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Near Miss of the Day 216: Bus driver makes very close pass on narrow bridge

Our regular feature highlighting close passes caught on camera from around the country – today it’s Berkshire

Today's video in our Near Miss of the Day series shows a bus driver in Reading making a very close pass on a cyclist they were overtaking on a narrow bridge in footage that "shocked" the bus operator.

It was submitted by road.cc reader uphillfreewheeler who told us: "I reported it to Reading Buses but heard nothing for three weeks so phoned them up.

"They said they were dealing with a backlog of complaints and hadn't got to it yet.

"On seeing the video they stated they were 'shocked' and would interview the driver to discuss the footage.

"The outcome would form part of the driver's work record," he added.

"I am happy it has been dealt with appropriately."

> 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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5 comments

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ChrisB200SX | 5 years ago
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Just before The Cunning Man pub by the looks of it.
There are a few canal/railway bridges just like this near there that I would't stay left on. There will always be an opportunity for an overtake when there are two lanes and no traffic lights.
It shows how motor-centric things are when cyclists feel they should move over to let people past when it really isn't appropriate.
Pretty poor show from a professional driver, regardless of the cyclist's position it's definitely not a place to attempt an overtake!

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CXR94Di2 | 5 years ago
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Close pass by bus driver, but why ride close to the kerb when the bridge is single file, observe and take the lane until you feel its safe to allow an overtake.

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Fifth Gear replied to CXR94Di2 | 5 years ago
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CXR94Di2 wrote:

Close pass by bus driver, but why ride close to the kerb when the bridge is single file, observe and take the lane until you feel its safe to allow an overtake.

This is in the description to the video: "I left space to allow an overtake not realising there was a bus coming which I soon regretted."

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Hirsute | 5 years ago
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Or the height of the bus

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leicestershire-46237488

 

It was only in slomo that you could see how close the bus was to the cyclist - brown shorts time.

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ktache | 5 years ago
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It's almost as if the bus driver has forgotten they are driving a 40 foot long vehicle.

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