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news
Near Miss of the Day 22: Black cab skims an indifferent or oblivious cyclist
Indifferent or oblivious? Today’s near miss took place earlier this month in London and involved a cyclist who didn’t even seem to acknowledge the incident.
Video uploader robinhood wrote: “I spoke to the cyclist, she either didn’t care or she was completely oblivious (not sure she could hear me with both headphones in). My guess is that she expects this sort of bad pass, which is quite sad really – it is not acceptable.”
The incident was not reported to police.
Earlier this month, the Met Police launched an operation that will involve plain clothes officers cycling around on the lookout for tailgating, close passes and turns made across a cyclist’s path.
Professional drivers and those who display examples of particularly bad driving will not be offered the otherwise standard roadside education. They will instead be reported, which may lead to a court appearance.
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.
Alex has written for more cricket publications than the rest of the road.cc team combined. Despite the apparent evidence of this picture, he doesn't especially like cake.
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21 comments
I saw something very similar (but at faster speeds) in Kings Cross. The female cyclist asked the taxi driver why he passed so close - obviously he stopped at the lights after nearly taking her out. I also stopped to give my opinion. I think that their job is so mundane and so repetitive and so uninspiring that cab drivers get a thrill from intimidating cyclists, especially female cyclists.
You need to lookup the definition of 'skim'
It was a close pass. There was no skimming.
This is the problem with the close pass, to me, at that speed it wouldn't bother me at all yet it does to others.
Even at higher speeds of say 20mph I'm not that fussed by close passes yet the comments on this video shows others are.
This is Old Kent Road. I cross it near there sometimes.
Appalling driving. Inexcusably dangerous, selfish and lazy. Please continue to campaign against this kind of behaviour.
It's Old Kent Road, just by Tesco, going North. Ride through there every day and that is sadly not uncommon - there's a lot of awful road design and that junction is one such example. you get a lot of cars pulling across in to that lane doign similar, onyl to meet and pass them at the next two sets of red lights before Bricklayers arms roundabout. Definitely dangerous though regardless of speed - the road surface round there is awful with a lot of drains and bumps and there are bus stops on the left. If you get clipped there, you are at very real risk of bouncing off in front of something big and nasty.
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That looks to me like it happened at less than 12 mph and a differential of 2 or 3 mph.
Yes, the taxi was close but the speeds and difference in speeds involved were such that I wouldn't have been bothered by it.
So dying at 12mph is ok then, gotcha.
Who died?
If you read my post again you may wish to note that I didn't suggest anything was "ok" about it. The distance of the pass was too close. That one's an absolute.
What I did say though is that at the speeds involved, I (personally) wouldn't have been getting excited about it (had I been in that situation).
I do 3500 miles of city centre commuting every year and have been in that situation several times.
At 10 miles an hour with a taxi doing 12 I'd have hardly registered how close he was.
At 15 miles an hour with a taxi doing 30 I'd have been pulling the driver out of his cab at the next set of lights.
This. Because, actually, this is the way busy cities are. A blanket minimum passing distance is no more valid than a blanket maximum speed limit.
Quite generous for a black cab! Justified use of the horn too, castigating her for not pulling in to the left before she had finished passing the bus. Bloody cyclists!
I used to ride that route every day. A very effective way to be fully alert on arrival at work in the morning, although I don't remember many unpleasant incidents.
Possibly worth reporting that one to TfL, the taxi licensing body. Unlikely to have any instant effect but if they get lots of incidents on video then it might eventually have some impact. Certainly if it isn't reported then nothing will definitely happen.
Hmmmmm. Robinhood (filming) Double standards much? He passed both cyclists and vehicles closer than the taxi did her. If the rule applies, it applies. Critic, pick the log from your own eye before picking at the splinter in mine.
I can see your point about a cyclist not passing another cyclist closely. But....
Why are so many of those people riding in the gutter?
Apparently the correct title is London, and I imagine they have to ride there because it's where there are many jobs. I understand that traffic is horrendous with many large tin boxes occupied by just one person, a bike is a much more efficient way of getting around the place. It seems logical to me to use a bike when most journeys are going to be quite short too. I'm not a fan of the place myself, but there's no real need to insult it in the way you have.
HTH.
Very helpful, thanks. I didn't realise there were many jobs in London!
I think Chris means why are they cycling so close to the kerb.
London - hell on wheels!
It's really not though.
Exactly. That's the Old Kent Road towards Elephant. Why anyone cycles on it is beyond me. OK, I know we should be able to safely, but can't and there are plenty of safer, nicer options. In theory it's on my commute but I stick an extra half mile on a have a really pleasant ride. Most of the time...