In case you missed it, the BBC's Inside Out East programme on bad professional drivers, screened last night, is available on iPlayer for the next month.
The programme showcases how cyclists and drivers are using action cameras to catch professional drivers who drive badly.
Presenter David Whiteley meets Dave Sherry, a cyclist and bus driver from Harlow, who posts footage on YouTube of lorry, van and bus drivers whom he believes are driving irresponsibly.
Sherry's clips frequently come to the attention of drivers' employers who are rarely happy to have their name associated with poor driving.
In 2013, Sherry's footage of a bus driver using a mobile phone led to the driver being sacked.
Sherry also sends the worst examples to the police.
Asked by the presenter if what he does isn't vigilantism, Sherry points out that he doesn't take the law into his own hands. "I just report it, but I'm very effective in the way I report it," he says.
How effective? He claims his footage has resulted in around 50 convictions, which probably makes him the most effective citizen traffic cop in the UK.
23 thoughts on “With 50 claimed convictions, is this the UK’s top reporter of dodgy driving?”
That’s a very nice jacket.
He
That’s a very nice jacket.
He must be back from Wyoming.
Certainly more effective than
Certainly more effective than the PCSOs.
It is all open and shut, the only issue is the date involved.
Pay for all cyclists to have the latest gopros and the fines will pay for the scheme within a year 😉
I must admit that it is still
I must admit that it is still staggering the amount of drivers one sees in town either texting or talking on their mobile phone. The message just isn’t getting through (no pun intended) about the dangers posed and the police seem either incapable or unwilling to stamp it out.
I am still ambivalent about Mr Sherry’s actions as it feels a little too much like a classic English Mr Do-good Busybody…but maybe if a loved one of mine had been killed by a driver not paying attention at the wheel then I might have a different attitude :/
Bobbinogs wrote:I must admit
It’s staggering the number of drivers I spot on the phone when I’m cycling…. then I get in the car and see it far more frequently in the rear view mirror. Admittedly this is usually when sitting at lights, so slightly less of a worry, but still. Whether the car’s moving or not, anyone with their head down texting/emailing/facebooking isn’t in the slightest bit aware of what’s going on around them.
A good reporter would have
A good reporter would have said, “so does this not leave you open to claims of behaving like a vigilante?”
The American Sniper of
The American Sniper of commuters.
Sir, I salute you.
May you come and cleanse my streets of bad drivers any time.
I haven’t watched the
I haven’t watched the programme yet, but I would like the idea behind this to get into the heads of every driver. The ones that think it is funny to close pass you, the ones that pull out in front of you because “you’re just a bike”, the ones that don’t take their driving seriously, the ones who thinks bikes shouldn’t be on the road, the ones who squeeze past you, brake and then turn left, I could go on…
I’m betting if I followed him
I’m betting if I followed him around on his bus route I could identify a few mistakes. Hell, in the video clip on the BBC site yesterday he already shows us he doesn’t know how to indicate clearly on a bicycle (go look at it).
There’s recording for your protection and then there’s recording with the intention of ‘catching out’ as many people as you can, which is just sad.
People like this are usually pretty ignorant about their own faults and mistakes in my experience, often worse than the people they are ‘catching’.
Overall, he just comes across as a twat to me.
LarryDavidJr wrote:I’m
Ah, with friends like you, who needs enemies?
jacknorell wrote:LarryDavidJr
Ah, with friends like you, who needs enemies?— LarryDavidJr
Not the sort of person I’d be friends with. Or at least, not a friend you really want to spend much time with.
Probably is one (twat) but
Probably is one (twat) but I’ve considered one for the car the amount of dicks I see using a mobile is staggering but what is worse is idiots usually women texting, you can tell because all you can see it the top of their heads while they’re looking down. I had one pass me on the M1 North of Dublin texting whilst doing about 90, looking down the whole time, I couldn’t give a sh*t if she wiped herself out but they usually end up taking some unfortunate with them.
I never notice bad driving when I’m on the bike I’m usually too busy blowing out ma’ arse.
Tiffin15 wrote:Probably is
Had the same experience on the M90 between Perth and the FRB lately. I’m sitting at 70mph on the cruise control and this woman in a Red Audi(shock Horror) A1 passes me. Big deal. Next thing she’s slowed up considerably, so I pass her. Next thing she’s overtaking me again, and up you’ve guessed it, she’s slowed down again. Wasn’t till the 3rd time of this happening we noticed that every time we passed her her head is looking at her lap. Over nearly 25 miles this happened until eventually she must have finished her Facebook/Text chat and was never seen again. Shame really, as I was hoping to see her embedded in to the back of an artic.
Generally, I don’t have much
Generally, I don’t have much time for those cyclists which post vids of any and every little misdemeanor committed by drivers.
However in this case, all of the offenses highlighted in the article were serious, and very worthy of being called out, so well done sir.
seemed clear to me.
Oh, and can people calm down on the ‘V’ word?? The question seemed OK to me.
Must be Mad wrote:
Quote:
and it didn’t to me.
If you want an idea of how dubious this bloke >may< be: http://veloevol.blogspot.co.uk/2013/10/sherry-lies-videotape.html
I wouldn’t call the man a
I wouldn’t call the man a vigilante if he reports the offences to the police or to the employer. And even if nothing seems to happen as a result (no sackings or prosecutions) that doesn’t mean nothing has happened. It could well be that after it has been brought to his or her attention, the driver is now taking more care – which is what we want drivers to do. However, those mobs of knuckle-dragging morons that see the footage on YouTube and start harassing the employer and go overboard in wilfully trying to harm the company are vigilantees as far as I’m concerned.
I find riding alongside those
I find riding alongside those texting at lights and pretend to read the text is quite effective. Even better when the windows are open is shouting dead parrot fashion,” He’s f**ing driving and on the phone.” Suddenly phones are hot potatoes.
As for this guy, if he feels it makes a difference, so be it.
Its so difficult, isn’t it?
Its so difficult, isn’t it? On the one hand, to not report and call people on their bad driving behaviour is to risk normalising it, so that nobody even thinks its bad any more (mobile phone use and speeding – I’m looking at you).
Unfortunately, on the other, there are so many people with helmet cameras who come across as self righteous know-it-alls (Traffic Droid, I’m loking at you).
Its so difficult, isn’t it?
Its so difficult, isn’t it? On the one hand, to not report and call people on their bad driving behaviour is to risk normalising it, so that nobody even thinks its bad any more (mobile phone use and speeding – I’m looking at you).
Unfortunately, on the other, there are so many people with helmet cameras who come across as self righteous know-it-alls (Traffic Droid, I’m loking at you).
Meanwhile, I’m struggling to
Meanwhile, I’m struggling to get Thames Valley Police to take action despite the incident being caught in Hidef because – and I kid you not – my camera footage isn’t what they consider independent evidence.
Velo_Alex wrote:Meanwhile,
:)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :)) :))
Jesus wept.
‘No ifs, no buts, no
‘No ifs, no buts, no coconuts’. Wise words indeed from our ever vigilant friend.
He does make a good point. If his actions result in one less death or injury it’s worth it. Hard to gauge but taking idiot drivers off the road or making them think again has to be a positive.
Yesterday I saw a policewoman
Yesterday I saw a policewoman driving a police car talking into her mobile phone. Clear as day.
Good job Dave. Keep it up.
Good job Dave. Keep it up.
Not sure if “No Ifs. No buts. No Coconuts.” is really the perfect catch phrase? “No ifs. No buts. But 6 points on your license!” would be my dream catchphrase.