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'Road Rage: Cars v Bikes': BBC's Panorama episode receives mixed reception (+ statistics questioned); Newly crowned hill climb champ Illi Gardner smashes Sa Calobra QOM; Cyclists warned of runaway oversized baubles; Close pass flag + more on the live blog

It's a sunny Wednesday and Dan Alexander has just about dried out from yesterday's downpours. In between changing the newspaper in his shoes he'll be updating the live blog.....
Wed, Nov 02, 2022 09:04
76
'Road Rage: Cars v Bikes': BBC's Panorama episode receives mixed reception (+ statistics questioned); Newly crowned hill climb champ Illi Gardner smashes Sa Calobra QOM; Cyclists warned of runaway oversized baubles; Close pass flag + more on the live blogBBC Panorama
02 November 2022, 17:39
Until tomorrow...

We'll leave you with a final word from Zlatan Ibrahimovic... (don't think we didn't see that helmet to the Swede's right)... presumably quoting Pantani or Quintana...

02 November 2022, 17:33
02 November 2022, 17:15
What did you make of Panorama 'Road Rage: Cars v Bikes'?

*Spoiler alert if you're waiting for the prime time BBC One viewing* 

That was a joke, by the way, before anyone gets back in the comments to call me a self-important joker for suggesting people might actually be avoiding what happens for the full 'live' experience...

Anyway, not sure any of the above was necessary... onto your comments and reaction before I live blog myself down another midweek avenue of nonsense...

BBC Panorama

eburtthebike: "Well, the Panorama thing was nowhere near as bad as I thought it was going to be, but as others have pointed out, it still had significant flaws. For instance pretending that Rod Liddle was in any way an authoritative source, or that their online survey was the least bit valid.

"Neither did they compare the amounts spent on cycling with the amounts spent on other transport infrastructure to put it into context, or mention the police data which shows that it is overwhelmingly the driver at fault in cyclist/motor vehicle collisions.

"So while it could have been much, much worse, it could have been so much better.   Still, at least it's an improvement from the BBC's normal line for the past forty years of 'two wheels bad, four wheels good' approach. Maybe they'll even actually commission a series about cycling and why it is so good for you, your neighbourhood and the planet.*

"*Just a little joke I thought I'd throw in for my own amusement."

HoarseMann: "Good to see some road.cc NMotD clips highlighting the issue. This is a bit better than some of the other programmes on this topic, but still too much framing the problem as a balanced difference of opinions.

"Letting Rod Liddle mouth off unchallenged is a low point, along with some Highway Code change inaccuracies (cyclists can now ride in the middle of the road) and the London van driver (that cyclist should be in the bus lane so that they're out of the way).

"Illegal driving and the failure of the police to enforce the law is the root cause. Difficulty getting justice was lightly covered, but the lack of enforcement for careless driving around cyclists didn't get a look in."

Anyone else got any thoughts on the programme?

02 November 2022, 17:10
02 November 2022, 16:56
The WorldTour's leaders in subtle and tasteful product placement are at it again

Nothing says cycling like the inside of a 4x4...

(Or on the bonnet)

Filippo Ganna breaks UCI Hour record (credit - Ineos Grenadiers)

 

02 November 2022, 16:29
Brian Cookson: More heads have to roll at British Cycling
Brian Cookson at the World Cycling Centre in Aigle (source Briancookson.org).jpg

Former UCI and British Cycling president Brian Cookson had some strong words for cycling's governing body in the UK, saying he has "no confidence" in chair Frank Slevin and more "heads have to roll" following on from CEO Brain Facer's departure.

> British Cycling CEO Brian Facer leaves post with immediate effect

"The chair [Frank Slevin] needs to take some responsibility for this," Cookson told Cycling Weekly. "I have no confidence in him to continue, I think he should go. Now we have a structure imposed on us by UK Sport and the reality is we have a chairman who has effectively come from outside the sport, presumably appointed for his business expertise.

"The problem as I see it is that we're governed by people who don't really have a background in that sport, pastime, activity and I don't know what they're motivated by.

"Frank Slevin is almost invisible from what I can see. I think he needs to take some responsibility for some of these unfortunate controversies that have happened during his tenure. I do think that it seems inexplicable to me that the chairman and the board were unaware of the implications of the things that have happened and that have been so controversial.

"I think that some heads have to roll."

Facer's departure by "mutual agreement" came just weeks after British Cycling announced a toxically controversial eight-year partnership with petrochemicals giant Shell.

02 November 2022, 15:24
Happy Wednesday...
Panorama trending Twitter

 

02 November 2022, 14:50
Newly crowned hill climb champ Illi Gardner smashes Sa Calobra QOM
 

What a hero Illi Gardner is. Three days after winning the women's event at the National Hill Climb Championships, the climbing phenom has gone and smashed the QOM up one of the most hotly contested Strava segments in the world — Sa Calobra.

> Most competitive Strava segment in the world? Ed Laverack smashes Sa Calobra KOM

Clocking 29:09 up the iconic Mallorcan climb, Gardner beat previous QOM holder, Swedish pro triathlete Sara Svensk's time by 50 seconds and went almost two minutes faster than Emma Pooley's best.

> Weird and wonderful bikes from the National Hill Climb Championships

Covering the 9.44km, which averages seven per cent, at an average speed of 19.4km/h (12mph), Gardner's power data shows she held 264w, 5.4w/kg based on her Strava weight...

02 November 2022, 14:36
Haters will say it's fake...
02 November 2022, 13:47
Review: Panorama – Road Rage: Cars v Bikes

Right, we'll round up some of your reaction later on, but for now we'll move onto some other things happening in the cycling world today...

That is after we've shared road.cc Simon's review of the episode...

BBC Panorama

> Review: Panorama – Road Rage: Cars v Bikes

02 November 2022, 13:28
'Road rage' on BBC panorama: fuelling the fire or raising awareness? We interview the presenter on the road.cc Podcast
roadcc podcast episode 37

As promised here's our chat with Panorama reporter Richard Bilton about the episode...

> 'Road rage' on BBC panorama: fuelling the fire or raising awareness? We interview the presenter on the road.cc Podcast

02 November 2022, 12:43
02 November 2022, 11:53
BBC broadcasts Rod Liddle clip from Panorama episode during radio news bulletin

If you've been listening to BBC radio this morning you might have noticed the Panorama episode's statistics, questioned by Peter Walker in an earlier live blog post, being read out during news bulletins...

Said 'soundbite' of choice? Yep... it's Rod Liddle's input to the episode...

Others have reported hearing the clip on Radio 2 and 4, we heard it during Lauren Laverne's Radio 6 Music show when a newsreader said:

A survey of motorists suggests there is widespread dislike of cyclists. More than 12,000 drivers were questioned and one-in-three told the BBC's Panorama that cyclists shouldn't be on the road. A quarter admitted deliberately driving too close to them. The government is spending billions of pounds encouraging more people to get on their bikes, the columnist Rod Liddle thinks more regulation of cyclists is needed...

Right... cue the soundbite from the episode (you'll have to read it, which might be a plus if you don't wish to hear this particular voice)... 

Liddle: "Possibly some form of registration or indeed make it the law to use cycle lanes where they have been provided, I think that is one of the things that really gets up the nose of people. And I would enforce speed limits and pick them up for running red lights"...

Panorama's 'polling' has been criticised this morning... check out the earlier blog post for more from the Guardian's Peter Walker on the matter...

So in conclusion, based on these BBC news bulletins... the problem is a quarter of motorists admit deliberately driving too close to cyclists... so let's get Rod Liddle on to tell everyone the people being driven too close to should be registered for the privilege...

Yep, that's this Rod Liddle...

> 'Tempting' – Sunday Times columnist Rod Liddle on stretching piano wire across road to target cyclists 

02 November 2022, 10:22
'Road Rage: Cars v Bikes': BBC's Panorama episode receives mixed reception

So, it's finally here... BBC's Panorama episode titled 'Road Rage: Cars v Bikes' has dropped on iPlayer ahead of its broadcast on BBC One at 8pm tonight and you might even recognise some of the video clips from a certain Near Miss of the Day series...

BBC Panorama

We spoke to the episode's producer, as well as reporter Richard Bilton, to contribute, which is why there are more than a few clips from this website included. Clearly, there are aspects we would rather weren't part of the episode... Rod Liddle's section springs to mind, while the title 'Road Rage: Cars v Bikes' has also landed some criticism.

We'll have a full road.cc piece analysing the episode, as well as a podcast episode with Bilton coming later today. Of course, we'll also keep you updated with all the reaction here on the live blog...

"Good in parts"

The Guardian's Peter Walker suggested the investigation is "good in parts" — Bilton talks to Cycling UK, the London Cycling Campaign and "very effectively shows how commonly dangerous driving affects you when cycling"... BUT raised concerns about the stats used, notably a third of drivers thinking cyclists shouldn't be on the road (figures already reported with clicky headlines by the Daily Mail and Cycling Weekly)... AND questioned the title..."There's this weird compulsion to make everything about cycling into a battle. As others have said, it's less a battle than a massacre."

Keep your eyes peeled for our podcast episode with Richard Bilton which goes live later today... 

02 November 2022, 10:54
"Overall I think it's fairly good in showing the dangers and highlighting how awful it is for people cycling... shame they have to have a shock journalist implying that cyclists need to be 'poked'..."

Road safety campaigner Adam Bronkhorst agrees it is "fairly good" just with a couple of disappointing moments...

02 November 2022, 10:02
The close pass flag
02 November 2022, 09:50
02 November 2022, 08:59
Dangerous drivers, potholes and... oversized baubles?! The latest danger for cyclists on Britain's roads

It's that time of year... Halloween's passed (if that even counts as a notable calendar date) and one of my now-muted group chats has this week begun debating the best Christmas songs... they did festive movie rankings in October!!! Hopefully the World Cup will bring them back to more comfortable discussion...

Anyway, more importantly for us two-wheeled travellers, there has been a warning the Christmas period could bring an extra danger to cyclists using the roads... nope, not darker evenings, drivers taking a chance after the Christmas party, or even icy conditions... nope, today's warning is to look out for runaway oversized baubles... no, really...

Dan Alexander

Dan is the road.cc news editor and has spent the past four years writing stories and features, as well as (hopefully) keeping you entertained on the live blog. Having previously written about nearly every other sport under the sun for the Express, and the weird and wonderful world of non-league football for the Non-League Paper, Dan joined road.cc in 2020. Come the weekend you'll find him labouring up a hill, probably with a mouth full of jelly babies, or making a bonk-induced trip to a south of England petrol station... in search of more jelly babies.

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76 comments

Avatar
Rome73 | 1 year ago
0 likes

I didn't watch it. Someone told me about it but I gave it a miss.  I've read the reviews above and below. I was discussing this with a colleague - perhaps someone knows. Would these kind of programmes and 'newspaper' articles - essentially calling out people who cycle, be regular features in the media environment of any other country? 

Avatar
Clem Fandango | 1 year ago
4 likes

Well, just watched it. Thought it wasn't too bad a stab at showing the dangers cyclists face & giving some balance (though the cabbie with no hint of irony, blaming the old cycle lane in Kensington for causing traffic, whilst sat in traffic after the cycle lane had been removed, was priceless, ) though similar thoughts to various below about certain sections & contributors. I'm not sure it'll change anyone's views either sadly - the polarisation is already too deep - but if it makes even a few people think twice about their behaviour on the bike or behind the wheel, then chalk it up as a win.

Case in point though - that mini roundabout in the Midlands where the cyclist got hit by the car/driver combo that cut it completely and didn't "see" (ie look for) him - there's already a FB "regular" blaming the cyclist for being the wrong side of the roundabout. I mean it's not like he was taking evasive action to save his life or anything......

Soshul meeja clearly isn't the best barometer, but that any sane human being can buy into that sort of crap is terrifying

Avatar
Awavey replied to Clem Fandango | 1 year ago
6 likes

on the mini roundabout thing, the problem is they just showed the video, without much explanation of how the cyclists positioning was totally valid and the car driver was completely in the wrong and that regardless of how spectacular this instance looks on video, thats actually a critical part of how alot of these crashes occur, and that the way the road is setup there played a big part in how drivers literally cutting corners to save time puts cyclists at risk on the road..

but it was treated as an isolated case, with no linkage to anything else and no follow up, so its sole purpose was it looked a spectacular crash.

Avatar
graemee | 1 year ago
3 likes

Let's take a drive with the fruit and veg van driver...
https://www.check-mot.service.gov.uk/results?registration=Mx13+xxs

Bald tyres for a start!

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wtjs replied to graemee | 1 year ago
0 likes

Let's take a drive with the fruit and veg van driver...

That's nowt for Lancashire!

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HoarseMann replied to graemee | 1 year ago
3 likes

I was a bit disappointed she wasn't asked if a cargo bike might be a suitable alternative for the local deliveries.

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Hirsute | 1 year ago
4 likes

Not sure why they gave so much air time to that ignorant cyclist hater but 'balance' I guess.

Even the drivers they interviewed had little knowledge or understaing ' 5 abreast cyclists, 10 (?) deep'

The delivery driver commenting on cyclists. He should be in the bus lane.

Well, for a start there were 2 buses parked in the bus lane so there was no space to use the lane. Then this was jsut by a junction, so the cyclist need to be in L2 to see the traffic at the junction and to be seen by the traffic at the junction.

Shame Inspector Kev was not in it, although we did get one of his clips!

Avatar
wtjs | 1 year ago
4 likes

I've watched the Panorama now -not too bad, but 'Uncle Tom-ish'. It did expose what classic dimwits the greengrocer woman in Leicester, the London 'abolish all cycle lanes' drivers and the professional anti-cycling (surely he must work for the Mail as well as the Times?) journo are. It failed to identify the cyclist - phobic police as the single greatest obstacle to safer roads for cyclists. At last I know what Cycling Mikey looks like!

Avatar
eburtthebike | 1 year ago
4 likes

Well, the Panorama thing was nowhere near as bad as I thought it was going to be, but as others have pointed out, it still had significant flaws.  For instance pretending that Rod Liddle was in any way an authoritative source, or that their on-line survey was the least bit valid.  Neither did they compare the amounts spent on cycling with the amounts spent on other transport infrastructure to put it into context, or mention the police data which shows that it is overwhelmingly the driver at fault in cyclist/motor vehicle collisions.

So while it could have been much, much worse, it could have been so much better.   Still, at least it's an improvement from the BBC's normal line for the past forty years of "two wheels bad, four wheels good" approach.  Maybe they'll even actually commission a series about cycling and why it is so good for you, your neighbourhood and the planet.*

 

 

*Just a little joke I thought I'd throw in for my own amusement.

Avatar
S13SFC | 1 year ago
8 likes

Don't forget that Rod Liddle said he couldn't be a teacher as he'd want to fuck the kids.

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AlsoSomniloquism replied to S13SFC | 1 year ago
4 likes

He is also an admitted spouse assaulter who likes to hit women when they are 20 weeks pregnant. 

Edit oops.

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brooksby replied to AlsoSomniloquism | 1 year ago
6 likes

20 months pregnant?  Did he marry an elephant??

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chrisonabike replied to brooksby | 1 year ago
9 likes

I doubt it, she'd not forget that.

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Clem Fandango replied to chrisonabike | 1 year ago
9 likes

She was in the room though

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AlsoSomniloquism replied to brooksby | 1 year ago
1 like

cheeky

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spen replied to S13SFC | 1 year ago
2 likes

Didn't he leave his wife while on their Hineymoon, after being with her for ten years and two children, to shack up with a 22 year old receptionist at the spectator.  Why anyone listens to a word this idiot says beats me

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Clem Fandango | 1 year ago
1 like

Haven't watched the Panorama thing yet so I'll refrain from judging it just yet - sounds like it's maybe a step or two up from the Channel 5 one from a year or three ago, maybe.  At least that one only reached a few dozen people though 1

 

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IanMK | 1 year ago
17 likes

"one-in-three told the BBC's Panorama that cyclists shouldn't be on the road"

Which is weird because according to my, yet to be published, research*; 1 in 3 drivers fall below an acceptable level of driving standard and shouldn't be on the road either. Surely not a coincidence.

* by research I just mean  numbers that I pulled out of my arse, using a very similar process to the BBC survey.

Avatar
Steve K replied to IanMK | 1 year ago
12 likes

IanMK wrote:

"one-in-three told the BBC's Panorama that cyclists shouldn't be on the road"

Which is weird because according to my, yet to be published, research*; 1 in 3 drivers fall below an acceptable level of driving standard and shouldn't be on the road either. Surely not a coincidence.

* by research I just mean  numbers that I pulled out of my arse, using a very similar process to the BBC survey.

I think your arse should produce a higher figure.  80% of drivers speed in 20 mph zones - which is (or at least ought to be) an unacceptable level of driving standard.

Avatar
Cycloid replied to Steve K | 1 year ago
1 like

80% of drivers speed in 20mph zones, but 70% speed in 30mph zones.
It comes down to, "would you rather be hit by a speeding driver at 25mph or 35mph?"
The 70% data is from the SID in my local village.
All in All 20mph zones must be better for vulnerable road users.

Avatar
Shake replied to IanMK | 1 year ago
9 likes

Road.cc should start publishishing it's own surveys for use in such programs. 
98% of responders want segregated cycle lanes 
100% of responders want a Rob Liddle's mouth sown up

Avatar
hawkinspeter replied to Shake | 1 year ago
11 likes

Shake wrote:

Road.cc should start publishishing it's own surveys for use in such programs. 
98% of responders want segregated cycle lanes 
100% of responders want a Rob Liddle's mouth sown up

2% of responders wanted dedicated squirrel bridges for crossing busy roads

Avatar
andystow replied to hawkinspeter | 1 year ago
10 likes

hawkinspeter wrote:

2% of responders wanted dedicated squirrel bridges for crossing busy roads

If the squirrels would actually use them I think you'll find much higher approval for that proposal. I have to brake for errant squirrels far more often than I do for drivers.

What the heck are they doing in the middle of the road anyway? Looking for a particularly nice piece of gravel?

Avatar
brooksby replied to hawkinspeter | 1 year ago
4 likes

Are you sure that they weren't after guinea pig bridges?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bq9ghmgqoyc

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chrisonabike replied to hawkinspeter | 1 year ago
4 likes

The rat-running won't be fixed by more rodent roads, you know.  They'll just fill up - with increasingly big critters - until they reach capabara-city.

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hawkinspeter replied to chrisonabike | 1 year ago
1 like

chrisonatrike wrote:

The rat-running won't be fixed by more rodent roads, you know.  They'll just fill up - with increasingly big critters - until they reach capabara-city.

More lanes!

https://www.theguardian.com/cities/gallery/2015/jul/16/urban-wildlife-crossings-highways-bridges-in-pictures

Avatar
oceandweller replied to IanMK | 1 year ago
2 likes

IanMK wrote:

according to my, yet to be published, research*; 1 in 3 drivers fall below an acceptable level of driving standard and shouldn't be on the road either

1-in-3 shouldn't be on the road? More like 3-in-4 IME. That's the proportion of cars I see which I reckon would fail any advanced motoring test - not on subjective criteria such as driving skills, but objective failings such as exceeding the speed limit, driving too close to the car in front (true of perhaps 85% of vehicles using motorways), using a hand-held mobile phone, failing to stop at amber lights, driving without both hands on the wheel, etc.

Check out online decriptions of the IAM test & its like, & then watch your fellow road users next time you're heading up the M1 to visit Gran.

Avatar
brooksby | 1 year ago
2 likes

Red flag on a stick laugh

Avatar
srchar replied to brooksby | 1 year ago
5 likes

brooksby wrote:

Red flag on a stick laugh

My trailer flag inadvertently fell to this angle a few months ago when I was on holiday on the Isle of Wight. I only realised because I got honked at by passing motorists and had a van driver on the other side of the road lean out of his window to give me a "wanker" sign. So perhaps not the wonderful solution it first appears. Although I didn't get close-passed smiley

Avatar
chrisonabike replied to brooksby | 1 year ago
2 likes

If only some brilliant engineer could somehow link this with another ground-breaking recent technology:

http://www.trotify.com/

... it could be mounted at the front and cyclists would be able to hugely improve everyone's safety by being their own red-flag people.

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