Are Drivers to Blame For Bad Cycling Safety?

Does poor cycle safety in London owe more to bad drivers than the cyclists themselves? London is full of road users from moped couriers to articulated lorries and buses.  Cyclists are forced to share much of their route with these machines. Sounds disproportionate? Clearly this is not an ideal situation, but this is made worse by bad habits and rushed decisions by these bigger vehicles.

The difficulty with the debate is one always blames the other. Therefore, we take a look at the worst habits of each culprit, since they are all guilty of plenty.

Drivers Not F%#kin’ Indicating

It’s a lever right next to the steering wheel. You should know where you’re going, so just flick it up or down. Not doing this is the biggest dick-move to any other person in the surroundings. It’s not like the effort of hand signals. Cyclists are at particular risk if the driver suddenly turns left at a junction. The same problem applies with lane changing.

Car Doors

Look in the mirror before opening the door. A car door opening is probably the biggest fear of every cyclist. A sudden open door is guaranteed to send a cyclist hurtling over, head poised to the ground in a busy road.

And the driver will likely claim it as the cyclist’s fault. Unless you are tackling vigilante old ladies a la ‘Hot Fuzz’, this is best avoided…

Buses Pulling Out

These drivers indicate, but only as they actually move and cut off cyclists on their right-hand side overtaking at the bus stop. This presents options of either swerving or coming to an abrupt halt, after which the cyclist needs to push hard to match the speed of the traffic again without becoming an obstacle. When a bus stops, a similar situation occurs as a cyclist must slow down and prepare to overtake.

This creates the comical but very real task of twisting to check behind whilst one hurtles towards the exhaust end of a double-decker.

Irresponsible Overtaking

Same as before- that centre-right mirror check you parroted throughout your driving test is just as important as it was then. Rushing to change lane or overtake a vehicle or another cyclist is a terrifying prospect given the incoming traffic a cyclist can be knocked in to.

In overtaking cyclists, a larger gap is necessary than we realise. Cyclists wobble and change direction rapidly, in addition to their initial vulnerability. In busy streets finding a moment is hard, but compromise ultimately affects the rider.

Turning Left

The major problem here is large lorries. As covered in cyclists, this is their right of way at a junction.  Ignore this in a lofty cab and they are sure to be swept beneath in the horrific focus of many ambulance documentaries.

Thankfully more is being done to solve this problem. We are now very familiar with the ‘keep back’ warnings sounded by these machines.

The Horn

Sounding your horn is like a battle cry in an ancient campaign. Such an insignificant sound is actually aggressive and loud. It immediately claims it’s user is right and has all the impact of the ‘F’ word. This is counter-productive and sends stress levels soaring to all around, which is not what you want in a busy junction.

Don’t Be a Dick

We said it in cyclists so we have to put it here too. In the rush of the road, everyone is fighting for the top of the pedestal. As a driver, at the end of the day you can be glad that you are in the warm and dry with a much lower risk of injury. Even if a cyclist is a dick, don’t be a dick back.

Sure, they go through red lights and don’t pay any road taxes, but creating abrasion won’t get us anywhere near a cleaner, safer and easier living.

The post Are Drivers to Blame For Bad Cycling Safety? appeared first on Felix Magazine.