Is “the principal benefit of cycling achieved only by risking life and limb”? Cyclist gets lambasted for jumping traffic queue; 30km/hr speed limit for bicycles in Flanders; Van Aert trains for cyclocross in snow + more on the live blog

I refer you to the first paragraph I quoted.

I remember when visiting my grandparents in 1950s Geraardsbergen bikes had registration numbers on little triangular metal plates attached to the forks.

I'm amazed how often I hear this too. If someone can't comprehend the difference between a person on a 10kg bike slowly filtering past a stationary metal box, and 2-tonnes being propelled within inches of a very vulnerable road user at 30-60mph, when they could be forced to change direction at any moment by a stone or a gust of wind, then not only should they surrender their licence, but they should probably go back to infant school.

Absolutely. Almost all cyclists are drivers but very few drivers are cyclists. Apparently respect and decency have no place when humans share a road.

Dunnoeither wrote:

Apparently respect and decency have no place when humans share a road.

A big part of the problem is that too many drivers think they can do what they like and that not all road users are equal. A bit of 'levelling up' would surely help.

If they knew that every cyclist carried a firearm then the number of incidents would dramatically decrease.

If the cyclist was their next door neighbour and the driver knows that if they harmed the cyclist then the cyclist's family would wreak violent revenge then they'd surely drive far more carefully around that cyclist.

Simon E wrote:

If the cyclist was their next door neighbour and the driver knows that if they harmed the cyclist then the cyclist's family would wreak violent revenge then they'd surely drive far more carefully around that cyclist.

You'd think so, but did I ever tell you about the time that one of the designers at the company I work at (a family friend - my cousin's best mate) "close" passed me so badly that he left an imprint of his wing mirror on my right thigh? I pulled him aside in the office to speak to him about it, but on the way home that day he left-hooked me so badly I locked up the brakes and nearly ended up under his wheels.

Most drivers just don't give a fuck.

I can't decide if he is a parody or part parody.

He isn't quite up to being an effective barrack room lawyer, and he does remind me of Gussie Finknottle.

I had a somewhat interesting chat with him the other day, explaining how "reasonable adjustments" on making barriers accessible meant that they were all going to be bollards, provided that reasonable will increasingly follow national guidelines.

I was also introducing him to the case law from 2021 from the Appeal Court I met recently which codifies (either convincingly or authoritatively depending on technicalities - it was a proposition in a Judge-adgument not a finding) that motobike ASB prevention interventions may not impede lawful use.

a1white wrote:

Ahh Neal O'Kelly one of those weird anti-cycling trolls who appears to spend his entire day looking for cycling posts to make hateful comments underneath. One of the reasons I left Elons toxic platform.

Yes, he is a weird one all right. The only reason I haven't blocked him is the entertainment value from seeing him constantly make a fool of himself

Agree - I would prefer to pass on the left of the car, rather than towards oncoming traffic. The cyclist also appears to cross a solid white line. Not sure if it is different in Ireland, but in the UK that is illegal (unless you are in Lancashire Police purview)

Only watched it the once - but it looked like all the cars were behaving really well. The white van at the end looked to wait for the oncoming cyclist to pass, before overtaking the tanker.

This is what the irish Rules of the Road (their Highway Code) says.

*disclaimer.  Not from the Govt site and I havent checked for a "cyclists filtering" exception.

Single continuous line: this denotes no overtaking on the carriageway on either side of the road. This must be strictly adhered to unless there is an obstruction in the road such as a vehicle, bicycle or horse moving less than 10kph, or if you are turning off the road into a driveway or side road and it is safe to do so.

Secret_squirrel wrote:

This is what the irish Rules of the Road (their Highway Code) says.

*disclaimer.  Not from the Govt site and I havent checked for a "cyclists filtering" exception.

Single continuous line: this denotes no overtaking on the carriageway on either side of the road. This must be strictly adhered to unless there is an obstruction in the road such as a vehicle, bicycle or horse moving less than 10kph, or if you are turning off the road into a driveway or side road and it is safe to do so.

interesting the text is taken almost directly from UK code, except 10mph becomes 10kph. very few cyclists doing less than 10kph I would think, except on a steep uphill

Much of Irish Law / rules underlying principles and practice are - just don't mention it to an Irish person.

Fascinating. I should have checked that! Good to know. I assumed there was no exceptions. Thank you (to everyone)

HoldingOn wrote:

The cyclist also appears to cross a solid white line. Not sure if it is different in Ireland, but in the UK that is illegal

It's a bit tricky that one because in the UK (assume Irish law fairly similar) you're not allowed to cross the white line except to overtake a stationary vehicle or bicycles, horses and road maintenance vehicles travelling less than 10mph. So the literal interpretation of that would be it's okay to cross the white line to overtake a traffic jam that's stationary, but obviously that would not be permissible for a motor-vehicle, I don't know if the same applies to a bicycle or motorcycle, given that they have the capability to pull back into the traffic if there is an oncoming vehicle that a car doesn't. Someone on here will know, I'm sure!

HoldingOn wrote:

The cyclist also appears to cross a solid white line. Not sure if it is different in Ireland, but in the UK that is illegal 

It is allowed to overtake slow moving traffic doing less than 10mph, such as horses, cyclists (sometimes) and stationary cars.

Highway code rule 129

Quote:

You may cross the line if necessary, provided the road is clear, to pass a stationary vehicle, or overtake a pedal cycle, horse or road maintenance vehicle, if they are travelling at 10 mph (16 km/h) or less.

wycombewheeler wrote:

HoldingOn wrote:

The cyclist also appears to cross a solid white line. Not sure if it is different in Ireland, but in the UK that is illegal 

It is allowed to overtake slow moving traffic doing less than 10mph, such as horses, cyclists (sometimes) and stationary cars.

Highway code rule 129

Quote:

You may cross the line if necessary, provided the road is clear, to pass a stationary vehicle, or overtake a pedal cycle, horse or road maintenance vehicle, if they are travelling at 10 mph (16 km/h) or less.

To be pedantic:

The way you phrase it and the way the Highway Code phrase it are subtly different. There is no general provision to overtake "slow moving traffic" - you may cross/straddle the continuous line to overtake a stationary vehicle (of any type), OR to overtake a pedal cycle, horse or road maintenance vehicle travelling at 10 mph or less.

Rendel Harris wrote:

however I definitely would not ride anywhere in the oncoming traffic lane if it means oncoming traffic passing you while you're there; you simply can't rely on drivers being ready for you to appear there and if they hit you you won't have a leg to stand on legally.

Seconded (thirded?).  If I'm doing something similar I always act like I'm playing leapfrog - overtake the stationary traffic but always make sure there's a gap you can get into if there's oncoming traffic.

On the matter of oncoming traffic, I went into the hatched bit down the middle of the A369 the other morning (I didn't want to go on the shared-use path and then have to wait for the traffic to pass by so I could cross to the shared-use path on the other side, so I'd gone onto the carriageway, which was empty at that specific moment).

Nothing wakes you up like going along in the hatched bit and realising that the oncoming HGV is drifting to it's driver's right... INTO the hatched area you're in