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Near Miss of the Day 770: "Unbelievable" driving instructor overtakes learner towards oncoming cyclist

Our regular series featuring close passes from around the country - today it's south London.....

Saturday morning was glorious for bike riding: blue skies, barely a cloud in the sky, hot (but not too hot), a gentle breeze...that is of course, unless you were riding along happily when a driving instructor (no, really) overtook a learner driver at a zebra crossing, narrowly returning to the right side of the road in time.

That is exactly what happened to road.cc reader Rendel on Dulwich Road in Brixton, south London, leaving him to ask, "Ever wondered why there are so many bad drivers?"

"Here the instructor overtakes a learner driver at high speed over a zebra crossing into the face of oncoming cyclists. Unbelievable."

> 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

Dan joined road.cc in 2020, and spent most of his first year (hopefully) keeping you entertained on the live blog. At the start of 2022 he took on the role of news editor. Before joining road.cc, Dan wrote about various sports, including football and boxing for the Daily Express, and covered the weird and wonderful world of non-league football for The Non-League Paper. Part of the generation inspired by the 2012 Olympics, Dan has been 'enjoying' life on two wheels ever since and spends his weekends making bonk-induced trips to the petrol stations of the south of England.

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47 comments

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SaneRebel | 1 year ago
2 likes

After finishing my first ever driving lesson, the 'instructor' drove me home, reaching 40mph in a 30mph zone. 'I'll get you home quickly' he said. Needless to say that was the last lesson I had with him and told him why. Found a much better one after that.

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NOtotheEU | 1 year ago
5 likes

No other driver would ever overtake at such a poor location would they? And in a 20mph zone while I was going 20mph, and with no tax or insurance either. Oops, I mean just no tax, because I have no way of checking the insurance of a vehicle I do not own obviously, ahem.

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wtjs replied to NOtotheEU | 1 year ago
3 likes

with no tax

Pfff! Untaxed vehicles are 10-a-penny in Lancashire, and so are No MOT vehicles. I have just reported 3 to Lancashire Constabulary who will file the reports immediately in the bin and do nothing. This is PN61 NVL

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NOtotheEU replied to wtjs | 1 year ago
4 likes

I was supposed to be in court next Monday as a witness to careless driving but sadly Birmingham Magistrates Court has been closed due to fire safety issues. At least WMP actually do something with our reports unlike your lot.

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wtjs replied to NOtotheEU | 1 year ago
2 likes

At least WMP actually do something with our reports unlike your lot

I'm pleased to hear it. Lancashire COPs (Comic Opera Police) won't do anything about this Berlingo KM12 UTL. To be fair to NFS NewBuild, they don't actually state anything about vehicle safety and compliance with the law on their Our Service page and it had one of those tedious MOTs only 18 months ago

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Lazygit65 replied to wtjs | 1 year ago
2 likes

A far simpler method of enforcement would be to attend registered address and break windows upto the amount of road levy due...... With a few more for good measure!

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Rendel Harris | 1 year ago
4 likes

A nice clear analysis from Ashley Neal here, a welcome breath of sanity after reading the comments on road.cc's  Facebook feed (personal favourite, "I can't see any problem except an entitled cyclist wanting to own the whole road")!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PJYreGe2-S4

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Hirsute replied to Rendel Harris | 1 year ago
4 likes

Are you going to answer this one in the youtube comments (hope so !!)

"Dear cyclist on this video, why didn’t you stop? It was blatantly clear it was a dangerous overtake onto your side of the road and yet you carried on. Why? "

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Rendel Harris replied to Hirsute | 1 year ago
5 likes

Didn't see that one, I'll have to have a look! I realise now that my irresponsible non-stopping is the most important feature of the video…

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IanMSpencer replied to Rendel Harris | 1 year ago
3 likes

Ashley didn't comment on your audible braking, so the response is that you reduced your speed to cater for the danger, what did this maligned knight of the road do?

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NOtotheEU replied to Rendel Harris | 1 year ago
3 likes

Agreed, I hope you are suitably ashamed of your entitled attitude and the fact that you unreasonably expect to go from A to B without a visit to A&E!

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IanMSpencer replied to NOtotheEU | 1 year ago
3 likes

There's a hashtag in there:

#AtoBnotA&E

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IanMSpencer replied to Rendel Harris | 1 year ago
2 likes

There is another gem of a post which basically says Ashley shouldn't be dobbing on this decent working class person for the entertainment of middle class keyboard warriors. (That's a translation from the original Rantlish).

So basically, the working class should be allowed to drive like lunatics to let them get through the day (and presumably why should they have tax, insurance and MOT - them's for toffs).

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wtjs replied to IanMSpencer | 1 year ago
0 likes

and presumably why should they have tax, insurance and MOT? - them's for toffs

No! Toffs dont have to bother with MOTs either, not in Lancashire anyway. No valid MOT since 28.2.22 for PL67 FFN

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CXR94Di2 | 1 year ago
10 likes

My son had some driving lessons by an instructor who was so anti everything on the road if it wasn't a car. Needless to say we didn't continue with this instructor. I taught him to test standard -he passed and has a respect for vulnerable road users

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andystow replied to CXR94Di2 | 1 year ago
6 likes

So sorry that I can only like this once.

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Dicklexic | 1 year ago
4 likes

Oh dear that is rather dissapointing to see an 'instrucutor' driving in that manner. Does rather make you wonder what sort of drivers they will produce. 

I do know that you are not allowed to overtake on the approach to a zebra crossing, and must never overtake a car that is waiting for someone to cross, but I'm not quite sure if that rule applies to vehicles AFTER the crossing. Either way this video demonstrates very poor regard for other users from the instructor.

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Rendel Harris replied to Dicklexic | 1 year ago
2 likes

It is difficult to see on the video but my observation at the time was that he began pulling out before the zebra, was alongside as they went over the crossing, and then started pulling back in just as he exited the far zigzags. It would make sense for it to be against the law to overtake anywhere within the zigzag zone although like you I do not know whether that is actually the case - but as I say, from what I saw he started his overtake before the crossing when the other learner car was "the moving vehicle nearest the crossing" which "MUST NOT" be overtaken (HC 191).

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Awavey replied to Rendel Harris | 1 year ago
0 likes

My understanding was the zig zag lines indicate where the overtaking restriction applies, so that instructor was caught bang to rights imo. Plus it's a raised crossing traffic calming set up, again dont believe you are allowed to overtake on those.

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Rendel Harris replied to Awavey | 1 year ago
2 likes
Awavey wrote:

My understanding was the zig zag lines indicate where the overtaking restriction applies, so that instructor was caught bang to rights imo. Plus it's a raised crossing traffic calming set up, again dont believe you are allowed to overtake on those.

That's what I would imagine but I can't actually find anything in the highway code about it, it only refers to overtaking before the crossing. Maybe they thought a stunt like this was so stupid it should go without saying you shouldn't do it!

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mdavidford replied to Awavey | 1 year ago
3 likes

You're not allowed to park within the zigzags, but I don't think they have any special relevance as regards overtaking. The overtaking rules are about whether the other vehicle is nearest the crossing, or is stopped to allow people to cross. Though, to be honest, you'd be hard pushed to overtake someone in the zigzag area if it wasn't in one of those situations anyway.

[edit] I stand corrected - the zigzags mark the limit of the parking and overtaking restrictions.

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2002/3113/regulation/28/made

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Hirsute replied to Rendel Harris | 1 year ago
0 likes

I think will help with what is a crossing but have only skimmed it (section 15)

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploa...

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giff77 replied to Rendel Harris | 1 year ago
7 likes

Hi Rendel. Went deeper than the HC and into the actual HA. You are prohibited from overtaking a motor vehicle within the controlled area of a zebra crossing. https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1997/2400/regulation/24/made
 

The controlled area is between the zig zags while the zebra part is the limits of the crossing. You cannot stop on the actual limits but you can stop within the controlled area to allow someone to cross or if traffic is sufficiently heavy that you have no choice. 

Also while it is a Do Not the instructor has forced you to brake (rule 167) so deserving of a rap across the knuckles at the very least from plod. 

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TriTaxMan replied to giff77 | 1 year ago
6 likes

I would send the details to both the DVSA and the police.

The police should take a much harder line in relation to the offences committed by the driving instructor, because it is their profession.  If this was an individual commiting a breach of the law and it related directly to their profession they would generally be held to a much higher standard than Joe public.

A typical example would be an accountant/tax adviser who prepares an incorrect tax return for themselves would in general be subjected to the upper range of penalties in relation to any offence because they wouldn't be able to argue that the mistake they made was careless because they advise people on that same thing.

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OldRidgeback | 1 year ago
5 likes

That's appalling driving. For a driving instructor to make that overtake is a real low. I hope that footage has been posted to the Met Police.

As a resident, I know Brixton extremely well. Dulwich Rd has always been pretty unsafe as the surface wears fast (the council usually gets cheap mill and fill repairs that only last a couple of years before it needs doing again) and it's narrow, with lots of side entrances. Drivers get frustrated with the buses stopping too as they generally can't overtake them. At peak periods it's awful. What's interesting here was that there didn't seem to be much traffic, so the overtake suggests real lack of care on the part of the driver.

After a few close calls, I avoided cycling along there for a long time (it's not even much fun on my motorbike). I was very pleased when the speed limit was reduced to 20mph a while back. As Railton Rd runs parallel and is an LTN, I generally cycle along there instead.

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Rendel Harris replied to OldRidgeback | 1 year ago
3 likes

As I said below, the only reason I did not submit it to the police is because I know from experience they will not accept a complaint except from a person directly affected by the bad driving, in this instance that would be the learner driver. I have contacted RED driving school to show them the footage and indicated I would be happy to act as a witness if their instructor or pupil wishes to report it.

Railton Road is very definitely a nicer option, unfortunately as we are usually coming from East Dulwich/Peckham and heading towards Clapham Railton would take us quite a long way north of the shortest route. It's certainly not a nice road to ride along, you're right, especially with people pulling out of the sideroads with very little care, always glad when that section's over.

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AlsoSomniloquism replied to Rendel Harris | 1 year ago
6 likes

Weird they don't take that example in murders isn't it. Only the murderee can ask for footage of CCTV  as anyone else is not a victim of said murderer. 

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Rendel Harris replied to AlsoSomniloquism | 1 year ago
3 likes
AlsoSomniloquism wrote:

Weird they don't take that example in murders isn't it. Only the murderee can ask for footage of CCTV  as anyone else is not a victim of said murderer. 

Indeed – the same goes for the supposed prohibition on sharing videos on social media "in order to avoid prejudicing any trial." Very often when a major crime has been committed the police will share video evidence on national media when appealing for witnesses, but apparently a cyclist with a couple of hundred followers on Twitter sharing a video could have a decisive influence on whichever magistrate ends up presiding over the case.

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wtjs replied to Rendel Harris | 1 year ago
0 likes

 I know from experience they will not accept a complaint except from a person directly affected by the bad driving

This is just one of the almost innumerable excuses for doing nothing dreamed up by Bad Cops across the country (with honourable exceptions). When they refuse to do anything about ML12 EJU (clue, it's not the absence of VED, which Lancashire Constabulary also refuses 'to get involved with') they're not likely to bother about the offence in this topic

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a1white replied to Rendel Harris | 1 year ago
8 likes

As others has said, It is up to you, but I still think you have a strong case to report. You were directly affected as you had to swerve and brake to avoid the car. The Met might well act on this (especially taking into account his speed and overtake on a Zebra).

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