Why don’t cyclists use the cycle lane? Because someone has parked a van… and opened a table saw workshop; Vingegaard couldn’t use left brake after Paris-Nice crash, as two-time Tour de France winner faces potential broken hand + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
US police officer who ran over and killed cyclist as he watched right-wing influencer's YouTube video at the wheel could face 15 years’ jail
“We should have never ridden this finale”: Jonas Vingegaard reveals he felt “hypothermic” and was “not happy at all” with Paris-Nice stage four being resumed amid miserable conditions
The fourth stage of Paris-Nice yesterday put the peloton through the cold, miserable and harsh weather, with temperatures falling as low as two degrees and rain and hail forcing the race to be neutralised. However, with the downpour going away from the course, the organisers decided to resume the race.
But as the riders made their way to the summit finish in La Loge des Gardes, it was evident that they were struggling, many constantly shaking and jerking their arms, while Pavel Sivakov even used the motorcycle engines to warm up their hands.
Vingegaard, who was a mere 50 metres away from the finish line before UAE Team Emirates’ João Almeida snuck up with a powerful last-gasp attack to steal the win from the two-time Tour de France winner, was seen struggling with the lower temperature weather and did not hold back as to what he thought about the race going forward.
“I have mixed feelings, although… I’m just not happy at all. We should never have ridden this finale. It was freezing and no one in the peloton felt any warmth. After the restart, I didn’t get warm anymore and even now I still feel hypothermic,” the Danish rider, who currently sits at the top of the general classification, said in the post-race interview.
He also shared his thoughts about losing the stage win to Almeida at the last minute, saying: “Well, that’s very disappointing, but that’s part of cycling, I think. I just felt good today and we also did well in the chase for Foss.”
Police arrest 16-year-old after cyclists "deliberately" knocked off their bikes, leaving one with "potentially life-changing injuries"
From Formula 1 to pro cycling… Safety car made its debut at Paris-Nice yesterday
With treacherous weather on the cards, and many deeming conditions as unraceable, a new UCI regulation which allows the race commissaires to lead the peloton and dictate the tempo at a safe pace until the conditions improve made its debut.
“Safety car” protocol officially debuts in cycling.#ParisNice pic.twitter.com/Ldaqzoc2fo
— La Flamme Rouge (@laflammerouge16) March 12, 2025
Here’s the full UCI guidelines: “In the event that, after the start of an event or stage, the weather conditions do not permit a safe and fair race and such conditions had not been anticipated, the President of the Commissaires’ Panel should neutralise the race the speed will be reduced behind the race director’s car and/or commissaire cars) before consulting stakeholders and then making a decision on whether to resume the race.
“If the race is restarted after a neutralisation, the Commissaires’ Panel shall decide whether or not to reinstate any time gaps between groups prior to the neutralisation depending on the race situation.”
“Come on, it's not that cold…”: A snowy day for the peloton at Paris-Nice
“Cycling is not a sport for softies, sometimes you have to be tough”: João Almeida’s take on yesterday’s Paris-Nice stage restart
UAE Team Emirates’ João Almeida, who pipped two-time Tour winner Jonas Vingegaard to steal the fourth stage of Paris-Nice, has shared his thoughts on the restart of the race yesterday.
While Vingegaard, like some of his colleagues in the peloton, agreed that the stage shouldn’t have started following the neutralisation amid the snow, heavy rain and hail, Almeida, on the other hand, has dismissed the idea.
The 26-year-old Portuguese rider admitted that he was no fan of racing in cold weather, but quickly followed that up with some humour, suggesting that “you shouldn’t ask the winner that”.
“The worst was over, there was no safety risk, we even slowed down on the descent, so there was no reason to stop,” he said, according to L’Équipe. “Cycling is not a sport for softies, sometimes you have to be tough.”
"A man of taste": Adam Blythe selects the best kit in the pro peloton, as the best kit in the pro peloton
I can’t disagree with that choice. I’d have maybe made a few different choices myself in the lead-up to the eventual winner, but that final pick from the former British champion, known for his outlandish fashion choices as the Eurosport presenter, is just *chef’s kiss*.
Jonas Vingegaard loses yellow jersey to teammate Matteo Jorgensen after crashing at Paris-Nice, as 21-year-old Lenny Martinez takes stage win
This is turning to be a race to forget for Jonas Vingegaard, isn’t it?
If there were murmurings of doubts over his form after yesterday’s stage, they have surely turned into rumblings, as the two-time Tour de France winner crashed and was barely able to hang on to the peloton in today’s fifth stage of Paris-Nice.
Jonas Vingegaard suffered a bruised lip after crashing at Paris-Nice (Eurosport/TNTSports)
Vingegaard fell on the Côte de Trèves, and suffered a blow to his lips. He returned to the peloton after being looked at by his team car, however, the Dane looked far from his usual assured self, losing a lot of time on the final cllimb of Côte de Notre-Dame-de-Sciez.
After taking hold of the general classification yesterday, he’s now lost the top spot to his teammate, Matteo Jorgensen, who finished third today, and now has a 22 second gap to Vingegaard.
They lost Buitrago but Bahrain-Victorious bounced back in big style today with Lenny Martinez taking his first victory for the team. That final kick was no joke!🚀🇫🇷#ParisNice pic.twitter.com/1yOAc3dxo2
— Mihai Simion (@faustocoppi60) March 13, 2025
Amidst all the yellow jersey drama, the winner of today’s stage was 21-year-old Bahrain Victorious rider Lenny Martinez. The young Frenchman had put up a brave fight yesterday against Vingegaard’s attack, and turned on the style himself in a spectacular win that’s been a long time coming.
Olav Kooij wins bunch sprint at Tirreno-Adriatico, as breakaway caught metres before finish line in crosswind-laden stage
It was heartbreak for the breakaway riders, including Ben Healy, Mirco Maestri, and Williams Blume Levyas, as the trio were caught just 300 metres before the finish line by the peloton led by Soudal-QuickStep.
With the likes of elite sprinters Jonathan Milan and Dylan Groenewegen trailing by nine minutes, eventually finishing the race almost 18 minutes down, the bunch sprint was contested by the likes of Paul Magnier, Mathieu van der Poel, Tom Pidcock and Filippo Ganna.
However, it was Visma-Lease a Bike’s 23-year-old sprinter Olav Kooij who outsprinted all of them to take a convincing victory in the fourth stage of Tirreno-Adriatico to cap off a chaotic day with bouts of crosswinds and constant attacks from the riders.
Jonas Vingegaard wasn’t able to use his left brake “because of pain” after crash, as two-time Tour de France winner faces potential broken hand
In April last year, Jonas Vingegaard was the victim of a horror crash at Tour of the Basque Country, resulting in a long recovery road for the Visma-Lease a Bike rider which dented his Tour de France preparations, which he eventually conceded to Tadej Pogačar after two back-to-back wins.
Now, the Dane could be looking at another injury setback after crashing in today’s fifth stage of Paris-Nice. While earlier it looked like he had got away with only a bruised lip, reports now suggest that the damage could be much worse, including a broken hand for the GC rider.
Visma-Lease a Bike’s Matteo Jorgensen, who reclaimed the yellow jersey from his teammate after finishing third today, said after the race: “He [Vingegaard] came up to me in the race and told me that his hand might possibly be broken. He had a hard time braking and holding the bars, so in the stressful moments he told me that he probably wasn’t going to be there and that I should go for it.
“He seemed to be in a lot of pain. I’m happy we kept the yellow jersey but it’s not the way I imagined that it would go.”
Meanwhile, the team’s new domestique rider Victor Campenaerts told Sporza: “Jonas was talking about how he was dizzy. I didn’t have the impression that he was very lucid. He tried to push on a continue, but he said he was not able to use his left brake anymore because of pain.”
Why don’t cyclists use the cycle lane? Because someone has parked a van… and opened a workshop with table saw there
Bear with me; this is a new one, even for us here at road.cc. After years of documenting bizarre stuff happening on cycle lanes, we have come across something really out there…
On the streets of Sydney, Australia, a van driver saw a bike lane and just couldn’t resist the urge to park there. Not just park, but they brought out a table and set up a mini workshop — with a table saw — yes, on the bike lane.
The pictures were shared on the social media platform Reddit, on the subreddit called r/f***cars, with the person writing: “Maybe next time I should open a bike workshop right in the middle of a road and see their reactions…”
“It would be a shame if a cyclist would accidentally bump into that table, knocking their saw to the ground. An absolute shame,” one person said jokingly in the replies.
Another commenter suggested reporting the illegal parking to the relevant authorities. “I reported someone parking in a bike lane in the inner west and the parking inspectors immediately went down and fined them (because they were still there),” they wrote.
Another person said: “The arrogance is unbelievable, would have been so satisfying to get them. I wish that cyclists and pedestrians didn’t have responsibility for managing drivers’ behaviour though.”
Help us to bring you the best cycling content
If you’ve enjoyed this article, then please consider subscribing to road.cc from as little as £2.49. Our mission is to bring you all the news that’s relevant to you as a cyclist, independent reviews, impartial buying advice and more. Your subscription will help us to do more.
27 Comments
Read more...
Read more...
Read more...
Latest Comments
The cyclist here needs to look into Section 142 of the Magistrates' Court Act 1980, firstly because there was no offence, and secondly because it appears that the police mislead the Court. "A magistrates’ court may vary or rescind a sentence or other order imposed or made by it when dealing with an offender if it appears to the court to be in the interests of justice to do so;] and it is hereby declared that this power extends to replacing a sentence or order which for any reason appears to be invalid by another which the court has power to impose or make." https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1980/43/section/142
I wonder how well advised the cyclist was in Court? And in this case would cycling legal insurance cover the cost of a specialist solicitor?
@quiff I would expect the police had not been trained with the change, perhaps.
@courteousdriver The Highway Code does not differentiate between cars and bikes in this instance, it says that when overtaking parked cars you must give way to oncoming traffic. It's not for you to decide whether or not they have sufficient space in your opinion, you should not drive in the oncoming traffic lane if there is any oncoming traffic, full stop. Not a difficult rule to understand and one that one would have thought a self-named courteousdriver would have no trouble obeying.
@mctrials23 It seems to me that the car moved closer to the kerb on his side of the road, and the cyclist was able to proceed entirely within his own lane - both at very slow speed. So there is no ground for an offence. The concerning point is that the copper thinks that the same "gap" should apply to the different types of vehicle. That's peak carbrain.
Peripheral to your point, but parking facing oncoming traffic is advised against at all times, but only an offence at night, I think?
@mac f 1896 If you look closely at the video you will see that the cyclist remains entirely in his own lane on his side of the white lines as he passes the oncoming vehicle, which also stays entirely within its lane. There is therefore no need for either road user to give way to the other and as they are both travelling at low speeds there is no danger to themselves or to any other road users. I would love to see a transcript of the magistrates' court proceedings as prima facie there is no justification in law for the guilty finding or for the penalty imposed.
@perce pedantry but I think Séamus Ennis would be scunnered with that ... had he not been Irish... (Uilleann pipes are bagpipes of course, though personally I'd much rather those - or small pipes - than the GHB)
@quiff I think you are probably right here - but - is that _really_ being inconsiderate to the oncoming driver? Looking again at the video, the oncoming driver appears to be over the centre line when approaching the parked vehicle and just seems to be straightening the bend a little, so you would expect them to be moving towards the kerb anyway. As driving interactions go, it's about as benign as it gets. I expect the magistrate has never ridden a bicycle, but I also wonder if they've ever driven a car?!
Thanks - I only had a quick peek on Streetview and I'm glad it works for locals, but it looked like "you say 'shared used facility', I say 'same old not-over-generous footway now with the odd blue sign". We don't need cycle paths absolutely everywhere, but looking at the size of the road, where it goes and runs though I would be thinking more like this (minus parked cars): https://maps.app.goo.gl/gswbQefKzc47nEJm8 Or... declare it an urban freeway and get rid of the junctions and houses next to it! Maximum flow...
27 thoughts on “Why don’t cyclists use the cycle lane? Because someone has parked a van… and opened a table saw workshop; Vingegaard couldn’t use left brake after Paris-Nice crash, as two-time Tour de France winner faces potential broken hand + more on the live blog”
The problem with any
The problem with any infrastructure that requires drivers to pay attention and actually look is that drivers don’t pay attention and they don’t look. This is well known. Thats the reason why people put our lives in danger constantly. Its not bad infrastructure causing issues, its bad drivers causing issues. The only safe infra for cyclists is separation. Otherwise it can be counter productive because it just gives you a false sense of security.
The only thing that made me
The only thing that made me go, “Huh!”, was the woman walking on the VERY CLEARLY MARKED cycle lane with her child on a scooter.
The rest of it, I couldn’t see the problem (again, other than the bloke who shuffled his car forward in just such a way as to block the cycle crossing and zebra crossing, but then they do that on elderly and well-established infrastructure too…).
I was about to say the same
I was about to say the same thing – I counted two drivers inconsiderately pulling forward and blocking the cycle track, and the works van parked where it’s blocking the view of those exiting isn’t great, but otherwise I couldn’t see the issue in most of those clips.
Yup – definitely “nothing to
Yup – definitely “nothing to see here” (because in fact the design accommodates “mistakes” and makes it safer when those happen). It’s not surprising that UK drivers essentially ignore anything apart from “going forward until I have to stop because other drivers” but that is the baseline. Even Dutch drivers don’t unfailingly obey priority rules.
I don’t really see any
I don’t really see any argument for drivers not knowing the rules at Dutch roundabouts. Cyclists already have the right to go around sticking to the left so drivers will already be looking out for cyclists on their left. Also, I note that as recently as a few months ago an Ashley Neal video is still saying that pedestrians have priority when crossing (although I think the HC needs clarification). So nothing new.
Beware sarcasm intended.
Agreed in part but if you
Agreed in part but if you really follow that logic then in fact most pedestrian infra needs a change also!
This roundabout is simply the one found to be the safest * and most convenient design given we are realistically not going to run cars underground everywhere nor grade-separate at every junction (expensive, probably needs more space, overkill where motor traffic speeds and volumes are low).
In fact by removing most motor traffic and slowing the rest it is possible to make it “safe enough” for mixing and we don’t need a cycle path everywhere.
* That is – if the details are done correctly – the main one being a suitably low maximum volume of motor traffic. If planners don’t pay attention to ensuring that it’s not the design’s fault. If they’re going to cock that up then all bets are off as there is probably no design that they can’t stuff up (and they mostly have in the UK)!
FWIW there is an alternative design which might be more suited initially to UK “careless drivers” – but I think it needs a bit more space, and it does not give cyclists priority (by design). Still requires “low and slow” motor traffic though!
The point of both designs is that they make it:
a) as clear as possible who has priority, and whom to look out for where
b) road users only have to deal with other road users coming from one direction at a time **
c) where they do cross speeds are reduced by the infra and mutual visibility is the clearest possible. So it is possible for either party to see if the other doesn’t seem to be stopping in time to take avoiding action themselves.
** Except for pedestrians crossing the motor traffic from both directions – but they’re relatively slow-moving so easy to check for.
In this case, looking isn’t
In this case, looking isn’t the issue. It’s not clear who gives way for whom when exiting. The driver doesn’t see ‘Shark-Teeth markings’ indiating he should give way, nor does the cyclist get such indication the he has right of way (Just lines don’t indicate that)
In theory the colour of the
In theory the colour of the cycle way should clue drivers in – but I’m not sure this has legal meaning and in practice drivers will ignore this regardless of law – for at least a generation or two even if they do get wider acceptance.
I think the Dutch practice would be great – but would require a law change I think. For an apparently relatively small change I can believe that it would be a “we just can’t do this – it’s too fundamental a change / we’d have to change everywhere at once because we can’t have two diferent markings at once!” (I’m not agreeing with those arguments – I just think they would be made. But I’m not a lawyer, politician or transport expert).
In theory we do have marks which could be used e.g. a formal give way and “entering main road” markers. Presumably that can’t be legally done ATM? They’re also a bit more obtrusive – but we’re already in the UK world of “busy signs and markings…
The problem with any
The problem with any infrastructure that requires drivers to pay attention and actually look is that drivers don’t pay attention and they don’t look
This so-called ‘cyclist’ is just a troll of the anti-vax variety. Who knows what the warped motives are?
“Only a matter of time before
“Only a matter of time before someone gets hurt”: Cyclist calls for “clearer signage” after close pass montage on new Dutch-style roundabout….”
If that collection of “incidents” is the worst he could come up with, then that roundabout is much safer than all the others.
Not that I’m going to doubt
Not that I’m going to doubt the poster, but four years and no near misses…
Yes, the roundabout does
Yes, the roundabout does scrap of speed and gives a one situation at a time order of things to look for, as such aroundabout is an improvement. But the roundabaout misses ‘Shark teeth’ indicators on the road for each crossing for either the driver or cyclist/pedestrian. It’s not clear if the car exiting has priority over the cylist continuing by these markings alone.
“clearer signage” seems to
“clearer signage” seems to indeed be the issue. (From the netherlands) Most roundabouts have give priority ‘Shark teeth’ painted next to all the other markings. (There seem to be some, but not on all entranes/exits) All the other painted markings only indicate directional flow.
Don’t nessearily blame drivers here, it’s hard to see who has priority when exiting the iner roundabout ring without the ‘shark teeth’ indicators
KnightBiker wrote:
Well, the UK has these rules which say things like “do not proceed until you can see it is safe to do so” and suggest that if you’re not certain / can’t see clearly you should not keep pressing on.
…However in practice it’s true that the culture on the roads is very much “you must keep moving at about the speed limit whenever you can so as not to hold up motor traffic behind”. And in practice drivers very often happily ignore cycle paths, footways etc. and keep moving up to the point at which they give way to other motor traffic. Even if they’re then sat across a cycle track, or indeed in the middle of a junction.
There are give way markings –
There are give way markings – that’s what the dashed white line across the road means in the UK (albeit it’s being used in a relatively uncommon situation here). It’s possible that the ‘shark’s teeth’ markings might be somewhat more intuitive, but I’d suggest: (a) they’d be just as, if not more unusual to UK drivers, so not really be any clearer; (b) many people would probably confuse them with the ‘inverted shark teeth’ markings that you can see in the clip, which indicate a ramp, rather than anything about priority; and in any case (c) the problem is largely not that people can’t recognise or interpret the markings, but that they aren’t really looking in the first place, because they’re conditioned to just expect to have priority.
Agreed- we don’t need more
Agreed- we don’t need more road markings for drivers to ignore. They’re ignoring enough anyway. I’m just waiting for all the excuses when a driver does hit a cyclist with priority on this roundabout- starting with the invincible didn’t see him/ didn’t mean to do it combo
More confusing clutter I
More confusing clutter :-/ I think it would be better if folk just learnt to drive. Most folk manage it, it’s just a handful of eejits who don’t 🙁
No idea where this “too small
No idea where this “too small” nonsense is coming from. We cycled 250km through Netherlands last summer, and encountered plenty of Dutch roundabouts much smaller than this one.
Some of the “near misses” in the montage felt a bit overblown too – all but two or three looked fairly normal and sensible driving.
My experience in the Netherlands was that drivers were much more in the habit of looking as they approached these roundabouts – but woe betide you if you slowed or appeared hesitant in approaching, that was taken as an indication that you were giving way to them and they should proceed.
We’ve a long way to go before we reach the level of familiarity and acceptance of these designs that there is in the Netherlands. But I would still be far happier with my kids going round that Dutch style roundabout than whatever preceded it.
Velo-drone wrote:
THIS. All the montage says is that some people will find any excuse to have a moan. Also the cyclist was at the upper edge of an acceptable speed in a few of those.
Indeed – the design relies on
Indeed – the design relies on a relatively small size for safety (to slow motor traffic).
UK planners of course have often merely slapped paint and signs on our giant motor-vehicle filled roundabouts – some with 30mph+ limits even – and claim “Dutch”. Sometimes even on multi-lane ones (see e.g. the infamous Bedford Turbo Roundabout *)
It’s possible to sit for hours watching these in video form or visiting them online, reading the details of what they do / how they actually work etc [1] [2] [3] or even purchase the detailed Dutch design manuals. But while we’ve got metrics which essentially only reward prioritising motor traffic throughput we’re rarely going to see improvements (IIRC Chris Boardman / Cycling UK have been working on that…)
* The Bedford one seems the worst of all worlds making it less safe AND less convenient for cyclists than previously. (Unless the idea all along was “safety by making them go away”…) Indeed I’m not sure it’s even a proper Dutch turbo roundabout for motor traffic either… Plus lots of people saying all saying “but we’re doing the best we can with what we could, it’s not our fault if it’s rubbish”… which in fact seemed to include Cycling UK – CTC as was)
chrisonabike wrote:
I suspect that that, right there, is the main gripe people have with it…
It is nonsense. I live in NL
It is nonsense. I live in NL now. I bike and drive here. Some are large, some are not. Some are bad, some good. Generally though, if you can’t see, you slow the hell down and look (even if people take that as a reason to push in front). In both directions, given that cyclists here will happily go the wrong direction round everything 😀
There’s also other techniques you learn, of course, like when to look from a distance where on normal roundabouts you wouldn’t need to.
All things are new, until they’re not.
Re the roundabout montage. In
Re the roundabout montage. In my opinion drivers will improve when they start getting NIPs for not giving way which is what is required if I’ve understood the road markings correctly. If I’m right then we need to report these failures to cede priority to the police. I’ve reported many so far on the new cycle path in Cheltenham. Most have met with NFA but that’s because I’m in Gloucestershire and they won’t do anything unless you are inconvenienced and it turns out that having to slow down and ride round a vehicle partially blocking the cycle lane doesn’t count as inconvenience. If you block the cycle lane completely however you get an advisory and if you cause the cyclist to brake hard they will take further action (as yet unspecified).
As things stand at the moment it pays to approach every junction with caution and if things don’t improve I’ll be back on the road.
Just one final point of interest. The races are on at the moment and guess what, the cycle path is supended.
That’s not a table saw – it’s
That’s not a table saw – it’s a (sliding compound mitre) saw on a table.
Makes a change from wing mirror / door mirror … <adjusts spectacles>
“Jonas was talking about how
“Jonas was talking about how he was dizzy. I didn’t have the impression that he was very lucid.”
Sounds like he was concussed. When is cycling going to sort out the issue of riders continuing races like this?
100%, and if he was having
100%, and if he was having trouble using his left hand, which is the front brake on a continental setup, he should have been pulled for safety reasons even if he wasn’t concussed, given the four sharp descents in the finale.
This is a confusing
This is a confusing ’roundabout’
How its even considered to be a roundabout is anyones guess.
I beleive that the bits with the big leaves are supposed to be a pedestrian crossing of some kind …
Background