A mother and daughter who both admit having close passed the same cyclist two months apart, the younger of the two motorists accepting a training course following her driving “without reasonable consideration”, believe the cyclist on the receiving end should be investigated by the police for “intimidating, aggressive and abusive behaviour”.

Tracy Haigh and her 21-year-old daughter both close passed the same cyclist on the same stretch of Ecclesall Road South at Whirlow, in Sheffield, the mother telling The Star she “pulled in a bit” to avoid a traffic island. Two months later her daughter was involved in an apparently identical incident, for which she was reported and South Yorkshire Police sent a letter offering a training course or a fine and penalty points for the “driving a vehicle without reasonable consideration to others — close pass on a cyclist” which was “recorded on camera”.

However, they have now accused the rider on the receiving end of their close passes of “intimidating, aggressive and abusive behaviour”, for which they believe he should also be investigated by the police.

> Police force that prosecuted one driver from 286 close pass reports now taking action in 97% of cyclist submissions

Tracy said that after her close pass the rider had “screamed and shouted” at her after catching up at a set of traffic lights and had told her he “had it on camera” and she would get six points and a £1,000 fine. Her daughter said the rider was “furiously verbalising” after she close passed him as well.

“I’m a cyclist myself and when a car passes at less than 1.5m it can be scary. But his behaviour was despicable. He was very intimidating and aggressive, there are much better ways of getting your message across. If he hadn’t been like that I would have apologised,” Tracy said, accusing the man of “targeting motorists”.

She went on to claim that close passes “should work both ways” and questioned: “How many times have cyclists ‘close passed’ cars to get in front at lights?”

“Under UK law, aggressive behaviour, intimidation, and harassment, including shouting at females, can fall under various laws depending on the circumstances and therefore merits an appropriate investigation to ensure another female isn’t abused,” she said.

> Here’s what to do if you capture a near miss, close pass or collision on camera while cycling

Responding to the request for an investigation, South Yorkshire Police confirmed that no offence had been committed by the cyclist.

“Although you perceived the male’s behaviour to be aggressive, this on its own would not be an offence in these circumstances and no threats, abuse or insults were made,” the force explained in a written reply which also stated that the number of complaints made by the cyclist against motorists, and how many were against women, could not be disclosed as it would breach the Data Protection Act 2018.

Yesterday, we shared a video reported by a cyclist in Scotland showing the moment a motorist earned themself a £300 fine and six penalty points on their driving licence after blaring the horn at a pair of cyclists riding two-abreast before overtaking across solid double white lines and cutting back across one of the riders.

Near Miss of the Day 903: Driver’s punishment pass on cyclists for riding two-abreast
Near Miss of the Day 903: Driver’s punishment pass on cyclists for riding two-abreast (Image Credit: Farrelly Atkinson)

 A 2023 survey, conducted on behalf of Cycling Scotland found that 97 per cent of drivers agree that close passes of cyclists put lives at risk, however over a third admit that they don’t think of someone cycling as a person, being more focused on getting past and getting on with their journey.

> The real impact of close passes on cyclists — my children were nearly left fatherless due to the actions of one callous driver

Eight out of ten drivers said they worry they could seriously injure someone cycling if they do not give them enough space. However, again, 30 per cent said they did not agree that people cycling have equal rights on the roads as drivers, while 83 per cent confessed to feeling frustration when trying to overtake people on bikes.

Were you the cyclist involved in the close pass incidents in Whirlow? Email us at info@road.cc