Jeremy Vine shares shocking close pass by 4×4 in the snow; Anti-lockdown protesters block police by setting fire to bikes; Richard Freeman “lied at every stage”; Just as well pop-up lane removed; Everyone’s favourite folder is back + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
Five empty lanes...but cyclists and pedestrians are crammed into one
Two pictures taken the same time today. On the right pedestrian and cyclists crowded together with no chance of complying with social distancing measures.
On the left 5 lanes reserved for the drivers of cars.
This is unfair, unsafe and definitely not #Green. #Brighton #cycling pic.twitter.com/MwOvdnoMKC— Steve Moses (@laplandlongspur) January 23, 2021
This is the opposite side of the story to when councillors or motorists complain about pop-up cycle lanes being unnecessary. In Brighton on Saturday plenty of people were getting outside in the sunshine on foot and by bike. Of the six lanes available, including one bike lane, five of them were empty except for a few cars.
Steve Moses shared these pictures and expressed his concern at the lack of opportunity for the cyclists and pedestrians to abide by social distancing measures, pointing out the “unfair” and “unsafe” road layout. The angle of the photo may make the crowding look worse than it is but that doesn’t change the fact that there is plenty empty room which some of those people could be using with appropriate infrastructure. A couple of replies to the photos mention the fact that there was briefly an additional lane for cycling back in the summer but that it was quickly pulled out…
It still drives me mad that they removed the on-road cycle lane there. It’s literally the worst part of the seafront route; further west there’s at least a bit more pavement space for distancing.
— Imogen Hardy 🏳️🌈 (@idgiecodes) January 23, 2021
@BrightonHoveCC made a cycle lane from one of the car lanes a few months ago, but it lasted only a couple of weeks as they bent under pressure from drivers and transport authority and painted in back. Quite a shame they have zero will to stand up for whats right.
— I Pilot (@igorpilot) January 24, 2021
The pop-up cycle lanes were removed due to congestion....
A bit of further digging and here’s what Brighton and Hove City Council said when the cycle lane was removed: “We recognised the serious concerns raised by public transport users and providers that congestion in a small section of the additional temporary A259 cycle lane had caused unavoidable delays to public transport in the city. We therefore agreed to suspend this short stretch of the lane.”
The temporary lane was ripped out in August with Brighton and Hove Buses pleased by the decision after they reported delays due to the new road layout, something which the council’s lead member for transport called “unacceptable”.
Happy Monday!
Do cross they said. It’ll be fun they said. Only a bit muddy, they said. pic.twitter.com/Jol1FrqczI
— Gina Ball (@GinaBally) January 24, 2021
Even better, there's a video...
2 minuut en 20 seconden wielerleedvermaak!😂 pic.twitter.com/m0xNl66yhB
— Bas Tietema (@BasTietema) January 25, 2021
Here’s the full video for your enjoyment. Superb.
Beryl adds e-Scooters to their fleet of transport schemes in Bournemouth and Poole
Beryl will add 50 e-Scooters to their fleet of electric transport in Bournemouth and Poole. Hired through their app, the scooters are “another form of safe, sustainable and affordable transport” with their launch fast tracked in response to the pandemic. Beryl already has a bike share scheme in the Dorset towns but will add scooters to help promote socially distanced travel.
The e-Scooters will be available from access bays, including at Bournemouth and Poole’s hospitals as well as both train stations. More e-Scooters will be added as lockdown is eased and the trial is part of a 12 month Department for Transport pilot. To use the scheme you must have a valid UK driving licence. Scooters can be accessed as a pay-as-you-go user for a £1.50 unlock fee + 10p per minute or through bundles priced at 5p per minute when buying 100-300 minutes.
Snow day cycling
“I promise you, no one – absolutely no one – is going to use those cycle lanes in London when it’s sno…
oh”.
(#CS3 Embankment, #CS6 Blackfriars, #CW4 Tooley, and #CW9 Chiswick) pic.twitter.com/F04r5XI9br
— always last (@lastnotlost) January 24, 2021
The snowy weather across many parts of the country didn’t stop some hardy souls getting out on the bike. These were the scenes in London yesterday…
London + snow + winter cycling pic.twitter.com/5LEGEizTXB
— citymobility (@citycyclists) January 24, 2021
Jumbo-Visma practise their bike handling skills
Technical skills training with @oscarsaizcas @JumboVismaRoad pic.twitter.com/rLxvZBH5Jc
— Mathieu Heijboer (@m_heijboer) January 25, 2021
No this isn’t Jumbo-Visma trying to pass their Cycling Proficiency Test before the new season…Skills sessions like these aren’t something we hear too much about. We assume pro riders just go on seven hour training rides with hard intervals to prepare for racing, not ride around some cones in a car park. But if I stop being facetious for a second it does make sense. How many times has a rider lost out due to positioning, a silly crash or poor descending? Probably enough to warrant occasionaly practising bike handling skills…This session was taken by Spanish downhill mountain biker Oscar Saiz, who has helped several pro riders improve their descending in the past, including FDJ’s David Gaudu and the Giant Shimano squad.
Everyone's favourite folder is back
This whacky folder first came to our attention last year with its Stages power meter (now a Quarq), SRAM eTap and 55t chainring…Now it’s back and better than ever with some new wheels…Sharing on the Bikeporn thread on Reddit, it’s owner and creator e_pilot said: “Just built up these 40mm wheels on Mavic hubs with Sapim strong single butted spokes. Still China rims unfortunately as 451 rims are an odd duck. Had shallow 25mm generic China wheels/spokes/hubs before this.
“They’re a little bit heavier, but 451 wheels are so small they’re only about as heavy as a the Mavic 700c 64mm carbon wheelset I have on my real bike. Aero gains will be marginal, especially on a wheel this small, but you can’t put a price on deep rim clout/aesthetics.”
Marcel Kittel voices support for Tom Dumoulin
Tom Dumoulin announced he’s taking an indefinite break from the sport on Saturday while he considers his future in cycling. One of Dumoulin’s former teammates, Marcel Kittel, did something very similar in May 2019 before retiring a few months later. The German voiced his support for the 2017 Giro d’Italia winner’s decision. On Instagram, Kittel wrote: “I’ve always admired Tom Dumoulin for his strength. On the bike when were teammates and won Tour de France stages together. And off the bike for his clear opinion and honest critic.
“Of course it’s sad to see him taking a timeout from cycling now, but he also stays true to himself to take the time he needs and figure out what who he is and what he wants. I know from personal experience how it feels and how difficult it can be when youre doubting what you do and you want to look beyond your current life and identity. Only time will give you the answers and I hope for Tom that he’ll find them soon.
“Until then I wish him the same strength that he’s got on the bike also for this part of his career and everyone else who is in the same situation and trying to learn more about his or her own identity. I know that it’s a big journey with uncertain destination but also a very important life lesson once you find that inner compass again, recalibrate and head into your future direction.”
Protesters angry at new COVID restrictions used bicycles as barricades against police during riots in Eindhoven
Anti-lockdown protest today in Dutch city of Eindhoven turns violent. This being the Netherlands the barricades consist, naturally, of bicycles.pic.twitter.com/RcNNTiYB6G
— Harald Doornbos (@HaraldDoornbos) January 24, 2021
Protesters angry at the new 9pm curfew in the Netherlands clashed with police in Eindhoven, with some demonstrators building barricades out of bicycles before setting them on fire. More than 100 people were arrested as police used a water cannon to disperse the crowds. The curfew was enforced on Saturday as a measure to tackle the covid pandemic alongside €95 (£84) fines for those caught breaking it. As well as using bicycles to impede the response, some protesters threw fireworks and golf balls at riot police.
This bizarre video appears to show the moment a protester apologetically put one of the bikes back after its owner shouts at him from their balcony…
Typical for the Netherlands. Rioter in #Eindhoven puts bicycle back because the owner shouts at him from a balcony. #Netherlands
pic.twitter.com/1DBOxHP1gh— Wᵒˡᵛᵉʳᶤᶰᵉ Uᵖᵈᵃᵗᵉˢ𖤐 (@W0lverineupdate) January 24, 2021
Projected road markings in Finland
Many of our paths for #cycling & #walking are covered by a thin layer of #snow for months, so the painted markings can be invisible. We’re for example testing projecting symbols onto the snow surface. Works quite well at least when it’s dark. #Oulu, #Finland. #MeanwhileinOulu pic.twitter.com/hSPyGqtRPU
— Pekka Tahkola (@pekkatahkola) January 24, 2021
While summing up the General Medical Council's case, Simon Jackson QC says Richard Freeman has "lied at every stage"
Simon Jackson QC said former Team Sky and Team GB doctor Richard Freeman has “lied at every stage” and “tried to cover up his “web of deceit” by setting up former head coach Shane Sutton. The Guardian reports that in summation of the General Medical Council’s case, Jackson claimed Freeman looked at what riders wanted and didn’t focus on World Anti-Doping Agency Code.
“He was prepared to sign up with an incoming doctor with his unknown magic and he, on this occasion and other occasions, crossed the rubicon by ignoring medical convention to do what he thought would provide an answer,” Jackson said.
“I underline that Team Sky and British Cycling were not aware of this but there were sleepers, there were dopers in the past who were within these organisations, when Dr Freeman was acquiring the Testogel. They had doped before. And so these aren’t bold allegations in the sense they are unsubstantiated. The GMC has been able to pull all these strands together. The only reasonable conclusions are they weren’t clinically indicated but they were used to dope a rider.”
On Saturday, Jackson accused Freeman of being a liar who was prepared to put others at risk with his prescribing actions. Freeman has admitted 18 of the 22 charges brought against him, including ordering the banned substance Testogel. However, he denies that he did so “knowing or believing” that they were intended for use by an athlete.
25 January 2021, 09:04
25 January 2021, 09:04
25 January 2021, 09:04
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Latest Comments
@Rendel Harris Agree, I am baffled that the 84 year old who is now banned from driving for year can then start driving again without a retest. We should be re-tested regularly.
@mitsky Just checking the figures and apparently the 2026 average cost is £58,000 per year per prisoner; worth noting that is only the direct cost, you then have to factor in ten years of lost tax income from the prisoner, ten years that the prisoner is making no contribution to society as a worker or as a consumer, plus the fact that if they were the primary breadwinner very likely the costs will include benefits for their family as well. None of which should be a reason for keeping violent recidivists out of prison of course, nor drug/drink drivers who kill, but it is a factor worth considering for lower-level offences.
@Surreyrider I ride in Surrey a fair bit and absolutely many do look like that but the point is they all *think* they're driving perfectly reasonably (as one discovers when remonstrating with someone who's skimmed one by 30cm, "I gave you masses of room") so deterrent penalties have little effect. That's why we need to strike at the root cause and actually train drivers properly and test them stringently (and more than once over the course of a potential 70+ years of driving, it's absolutely absurd that competence and knowledge in what for most people is the activity in their life that will run the biggest risk of killing people you never have to have your qualifications renewed).
@mitsky Imprisonment currently costs over £50k p.a. per prisoner and obviously that will rise over the course of a ten-year stretch with inflation. Regarding culpability and mitigating sentences etc, of course I'm not against condign punishment for drivers who kill (and cyclists on the tiny, tiny handful of occasions when this happens), including prison as appropriate; I was objecting to the ridiculous and oft-repeated demand of MM that drivers who kill cyclists must get ten years, "no excuses, no exceptions".
Hey, but their wool blend cycling adjacent t-shirts are/were fantastic.
@Surreyrider Still the boss. Ride one, you'll see why
@Smoggysteve "Most would happily ride on the roads and be treated with respect by drivers". But people aren't - and as far as I can see they won't be. Not until there is a lot less driving and it's slower around cyclists, and far more people driving have "skin in the game" eg. they sometimes cycle and their friends and family do also. That's what leads to the model - which is perhaps most advanced in NL - where cycling, walking and driving are all seen as separate normal transport modes. Their needs, vulnerabilities and any dangers to others are considered. And *that* leads to "mix / share when possible, separate when necessary". But "possible" is "where your 10-year old would be safe to cycle unsupervised" - so very few motor vehicles, going slow! And AFAICS everybody - even "existing cyclists" - is happy with the result. (I dunno about a few pro cyclists - but don't they tend to have training camps in different counties anyway?)
@quiff as an Edinburgh resident I can confidently say he's speaking without moving his lips in one sense: - while as I noted in a separate comment there *is* now some real separated cycle infra, all the examples i can think of have *at least as much space* for pedestrians. The rest of the "cycle infra" is essentially similar to the situation in the rest of the UK: eg. bus lanes*, cycle lanes and shared use paths (eg. "build" infra by sticking up a sign). Edinburgh is one of the places with a moderately extensive network of former railways which have been converted to "shared use" paths (completely motor traffic few). However though shared they are not narrow by UK standards. And this is all effectively a "free extra" for all non- motorised users, not like the "sign a cycle path" where pedestrians do lose space. I think this all comes from the "popular understanding" of cycling in which ultimately cyclists are the "other". They don't fit "motor vehicle" or "pedestrian" (including wheelchairs on the very rare occasions people think about that). Thus "cyclists are cheating" in multiple ways! They shouldn't get their own space as "there aren't enough" of them. And "they can just use the road / path". But being able to *choose* "on the road" or "on the footway" (shared use path) is clearly unfair - nobody else gets to do that! BUT of course even if they did pick just one of road OR pedestrian space it's still not fair anyway because they're "too slow" for the road (don't pay "road tax" etc...) and "far too fast" for pedestrians... * Though some existing cyclists may appreciate them when there are few buses, buses and bikes are a very poor mix for several reasons.
Whilst a shame for any employees, their bib shorts had the worst chamois pad I’d ever encountered, utter waste of my money. Even though they were Strava challenge discount purchases, still a waste of money.
Thanks, just going to have to suck it up. Got next week off and will take the easy, if expensive option...
18 thoughts on “Jeremy Vine shares shocking close pass by 4×4 in the snow; Anti-lockdown protesters block police by setting fire to bikes; Richard Freeman “lied at every stage”; Just as well pop-up lane removed; Everyone’s favourite folder is back + more on the live blog”
Am I missing something? Is B
Am I missing something? Is B&H particularly bad? If the roads were that empty, I would definitely be riding on them at that time…
Exactly !
Exactly !
Perhaps the exclusion zone has already been activated !
There are quite a number of
There are quite a number of traffic lights along that stretch so I imagine perhaps the cyclists make better progress in the congested cycle lane? I avoid cycling down there as the interaction of pedestrians and cycles is really dangerous – lots of visitors unfamiliar with the area coming down to the beach and having to cross the cycle lane to get there. Madness.
I probably would too but I’d
I probably would too but I’d imagine not every cyclist would feel confortable cycling on what is effectivly a dual carriageway
Quote:
Eh? How does that work? Surely congestion in a cycle lane would only cause delays to cycles?
That so called ‘close pass’
That so called ‘close pass’ shown in the Jeremy Vines video is a good example of how people feel threatened and put off from cycling. In an ideal world the video would capture the drivers face and then the police prosecute the driver for careless driving. That driver has absolutly no right to endanger other peoples lives and if we are to acheive the goal zero ambition on UK roads automatic sanctions need to be placed on drivers undertaking such manoeuvres.
No, no, no – haven’t you
No, no, no – haven’t you heard, it’s a war on motorists, harassed out of their cars without so much as a tax disc, it’s the driver who deserves all our sympathies – notice how gentle Jeremy bears this out by not adding insult to injury by speaking to him when they get to the lights. It’s important that cars should get to the next intersection first.
Imagine trying to drive safely on that icy road, you’re liable to spill your Starbucks and drop your phone in the footwell. How are you supposed to find a black phone on black carpet – you tell me.
It’s on Twitter too, look out for Mr “I cycle and I can’t see what the car did wrong / what else he could have done”
Absolutely right, and any
Absolutely right, and any novice cyclist would probably have got off and walked, parked the bike in the shed never to be seen again; these aren’t victimless crimes, contrary to the views of some police forces.
It doesn’t say whether Jeremy reported the driver to the police, but I’m assuming he did. To overtake in such circumstances isn’t just careless driving, that’s dangerous driving; a year’s ban and confiscation of the vehicle would be appropriate.
eburtthebike wrote:
Quite right, but would it fix the problem?
Would the driver understand what they had done wrong?
“Its not like I hit him, what’s the problem?”
Maybe we need Cyclist awareness courses (like speed awareness courses) that show drivers what it’s like to be close passed, that include time on a busy road on a bike.
pedestrian-pete wrote:
— pedestrian-peteIf they didn’t understand having lost their licence and their car, nothing would make them.
pedestrian-pete wrote:
There was a bus company, I think it was in Columbia, that put trainee drivers on exercise bikes and then drove a bus near them to familiarise them. Think it was a great idea .
I think there needs to be a hearts and minds side to this – people on bikes are still human etc – but there is also a simple Health and Safety side. To me loss of licence is not about punishment. It’s simple risk mitigation – the driver has demonstrated that they are unable to reliably control a vehicle safely in the public space.
Wasn’t Jezza’s video. The
Wasn’t Jezza’s video. The person who replied states he is a Mountain Biker and doesn’t drive but he didn’t see the car do anything too wrong….
https://twitter.com/theJeremyVine/status/1353733627943727104
Jumbo-Visma ‘skills’: I think
Jumbo-Visma ‘skills’: I think Wout would just advise his teammates to ride ‘cross.
Equally as scary as the close
Equally as scary as the close pass are the Twitter comments in reply. Basic ignorance and people who genuinely can’t see anything wrong. Some of those commenters undoubtably car drivers we may encounter.
One even criticizes the amount of space he’s taking, conveniently forgetting to mention the parked cars all along the road.
Some of them were pure
Some of them were pure baiting though.
Yes, yes, never mind all the
Yes, yes, never mind all the nonsense about Jeremy Vine. About this Tara Gins picture. I don’t believe it. Do you have the picture as proof?
Reg: Jeremy Vine video. That
Reg: Jeremy Vine video. That was my biggest fear yesterday when I had to cycle to central London. Having to stay very central in the motor vehicle tracks because of the ice / slush on the road. As it happened nothing too bad (couple of taxis as usual cut me up – one cut across me and then just stopped) I have been cycling in London for decades but it still worries me nearly every day. Is it because I am older and more ‘risk averse’ or is it becuase the roads are more dangerous?
Lukas wrote:
The roads are definitely more dangerous. https://youtu.be/1ipv4V6wDBQ
I can’t even travel for 2 minutes without dangerous drivers literally trying to ram into me. Do the police care? Do they heck.