Cyclist spotted riding on M25 hard shoulder; Alex Dowsett to take on Hour Record; Road safety group ask cyclists to ‘reduce strain on the NHS’; Bike theft stopped by Deliveroo driver; How far can you ride without being sworn at? + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
School Streets see a 51% increase in children cycling
Hackney was one of the first councils in England to introduce School Streets. By June this year it had 10.
Surveys showed the first four had resulted in:
Traffic reduced by an average 68%
Children cycling to school increased 51%
Vehicle emissions outside schools down 74%.— Jo Rigby (@Jo_Earlsfield) November 9, 2020
In Hackney, where there were 10 School Streets introduced by June, the surveys on the outcomes of the schemes have shown much to be positive about. While traffic reduced by an average of 68% and vehicle emissions were cut by 74%, children cycling to school increased by 51%.
School Streets are just one form of active travel infrastructure that has been introduced across the capital as part of the wider push for LTNs. They restrict motor vehicles from outside schools around drop-off and pick-up times with the aim of creating a safer and healthier environment. In June, it was announced that Transport for London had allocated £22.26 million for emergency cycle schemes with £1.75 million for School Streets.
Hackney were one of the first boroughs to implement such schemes and in 2017 parents at London Fields Primary appealed for the school to be included in the borough’s School Streets initiative.
Possible bike theft stopped by Deliveroo driver
A Thief trying to take a bike in the E16 area pic.twitter.com/fktCyxda8k
— London & UK Crime (@CrimeLdn) November 9, 2020
This video from Commercial Street in Shoreditch shows the moment a potential bike theft is stopped by a Deliveroo driver. Despite being heard saying: “It’s my bike,” the man is chased off having already cut through the lock. Metropolitan Police have asked for anyone with further information about the suspect to come forward.
— London & UK Crime (@CrimeLdn) November 9, 2020
How far can you cycle without being sworn at?
A cyclist from Bracknell is hoping his ride from Land’s End to John O’Groats can help remind drivers to be kinder to cyclists on the road. Since putting a sign on the back of his bike asking drivers to be patient, Phil Hopkins has noticed a significant improvement in how drivers treat him.
“The most amazing thing is how putting that sign on the back of the trailer has changed peoples attitudes instantly. Now it’s all smiles and waves. It’s hard to put a number on abuse,” he told Bracknell News.
Hopkins plans to take on the bucket list challenge in 2021 and his daughter, Kassandra Alicia, doesn’t want donations only for drivers to show more patience: “I do genuinely worry about my dad cycling especially when he comes home and tells us that he has been verbally abused, cut up, and has even been told before that they hope he gets hit.
“If you see him, please be kind. Please take into account training takes time, takes dedication. It can be a bit soul destroying to be screamed at when you want to do something massive like this, especially for charity.”
Which Grand Tour is the best?
Sunday saw the final Grand Tour of the year, La Vuelta a Espana, roll into Madrid with Primoz Roglic in red by just 24 seconds from Richard Carapaz. Exciting drama and tight finishes were something of a theme at all three Grand Tours this year with Tao Geoghegan Hart and Tadej Pogacar’s Giro and Tour wins both decided by less than a minute.
But which one is your favourite? The Tour de France has the prestige of being the most famous bike race in the world but the Giro d’Italia is often labelled as harder with it’s higher climbs, longer stages and unpredictable weather. And what about the Vuelta? Who doesn’t enjoy watching the pros struggle up monstrously steep climbs?
ProCyclingStats poll on Twitter gave the edge to the Giro in 2020…But if you could only watch one next year, which would you pick?
Cycling in the rain
Non-stop rain today. If you think that’ll make the Dutch stop cycling, think again. Filmed in Tilburg, Netherlands. pic.twitter.com/VUNPnWjb3d
— Mark Wagenbuur (@BicycleDutch) December 13, 2019
We’ve got another cycling study for you today and it’s particularly relevant for anyone living in the UK. This research into cycling in Germany found that in cities with an established tradition of cycling, bad weather does not deter people from riding bikes. More cycling infrastructure makes people more likely to ride – even in miserable conditions.
A new study has found a correlation between the tendency to cycle in bad weather and the quality of infrastructure.
In cities with a dense cycling network, people ride regularly rain or shine. In others, cycling declines significantly in adverse weather.https://t.co/kOjp7CWcGV pic.twitter.com/N8itJZHemc
— Dutch Cycling Embassy (@Cycling_Embassy) November 10, 2020
Kent Road Safety accused of victim blaming
STATS19 data shows drivers failing to look properly is nearly 30x more significant a factor in collisions than visibility of cyclists. Are you tweeting 30x as much to drivers?
— closepassescardiff (@closepassescdf) November 10, 2020
Kent Road Safety put their foot in it with this Tweet earlier today about cycle safety which suggested that cyclists should wear ‘appropriate clothing, footwear and a helmet’ to reduce strain on the NHS. The post, which received much pushback from Twitter users, has been accused of victim blaming and being tone deaf for placing responsibility for road safety on trivial clothing choices from cyclists.
One person replied: “Quite apart from the victim-blaming and shifting of responsibility demonstrated in this tone-deaf tweet, who on earth is routinely cycling without shoes?”
Another added: “Please may I see your data to illustrate that ‘appropriate’ clothing reduces strain on the NHS in the context of cyclist injury rates?”
Can you recommend a helmet that will protect me from the impact of a vehicle?
Do you have a list of clothing that will keep me safe from bad driving?— James (@jayshi2105) November 10, 2020
Alex Dowsett to take on the UCI Hour Record
Former UCI Hour Record holder Alex Dowsett is going to have another shot at the record in Manchester next month. Dowsett, who won Stage 8 of the Giro d’Italia last month, set a distance of 52.937km in 2015 but was subsequently bested by Bradley Wiggins later that summer. The target for Dowsett to reclaim the title is 55.089km and was posted by Belgian rider Victor Campanaerts last year.
Dowsett last week confirmed that he has a new contract for next season but is yet to reveal which team he will be riding for. The 32-year-old is excited by the prospect of ending the year strong with another attempt at the record having earned a new deal in the professional peloton.
He said: “When I took the record in 2015, we rode enough to break the record but I knew I had more in the tank at the end which was frustrating given the work put in by everyone.
“I spotted an opportunity in December this year to have another go and obviously I want to try and break the record, I want to see what I’m capable of and it’s an event I just really love and feel privileged to have the opportunity to take on again.
“In terms of difficulty, this time around I know the bar has been set extremely high by Victor (Campenaerts). It’s going to be a very big ask but I think I’m capable.”
Wilier Filante SLR 2021
An interesting point made under our story about the new 2021 Wilier Filante SLR…We’d suggest a brand’s marketing of a bike can often be taken with a pinch of salt but let us know your thoughts…
Anyway, if you do want to read more about the new Filante SLR you can do so here…
The Vamps collaborate with Ribble for Movember
It’s that time of the year again when there’s plenty of dodgy moustache growing going on, all for the good cause of raising money for Movember. However, if like me you aren’t gifted in the facial hair department then ‘Miles for Movember’ could be the one for you…
The challenge involves riding as many miles as you want on Sunday 22nd November. Brad Simpson and James McVey of British pop-rock band The Vamps have committed to the challenge and will be carried through the day by the support of Ribble. They will be riding 60 miles as every 60 minutes, 60 men globally are lost to suicide. So if you feel like it get out and enjoy some winter training miles next Sunday to support a good cause.
World Bicycle Relief commemorate 15-year anniversary
World Bicycle Relief are celebrating 15 years of empowering people in developing countries with bicycles. To commemorate the anniversary, the charity are revisiting many of the greatest success stories from their first 15 years and have recognised 15 ‘Community Champions’ from across the world for their contribution to the project. Since 2015, World Bicycle Relief’s have delivered 527,820 bicycles, rained 2,455 mechanics and helped communities in 21 countries with their aid.
One of World Bike Relief’s Community Champions is Ruby Isaac from Kettering in Northamptonshire, who raised £4,342 by climbing the Stelvio at the age of 10.
She said: “I am very proud to support World Bicycle Relief because what they do really is amazing. Children in Africa have to walk miles to school or a hospital so when WBR gives them a bicycle this really can change their lives for the better. I feel so lucky to be able to help World Bicycle Relief and help change these children’s lives for the better by raising money to buy Buffalo Bikes.”
Tao's limited edition pink Pinarello Dogma F12
Getting a limited edition pink Pinarello Dogma F12 is one of the more enviable perks of being incredibly good at cycling. Pinarello never miss the mark with these Grand Tour winner limited edition bikes and have previously made yellow versions for all the Sky/INEOS Tour winners. Tao’s pink bike is no exception and comes signed with a congratulatory message from Fausto Pinarello.
Geoghegen Hart can be heard explaining that his Giro win has cost him a car after betting his brother that he wouldn’t win the race after Stage 15. His brother may well be getting a new car but we think Tao’s got the better end of the deal with his pink F12.
Cyclist seen riding down M25 hard shoulder
It’s not the first time we’ve seen someone cycling on the M25 this year. A man was spotted riding, not even on the hard shoulder, back in April…
This footage, credited to Oliver Hall, shows another cyclist on the M25 at around 3pm on Sunday near Junction 10 for the A3. We’ve racked up a worrying archive of incidents such as this over the years. In March a cyclist on the M60 near Cheadle in Cheshire was fined and told: “this does not constitute your daily exercise.”
While in May a group of cyclists were escorted off the M53 near Chester after numerous calls from the public…
10 November 2020, 09:23
10 November 2020, 09:23
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Latest Comments
Some years ago (before there was a cycle lane) I used to commute on Sidmouth St. But only because I worked on the London Road campus, from anywhere else there are better alternatives. As a cycle route it runs from between two busy roads, neither of which are exactly cycle friendly. So it's hardly surprising that no cyclists use it.
The officer's comments unfortunately reflect the reality of UK law. While the Highway Code guidance indeed refers to 1.5m, that is not anywhere in the law. And the criteria in law for proving a charge of careless driving does in fact rest on whether the rider is being "inconvenienced", as the discovered several years ago when the Met prosecuted a taxi driver who nearly hit me when cutting into my lane from the left near Marylebone. The prosecution lawyer was a barely competent newbie who fumbled over his words. The court computer was barely capable of playing the video footage, which kept freezing and crashing. The cabbie had an highly assertive defence lawyer who immediately seized on this point, and argued to the magistraite that I clearly hadn't been "inconvenienced" because I had not stopped or swerved, and had carried on my journey. Never mind that didn't have time to do either of those things, or that I was centimetres from being hit - the magistraite acquitted him on those grounds. That is unfortunately the outrageous reality of actually prosecuting a close pass incident. I know it's popular to blame the police and the CPS for not prosecuting enough close passes ... but the fact is the law is inadequate, and if the driver has a good lawyer then they can likely get off most close pass prosecutions.
Let's not forget the protruding "side" mirror...
HTML rules are clearly only partially implemented
please can we have the ability to use bold and italics for emphasis back as well?
As a Reading resident and cyclist, I can say I cannot think of a single occasion when I have seen a cyclist using the Sidmouth St cycle lane, nor can I think of any reason I'd use it myself. It doesn't connect to any other useful cycle routes. I don't rejoice that some of it is going back to motor traffic but I can see why the council is proposing to do that. Reading could really do with a cycleway to cross the town centre west to east and east to west but I'm not holding my breath on that.
Giant are one of the most trustworthy brands out there when it comes to manufacturing components given that they actually own their own production facilities. None of that matters though when it comes to road hookless, I and most other people won't touch it with a barge pole. We're surely at a stage now where it's toxic amongst consumers and it's only a matter of time before the UCI ban it for racing.
Filling the road with one person per car is using the road space more efficiently, amazing, I never realised that.
I bought a Giant Defy recently and immediately sold off the hookless wheels at a pretty big loss and won't ever do that again. I'm not buying hookless for road ever. Giant in particular has very short list of what tires they test with their rims so it's way too restrictive even if I was going to ride hookless wheels. Which I won't. Very short sighted by Giant.
Insulting someone on the basis of their ethnicity, gender or sexuality is a hate crime, calling them fat isn't. It would be the homophobia, not the fat-shaming, for which he was charged.
48 thoughts on “Cyclist spotted riding on M25 hard shoulder; Alex Dowsett to take on Hour Record; Road safety group ask cyclists to ‘reduce strain on the NHS’; Bike theft stopped by Deliveroo driver; How far can you ride without being sworn at? + more on the live blog”
Nice one ‘Roo! Chapeau!!!
Nice one ‘Roo! Chapeau!!!
…and everybody else just
…and everybody else just stood and watched
brooksby wrote:
‘S’cos the thief had no hiviz…. nobody saw him.
brooksby wrote:
They risk assault, or possibly worse if they intervene. Have-a-go heroes are few and far between unfortunately, and police enforcement non-existent.
brooksby wrote:
About twenty years ago, someone ran a test about cycle theft, and they locked a bike up opposite a bus queue, then got someone in a trench coat to approach it and cut through the lock and take the bike. The first time, he hid the bolt cutters under his coat as he cut the lock, then gradually became more brazen, finally walking up to the bike with the bolt cutters in his hands and blatantly cutting the lock and taking the bike. Not once did anyone in the bus queue say anything.
I know of a similar effort
I know of a similar effort with motorbikes and scooters. Guys parked them in strategic locations then cut the locks off and carried them into a hired van. Nobody said anything – even when alarms were going off.
I’ve rarely been challenged
I’ve rarely been challenged despite a long history of lost keys, faulty locks &c (even had to break into my own house a couple of times; glazing is a handy skill to learn).
There was just one occasion when my car broke down at the other side of town; I came back to fix it a couple of days later, and this must have looked very suspicious by the point that I was pulling a cable to turn off the shrieking alarm. Somebody drove past, wound down their window, and said “Is that your car?”. Trying to be funny, I said “Well, it is now”. They just drove on and did nothing.
We’re primed to expect thieves to lurk in alleyways at night, maybe wearing a stripy top. If you go about in crowds in broad daylight, maybe with clipboard or hi-vis, a lot of people wouldn’t challenge you, even if you saw off bike locks, or test door-handles, or carefully watch people at an ATM.
brooksby wrote:
Well, at least one person stopped to video it, which ought to have been obvious, but did not deter the thief. Which says something about the value of CCTV as a deterrent.
Sriracha wrote:
It used to be nearly useless due to hoodies, and also CCTV cameras had the same image quality as the average potato. Now it’s normalized to be masked in public, so it’s even less of a deterrent.
Note: I’m not arguing against masks. Just observing.
Not convinced that I’d
Not convinced that I’d definitely confront someone wielding something capable of cutting through a D-lock if it was my bike, let alone someone else’s. Much as it shouldn’t happen, property can be replaced.
Most would be concerned that
Most would be concerned that a thief might have a knife and be prepared to use it.. the other concern is that any effort to stop someone that looks to be a thief could backfire if it actually is the owner who has lost his key.. a difficult quandary for sure.
https://twitter.com
https://twitter.com/theJeremyVine/status/1230400178819039232
Looks like someone locked
Looks like someone locked their expensive bike with an expensive lock … through the back wheel. The lock at least was good enough to require two cuts.
Hold on though isnt that a
Hold on though isnt that a gold rated kryptonite lock? not too dissimilar to the one I use because I thought they were supposed to be good, how did someone seemingly without any visible power tools cut through that ?
Before the events in the
Before the events in the video?
Well ok yes,but that’s a lock
Well ok yes,but that’s a lock with half inch hardened steel d-lock meant to survive minimum 5 minutes of attack from large bolt croppers & tungsten carbide tipped hacksaws, if that guy is carrying portable tools in his man bag capable of slicing through that so easily ,with no questions being asked,why not just cut through the sheffield stand instead ?
I thought the pro tooled up bike thieves that appear in articles here sometimes always said they just moved onto the easier locks to break than risk the gold level ones, unless they were stealing to order,but they wouldnt risk the time/effort in such a busy street
Not sure what point you’re
A portable angle grinder will go through [i]any[/i] lock in seconds or minutes.
A decent lock, like the one shown, will need two cuts, because the ends of the U do not rotate within the locking shackle. So in this case the thief gave up after one cut and, like you say, probably moved to an easier target. The guy in the video may be just another chancer, or maybe he is a rookie who has just learnt that some locks need two cuts.
Why is it possible to use an angle grinder on a bike lock in a public place …. Well, would you intervene? The video shows just how few would.
Why not cut the Sheffield stand? Sometimes they do, but it’s not obvious that it’s any easier. It would need two cuts as well. And it does not allow the “plausible deniability” that you “just lost the key”.
Massive respect to the
Massive respect to the deliveroo driver, they had nothing to gain but risked assault by that chav muppet.
Commercial street is a busy street btw, they really don’t care who sees them..presumably no one usually steps in
She was great.. you could see
She was great.. you could see others standing around, not caring or wanting to get involved – scumbag thieves rely on the general public minding their own business and letting them steal unimpeded.
The Giro usually delivers a
The Giro usually delivers a ‘better race’ to watch, but usually has a lesser supporting cast of riders, it always delivers drama and suspense! Which for me is why I voted Giro.
The Tour for me, will, over it’s 21days, inevitably have some throughly boring WTF stages. What it’s got going for it is the fact that all the big players are there and there’s always some underlying drama or plot twists.
I know it’s the Mail again
I know it’s the Mail again but in the noise about the Farage piece it was overlooked the Mail had printed several other articles attacking LTNs,cycle lanes & highway code changes in the same edition and then follow it up with this today, whilst I’m sure the Telegraph will soon breakthrough 20 articles since July criticising LTNS,cycle lanes implementation
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/uknews/tories-demand-an-end-to-cycle-lane-chaos/ar-BB1aR67d
It definitely feels like theres a concerted attempt going on to shift government policy on these.
Should I be wearing a
Should I be wearing a motorcycle helmet, motor bike boots and inflating suit whilst out on lockdown in case I meet any Subaru drivers ?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=svmPSlmPvRw
hirsute wrote:
As a Subaru driver, I cannot fathom how that driver managed to cause that crash. Ineptitude of the lowest grade… Low speed, good conditions & plenty opprtunity to correct the initial mistake. Scary to think they are probably back driving.
Don’t think the choice of
Don’t think the choice of vehicle is to blame. It’s cos he’s a dick. Taking that (to all intents and purposes blind) corner at closing 70 is not what I’d call low speed.
The rider received life changing injuries. The driver, Florian Pratt, was jailed for 16 months and got a 3 year ban
Captain Badger wrote:
Nominative determinism makes its mark again!
andystow wrote:
Nominative determinism makes its mark again!— Captain Badger
The irony did not escape me….
Given the amateur hour safety
Given the amateur hour safety antics in the Giro this year shouldn’t we be asking whether it deserves to be run again by its current organisers?
Or are we ok with Pros being injured or coming down with potentially killer infections just because the organisers couldnt organise a piss up in a brewery?
Secret_squirrel wrote:
could be worse they could organise the grand depart from four seasons landscaping
On holiday last year in
On holiday last year in Amsterdam during a very wet week I was impressed by the ability of Dutch cyclists to ride while holding an umbrella aloft.
I also wondered how effective a brolly is against driving rain and the forward momentum of a bike.
Chinese cyclists are pretty
Chinese cyclists are pretty adept at this also.
OldRidgeback wrote:
That’s cos there are so many bikes to practice on. 9 million in Beijing alone, or so I’m reliably informed.
Can we have fewer crappy
Can we have fewer crappy click bait posts about the latest spat between people on Twitter please? We seem to be averaging one a day at least and it’s really not news. If I want to know what some random keyboard warrior thinks I’ll go on Twitter myself.
a4th wrote:
Twitter is a primary mode of modern communication. In this instance, why would it not be of interest to cyclists that a major road safety organisation funded with public money is attempting to put the onus on cyclists to stop car drivers hitting them, instead of putting the onus on car drivers to stop hitting cyclists? Why are cyclists’ reactions to this not of interest? And lastly, in loftily telling us all what you do and don’t want to see on this site (a site provided for nothing, you might bear in mind) aren’t you just being a smidgin of a keyboard warrior yoursel;f?
You are correct that this is
You are correct that this is a site that is provided for nothing. I subscribed in the hope that it’d evolve beyond encouraging bullying on twitter but I guess I backed the wrong horse.
Feel better now?
a4th wrote:
People with no argument love to shout “bullying” straight away as if it gives them some unarguable moral high ground. Do explain how a series of temperate and in many cases humorous objections to a statement put out by a public body constitutes “bullying.”
Thing is that even temperate
Thing is that even temperate and humorous replies pretty quickly get unpleasant to deal with. Twitter is all about punching down- people can say whatever crap they want and they know they run no risk of facing any consequences.
Whoever posted the original tweet messed up – what practical purpose does people piling in to tell them how awful they are serve? Are they going to drive more cautiously? Is it going to make people who read the thread drive more safely? Is it going to persuade policy makers way up the power chain to prioritise cycling? Is it going to make the junior member of staff who probably wrote the tweet push their boss to take more action against dangerous driving?
a4th wrote:
In this instance people didn’t get unpleasant. Do you want people to stop commenting on issues online? We can shut down comments on this site to start with then.
What practical purpose does it serve? An official body put out an absurd message putting, as I said, the onus on cyclists not to be hit by car drivers rather than on car drivers not to hit cyclists. You think everyone should look at this crap, paid for by us, and say oh well, no point in complaining, nobody’s going to change their mind. That would seem as open a door for tyranny as one could imagine. The significant levels of opposition to this statement will hopefully make the perpetrators of it think more carefully in future, and so complaining about it will indeed have a practical purpose.
I never use Twitter.. an
I never use Twitter.. an aptly named service for twits it seems to me.
So good to see Kent Road
So good to see Kent Road Safety getting thoroughly shafted on twitter; universally condemned, even from Surrey Police who posted that their cars are covered in hi-viz and flashing lights and drivers still don’t see them.
What qualifications do you need to be part of the Kent Road Safety team? O level woodwork?
Apart from the obvious things
Apart from the obvious things wrong with the tweet, why can cyclists only go on essential journeys in Kent?
And as this shows, they are aiming tweets asking people to avoid the starin on the NHS to the wrong people.
https://www.kentonline.co.uk/categories/accidents/
AlsoSomniloquism wrote:
No. No, you’re getting it all wrong! if your journey is non-essential you can dress inappropriately. Just don’t wear the Frank N Furter costume to the supermarket…..
Ah – the an
Ah – the an
ti
ci
pation….
eburtthebike wrote:
Don’t mock, my O Level Handicrafts (Woodwork) from 1964 has stood me in good stead, enabling me to fix all sorts of household items, broken or not. The highly sought after B grade marked me out as a man who would not strive too hard for perfection but who would settle happily for anonymous mediocrity. This, in turn, made me very employable; after all, who wants a thrusting young trainee snapping at their heels, eager to take their job?
And I must mention how impressed were the young women who learned of my talents. I only had to mention my abilities with the mortice and tenon to see them swooning with ecstasy and a little of that gift remains even today.
Physics? English Lit? Maths? Not necessary, any of them. Take my advice and enjoy the advantages afforded by the jack plane and the spokeshave. You know it makes sense.
You’re clearly over qualified
You’re clearly over qualified for the Kent Road Safety team.
Mmmmm, “thrusting”…..
Mmmmm, “thrusting”…..
Great to hear Alex Dowsett
Great to hear Alex Dowsett has got another contract. EF Education First perhaps seeing as they’ve had a bit of a clear out?
Pleased to say it isn’t just
Pleased to say it isn’t just cyclists who have to take extra care around cars
https://twitter.com/gmpolice/status/1326578269202821123
“Stay alert – vehicles may take longer to react”
I thought driveless cars were supposed to be better than human driven.
Wow, fine replies from the
Wow, fine replies from the occupants of the twitterverse.