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Near Miss of the Day 622: Driver nearly right-hooks cyclist on roundabout

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

We ​see quite a few Near Miss of the Day submissions that have taken place on large roundabouts – typically, when a cyclist is going around the outside lane but not looking to take the first exit on the left, only for a motorist who is heading for that exit cutting across them.

This one from Coventry is a different scenario, however. Approaching the junction, the cyclist is in a lane clearly marked for traffic to go straight on or left at the roundabout. As he rides through it, a driver passes on his left, then moves across his path.

There’s no rear-facing footage, but it seems a fair assumption that the driver entered the roundabout from the lane marked for left-turning traffic, before coming up alongside the cyclist and turning across him.

“It was my first commute into the office for over 18 months,” said road.cc reader Brendon. “In Binley (the edge of Coventry) the roads were relatively quiet and it was a pleasant dry day.

“However the driver behind in a black Ford Fiesta decided it would be a good idea to use the left hand lane at a roundabout to turn right, and cut me up in the process.

“I can only presume that she thought I was also turning right, as I would hope she wasn’t deliberately trying to hit me as I cycled straight on at the roundabout.

“I have submitted the footage to West Midlands Police via operation snap, but I have yet to hear back from them,” he added.

> 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

Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.

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12 comments

Avatar
AlsoSomniloquism | 3 years ago
8 likes

Quote:

“I have submitted the footage to West Midlands Police via operation snap, but I have yet to hear back from them,” he added.

A reply from West Midlands Police!!!!

Expect a Snowman in hell or even an update from Road.cc on the subscribers adverts issue before you ever get anything from WMP.

Avatar
Richard_pics | 3 years ago
7 likes

They didnt have a clue how to use a roundabout fullstop. I dont think it would have mattered if you were in a Lorry - Still would have done the same manouvre. Utter Twunts.  

Avatar
AlsoSomniloquism replied to Richard_pics | 3 years ago
3 likes

Yep, watching UK dash cammers and the vehicles in wrong lanes at islands makes up a bulk of videos each week. Of course the difference is usually the cammer also decides to go fast and perform an overtake assuming theirs manouvre and so exaceberates the situation which isn't the case here. 

Avatar
Richard D replied to Richard_pics | 3 years ago
3 likes

I believe that this happens for a variety of reasons (including "MGIF", selfishness, etc) but I believe it's also a function of our driving licence system. People are not learning to drive anymore - they're learning to pass a test.  And once they pass, some of them forget (or ignore) how they were taught to drive while trying to pass that test, and instead just drive however they feel like.  They also know that once they have that licence it's actually rather difficult/unlikely that they will have it taken away, even if they behave like a twat at the roundabout.

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peted76 | 3 years ago
1 like

I know exactly where this is and the roads are needlessly wide, the lanes never make sense to me there in a car never mind on a bike. It's the A428 and one of those roads I personally avoid going on (in fact that whole area I try and avoid riding). It'd be an easy low hanging win for the council to build a cycle lane on that road. 

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Secret_squirrel | 3 years ago
2 likes

Classic Roundabout MGIF undertake and doesn't deserve the benefit of the doubt imo.

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quiff | 3 years ago
1 like

Wow, didn't expect that one (watched first, read later). I was bracing for a near miss with the silver Golf instead. 

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Sriracha | 3 years ago
12 likes

"the cyclist is in a lane clearly marked for traffic to go straight on or left at the roundabout"

Did you mean the other left, aka right?

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FrankH replied to Sriracha | 3 years ago
0 likes

Sriracha wrote:

"the cyclist is in a lane clearly marked for traffic to go straight on or left at the roundabout" Did you mean the other left, aka right?

Reminds me of the first Mrs H: Says "Turn left", points right.  1

Avatar
brooksby replied to FrankH | 3 years ago
0 likes

FrankH wrote:

Sriracha wrote:

"the cyclist is in a lane clearly marked for traffic to go straight on or left at the roundabout" Did you mean the other left, aka right?

Reminds me of the first Mrs H: Says "Turn left", points right.  1

"No no no - the other left!"

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STiG911 | 3 years ago
4 likes

Utter shit show - and of course not indicating either, such is the standard these days.

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HoarseMann replied to STiG911 | 3 years ago
0 likes

The bus that did similar to me 6 months ago was indicating at least - maybe that's why I didn't hear anything back from the police report.

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