Minor injuries and cyclist deaths are down in Greater Manchester - but there's a significant rise in serious injuries to riders

andyp wrote:

'OZcycler wrote:

Fact 3

Witnesses say they saw Jaye using the crossing by straddling her bike and pushing with her feet in the moments leading up to the crash.

Independent witnesses saw this and confirm that she was straddling her bike and pushing with her feet. This is a pedestrian crossing and she was straddled her bike.

Se above, completely and utterly irrelevant tosh.'

Not completely irrelevant. Just the sort of thing which can help sneaky fecker lawyerss get away with it.
Pedestrian crossing being used by someone on a bike = wrong, therefore will be made the most of by a brief. Obey the rules of the road and you stand a better chance...in theory

Surely, if you are walking you are a pedestrian, regardless of the presence of a bike that you aren't actually pedaling? What _is_ the law on this?

Paul J wrote:

Traffic lights are pretty big clue you're no longer driving on a motorway, especially when it has a pedestrian crossing.

Do you know the area he was approaching the 50mph Mancunian way it's just changed speed limits from 50 to 30 look on google maps there is a sign saying 30mph new speed limit and then at the pedestrian crossing telling you A57M blue motorway sign so you can understand confusion

Some Fella wrote:

Jesus wept!
The MEN article covers the inquest which finds that a speeding driver who killed a women gets let off without punishment and that the woeful and potentially illegal infrastructure could have contributed and yet the police seem to blame the victim for using the crossing?
And then OZcycler tips up and saying you cant just blame the motorist? I think we can clearly blame the motorist in this particular case!
Its bad enough the authorities and police treating cyclists with contempt but to have a cyclist also lose sight of what the actual problem is is even worse.

And i put it to you GazWalker that many people use the pavement and jump red lights because they would rather take that risk than negotiate potentially dangerous infrastructure and yet you only seek to punish them and not tackle the cause of the problem. Forcing cyclists into breaking the law is more a sign that the current infrastructure has failed and less about the individuals involved.
But then again its easier to fine cyclists than build infrastructure so lets just carry on with that eh?

Knew it wouldn't take long and I was right lets break it down shall we and look at the facts and please some fella how do you blame the motorist entirely.

Fact 1

Giving evidence, senior investigating officer PC Ian Beaumont said: “The Mancunian Way is classed as a motorway, and when a motorway ends there should be appropriate signage of the speed limit.

“There should be a sign indicating the speed limit but this was incorrectly placed by the contractors.

SO PLEASE HOW IS THIS THE DRIVERS FAULT AS ITS A 50MPH WITH A NEW 30MPH AND THE SIGNS WERE INCORRECTLY PLACED THAT IS NOT THE DRIVERS FAULT IS IT ?

Fact 2

PC Beaumont added: “The pedestrian crossing is placed essentially in the middle of the motorway. It’s not meant for cyclists, but for the movement of pedestrians. can't you argue with that a senior police investigator.

Fact 3

Witnesses say they saw Jaye using the crossing by straddling her bike and pushing with her feet in the moments leading up to the crash.

Independent witnesses saw this and confirm that she was straddling her bike and pushing with her feet. This is a pedestrian crossing and she was straddled her bike.

Fact 4.

Mr Campbell said: “The traffic lights were green so I accelerated towards the Mancunian Way. I heard something hit the car and thought it had come from above.

So does this mean the cyclists was crossing on a red man phase and the driver failed to stop at a green light as if this was the case the witness that saw the cyclists straddled her bike would have seen the driver hit her on a red light would you agree. (I doubt it)

Narrative verdict and this is what I've found.

Narrative verdicts. The Coroner is not required to return a verdict in one of the set formats set out above. It is sufficient to produce a short, factual statement setting out the circumstances of the death if this more fairly and accurately reflects how the deceased came to his or her death.

This is again awful and someone lost there life and was loved by many but please hurling mud at motorists when there are factors on both sides doesn't help . And reading your posts blaming the Police for victim blaming surely the police are there to enforce the law regardless of the offence comitted isn't it Manchester City Council responsibility to provide infrastructure and highways.

And I forgot this gem from OZcycler.

"This is again awful and someone lost there life and was loved by many but please hurling mud at motorists when there are factors on both sides doesn't help .
And reading your posts blaming the Police for victim blaming surely the police are there to enforce the law regardless of the offence comitted isn't it Manchester City Council responsibility to provide infrastructure and highways.[/quote]

You've won the prize for being the biggest BSer on here by a mile.

OZcycler wrote:

Fact 1

Giving evidence, senior investigating officer PC Ian Beaumont said: “The Mancunian Way is classed as a motorway, and when a motorway ends there should be appropriate signage of the speed limit.

“There should be a sign indicating the speed limit but this was incorrectly placed by the contractors.

SO PLEASE HOW IS THIS THE DRIVERS FAULT AS ITS A 50MPH WITH A NEW 30MPH AND THE SIGNS WERE INCORRECTLY PLACED THAT IS NOT THE DRIVERS FAULT IS IT ?

Ian Beaumont has played a blinder there, because how a motorway ends is irrelevant, it's a dead cat. He wasn't coming off the motorway.

OZcycler wrote:

Fact 2

PC Beaumont added: “The pedestrian crossing is placed essentially in the middle of the motorway. It’s not meant for cyclists, but for the movement of pedestrians. can't you argue with that a senior police investigator.

You damn well can argue it, regardless of his rank, it was not "in the middle of a motorway", and what difference does it make even if she was cycling across the crossing? They are designed for people to cross roads. But again, a blinder by PC Beaumont by bullshitting and confusing the issue to make it appear that Jaye brought this on herself.

OZcycler wrote:

Fact 3

Witnesses say they saw Jaye using the crossing by straddling her bike and pushing with her feet in the moments leading up to the crash.

Independent witnesses saw this and confirm that she was straddling her bike and pushing with her feet. This is a pedestrian crossing and she was straddled her bike.

Se above, completely and utterly irrelevant tosh.

OZcycler wrote:

Fact 4.

Mr Campbell said: “The traffic lights were green so I accelerated towards the Mancunian Way. I heard something hit the car and thought it had come from above.

So does this mean the cyclists was crossing on a red man phase and the driver failed to stop at a green light as if this was the case the witness that saw the cyclists straddled her bike would have seen the driver hit her on a red light would you agree. (I doubt it)

See:

http://t.co/rFG3RnLc0m

If he thought something had fallen from above then the driver did not look where he was going. He's decided to screw it round a corner and he has killed someone. This is entirely his fault, yet GMP have conspired to to give yet another motorist an easy ride and a get out of jail free card.

Paul J wrote:

Interesting comments above. I've just noticed that the cop in the photo holding the "sharing the road? Dicing with death." thing would seem to be PCSO Gareth "why are you cycling" Walker.

I do cycle who says I dont, I ask why are you cycling through red lights, why are you cycling on the footpath, and also why are you cycling with no lights . And I sometimes say to drivers why are you driving to close to cyclists. And why are you in an ASL as this is for cyclists

gazwalker1975 wrote:

I do cycle who says I dont

Nobody has suggested that. You've gone off on a unrelated tangent, I assume deliberately, in order to shoe horn in the usual bigoted "I ride a bike but..." nonsense.

gazwalker1975 wrote:

I ask why are you cycling through red lights, why are you cycling on the footpath, and also why are you cycling with no lights .

Says everything that your comments related to cyclists are the most negative possible. Why would you ask of cyclists you've never met why they jump reds, ride on footpaths or have no lights? You've laid bare what you really think of cyclists there haven't you?

gazwalker1975 wrote:

And I sometimes say to drivers why are you driving to close to cyclists.

And then when you talk about motorists you phrase it as "sometimes I say", why only 'sometimes' when it's motorists but much more definite language when referring to cyclists? One can only put it down to your ingrained intolerance and bias.

gazwalker1975 wrote:

And why are you in an ASL as this is for cyclists

No motorist has ever been charged with breaking the law with regards to ASLs in Manchester, so if indeed this story is true and you have spoken to a motorist in an ASL why did you feel it better to turn a blind eye to someone breaking the law?

Tell me, are there any other laws you and your colleagues have decided to ignore and decide not to bother charging people for? That would be really handy to know.

Some Fella wrote:

Jaye Bloomfield tragically died on the slip road of the Mancunian Way (at a point where, albeit being extremely hazardous, it is not only possible to cycle but perfectly legal) last year so Gaz Walker should perhaps think before signing up to troll Peter Abel, get his facts straight and perhaps focus more on protecting cyclists and not victimising them.

On a related side issue - except for Oxford Road it is impossible to enter the city from the south of the city without interacting in some way with the Mancunian Way, with none of the options being particularly favourable or designed to keep cyclist safe. That is the true crime in this city.

I don't usually comment on web forums as I see how blinkered people can be when it comes to passion about things and there is a saying

"It's that one thing that you're passionate about, that you end up developing tunnel vision for and everything else tends to fall by the wayside"

I am a regular activity cycler. I am fed up of cyclists slagging off other peoples viewpoints when it comes to space and driver awareness. Watching the Complainers last week seeing that imbecile called DROID he was very lucky not to be hurt himself by antagonising drivers

I understand how hard it is cycling up Upper Brook Street at 1700 as i do it regularly and have had near misses and been the victim of a injury accident.

People slag off the Police and other agencies but sometimes the enemy is within our own ranks thats causes the most issues if people have a different opinions then they are classed as a troll, trolls to me live under bridges.

Ive just read the Manchester Evening News and googled Jaye Bloomfield as above the original reply was in relation to a lady who lost there life last year. Please read this as this was in todays.

A cyclist who was fatally injured on a Mancunian Way slip road may not have died if speed limit signs had not been ‘incorrectly placed’, an inquest heard.

Jaye Bloomfield, 44, of Whalley Range, was using a pedestrian crossing to cross the busy road on August 3 last year when she was struck by a black Seat Leon.

Cyclist Jaye died from severe head and chest injuries shortly after the collision.

Manchester coroner’s court heard the vehicle was travelling over the 30mp speed limit when the collision happened.

Giving evidence, senior investigating officer PC Ian Beaumont said: “The Mancunian Way is classed as a motorway, and when a motorway ends there should be appropriate signage of the speed limit.

“There should be a sign indicating the speed limit but this was incorrectly placed by the contractors.

“Improvements are being made to the signage so it is at the start of the slip road. A 30mph sign will be brought in next to the end of the motorway.”

Witnesses say they saw Jaye using the crossing by straddling her bike and pushing with her feet in the moments leading up to the crash.

PC Beaumont added: “The pedestrian crossing is placed essentially in the middle of the motorway. It’s not meant for cyclists, but for the movement of pedestrians.”

Michael Campbell, who the police say was driving the Seat anywhere between 41 and 49mph in the 30mph zone, was arrested but released without charge following the incident.

Mr Campbell said: “The traffic lights were green so I accelerated towards the Mancunian Way. I heard something hit the car and thought it had come from above.

“I stopped immediately in the middle of the road and looked to the left and saw someone in the road.

“I ran to the person. I was so confused. Two cars stopped and they called the police and ambulance.”

Coroner Fiona Borrill returned a narrative verdict, saying: “I shall be writing a letter to Manchester City Council to find out when the signs will be in place.”

In a statement, Jaye’s civil partner Gemma Godden, a teacher, appealed for drivers to respect the speed limit.

She urged: “If the driver who hit Jaye had been driving at 30mph or below as he should have been, he would almost certainly have seen her and been able to stop.”

Its tragic what happened but you can't blame just the motorist you need to read fully . I also think the OP says that some of the Mancunion way you can cycle ill go and have a look this week but looking at google maps the A57 has a M prefix which means no cycling if I'm wrong I will bow to peoples better knowledge.

Part of it is the A57

gazwalker1975 wrote:

My concern Peter is that the Mancunian Way is classed as a Motorway A57m so why are you cycling along it

My concern is you signing up just to make that one snide comment to try and undermine Peter Abel.

Given that you, PCSO Walker became the figurehead for the shameful victim blaming travesty that was Operation Grimaldi I would imagine that you should have come in to contact with him on a regular basis.

This sort of behaviour just highlights the utter contempt Greater Manchester Police have for genuine road safety campaigns.

farrell wrote:

gazwalker1975 wrote:

My concern Peter is that the Mancunian Way is classed as a Motorway A57m so why are you cycling along it

My concern is you signing up just to make that one snide comment to try and undermine Peter Abel.

Given that you, PCSO Walker became the figurehead for the shameful victim blaming travesty that was Operation Grimaldi I would imagine that you should have come in to contact with him on a regular basis.

This sort of behaviour just highlights the utter contempt Greater Manchester Police have for genuine road safety campaigns.

Well that's the best internet putdown I'll see today.

He didn't say he was cycling along it - he was making a point about Law enforcement on the roads.