning to just have a pop at cyclists because there are terrible, terrible drivers too. The numbers of cars, vans and even lorries that jump red lights in central London is absolutely disgraceful. I’ve even seen buses do it too. It’s amazing more people aren’t killed or seriously injured.

It does just seem to be getting worse. So many people have absolutely no thought for pedestrians or fellow road users. Walking to the office in Soho from Charing Cross every morning, you’ve got to be really careful even when using green lights on pedestrian crossings. There are some real dangerous types out there.
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We can all do whataboutary though and this wasn’t what the thread was started for.

Today I have hardly seen a cyclist but witnessed two cars go through red lights.
 
JM14 said:
Also noticed loads not wearing a helmet which seems unbelievable to me.

But as someone else said, it should make motorists more careful if anything
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Research shows that drivers take more care around cyclists with no helmet, so in a way it could be argued that it may be safer to ride without one. Crazy eh?
 
The_Lizards_Jumpers said:
Because of course that's why they do it, and not because:-

1) it's safer
2) the gutters are full of rubbish / glass / potholes etc

It amazes me how self important the majority of drivers on here seem to be. What does it add to your journey, a couple of minutes at most ?
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Self inportant driver?

I must have ridden more than 50, 000 miles on a bycle in my lifetime and still do , but i guess you just assumed i am anti cycling and no posts against d***heads on cycles are allowed
as the narrative of the thread is purely a dig at people who happen to also have cars
 
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