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Near Miss of the Day 681: “I live to fight another day”

Our regular series featuring close passes from around the country

Apologies for the rather dramatic headline, but if you cycle in the UK you will know that this is the kind of crap we have to put up with every single day – someone driving a car putting our lives in danger.

Paul, the road.cc reader who sent this one in, told us: “I’ve been using a camera for commuting for a week, and already half a dozen examples of poor driving, with this the worst.

“My right of way at the chicane. Maybe he had time to sneak through – but I wasn't ready for him cutting across me – and cutting the corner!

“I live to fight another day,” he added.

> Near Miss of the Day turns 100 - Why do we do the feature and what have we learnt from it?

Over the years road.cc has reported on literally hundreds of close passes and near misses involving badly driven vehicles from every corner of the country – so many, in fact, that we’ve decided to turn the phenomenon into a regular feature on the site. One day hopefully we will run out of close passes and near misses to report on, but until that happy day arrives, Near Miss of the Day will keep rolling on.

If you’ve caught on camera a close encounter of the uncomfortable kind with another road user that you’d like to share with the wider cycling community please send it to us at info [at] road.cc or send us a message via the road.cc Facebook page.

If the video is on YouTube, please send us a link, if not we can add any footage you supply to our YouTube channel as an unlisted video (so it won't show up on searches).

Please also let us know whether you contacted the police and if so what their reaction was, as well as the reaction of the vehicle operator if it was a bus, lorry or van with company markings etc.

> What to do if you capture a near miss or close pass (or worse) on camera while cycling

Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.

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29 comments

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Bungle_52 | 2 years ago
3 likes

The cyclist has priority at the narrowing point and my understanding is that the car needs to be back on the left side of the road by the time the cyclist arrives. If this is not the case the driver has not ceded priority to the cylist. The driver may have got back to the correct side of the road if they had immediately pulled in to the left after clearing the narrowing but the driver decided to continue on the cyclist's side of the road and force the cylist to brake to avoid a collision.

Some seem to think that if a driver makes a mistake then we should bend over backwards to remove the consequences of that mistake. It's hard to differentiate between bullying and a genuine mistake but in the end it doesn't make any difference. The correct course of action is to avoid a collision and report to the police in the hope that they will take appropriate action to discourage the driver from repeating the behaviour and putting other cyclists' lives in danger in the future.

In this case if a car had appeared coming out of the side road this would have become an even more serious situation for the cyclist. I don't think the driver could be sure there was no car coming and one would hope that the police will take into account the potential outcome rather than the actual outcome, which was bad enough.

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belugabob | 2 years ago
3 likes

Even if the driver had priority, due to "being there first", they gave no consideration to the fact that the right turn would bring them into conflict with oncoming traffic.
Obeying the huge white arrow, telling them to keep left would appear to be far too difficult for them to understand.

Awful road design, too, which just exacerbates the problem of selfish, inconsiderate road users.

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EK Spinner | 2 years ago
5 likes

That is an appaling bit of traffic calming, forcing vehicles onto the other side of the road adjacent to a junction is awful. Whoever signed off on this design should be facing some form of review by thier employers and industry certification body as that cannot possibly meet any approved design standards

Oh and the driving was shite too, turning right into a junction like that is becoming all to common (never mind in the face of the oncoming rider)

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bikeman01 | 2 years ago
1 like

Right of way is granted by the signage when two vehicles arrive at the intersection at the same time. But the car arrived before the cyclist and therefore had right to pass through. In fact he had already completely passed through before the cyclist had arrived. Had he been part way through you cant just plough into him claiming that you had right of way.

Turning across the cyclist's path is obviously wrong though.

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GMBasix replied to bikeman01 | 2 years ago
2 likes

bikeman01 wrote:

Right of way is granted by the signage when two vehicles arrive at the intersection at the same time. But the car arrived before the cyclist and therefore had right to pass through. In fact he had already completely passed through before the cyclist had arrived. Had he been part way through you cant just plough into him claiming that you had right of way.

Turning across the cyclist's path is obviously wrong though.

Just to be precise, right of way exists in this case because it is a public highway, over which the public has the right to pass and repass as of right.

What you are talking about is priority, and you are right, the signage atttirutes that priority.  However, the priority exists through the section.  The oncoming car has not somehow earned priority by getting in there first, otherwise it would not be a priority to the pov direction.

You are right, you cannot plough into the car claiming right of way priority:  that would be driving without due care (or even dangerous driving).  But, suppose the cyclist (or another vehicle) come head-to-head with the oncoming car and the car had not been able to dive off to his right (our left). The impasse would be entirely the result of the failure of the oncoming car to give way.  At no point did that car have priority just because he got there first.

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Hirsute replied to bikeman01 | 2 years ago
3 likes

But he hadn't passed through the narrowing at the point the cyclist had arrived.

Roads may be reduced in width by the use of build-outs on one or both sides. When placed on both sides, they may be opposite each other or staggered. Priority through the narrowing may be controlled by signs and "give way" markings. It is essential that you obey signs indicating priority to vehicles comingfrom the opposite direction.

So I don't think simply being there first is enough.

If the driver had bothered to indicate, then in all likelihood, the cyclist would have slowed a little and everyone would have been on their way happily.

 

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wycombewheeler replied to bikeman01 | 2 years ago
8 likes

no two vehicles ever get there at the same time, one is always first. if your entrance to a junction has give way lines, then you should not enter if doing so will cause another road user to have to apply brakes. WE do not play a high stakes game a chicken were reaching the junction first gives you priority.

However, timing and priority is not really the issue here, the issue is that having cleared the pinch point the oncoming driver stays on the wrong side of the road, because it's more convenient for them turning right.

If the traffic calming chicane were not there we would expect the oncomng car to wait on their side of the road until the cyclist had passed before turning right.

The problem s compounded because this audist hasn't found the secret stalks that operate the flashing orange lights, so the cyclists doesn't know whether the driver is staying on the right because of the parked car ahead (in which case he probably needs to ride as close to the kerb as possible) or because they are turning right (in which case he needs to move to the middle of the road.)

Pretty shocking driving.

The chicane is badly placed bewteeen two side roads, and likely to cause many interactions like this, and speed humps should be employed instead.

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brooksby replied to bikeman01 | 2 years ago
1 like

bikeman01 wrote:

Right of way is granted <snip> by being in a bigger and heavier vehicle.

Turning across the cyclist's path is obviously wrong though.

Fixed it, I think... 

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mdavidford | 2 years ago
3 likes

Leaving aside the writes and rongs of who should have backed off, that does look like an exceptionally crap piece of road design. What is the expected path for the driver of the car here? They've got a choice of doing what they did, which is unclear and likely unexpected to any other road users in the vicinity, or following the arrow to the left and then in pretty much the same movement turning back to the right to make the junction, which is probably just as bad.

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AlsoSomniloquism replied to mdavidford | 2 years ago
1 like

Does seem based in a crap design if you look the other way of direction as well. if two or more cars are waiting at the giveway for two or more cars to come through on priority direction and then first of the priority ones wants to turn right, instant traffic jam. I know there is a Keep Clear but then we know those are rarely respected. Also they seem to have something against proper giveway markings on any of the side roads. 

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bikeman01 replied to mdavidford | 2 years ago
1 like

Yep that's what should happen. He should move back to the left and then make the turn when it is clear. Its not difficult, thats what that big round thing in front of the driver is for.

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alansmurphy replied to mdavidford | 2 years ago
2 likes

mdavidford wrote:

What is the expected path for the driver of the car here? 

 

To return to their side of the road

 

mdavidford wrote:

They've got a choice of doing what they did

 

Yes they chose to endanger someone elses life

 

mdavidford wrote:

 or following the arrow to the left and then in pretty much the same movement turning back to the right to make the junction, which is probably just as bad.

 

 

It doesn't have to be in the same movement, they can return to the left, indicate right, slow or even stop and then perform that movement. How would that be as bad as driving directly at a cyclist and cutting a corner that you've not full visibility around?

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Hirsute | 2 years ago
2 likes

Difficult to understand the need by the driver to push through. Ok, he wanted to turn right, but he had to drive on the wrong side of the road to do this. The other parked car and the failure to indicate did not give much of a clue as to the driver's intent.

Cyclist is braking at 4 seconds and can escape left. Not sure how much more defensively they could have riden.

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AlsoSomniloquism replied to Hirsute | 2 years ago
0 likes

Yep, driver coming though initially I would have had no issues with as plenty of time for him to move to correct side of road. The rest of his driving does leave a lot to be desired and not just for the wellbeing of the cyclist but any cars or pedestrians who happened to be on the side road at the time. Still I suspect some person will blame cyclist for this even though I have seen alot worse from approaching car drivers in these circustances. 

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joe9090 replied to Lance ꜱtrongarm | 2 years ago
8 likes

Not you again. How have you not been banned from these pages?

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Flintshire Boy replied to joe9090 | 2 years ago
0 likes

Not comfortable with people who have different opinions to you?

Want to ban such people?

Interesting. How old are you?

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AlsoSomniloquism replied to Flintshire Boy | 2 years ago
4 likes

He learnt that from learning what GBNews viewers asked for when watching someone do an Anti-Racism protest on their news program. 

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Hirsute replied to Flintshire Boy | 2 years ago
4 likes

As previously explained to you there is a difference between having an opinion and trolling/baiting.

As ever, you refuse to reply or discuss which prompts the following:

"Interesting. How old are you?"

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Rendel Harris replied to Flintshire Boy | 2 years ago
6 likes

.

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TheBillder replied to Flintshire Boy | 2 years ago
5 likes
Flintshire Boy wrote:

Interesting. How old are you?

I'm 178 and my older brother will utterly batter you. Was that the playground response you expected?

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nikkispoke replied to Lance ꜱtrongarm | 2 years ago
9 likes

Reading some of your posts you do not seem to understand or 'get' what the law states or guidance such as the highway code. This may be mis-understanding but one suspects complete ignorance or wilful dis-respect of anyone who wishes to live in a civil and lawful manner. I generally cycle at a much slower speed and try to avoid danger but still find people acting in a unlawful and dangerous manner when driving a motor vehicle. Your comments are not clever but very disrepectful to the number of people who are killed and harmed by people who drive in an irresponsible, aggressive and dangerous manner and those people who are left behind with a sense of loss, common sense does not enter into any equation. 

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GMBasix replied to Lance ꜱtrongarm | 2 years ago
4 likes

Garage at Large wrote:

I honestly don't get videos like this. It wouldn't matter if I was riding a bike or driving a car, I'd slow down regardless of whether I saw someone driving through one of those road obstacles or if I had "right of way"... there must be a gigantic swathe of the British cycling population who simply aren't adorned with an ounce of common sense.

The fact remains that you would be forced, obliged or otherwise encouraged to take evasive action to correct somebody else's selfish and careless use of the road and failure to comply with road signs and markings.

Stop shifting the blame to the person who actually had priority at that point, especially when the driver compounded his faliure to give priority with sluggish progress and an unsignalled turn onto the wrong side of the side road.

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Hirsute | 2 years ago
0 likes

Still no video.
Did YouTube detect a false positive on copywrite ?

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Jack Sexty replied to Lance ꜱtrongarm | 2 years ago
0 likes

Garage at Large wrote:

Copyright

 That's not true, it was due to a processing issue. 

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AlsoSomniloquism replied to Jack Sexty | 2 years ago
0 likes

I think he was correcting the first posters Copywrite. 

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Jack Sexty replied to AlsoSomniloquism | 2 years ago
2 likes

Oh dear, back in my box! 

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Spangly Shiny | 2 years ago
1 like

Also a problem with counting:

Near Miss of the Day 680: Dangerous overtake into oncoming traffic

From Friday 17 December

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ktache | 2 years ago
2 likes

No video at the moment.

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Secret_squirrel replied to ktache | 2 years ago
1 like

Still not working...l

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