A cyclist who experienced a near miss while riding on the edge of Edinburgh has said that “nothing much has changed” when it comes to reporting dangerous driving in Scotland, after Police Scotland took no formal action.
Today’s instalment of our Near Miss of the Day series happened on Saturday, 19th December, just coming into the edge of Edinburgh via Gilmerton Road.
Despite having clear videos of the incident, phoning the police, arranging a time to meet officers and showing the officers the video at home, the police decided not to take formal action.
“I can confirm that nothing much has changed”, said the cyclist, Tim. “The attending officer said they would give ‘words of advice’ to the driver, but declined to take any formal action. The attending officer effectively insinuated it was my fault for not taking primary position and preventing the driver from overtaking.”
“It was a relatively quiet stretch of road and every other driver managed to overtake safely, including waiting a couple of seconds for oncoming vehicles to pass if necessary.”
“I believe if the Police had agreed to submit it to the PF (they did not), then there is now a website for uploading the video which is marginally less clunky than sending it to the attending officer via email.”
The Digital Evidence Sharing Capability tool was announced in September 2024 to be rolled out by autumn 2025. However, users still generally have to report the incident via traditional means, and then provide evidence as part of follow-up contact, rather than uploading it directly at the point of reporting.
A year on, Aberdeenshire-based road.cc reader told us that the process of reporting footage remained difficult. They said: “If I report anything using 101, then it will be my local police station that contacts me, and they will make it clear that they do not want you to report.”
Chief Superintendent Scott McCarren, head of Road Policing, told road.cc in December that “Policing Scotland’s commitment to improve how digital evidence can be submitted is still under review.
“Significant work is ongoing to scope all options available that allow capture of journey-cam footage. This includes reviewing our current capability as well as exploring alternative platforms.”
Previously, whilst cyclists in England and Wales have been able to submit video evidence of road offences via Operation Snap, Scottish cyclists had to make do with Police Scotland Online Reporting Form.
This method was criticised by those who used it as time-consuming, complicated, inconsistent, and reliant on the attitudes of the officers dealing with the complaint.
> 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@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
14 thoughts on “Near Miss of the Day 943: Police reaction to dangerous close pass shows “nothing much has changed” in reporting drivers in Scotland, says cyclist”
Institutionally anti-cyclist
Institutionally anti-cyclist
Institutionally anti-cyclist
Institutionally anti-cyclist
you can say that again
you can say that again
That must have been chuffin’
That must have been chuffin’ close to the handlebars, surely?!
cyclists in England and Wales
cyclists in England and Wales have been able to submit video evidence of road offences via Operation Snap, Scottish cyclists had to make do with Police Scotland Online Reporting Form. This method was criticised by those who used it as time-consuming, complicated, inconsistent, and reliant on the attitudes of the officers dealing with the complaint
I can reassure Scottish correspondents that having a ‘portal’ to easily submit videos of offences to the police doesn’t mean that the police waste any time looking at them. Lancashire Constabulary will delightedly decline to respond to these (because they’re a load of bastards who couldn’t care less what frightening behaviour drivers inflict on cyclists (notwithstanding people who claim on here that LC has taken action on their videos, but are mysteriously unable to provide the video or the evidence of ‘action’)
https://upride.cc/incident/nj69xha_taxi_closepass/
https://upride.cc/incident/kx66ufn_audi_closepass/
Lancashire police provide TWO
Lancashire police provide TWO easy access portals! As well as Operation Snap, which appears to be run nationally (for most forces at least) where the hub forwards the videos to individual forces) they have their own online reporting form which allows uploading of photographic evidence. You have to use the ‘provide information to the police’ option if you wish to, for instance, report vehicles which have failed MOT for serious safety ‘do not drive until repaired’ defects but which are still being driven on public roads. Such reports are invariably closed without action by an un-named officer within hours. So, Scottish cyclists, don’t expect any changes to police attitudes if you are provided with a ‘portal’!
From the article :
From the article :
A couple of points. Firstly, in Gloucestershire this would result in an advisory letter which is very similar to words of advice. I understand the sceptisism as to the effectivenes of this approach but I am certain it is better than NFA which used to be, and sometimes still is, the case.
Secondly, how refereshing to hear a police officer who understands that cyclists should not always be in the gutter. It seems to me that many officers still see this as antagonising drivers. Using this to put the blame on the cyclist seems unreasonable though.
In summary still well below what should be happening but getting better. I’ll probably be dead by the time this type of driving is routinely dealt with by points and a fine but I’m happy to continue reporting so the next generation of cyclists can benefit.
Bungle_52 wrote:
As a halfway house, I’d like to see driving awareness courses being used more frequently. It feels like it should be a win-win. As an alternative to prosecution, it signals to both the driver and victim that the standard of driving is agreed to have been below the standard of a careful and competent driver (i.e. meets the definition for the offence of careless driving). It might actually change driver behaviour – I’ve never been on one myself, but I’ve heard the courses are actually quite powerful. And because it’s not recorded as a conviction, the driver is less likely to challenge it (requiring court time), and from a public perception point of view is probably comes across as more proportionate.
OnYerBike wrote:
Yep. I’d be quite happy with an education course as the next step or even a warning letter which would be between an advisory letter and an education course. If I have understood correctly an education course can only be offered after a NIP has been sent and responded to whereas a warning letter can be sent to the registered keeper if there is evidence of an offence but the police deem it not in the public interest to send a NIP.
At some point though it needs points and a fine, just as speeding is dealt with now having already been through the “education/warning” phase.
“Policing Scotland’s
“Policing Scotland’s commitment to improve how digital evidence can be submitted is still under review. Significant work is ongoing to scope all options available that allow capture of journey-cam footage. This includes reviewing our current capability as well as exploring alternative platforms.”
You can see why Scott (geddit?!) McCarren is head of Road Policing! Authentic Police Gibberish (plagiarism alert! See Blazing Saddles) for ‘We’re putting it off as long as we can, before we move from the Make Reporting as Difficult as Possible Then Reject the Complaint’ paradigm to ‘the one we learned at that course at Lancashire Constabulary: Just Bin the Lot!’
See you laddie. Inspector
See you pal. Inspector McMutton of Polis Scotland here.
Has it no’ occured tae ye that thae driver wis a ‘Gers man an his may hame frae watchin’ thae Teddy Bears gi’in” the Celtic a gid pumpin’.
Ye shid try drivin’ alang a narrow road awfta 8 pints o’ Tennant’s, while eatin’ a bridie an’ swiggin’ an Irn Bru! Ye cheeky wee scamp.
Thae biker wis prably a ned awa’ wi’ a mountain bike.
“. ??Hello. Hello. We are the Billy Boys!….etc?”
and all that because the
and all that because the rider involved is called Tim !
Mr Blackbird wrote:
Naebdi saiz frae ‘sept in Oor Wullie comics or mebbi The Broons. Its aywiz been fae, ‘thoot yon extra r, ken?
Naebdi saiz frae ‘sept in Oor
Naebdi saiz frae ‘sept in Oor Wullie comics or mebbi The Broons
Are they still in the Sunday Post?