Friday 7 May 2010

Friday follies

A small example of how many motorists treat cycle lanes. I'm riding in the bike lane - up ahead is a roundabout, and the cycle lane continues through the roundabout. In an ideal world, a bike and car could go through the roundabout side by side. Except.... (note the BMW on the left - it will reappear later)...


The truck decides to go wide and completely fills the bike lane. I've had this happen to me a few times where I've gone in first, but a car has decided to overtake and because they've been going too fast, they've had to go wide. meaning they have gone right into my lane and pushed me aside. I now go straight through roundabouts in the middle of the lane - too bad if someone behind me wants to go faster.


Even the driver of this car couldn't help going into the bike lane. The only thing that would stop this would be a proper concrete kerb between the lanes to keep cars out.


Like this one, on the exit. A few years ago, I was coming down here and found a truck tipped over on its side. The driver had tried to fly through the roundabout, but come a cropper on this kerb as they tried to exit. Good.


Stupidity example number 2. There is a car in front of me. In front of that car is a cyclist. The car driver is impatient and wants to get ahead.


There he goes, attempting to overtake - except the taxi coming up on the left has blocked them. Note the red tail lights as he brakes.


He gets around - just - giving the cyclist about 6 inches of space. Note that I am riding in the middle of the lane - my position is designed to stop idiots doing this sort of thing. If they want to pass, they have to change lanes and go right around me.


As usual, I blasted past the hubbard.


Idiot driver had raced up to a set of lights, which were red. I timed it on the video - I sat behind him at this light for 33 seconds before it changed. Would it have killed him to just patiently sit behind the cyclist, rather than tearing up to a red light? Did it gain him anything, apart from having his number plate BBO 75Y emblazoned on this blog with the word DICKHEAD next to them?


An odd sight - this bloke pulled over in front of me and started packing up his fold-up bike. I reckon he parks here (for free) then tonks into the city over the bridge on the bike. It avoids a lot of traffic and the hassle and cost of parking.


And here is that BMW again - a day later, in the same spot, with the hazard lights still flashing.


2 comments:

1735099 said...

BOAB
Any way of mounting a set of air horns on a bike?

Boy on a bike said...

You can get an airhorn with a rechargeable cylinder - I think you can pump them up with the bike pump. Rated to something like 100 decibels. Seen them on the interrubes, but never in action.