Jim's mowing takes a red hot shot at taking down a cyclist

Can we see the whole footage please….

He is not even in his lane and it looks like he wants to cause trouble. And then get a response.

How do you know that the cyclist hasn’t sped up cos he see’s the car turning but then has not realized it was that close?

BlowMeDown2:03 pm, 29 Sep 12

Had it been me in the car I would have stopped and swapped name address, license, registration and insurance details (don’t tell me that cyclists are allowed on the road without same), then I would have reminded the cyclist that my 1.5 tonne vehicle doing at least twice the speed has 40 times the momentum he has. I would have also reminded him, because he would know this already, that this is why he’s a fool for riding anywhere near traffic not to mention insisting on his right-of-way without even looking to ensure it’s safe.

Interesting scenario though, had the cyclist veered fully into the car lane and been crushed by a another vehicle, who would be at fault?

A few weeks back I was driving along Majura Lane near where it joins the Federal Highway when the driver of a car two ahead of me suddenly decided to stop to allow a cyclist waiting at a give-way sign to cross. That was nice of the car driver but grossly negligent and the dump truck behind me had smoke coming off its tires and was already veering off the road to avoid crushing the three of us in the car. The truck drivers skills were every bit as amazing as the cyclist in the video. After catching up to the first car on the highway it was clear he was a suck-up cycling nut because his car was bearing a well known cycling-brand bumper sticker.

BlowMeDown makes one of many valid concerns.

If Jim had stopped and shared attitude I suggest a kicking would be justified.

BlowMeDown said :

I would have reminded the cyclist that my 1.5 tonne vehicle doing at least twice the speed has 40 times the momentum he has.

..

A few weeks back I was driving along Majura Lane near where it joins the Federal Highway when the driver of a car two ahead of me suddenly decided to stop to allow a cyclist waiting at a give-way sign to cross. That was nice of the car driver but grossly negligent and the dump truck behind me had smoke coming off its tires and was already veering off the road to avoid crushing the three of us in the car.

According to your logic, car drivers are fools for driving on the same roads as trucks – because trucks have 40 times the momentum of them. Hope you hear that from a truck driver soon!

Also, the car driver wasn’t grossly negligent – not even close. Grossly negligent was the dump truck driver driving so close behind you he had to lock up the wheels and veer off the road to not hit you. Learn your road rules.

BlowMeDown said :

Had it been me in the car I would have stopped and swapped name address, license, registration and insurance details (don’t tell me that cyclists are allowed on the road without same), then I would have reminded the cyclist that my 1.5 tonne vehicle doing at least twice the speed has 40 times the momentum he has. I would have also reminded him, because he would know this already, that this is why he’s a fool for riding anywhere near traffic not to mention insisting on his right-of-way without even looking to ensure it’s safe.

Interesting scenario though, had the cyclist veered fully into the car lane and been crushed by a another vehicle, who would be at fault?

A few weeks back I was driving along Majura Lane near where it joins the Federal Highway when the driver of a car two ahead of me suddenly decided to stop to allow a cyclist waiting at a give-way sign to cross. That was nice of the car driver but grossly negligent and the dump truck behind me had smoke coming off its tires and was already veering off the road to avoid crushing the three of us in the car. The truck drivers skills were every bit as amazing as the cyclist in the video. After catching up to the first car on the highway it was clear he was a suck-up cycling nut because his car was bearing a well known cycling-brand bumper sticker.

OK, I will bite on an old topic……regardless of the laws of physics, you do realise that as a car driver it is your responsibility to not hit other road users?

Also, the green lane means you have to give way to the cyclist, regardless of how much you vehicle weighs?

Ok, if you hit him you would change details but that doesnt excuse you arrogance as a vehicle operator.

Had it been me in the car I would have stopped and swapped name address, license, registration and insurance details (don’t tell me that cyclists are allowed on the road without same), then I would have reminded the cyclist that my 1.5 tonne vehicle doing at least twice the speed has 40 times the momentum he has. I would have also reminded him, because he would know this already, that this is why he’s a fool for riding anywhere near traffic not to mention insisting on his right-of-way without even looking to ensure it’s safe.

Interesting scenario though, had the cyclist veered fully into the car lane and been crushed by a another vehicle, who would be at fault?

A few weeks back I was driving along Majura Lane near where it joins the Federal Highway when the driver of a car two ahead of me suddenly decided to stop to allow a cyclist waiting at a give-way sign to cross. That was nice of the car driver but grossly negligent and the dump truck behind me had smoke coming off its tires and was already veering off the road to avoid crushing the three of us in the car. The truck drivers skills were every bit as amazing as the cyclist in the video. After catching up to the first car on the highway it was clear he was a suck-up cycling nut because his car was bearing a well known cycling-brand bumper sticker.

With the penalty dished out to Jim, it seems it is open season on the roads. Cannot wait till I see Jim in my sights.

Aeek said :

The Antichrist said :

I think they call these cars ‘Smart’ cars ?? Smallest and slowest on the road. Aussie Post motorbikes take this prize for motorcycles. The common denominator between all these ‘vehicles’….. is a motor.

No. Slowest things on the roads are mobility scooters. They have motors.

Yup, motors are electric, engines burn fossils.

The Antichrist said :

I think they call these cars ‘Smart’ cars ?? Smallest and slowest on the road. Aussie Post motorbikes take this prize for motorcycles. The common denominator between all these ‘vehicles’….. is a motor.

No. Slowest things on the roads are mobility scooters. They have motors.

Antagonist said :

If everyone continues to argue about cyclists vs cars this post might qualify for the July Mully as well.

This baby just keeps on giving. Tis a thing of beauty.

How about a new award exclusive to motorists v cyclists sponsored by Jim’s Mowing? Not sure what it could be made out of but it should probably contain a car horn and lots of lycra.

The Antichrist said :

dtc said :

The Antichrist said :

– cyclists have a duty of care to themselves to ride safely.

This is such a stupid argument. When you are driving on the road you learn very quickly that you are very dependent on other people doing the right thing most of the time. Yes, you drive defensively but you still need to trust others. You cant not do this, otherwise you need to slow to a crawl every time you go past a cross street, slow down and veer to the left when there is a car coming in the opposite direction, stop to make sure a car turning right across your lane has seen you.

The only thing that is stupid in this argument, is your reliance on everyone else to do the right thing all the time, so you can ride/drive in complete oblivion to the world around you, expecting everybody else to drive appropriately. Volvo driver much ?

What I suggested is neither stupid nor difficult. Riding a motorcycle for most of my adult life has taught me well to keep an eye on every vehicle – epsecially when riding in/near merging traffic. Its neither difficult nor .

What a crock. What would a headcheck have acheived? Do you have eyes in the back of your head? It is the responsibility of the driver behind not to hit the vehicle in front.

The rider would have already have known that the car was there as he would have been able to hear it unlike in a car or a motorcycle. What the rider didnt know was what the driver was thinking & that was to turn in front.

Do you head check every time you ride through an intersection in case someone tries to turn left from the right hand lane?

Do you think you would have avoided this scenario on your motorbike? I dont think so, it all would have happened faster & you would have been on your arse due to the mass of the bike (yes I am a motorcycle rider too).

Yep, defensive driving is a given but you DO have to rely on everybody else on the road to do the right thing. If we didnt then there would be thousands more accidents on our roads every day.

Do some of you people think before you post?

If everyone continues to argue about cyclists vs cars this post might qualify for the July Mully as well.

This baby just keeps on giving. Tis a thing of beauty.

dtc said :

The Antichrist said :

– cyclists have a duty of care to themselves to ride safely.

This is such a stupid argument. When you are driving on the road you learn very quickly that you are very dependent on other people doing the right thing most of the time. Yes, you drive defensively but you still need to trust others. You cant not do this, otherwise you need to slow to a crawl every time you go past a cross street, slow down and veer to the left when there is a car coming in the opposite direction, stop to make sure a car turning right across your lane has seen you.

The only thing that is stupid in this argument, is your reliance on everyone else to do the right thing all the time, so you can ride/drive in complete oblivion to the world around you, expecting everybody else to drive appropriately. Volvo driver much ?

What I suggested is neither stupid nor difficult. Riding a motorcycle for most of my adult life has taught me well to keep an eye on every vehicle – epsecially when riding in/near merging traffic. Its neither difficult nor time-consuming, but it can save your life.

That cyclist did not even do the most simple head-check to preserve his own safety. Its all well and good to bash on about how you don’t or should not have to rely on anyone else for your own safety – but its pretty pointless if you are in a hospital bed, and even harder to hear you if you are in a coffin.

And somebody has to be the smallest and slowest on the roads otherwise we would all be driving Kenworth’s and Ferrari’s.

I think they call these cars ‘Smart’ cars ?? Smallest and slowest on the road. Aussie Post motorbikes take this prize for motorcycles. The common denominator between all these ‘vehicles’….. is a motor.

If everyone continues to argue about cyclists vs cars this post might qualify for the July Mully as well. Perhaps someone should start a poll on whether cyclists should be allowed on the roads.

I don’t get what all the fuss is about though. The cyclist didn’t do anything wrong and the driver was clearly at fault. Given the area looks like a 40 zone, the cyclist probably wasn’t even much of a hindrance as I’m guessing they were doing around 20 to 30km/h. The driver clearly speeds up to get past so at least subconsciously he or she was aware of the cyclist (and was possibly even speeding) and I’m guessing simply forgot to allow for the trailer. Unlike many hit and runs, given the weight of the trailer, I doubt the driver even felt it when they clipped the cyclist.

As for those who think that cyclists don’t belong on the roads – get over it. As the numbers of cyclists increase Government’s will keep doing more to support them. If drivers don’t learn to play nicely and share the road with cyclists and other slow road users, they will eventually be forced to share through measures such as stiffer penalties, slower speed limits and more road space and other infrastructure allocated especially to cyclists (at the expense of dedicated infrastructure for cars).

I’ve seen the repeating arguments that cyclists don’t belong on the road because they don’t pay rego, because they are too small, fragile and slow etc. The small cost of them being on the road wouldn’t warrant the cost of administering a registration system. And somebody has to be the smallest and slowest on the roads otherwise we would all be driving Kenworth’s and Ferrari’s.

Honestly, reading the posts in this and other threads, it’s really easy to guess which posters treat the roads like a race track and everyone else on the roads as an obstacle to get past. Get a different hobby for your adrenaline rush, allow yourself more time for your car trips and drive a bit slower.

Given the recent spate of reports of crap driving, I’m starting to think there needs to be a poll as to whether cars should be allowed on the roads.

If everyone continues to argue about cyclists vs cars this post might qualify for the July Mully as well. Perhaps someone should start a poll on whether cyclists should be allowed on the roads.

I don’t get what all the fuss is about though. The cyclist didn’t do anything wrong and the driver was clearly at fault. Given the area looks like a 40 zone, the cyclist probably wasn’t even much of a hindrance as I’m guessing they were doing around 20 to 30km/h. The driver clearly speeds up to get past so at least subconsciously he or she was aware of the cyclist (and was possibly even speeding) and I’m guessing simply forgot to allow for the trailer. Unlike many hit and runs, given the weight of the trailer, I doubt the driver even felt it when they clipped the cyclist.

As for those who think that cyclists don’t belong on the roads – get over it. As the numbers of cyclists increase Government’s will keep doing more to support them. If drivers don’t learn to play nicely and share the road with cyclists and other slow road users, they will eventually be forced to share through measures such as stiffer penalties, slower speed limits and more road space and other infrastructure allocated especially to cyclists (at the expense of dedicated infrastructure for cars).

I’ve seen the repeating arguments that cyclists don’t belong on the road because they don’t pay rego, because they are too small, fragile and slow etc. The small cost of them being on the road wouldn’t warrant the cost of administering a registration system. And somebody has to be the smallest and slowest on the roads otherwise we would all be driving Kenworth’s and Ferrari’s.

Honestly, reading the posts in this and other threads, it’s really easy to guess which posters treat the roads like a race track and everyone else on the roads as an obstacle to get past. Get a different hobby for your adrenaline rush, allow yourself more time for your car trips and drive a bit slower.

Well said.

But you should be fined for the hit-and-run involving unsuspecting plurals due to the negligent handling of possessive apostrophes. Shaaaame.

Antagonist said :

Did the cyclist get a fine for failing to take adequate evasive action?

The cyclist did all that they could reasonably be expected to do.

Has it dawned on you yet that no-one’s buying what you’re selling?

Holden Caulfield said :

Barbie Tools said :

Did you get the driver to sign a release form allowing you to post this footage prior to uploading it?

Haha, g’day “Jim”, still sore over the fine?

Did the cyclist get a fine for failing to take adequate evasive action?

Barbie Tools said :

Did you get the driver to sign a release form allowing you to post this footage prior to uploading it?

Haha, g’day “Jim”, still sore over the fine?

bear in mind the driver would have seen the slower cyclists as he went past them

dtc said :

Some cyclists are stupid, I ride to work every day and most of them are men over 40 and usually wearing cycling tights. But that doesnt mean this particular cyclist was wrong.

Men in lycra aged 40-50 represent the majority of cyclists scraped off the road after losing a fight with motorists (including motorcyclists). It seems the green lanes are doing little to teach cyclists about road-craft.

http://www.canberratimes.com.au/act-news/cyclists-left-like-roadkill-20120317-1vcgp.html

The Antichrist said :

Despite all the hand-wringing about what a total ‘tard the driver was in this incident – cyclists have a duty of care to themselves to ride safely.

Riding in a green lane does not provide an invisible force-field of protection, no matter what the law says about who gives way to whom.

The reality is that if that cyclist had done a simple head-check – one less push on the pedals would have seen that collision avoided. I am not condoning the actions of the Lawnmower Man – but having seen first-hand the total disregard for their own safety that many cyclists exhibit every day of the week – I also have very little sympathy for collsions like this which could so easily have been avoided by the slower-moving vehicle.

For the record I ride a pushie to work often, but for my own safety stick to the shared footpaths. Its a better view there anyway………

This is such a stupid argument. When you are driving on the road you learn very quickly that you are very dependent on other people doing the right thing most of the time. Yes, you drive defensively but you still need to trust others. You cant not do this, otherwise you need to slow to a crawl every time you go past a cross street, slow down and veer to the left when there is a car coming in the opposite direction, stop to make sure a car turning right across your lane has seen you.

Had the cyclist done a head check, he would have seen a car behind him. Which might have meant the car was going straight. Or turning but turning behind the cyclist, like it should have done. Had the cyclist slowed down and the car driven at a speed that assumed the cyclist would not have slowed down, then its just as bad.

Some cyclists are stupid, I ride to work every day and most of them are men over 40 and usually wearing cycling tights. But that doesnt mean this particular cyclist was wrong.

Barbie Tools said :

Did you get the driver to sign a release form allowing you to post this footage prior to uploading it?

Video taken in public does not require a release.

Barbie Tools said :

Did you get the driver to sign a release form allowing you to post this footage prior to uploading it?

Is his Soul being stolen by being photographed or videoed?

Did you get the driver to sign a release form allowing you to post this footage prior to uploading it?

Jivrashia said :

Bosworth said :

Anyone know how many points/dollars this is?

3 points and up to $300 fine.

I couldn’t find much on the TAMS site so I sourced it from various states.

Depends on which ‘give way’ offence was used, there’s about 40 of them. Varies between $157 and $273 and is 3 points. You can find them at legislation.act.gov.au under the Road Transport (Offences) Regulation 2005.

Aeek said :

The Antichrist said :

For the record I ride a pushie to work often, but for my own safety stick to the shared footpaths. Its a better view there anyway………

I find the paths terrifying when its warm and sunny. Idiots who don’t pay attention because they’re not riding on the road, and especially those who treat blind corners as single-track.

Still, better to crash with an empty headed cyclist than an empty headed motorist, I guess.

The Antichrist said :

For the record I ride a pushie to work often, but for my own safety stick to the shared footpaths. Its a better view there anyway………

I find the paths terrifying when its warm and sunny. Idiots who don’t pay attention because they’re not riding on the road, and especially those who treat blind corners as single-track.

Despite all the hand-wringing about what a total ‘tard the driver was in this incident – cyclists have a duty of care to themselves to ride safely.

Riding in a green lane does not provide an invisible force-field of protection, no matter what the law says about who gives way to whom.

The reality is that if that cyclist had done a simple head-check – one less push on the pedals would have seen that collision avoided. I am not condoning the actions of the Lawnmower Man – but having seen first-hand the total disregard for their own safety that many cyclists exhibit every day of the week – I also have very little sympathy for collsions like this which could so easily have been avoided by the slower-moving vehicle.

For the record I ride a pushie to work often, but for my own safety stick to the shared footpaths. Its a better view there anyway………

I’m glad for once that we had an incident that might make cycling a little safer that wasn’t a fatality. Heard Jim-prime used to ride a road bike. Even if not I’m sure there will be a franchise broadcast to remember you have a trailer.

Have seen them give out a neg driving for less.

KB1971 said :

Comes down to the law Henry, if it had been a car he would have had the same fine but with an insurance excess bill as well.

He could have just as easily killed a car driver with that manouver in the right circumstance but he didnt.

Had there been a fatality it might have been different but there wasnt & that is all they can smack him with.

Yep. Its one of those strange anomolies in the law.

– Get distracted by your children fighting in the back seat, run a stop but sail through the intersection – wear a couple of hundred dollars fine.

– Get distracted by your children fighting in the back seat, run a stop sign and hit and kill a woman and baby in a pram – go to gaol for years.

And yet the act is the same, the mistake is the same and the intention of the driver is the same.

Its only the outcome that is different.

Dork said :

No BS,

Now I ride around Tuggeranong lake, as the first time I rode around Lake BG I was yelled at, and not in a nice way, in a lots of swearing way. All because I didn’t havea light, when it was really not that dark at the time. I wouldn’t have minded if they had have said something nicely. However the fact that yelled abuse at me for even though I was going to hit them, nor were they going to hit me.

Now a bike doesn’t come with an instruction manual saying all the things you need/don’t need. The laws don’t mention anything in regards to bike paths/lights, so how was I to know.

There is really no need to be a complete dick, I now have two lights, front and back for fear of being yelled at again.

This is not rocket science – you just have to have a familiarity with the Australian Road Rules (do you have a driver’s licence?) . If you did you would know that this section applies whether you’re riding on the road, or on a shared path:

259 Riding at night
The rider of a bicycle must not ride at night, or in hazardous
weather conditions causing reduced visibility, unless the
bicycle, or the rider, displays:
(a) a flashing or steady white light that is clearly visible for
at least 200 metres from the front of the bicycle; and
(b) a flashing or steady red light that is clearly visible for at
least 200 metres from the rear of the bicycle; and
(c) a red reflector that is clearly visible for at least 50
metres from the rear of the bicycle when light is
projected onto it by a vehicle’s headlight on low-beam.

And night is clearly defined too – the period between sunset one day and sunrise the following day.

There really is no excuse. Should you have been yelled at? No – certainly the last time I encountered a cyclist doing just what you did around Lake BG, I said to them as I went past, “you really need to get some lights, mate”, and in response I was the one on the receiving end of the foul mouthed tirade.

As a law abiding cyclist, I get really sick of people like you who break the law when riding a bike and give the rest of us a bad name. I’m well aware that some of the abuse that I occasionally cop is because of people like you.

HenryBG said :

Bosworth said :

Actual News:

I contacted the ACT police, and the driver, ‘Jim’, got a Traffic Infringement Notice for ‘fail to give way’.

Anyone know how many points/dollars this is?

Seeing as he hit the cyclist, and there is video footage of it as evidence, that is pisspoor. He didn’t just ‘fail to give way’. He should be taken off the road.

Comes down to the law Henry, if it had been a car he would have had the same fine but with an insurance excess bill as well.

He could have just as easily killed a car driver with that manouver in the right circumstance but he didnt.

Had there been a fatality it might have been different but there wasnt & that is all they can smack him with.

Bosworth said :

Anyone know how many points/dollars this is?

3 points and up to $300 fine.

I couldn’t find much on the TAMS site so I sourced it from various states.

No BS,

Now I ride around Tuggeranong lake, as the first time I rode around Lake BG I was yelled at, and not in a nice way, in a lots of swearing way. All because I didn’t havea light, when it was really not that dark at the time. I wouldn’t have minded if they had have said something nicely. However the fact that yelled abuse at me for even though I was going to hit them, nor were they going to hit me.

Now a bike doesn’t come with an instruction manual saying all the things you need/don’t need. The laws don’t mention anything in regards to bike paths/lights, so how was I to know.

There is really no need to be a complete dick, I now have two lights, front and back for fear of being yelled at again.

Bosworth said :

Actual News:

I contacted the ACT police, and the driver, ‘Jim’, got a Traffic Infringement Notice for ‘fail to give way’.

Anyone know how many points/dollars this is?

Seeing as he hit the cyclist, and there is video footage of it as evidence, that is pisspoor. He didn’t just ‘fail to give way’. He should be taken off the road.

Actual News:

I contacted the ACT police, and the driver, ‘Jim’, got a Traffic Infringement Notice for ‘fail to give way’.

Anyone know how many points/dollars this is?

Dork said :

Maybe I should attach a camera to my car and catch all the cyclists I have seen running red lights, not getting off their bikes at crossings and intersections when required, Swapping between bike lane and footpath as they feel nearly running over pedestrians, speeding (yes that happens occasionally) and even doing exactly what this car just did and trying to overtake a car on the outside by cutting in front of it (which was completely not necessary).

I purchased a bike and was really keen to go riding around the lake, casually as I have never been much of a rider. Got stared at and yelled at by other cyclists. I can’t win with you people, on the road where I follow the rules, or on the footpath where I follow the rules (getting overtaken when crossing the road AFTER dismounting). I have no sympathy for cyclists anymore.

Hate to break it to you Dork, but from what you report,it sounds like there’s one specific problem and that’s you. Your comments are so ridiculous they must be made up or else you must act like a tool. I ride the cycle paths all time and ride around the lake most Saturday mornings. Sometimes I commute, sometimes I ride on a racer or MTB and sometimes at very slow speed with a small person. I’ve never been stared at or yelled at or had any real problems. Sometimes a pedestrian/child or dog can make sudden unexpected moves which one needs to be ready for, but that’s about it.

Perhaps if this reported behaviour is so prevalent you may wish to take a GoPro or similar camera and record these instances. Otherwise I call BS.

I think the idea is more a not everyone who speeds is a risk, but we still have speed limits sort of thing?
Not everybody crosses dangeroulsy, but it’s still the law, because those people that do it incorrectly in danger of being hit.

I haven’t read all the comments, so I don’t know whether this has been said before. I’ve just realised that the second bike was also there & that the tool in the car would have had to wait for both of them, clearly adding at least another 5 seconds to his trip time. Of course he wanted to get in front!

Dork said :

Maybe I should attach a camera to my car and catch all the cyclists I have seen running red lights, not getting off their bikes at crossings and intersections when required, Swapping between bike lane and footpath as they feel nearly running over pedestrians, speeding (yes that happens occasionally) and even doing exactly what this car just did and trying to overtake a car on the outside by cutting in front of it (which was completely not necessary).

I purchased a bike and was really keen to go riding around the lake, casually as I have never been much of a rider. Got stared at and yelled at by other cyclists. I can’t win with you people, on the road where I follow the rules, or on the footpath where I follow the rules (getting overtaken when crossing the road AFTER dismounting). I have no sympathy for cyclists anymore.

I agree with you that too many cyclists are inconsiderate jerks.

However, to be fair, the dismount when crossing rule is ridiculous. As long as a cyclist slows right down and waits for passing traffic there is no reason to dismount.

In fact I would argue it is more dangerous.

I have only ever seen 2 cyclists nearly get hit by cars. Both of them were at the same cross-walk (the one on Lake G near Black Pepper). Both of them appeared to be occasional cyclists who chose to dismount for the crosswalk. Both tripped on the pedal and fell out into oncoming traffic.

Forcing cyclists to dismount at crossing is dangerous. Getting on and off a bike is the time when you are most likely to stumble and fall. Cyclists who wear cleats have particular difficulties dismounting at crossings.

I have yet to see a logical argument as to why cyclists should dismount at crossings instead of slow down and wait. Those who argue that too many cyclists simply shoot straight through crossings ignore the fact that those people are jerks who don’t follow the rules anyway. They clearly haven’t been stopped by the current regulations.

As long as cyclists who use crossings are sensible and wait for traffic to either pass or stop there is no reason to force them to dismount. Once you’re on a bike it is much more natural to slow down but remain on the bike than it is to dismount and remount.

Maybe I should attach a camera to my car and catch all the cyclists I have seen running red lights, not getting off their bikes at crossings and intersections when required, Swapping between bike lane and footpath as they feel nearly running over pedestrians, speeding (yes that happens occasionally) and even doing exactly what this car just did and trying to overtake a car on the outside by cutting in front of it (which was completely not necessary).

I purchased a bike and was really keen to go riding around the lake, casually as I have never been much of a rider. Got stared at and yelled at by other cyclists. I can’t win with you people, on the road where I follow the rules, or on the footpath where I follow the rules (getting overtaken when crossing the road AFTER dismounting). I have no sympathy for cyclists anymore.

To the bloke on the bike, mate, if i was you i would buy a lottery ticket,several lottery tickets.:)

Woody Mann-Caruso said :

I have cut off 3 and almost squashed at least 2 riders in the past few months..It is a mass of confusion at 5.30pm and ripe for a tragedy..

You know you’re allowed to slow down and even stop sometimes, right? Cyclists move on, then you move over? Or did you think that pedal on the left was just for burnouts? Or is your dick so small you can’t bear the thought of not being first, first, Mum, look at moi, firsterest!

You sir are by far one of the funniest people on the internet – i laughed so hard i choked.
I tip my hat

Has he been charged yet?

Spykler said :

.I have cut off 3 and almost squashed at least 2 riders in the past few months..It is a mass of confusion at 5.30pm and ripe for a tragedy..

maybe you should learn to drive. the common denominator in all these incidents is you.

I have cut off 3 and almost squashed at least 2 riders in the past few months..It is a mass of confusion at 5.30pm and ripe for a tragedy..

You know you’re allowed to slow down and even stop sometimes, right? Cyclists move on, then you move over? Or did you think that pedal on the left was just for burnouts? Or is your dick so small you can’t bear the thought of not being first, first, Mum, look at moi, firsterest!

Spykler said :

I am amazed that they aren’t peeling the bodies from the green death lane that crosses the off-ramp from Commonwealth Ave onto Parkes way..It is one the worst TAMS decisions ever made..I have cut off 3 and almost squashed at least 2 riders in the past few months..It is a mass of confusion at 5.30pm and ripe for a tragedy..

Well, congrats on admitting to being a completely inept driver, I guess…

Spykler said :

Antagonist said :

davo101 said :

I’m sorry, you hit a cyclist riding in the cycle lane you are clearly in the wrong. Not quite sure in which perverted universe it would be the other way around.

What good is it being right when you are a crippled para-olympian in a wheelchair because some moron thinks a bright green lane protects him from motorists? This green death lane (and many others) put the cyclists out in no-mans land where motorists can be passing them on both sides at 80+ km/h. There is also the possibility that motorists are changing lanes over your magic green force field.

I am amazed that they aren’t peeling the bodies from the green death lane that crosses the off-ramp from Commonwealth Ave onto Parkes way..It is one the worst TAMS decisions ever made..I have cut off 3 and almost squashed at least 2 riders in the past few months..It is a mass of confusion at 5.30pm and ripe for a tragedy..

It’s simple: give way if there is a cyclists there, like any dotted line you stop to give way at, if a car rear ends you, there will be dent but no dead cyclists. Isn’t that what motorists keep saying, that they are so much safer because of their cars?

So is Jim’s winning the Mowy for this month? Or is it the Clueless Crusaders of Canberra?

Antagonist said :

davo101 said :

I’m sorry, you hit a cyclist riding in the cycle lane you are clearly in the wrong. Not quite sure in which perverted universe it would be the other way around.

What good is it being right when you are a crippled para-olympian in a wheelchair because some moron thinks a bright green lane protects him from motorists? This green death lane (and many others) put the cyclists out in no-mans land where motorists can be passing them on both sides at 80+ km/h. There is also the possibility that motorists are changing lanes over your magic green force field.

I am amazed that they aren’t peeling the bodies from the green death lane that crosses the off-ramp from Commonwealth Ave onto Parkes way..It is one the worst TAMS decisions ever made..I have cut off 3 and almost squashed at least 2 riders in the past few months..It is a mass of confusion at 5.30pm and ripe for a tragedy..

KB1971 said :

Antagonist said :

[Blah blah invisible force filed blah blah.

I am sure thats what Scott Oppalear thought as he moved on a green light before Mr Mully ploughed into the side of his car………..

Your point is mute.

Don’t forget all the magic giveway and stop sign force fields, and the magic divided lane force fields, and the magic speed limits.

Nobody wants to hear another sob story about a r-tarded motorist who, despite being in the right, lost a fight with a B-double.

If only his point was mute.

johnboy said :

Moot even

Yeah, that too……homebrew…….

Antagonist said :

[Blah blah invisible force filed blah blah.

I am sure thats what Scott Oppalear thought as he moved on a green light before Mr Mully ploughed into the side of his car………..

Your point is mute.

davo101 said :

I’m sorry, you hit a cyclist riding in the cycle lane you are clearly in the wrong. Not quite sure in which perverted universe it would be the other way around.

What good is it being right when you are a crippled para-olympian in a wheelchair because some moron thinks a bright green lane protects him from motorists? This green death lane (and many others) put the cyclists out in no-mans land where motorists can be passing them on both sides at 80+ km/h. There is also the possibility that motorists are changing lanes over your magic green force field.

Nobody wants to hear another sob story about a r-tarded para-olympian who, despite being in the right, lost a fight with a car. Being right will not help you walk again. Once you are a cripple, you stay a cripple. Move the green death lanes off to the side of the road, out of harms way where they belong.

At least the bike rider had bright clothing and a light. Around Civic in the early evenings there too many bikes with neither. It is a pity they are not being fined.

carnardly said :

The coppers have got him!

🙂

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/national/8491490/hit-and-run-driver-filmed-by-cyclist

Let’s hope they stick a neg driving charge on the driver.

He thought he had cleared the cyclist?

Mr Driver- you were barely level with him before you pulled into his lane…. Not good enough.

You are bloody damn lucky you didn’t kill that guy. Please open your eyes from now on.

Looks like Matthew Henry and Emily O’Keefe go onto the “dare not name the RiotACT” list…

I want to see him named and shamed for what he did. A mere fine does not meet community expectation.

bigred said :

Has Jim been charged with a serious offence yet?

What’s likely to happen is he will be given a traffic infringement notice for neg driving or not giving way, a couple hundred $ and 3 points. He won’t be “charged” with anything.

cooko said :

Can cyclists not use their own intended transport system or will they begin to complain that the cycle system is a danger due to the presence of people walking???

You are at least 30 years too late with that comment.

Understand it is a franchise, but his driving reflects on the company. Therefore, all thr Jim’s are crap, homicidal drivers who shouldn’t be allowed onto my property. Bit like why I avoid Canberra cabs too.

dungfungus said :

He is now going into the undertaking business as he failed in overtaking.

Bravo, bravo! 😀

DrKoresh said :

bigred said :

Has Jim been charged with a serious offence yet? And he will not be trimming my hedges.

It’s a franchise, man, I don’t think it’s fair to boycott Jim’s as a whole because of one reckless, stupid franchisee. You can bet that this guy’s mowing career is probably over, there’s no need to punish the other franchisees who are presumably hard-working, sensible individuals.

He is now going into the undertaking business as he failed in overtaking.

bigred said :

Has Jim been charged with a serious offence yet? And he will not be trimming my hedges.

It’s a franchise, man, I don’t think it’s fair to boycott Jim’s as a whole because of one reckless, stupid franchisee. You can bet that this guy’s mowing career is probably over, there’s no need to punish the other franchisees who are presumably hard-working, sensible individuals.

Has Jim been charged with a serious offence yet? And he will not be trimming my hedges.

carnardly said :

The coppers have got him!

🙂

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/national/8491490/hit-and-run-driver-filmed-by-cyclist

Let’s hope they stick a neg driving charge on the driver.

He thought he had cleared the cyclist?

Mr Driver- you were barely level with him before you pulled into his lane…. Not good enough.

You are bloody damn lucky you didn’t kill that guy. Please open your eyes from now on.

Did you like the final paragraph in the report:

The YouTube clip, which has been viewed 42,616 times since being posted on Tuesday, has provoked heated debate over who was in the right

I’m sorry, you hit a cyclist riding in the cycle lane you are clearly in the wrong. Not quite sure in which perverted universe it would be the other way around.

The coppers have got him! 🙂 http://news.ninemsn.com.au/national/8491490/hit-and-run-driver-filmed-by-cyclist Let’s hope they stick a neg driving charge on the driver.

He thought he had cleared the cyclist? Mr Driver- you were barely level with him before you pulled into his lane…. Not good enough.

You are bloody damn lucky you didn’t kill that guy. Please open your eyes from now on.

I’m not siding with the driver of the car as he or she is clearly at fault but the on-road cycling system is a joke of an idea especially when we have one of the best (if not the best) cycling networks on the country.

http://apps.actpla.act.gov.au/plandev/tp-intro/projects/walk_cycle/cyclemap/canberra_path_map3.swf

Can cyclists not use their own intended transport system or will they begin to complain that the cycle system is a danger due to the presence of people walking???

nescius said :

Jivrashia said :

Mav said :

They do not stay in the designated bike lanes but ride many abreast and out into the adjacent car lane. *snip* often see other cars having to jam on their breaks in order to not hit the riders who are well into the car lane.

Riding two abreast is allowed but…

ACT Road Rules Handbook – Part E – Other road users
Riding two abreast
Cyclists are permitted to ride two abreast.
On certain roads riding two abreast may not be the safest option. Common sense dictates that factors which should be considered include the prevailing road, weather and traffic conditions.

Unfortunately, more often than not adrenaline wins over common sense…

Personally I think two abreast is hogging the road, especially when there is a dedicated cycling lane.

Because, as the video clearly demonstrates, the dedicated cycling lane is always the safest place to ride… oh wait…

…so the middle of the road is a better idea?

Jivrashia said :

Mav said :

They do not stay in the designated bike lanes but ride many abreast and out into the adjacent car lane. *snip* often see other cars having to jam on their breaks in order to not hit the riders who are well into the car lane.

Riding two abreast is allowed but…

ACT Road Rules Handbook – Part E – Other road users
Riding two abreast
Cyclists are permitted to ride two abreast.
On certain roads riding two abreast may not be the safest option. Common sense dictates that factors which should be considered include the prevailing road, weather and traffic conditions.

Unfortunately, more often than not adrenaline wins over common sense…

Personally I think two abreast is hogging the road, especially when there is a dedicated cycling lane.

Because, as the video clearly demonstrates, the dedicated cycling lane is always the safest place to ride… oh wait…

Mav said :

They do not stay in the designated bike lanes but ride many abreast and out into the adjacent car lane. *snip* often see other cars having to jam on their breaks in order to not hit the riders who are well into the car lane.

Riding two abreast is allowed but…

ACT Road Rules Handbook – Part E – Other road users
Riding two abreast
Cyclists are permitted to ride two abreast.
On certain roads riding two abreast may not be the safest option. Common sense dictates that factors which should be considered include the prevailing road, weather and traffic conditions.

Unfortunately, more often than not adrenaline wins over common sense…

Personally I think two abreast is hogging the road, especially when there is a dedicated cycling lane.

Front page article on Ninemsn http://news.ninemsn.com.au/national/8491490/hit-and-run-driver-filmed-by-cyclist

When driving to work along Adelaide Ave around 6 am I always come across two groups of riders that appear to be partaking of some kind of road race. They do not stay in the designated bike lanes but ride many abreast and out into the adjacent car lane. I always give them ample room and pass the groups on the outer lane but I quiet often see other cars having to jam on their breaks in order to not hit the riders who are well into the car lane.

Is this some kind of organised daily race or are they just riders who have accumulated over time and now feel that it is a race to get wherever first?

Gungahlin Al said :

Whatever happened to the driving training school we all went to as kids with our bicycles?
Do we have to go back to starting with the kids and is it then going to take a whole generation to wash out the atrocious driving attitude that seems so prevalent in Canberra?

There was two traffic training centre’s, one in Deakin and Belconnen. I would argue these were to teach children who were riding bikes road traffic rules and not about driver training as such. The last one in Belconnen was closed after a consultant report stated that these sites did little for bicycle proficiency training and subsequently closed it down.

Interestingly NSW and Victoria still use miniature traffic gardens to teach children road rules as well as bicycle training. The country with the most people cycling use them as an important tool to teach road rules and respect amongst road users. https://vimeo.com/31545084
It would have been interesting to see that if this cyclist was riding a cargo bike or had a bike trailer with children would the car driver, carry on in the same way?

Gungahlin Al said :

Aeek said :

There’s never been a real campaign to educate, just a feel good TV ad with a simplistic give way message.

Whatever happened to the driving training school we all went to as kids with our bicycles?
Do we have to go back to starting with the kids and is it then going to take a whole generation to wash out the atrocious driving attitude that seems so prevalent in Canberra?

That generation won’t be driving, they’ll be playing with their phones and the car will be driving – far more safely than they ever could.

As for all the people who say bikes shouldn’t be on the road because the rider is more vulnerable. I drive a truck and car drivers keep doing silly things. One mistake and they are squashed. Maybe cars should be removed from the road as, after all, there are alternative methods such as bus travel. Ok, that’s a silly argument, but no more silly than saying bicycles and/or motorcycles shouldn’t be on the road because they are vulnerable to the mistakes of car drivers.

Aeek said :

There’s never been a real campaign to educate, just a feel good TV ad with a simplistic give way message.

Whatever happened to the driving training school we all went to as kids with our bicycles?
Do we have to go back to starting with the kids and is it then going to take a whole generation to wash out the atrocious driving attitude that seems so prevalent in Canberra?

There’s never been a real campaign to educate, just a feel good TV ad with a simplistic give way message.

There’s confusion about overtaking on the left, which is entirely legal when in separate lanes.
Perhaps this is a reason for some drivers insistence on exiting ahead, even when the safer option is to pass behind.

There’s misunderstanding of the line markings, solid or broken, it doesn’t actually matter as rule 147 applies. The idea should be to cross wherever is safest when cyclists are present. The broken line is just the default place to cross.

147 Moving from one marked lane to another marked lane across a continuous line separating the lanes
unless:
(d) either of the marked lanes is a special purpose lane in which the driver is permitted to drive under the Australian Road Rules and the driver is moving to or from the special purpose lane.

Similarly, some green lanes are modified by painted islands. There’s a reason they are painted and not solid. Far safer to drive over the paint than to pass dangerously close. Again, the road rules cover this.

EvanJames said :

Antagonist said :

Holden Caulfield said :

fromthecapital said :

I had an experience this morning on Adelaide ave. I was using the green strip at deakin northbound. Towards the end I noticed a white commodore ute slow for me. Given I had taken about 2.61 seconds from his journey I waved to thank him for slowing. He waved and smiled back.

No one in hospital or gaol as a result.

A white Commodore? Lies! 😉

+1. I call bull**it.

No, it’s OK, it was a ute. Being a white commodore is tangential to that. Utes are different.

True, it was white, new, an HSV I think, not sure if that makes it not a commodore… not a fan of Holdens…

Grail said :

Also, I wonder what The RiotACT’s policy is when it comes to answering subpoenas for contact details of people making death threats under pseudonyms? Threatening to assault someone with a car can only be construed as a death threat.

Considering its one pseudonym threatening another pseudonym and one party doesn’t know who he is threatening while the other doesn’t know who is threatening him, it hardly warrants a subpoena or any waste of time by law enforcement or RiotAct personnel.

Basically, the car drivers and the cyclists are all as bad as each other in this town. Nothing will fix the problem, it’s just a general attitude that isn’t at all linked to the form of chosen transportation.

this story has made the SMH too. 🙂 http://www.smh.com.au/executive-style/fitness/blogs/on-your-bike/cyclists-with-video-cameras-20120628-213xu.html

DrKoresh said :

NoImRight said :

johnboy said :

NoImRight said :

Whats the etiquette on bikes dinging their little bells telling pedestrians to get out of their way? Im not sure how much moral outrage is appropriate?

Well, unless you’re walking in a group completely blocking the path we ding our little bells to let you know we’re coming past and all you have to do is hold your course and don’t panic.

I must meet the exceptions. Ive found the dinging gets more strident if I dont move and have been rounded on on one occasion with a “didnt you hear the bell?” as he rode past.

I get that a lot too. I once heard some dinging and a smug “bike!” from somewhere behind me on the bike path, I replied with “pedestrian!” and kept on walking.

Thats gold. I normally respond with ‘Legs’ as that is my mode of transport. most the time I get a laugh. A few times I have been abused but they quieten down once I politely tell them to go and have intercourse with themselves. Twice I have made it look like I was going to run after them…amazing how fast they can accelerate when they see 6’4 of pissed of pedestrian come after them.

There is no reason why they can’t go around me. I will stay to one side of the path adn I expect some courtesy back. I am always polite on my bike and will either go around or wait for a safe moment to go around.

Antagonist said :

KB1971 said :

… The car drivers have to give way.

Look at the line markings, there is a broken give way dash, same is in a T intersection with a give way sign.

While there may not be a physical “sign”, the road makrings tell the road users what to do. In this case the rider should be assured that he has right of way no matter what.

All the dash lines and green death lanes in the world still don’t provide any physical protection from motorists. There is still no force field to tell the cyclists they have right of way when a car smacks into them. I don’t think anyone would find it reassuring to know they had right of way from underneath a car.

The particular green death lanes from the OP should be moved off to the side of the road where cyclists are less likely to become road kill or para-olympians.

Neither does the white line running down the middle of the millions of km two lane roads that cover most of this continent but some how the millions of vehicles that travel every day dont seem to run head on into each other do they?

Maybe we should call it the white death line?

NoImRight said :

johnboy said :

NoImRight said :

Whats the etiquette on bikes dinging their little bells telling pedestrians to get out of their way? Im not sure how much moral outrage is appropriate?

Well, unless you’re walking in a group completely blocking the path we ding our little bells to let you know we’re coming past and all you have to do is hold your course and don’t panic.

I must meet the exceptions. Ive found the dinging gets more strident if I dont move and have been rounded on on one occasion with a “didnt you hear the bell?” as he rode past.

I get that a lot too. I once heard some dinging and a smug “bike!” from somewhere behind me on the bike path, I replied with “pedestrian!” and kept on walking.

johnboy said :

NoImRight said :

Whats the etiquette on bikes dinging their little bells telling pedestrians to get out of their way? Im not sure how much moral outrage is appropriate?

Well, unless you’re walking in a group completely blocking the path we ding our little bells to let you know we’re coming past and all you have to do is hold your course and don’t panic.

I must meet the exceptions. Ive found the dinging gets more strident if I dont move and have been rounded on on one occasion with a “didnt you hear the bell?” as he rode past.

Antagonist said :

Holden Caulfield said :

fromthecapital said :

I had an experience this morning on Adelaide ave. I was using the green strip at deakin northbound. Towards the end I noticed a white commodore ute slow for me. Given I had taken about 2.61 seconds from his journey I waved to thank him for slowing. He waved and smiled back.

No one in hospital or gaol as a result.

A white Commodore? Lies! 😉

+1. I call bull**it.

No, it’s OK, it was a ute. Being a white commodore is tangential to that. Utes are different.

NoImRight said :

Whats the etiquette on bikes dinging their little bells telling pedestrians to get out of their way? Im not sure how much moral outrage is appropriate?

Well, unless you’re walking in a group completely blocking the path we ding our little bells to let you know we’re coming past and all you have to do is hold your course and don’t panic.

KB1971 said :

… The car drivers have to give way.

Look at the line markings, there is a broken give way dash, same is in a T intersection with a give way sign.

While there may not be a physical “sign”, the road makrings tell the road users what to do. In this case the rider should be assured that he has right of way no matter what.

All the dash lines and green death lanes in the world still don’t provide any physical protection from motorists. There is still no force field to tell the cyclists they have right of way when a car smacks into them. I don’t think anyone would find it reassuring to know they had right of way from underneath a car.

The particular green death lanes from the OP should be moved off to the side of the road where cyclists are less likely to become road kill or para-olympians.

Whats the etiquette on bikes dinging their little bells telling pedestrians to get out of their way? Im not sure how much moral outrage is appropriate?

Holden Caulfield said :

fromthecapital said :

I had an experience this morning on Adelaide ave. I was using the green strip at deakin northbound. Towards the end I noticed a white commodore ute slow for me. Given I had taken about 2.61 seconds from his journey I waved to thank him for slowing. He waved and smiled back.

No one in hospital or gaol as a result.

A white Commodore? Lies! 😉

+1. I call bull**it.

dazzab said :

That rider would do well to take a page from how motorcyclists stay alive using ‘road craft’.

He has a mirror on his handlebars so he should have known what was behind him. The car is signalling that he needs to exit left. But the rider actually speeds up when he could have easily created a gap for the car. All he had to do was slow down just a bit and he would have avoided contact with the trailer.

Forget about who is at fault, a bad driver or in the wrong. When you are on a two wheeled vehicle the object is to stay alive and the best way to do that is to stay aware and as far from vehicles as possible. The video indicates that the rider didn’t do either of these. So good on him for being in the right, it’s always great to say that from a hospital bed.

I do not believe for one second that had it been you on the bike you could’ve anticipated and avoided that act of bastardry. In fact, I think you would’ve gone down hard, making a little splat sound when you hit the road.

KB1971 said :

aceofspades said :

You may not have to indicate by putting out your arm but as I find on a motorbike eye contact and head checks go along way. If cyclists rarely indicate to begin with and don’t even look to see if there is any danger it is easy to assume they will be turning away from the traffic. As you cannot see the rider in this video you can’t make a judgement on whether he took sufficient responsibility for his own safety or simply kept his head down peddling as fast as he could like many cyclists do blindly riding into an intersection. This by no means condones the actions of the Jims Mowing vehicle but it is a two way street (no pun intended).

In this case the rider does not have to. He has a lane all to himself while travelling through the intersection. The car drivers have to give way.

Look at the line markings, there is a broken give way dash, same is in a T intersection with a give way sign.

While there may not be a physical “sign”, the road makrings tell the road users what to do. In this case the rider should be assured that he has right of way no matter what. These lanes dont exist on the Monaro Hwy, the cyclist would be switching from the breakdown lane to the turn lane so maybe they should signal but it is semantics.

On the looking thing, you can hear when a vehicle is beside you so you are aware that they are there without looking. I dont look over my shoulder all the time, especially if it is busy such as on Adelaide Ave, I would never stop & probably stack :).

Granted, in this case I have no hesitation in saying Jim’s an inconsiderate ar$e hole. Legally speaking the rider does not need to indicate. Even though the rider does not need to indicate or head check as he may know where the cars are, but a head check does help the car drivers know that the cyclists intentions are to cross the lane. If it were me on a bicycle, I would not trust anyone regardless of the law. I don’t trust an indicator either, I wait until I see a vehicle commence the turn before I pull out, especially on a bike.

I do find myself slowing down to give way to a bicycle if I need to cross either a bike lane or a shoulder because from past experience they do seem to ride on through regardless and they do seem to be unaware of their surroundings. Maybe it is just me but I don’t want to kill anyone.

Very Busy said :

It’s a sad reflection on the general quality and attitude of Canberra drivers that so many responses in this thread can somehow justify the actions of the driver of the Commodore and trailer.

+1. There’s no excuse, no justification for what he did, other than excessive slob-like-ness. You’re not allowed to drive through people even if you think they have no right to be there.

It’s like the morons who speed up when they see you walking across “their” road. gob-smackingly stupid.

There’s a wonderful, yet sad, irony that so many pro-car people posting on here demonstrate a lack of knowledge of road rules or a borderline violent/dangerous attitude. Many of these people should not be driving a motor car.

I’ve been a truck driver, taxi driver, cyclist, motorcyclist and car driver at various times. In operating these vehicles, cyclists are the least of my concerns. I would suggest that if you find people on bikes to be a challenge to you when you are driving a motor vehicle then you may need to re-assess your ability to drive. It’s really not that hard to be patient, give a bike a bit of space and understand the road rules pertaining to bicycles. If you can’t do this, then walking or a bus may be a better choice for you.

In other posts I have spoken of autonomous cars quickly becoming a reality. If you watch a few of the google videos, you’ll see the google self driving car cope easily with bicycles. The google car even spotted and stopped for a person running out onto the road without looking. If you are driving at a reasonable speed and paying attention to your driving a bicycle should be the least of your concerns.

I think the moral of the story is that no-good greenie cyclists should not get in the way of real self-employed Australians in Holdens trying to make an honest living cash-in-hand.

Has the Jim’s Group responded to this?

aceofspades said :

You may not have to indicate by putting out your arm but as I find on a motorbike eye contact and head checks go along way. If cyclists rarely indicate to begin with and don’t even look to see if there is any danger it is easy to assume they will be turning away from the traffic. As you cannot see the rider in this video you can’t make a judgement on whether he took sufficient responsibility for his own safety or simply kept his head down peddling as fast as he could like many cyclists do blindly riding into an intersection. This by no means condones the actions of the Jims Mowing vehicle but it is a two way street (no pun intended).

In this case the rider does not have to. He has a lane all to himself while travelling through the intersection. The car drivers have to give way.

Look at the line markings, there is a broken give way dash, same is in a T intersection with a give way sign.

While there may not be a physical “sign”, the road makrings tell the road users what to do. In this case the rider should be assured that he has right of way no matter what. These lanes dont exist on the Monaro Hwy, the cyclist would be switching from the breakdown lane to the turn lane so maybe they should signal but it is semantics.

On the looking thing, you can hear when a vehicle is beside you so you are aware that they are there without looking. I dont look over my shoulder all the time, especially if it is busy such as on Adelaide Ave, I would never stop & probably stack :).

I also find it absolutely shocking that so many people are defending the poor driving. I see lots of cyclists do stupid things – I work at ANU and they race around the footpaths so that pedestrians have to jump out their way at times. I also see them race across crosswalks even though they are supposed to dismount.

Nonetheless, even with these negative experiences with cyclists, I would have to be brain dead to say that the driver of the vehicle/trailer is not at fault here. The cyclist has every right to be in the green lane.

Any word from Jim’s mowing or whether the cyclist is taking this to court? They certainly should!

fromthecapital said :

I had an experience this morning on Adelaide ave. I was using the green strip at deakin northbound. Towards the end I noticed a white commodore ute slow for me. Given I had taken about 2.61 seconds from his journey I waved to thank him for slowing. He waved and smiled back.

No one in hospital or gaol as a result.

A white Commodore? Lies! 😉

It’s a sad reflection on the general quality and attitude of Canberra drivers that so many responses in this thread can somehow justify the actions of the driver of the Commodore and trailer.

helium said :

aceofspades said :

Grrrr said :

aceofspades said :

I don’t think the concern is the money or insurance. Bicycles have no indicators, brake-lights, mirrors and are not required to go through the same roadworthy stringency that other vehicles do. Combine that with the fact that it is extremely rare to see a cyclist indicate their intentions or even look (head check) and be aware of other vehicles.

I was travelling north on Monaro Hwy trying to turn left onto Mugga Lane. A cyclist was travelling on the shoulder and evidently wanted to travel straight ahead, however I had no way of knowing this at the time. I had no choice other than to slow down behind the cyclist and wait to find out his intentions. Luckily for him as he almost expected the right of way as he left the shoulder and rode across the left turn only lane without even checking or indicating his intentions. The situation was very similar to this video except he was on the shoulder and not a designated bicycle lane. I remember wondering what would have happened if I wasn’t so cautious and who would have been at fault if an accident had occurred.

I also do not remember being advised as a driver about these green cycle lanes. Did I miss an advertising campaign that lets me know how to approach or behave around these lanes? Really, I think the only reason car drivers give way is because they don’t want to kill somebody and any cyclist that takes this for granted is putting thier life at risk.

Straight away a cyclist wanting to rant and rave. Firstly I have nothing against cyclists on the road and have never even come close to hitting one. I am never impatient on the road and drive as if I have all day to get where I want to go. I give way to cyclists on bicycle lanes but do wonder about them leaving the shoulder without even looking for traffic.

All I have done here is pointed out some things that make situations more dangerous then they need to be. I am not interested in what is legal and what is not, all I am interested in is what is safe and what is not. It is safe for cyclists to at least try and indicate their intentions, which in my opinion does not happen often enough. Perhaps that is because there are too many impatient drivers giving them a hard time so that it generates resentment, who knows? Whatever the case, even though as a pedestrian I have the “right-of-way” at a pedestrian crossing I do not walk blindly out in front cars until I have clear indication they are going to stop. I look after my own well being and safely cross the road, as I would on a bicycle.

Whilst bicycles have no indicators, brake-lights, mirrors, the road rules cater for that. Cyclists have an very keen personal interest in the roadworthiness of their bicycles. Many road cyclists do have mirrors that you may not observe. But I agree that some don’t check their surrounds correctly

Not sure how you indicate an intention to go straight ahead, agree cyclists should indicate change of direction by law and when prudent for their safety, although not very useful at night.

“Did I miss an advertising campaign that lets me know how to approach or behave around these lanes?” Yes you did, several years ago, leaflets, newspaper advertisements and television as well. Drivers are giving way because they probably know the road rules.

“I am not interested in what is legal and what is not”, well perhaps you should be esp if you want to make comments, thare are many bicycle specific rules that I would suggest most motorists are not aware of and that in itself leads to the incorrect assertion that rules are being broken, increasing conflict.

I was not saying I am totally oblivious to the road rules just that they act as a guide only and safety takes priority. Regardless of who has right of way all motorists should slow down and be prepared for anything at an intersection. Safety, common sense and acting on the side of caution overrides everything. I ride a motorbike and do so extremely defensively as was taught on the required courses to obtain a licence.

If I did miss an advertising campaign then that just goes to show it was not extensive enough however as per last paragraph it does not stop me from abiding by the road rules.

You may not have to indicate by putting out your arm but as I find on a motorbike eye contact and head checks go along way. If cyclists rarely indicate to begin with and don’t even look to see if there is any danger it is easy to assume they will be turning away from the traffic. As you cannot see the rider in this video you can’t make a judgement on whether he took sufficient responsibility for his own safety or simply kept his head down peddling as fast as he could like many cyclists do blindly riding into an intersection. This by no means condones the actions of the Jims Mowing vehicle but it is a two way street (no pun intended).

rosscoact said :

angrymotorist1 said :

Yeah, but the cyclist had no right to be on the road in the first place, because he hasn’t paid any rego.

a blatant troll

Effective though.

fromthecapital said :

I had an experience this morning on Adelaide ave. I was using the green strip at deakin northbound. Towards the end I noticed a white commodore ute slow for me. Given I had taken about 2.61 seconds from his journey I waved to thank him for slowing. He waved and smiled back.

No one in hospital or gaol as a result.

Shocking.

helium said :

angrymotorist1 said :

Yeah, but the cyclist had no right to be on the road in the first place, because he hasn’t paid any rego.

Apart from the fact the LAW says he has every RIGHT to be there AND is encouraged (forced) by the ACT network of cycling. He also likely has 3rd party insurance, if a Pedal Power member.

He does pay rego on his car (known from his youtube post), as do most cyclists. And payroll/income taxes, and rates, and GST, etc…(because we know that rego does not pay for road construction and maint, predominately insurance)

In many cases for on-road cycle lanes there is little or no additional cost (mostly paint and signs) as breakdown lanes and shoulders MUST be (or already are) constructed to be compliant with design standards.

If you are after persons with no RIGHT to be on the road then start with Rego dodging motorists (800 caught per year), those with no or suspended licences

Lets not forget those who permanently reside in ACT with interstate rego not contributing to our rego burden.

I think you missed the tone of this post

aceofspades said :

Grrrr said :

aceofspades said :

I don’t think the concern is the money or insurance. Bicycles have no indicators, brake-lights, mirrors and are not required to go through the same roadworthy stringency that other vehicles do. Combine that with the fact that it is extremely rare to see a cyclist indicate their intentions or even look (head check) and be aware of other vehicles.

I was travelling north on Monaro Hwy trying to turn left onto Mugga Lane. A cyclist was travelling on the shoulder and evidently wanted to travel straight ahead, however I had no way of knowing this at the time. I had no choice other than to slow down behind the cyclist and wait to find out his intentions. Luckily for him as he almost expected the right of way as he left the shoulder and rode across the left turn only lane without even checking or indicating his intentions. The situation was very similar to this video except he was on the shoulder and not a designated bicycle lane. I remember wondering what would have happened if I wasn’t so cautious and who would have been at fault if an accident had occurred.

I also do not remember being advised as a driver about these green cycle lanes. Did I miss an advertising campaign that lets me know how to approach or behave around these lanes? Really, I think the only reason car drivers give way is because they don’t want to kill somebody and any cyclist that takes this for granted is putting thier life at risk.

Straight away a cyclist wanting to rant and rave. Firstly I have nothing against cyclists on the road and have never even come close to hitting one. I am never impatient on the road and drive as if I have all day to get where I want to go. I give way to cyclists on bicycle lanes but do wonder about them leaving the shoulder without even looking for traffic.

All I have done here is pointed out some things that make situations more dangerous then they need to be. I am not interested in what is legal and what is not, all I am interested in is what is safe and what is not. It is safe for cyclists to at least try and indicate their intentions, which in my opinion does not happen often enough. Perhaps that is because there are too many impatient drivers giving them a hard time so that it generates resentment, who knows? Whatever the case, even though as a pedestrian I have the “right-of-way” at a pedestrian crossing I do not walk blindly out in front cars until I have clear indication they are going to stop. I look after my own well being and safely cross the road, as I would on a bicycle.

Whilst bicycles have no indicators, brake-lights, mirrors, the road rules cater for that. Cyclists have an very keen personal interest in the roadworthiness of their bicycles. Many road cyclists do have mirrors that you may not observe. But I agree that some don’t check their surrounds correctly

Not sure how you indicate an intention to go straight ahead, agree cyclists should indicate change of direction by law and when prudent for their safety, although not very useful at night.

“Did I miss an advertising campaign that lets me know how to approach or behave around these lanes?” Yes you did, several years ago, leaflets, newspaper advertisements and television as well. Drivers are giving way because they probably know the road rules.

“I am not interested in what is legal and what is not”, well perhaps you should be esp if you want to make comments, thare are many bicycle specific rules that I would suggest most motorists are not aware of and that in itself leads to the incorrect assertion that rules are being broken, increasing conflict.

I remember ads being shown regularly on TV when the bike lanes were introduced on many main roads. They showed cyclists and drivers sharing the road with the reminders for drivers to give way to cyclists on the green stripes.

Maybe you didn’t remember, or didn’t live there then.

I had an experience this morning on Adelaide ave. I was using the green strip at deakin northbound. Towards the end I noticed a white commodore ute slow for me. Given I had taken about 2.61 seconds from his journey I waved to thank him for slowing. He waved and smiled back.

No one in hospital or gaol as a result.

aceofspades said :

All I have done here is pointed out some things that make situations more dangerous then they need to be. I am not interested in what is legal and what is not, all I am interested in is what is safe and what is not. It is safe for cyclists to at least try and indicate their intentions, which in my opinion does not happen often enough. Perhaps that is because there are too many impatient drivers giving them a hard time so that it generates resentment, who knows? Whatever the case, even though as a pedestrian I have the “right-of-way” at a pedestrian crossing I do not walk blindly out in front cars until I have clear indication they are going to stop. I look after my own well being and safely cross the road, as I would on a bicycle.

I get your point, as I am entering a green lane I swing my right arm out to indicate that I am not turning left (ironically I have been abused by a car driver for doing this) but I dont have to, its part of my roadcraft. It has stopped people like Mr Jims Mowing from cutting across me.

But, what you are expecting of that rider is outside what they are required to do by law. If he is riding down a straight bit of road but does not have to indicate that he is going straight ahead, nor does any other driver. What did all the other traffic at the time do as they went past the intersection? Fair chance they didnt indicate because then the would have given all the other road users around them a false indication of their intentions.

The only real difference is that you as a driver were not abele to just cruise left into the lane at your road pace, you had to slow down to the riders pace, you did the right thing.

Grrrr said :

aceofspades said :

I don’t think the concern is the money or insurance. Bicycles have no indicators, brake-lights, mirrors and are not required to go through the same roadworthy stringency that other vehicles do. Combine that with the fact that it is extremely rare to see a cyclist indicate their intentions or even look (head check) and be aware of other vehicles.

I was travelling north on Monaro Hwy trying to turn left onto Mugga Lane. A cyclist was travelling on the shoulder and evidently wanted to travel straight ahead, however I had no way of knowing this at the time. I had no choice other than to slow down behind the cyclist and wait to find out his intentions. Luckily for him as he almost expected the right of way as he left the shoulder and rode across the left turn only lane without even checking or indicating his intentions. The situation was very similar to this video except he was on the shoulder and not a designated bicycle lane. I remember wondering what would have happened if I wasn’t so cautious and who would have been at fault if an accident had occurred.

I also do not remember being advised as a driver about these green cycle lanes. Did I miss an advertising campaign that lets me know how to approach or behave around these lanes? Really, I think the only reason car drivers give way is because they don’t want to kill somebody and any cyclist that takes this for granted is putting thier life at risk.

So, by your own admission you don’t know the road rules.

You suggest that cars don’t have to give way at green lanes and only do so because they don’t want to kill anyone. Again, you should already know the road rules about the cycle lanes: The green lanes are not indicating a changed / new road regulation. They are to REMIND you that the cyclist travelling in that lane has right of way just like they always have. There was a publicity campaign around them at the time of their introduction, too.

Lastly, I’m guessing you also don’t know that cyclists not are legally being required to indicate left, and your perception of cyclists’ lack of indication is partly based on that.

Straight away a cyclist wanting to rant and rave. Firstly I have nothing against cyclists on the road and have never even come close to hitting one. I am never impatient on the road and drive as if I have all day to get where I want to go. I give way to cyclists on bicycle lanes but do wonder about them leaving the shoulder without even looking for traffic.

All I have done here is pointed out some things that make situations more dangerous then they need to be. I am not interested in what is legal and what is not, all I am interested in is what is safe and what is not. It is safe for cyclists to at least try and indicate their intentions, which in my opinion does not happen often enough. Perhaps that is because there are too many impatient drivers giving them a hard time so that it generates resentment, who knows? Whatever the case, even though as a pedestrian I have the “right-of-way” at a pedestrian crossing I do not walk blindly out in front cars until I have clear indication they are going to stop. I look after my own well being and safely cross the road, as I would on a bicycle.

aceofspades said :

I don’t think the concern is the money or insurance. Bicycles have no indicators, brake-lights, mirrors and are not required to go through the same roadworthy stringency that other vehicles do. Combine that with the fact that it is extremely rare to see a cyclist indicate their intentions or even look (head check) and be aware of other vehicles.

I was travelling north on Monaro Hwy trying to turn left onto Mugga Lane. A cyclist was travelling on the shoulder and evidently wanted to travel straight ahead, however I had no way of knowing this at the time. I had no choice other than to slow down behind the cyclist and wait to find out his intentions. Luckily for him as he almost expected the right of way as he left the shoulder and rode across the left turn only lane without even checking or indicating his intentions. The situation was very similar to this video except he was on the shoulder and not a designated bicycle lane. I remember wondering what would have happened if I wasn’t so cautious and who would have been at fault if an accident had occurred.

I also do not remember being advised as a driver about these green cycle lanes. Did I miss an advertising campaign that lets me know how to approach or behave around these lanes? Really, I think the only reason car drivers give way is because they don’t want to kill somebody and any cyclist that takes this for granted is putting thier life at risk.

So, by your own admission you don’t know the road rules.

You suggest that cars don’t have to give way at green lanes and only do so because they don’t want to kill anyone. Again, you should already know the road rules about the cycle lanes: The green lanes are not indicating a changed / new road regulation. They are to REMIND you that the cyclist travelling in that lane has right of way just like they always have. There was a publicity campaign around them at the time of their introduction, too.

Lastly, I’m guessing you also don’t know that cyclists not are legally being required to indicate left, and your perception of cyclists’ lack of indication is partly based on that.

aceofspades said :

blah blah blah

Summary: There are idiot drivers and idiot cyclist.

Film at eleven.

helium said :

angrymotorist1 said :

Yeah, but the cyclist had no right to be on the road in the first place, because he hasn’t paid any rego.

Apart from the fact the LAW says he has every RIGHT to be there AND is encouraged (forced) by the ACT network of cycling. He also likely has 3rd party insurance, if a Pedal Power member.

He does pay rego on his car (known from his youtube post), as do most cyclists. And payroll/income taxes, and rates, and GST, etc…(because we know that rego does not pay for road construction and maint, predominately insurance)

In many cases for on-road cycle lanes there is little or no additional cost (mostly paint and signs) as breakdown lanes and shoulders MUST be (or already are) constructed to be compliant with design standards.

If you are after persons with no RIGHT to be on the road then start with Rego dodging motorists (800 caught per year), those with no or suspended licences

Lets not forget those who permanently reside in ACT with interstate rego not contributing to our rego burden.

I don’t think the concern is the money or insurance. Bicycles have no indicators, brake-lights, mirrors and are not required to go through the same roadworthy stringency that other vehicles do. Combine that with the fact that it is extremely rare to see a cyclist indicate their intentions or even look (head check) and be aware of other vehicles.

I was travelling north on Monaro Hwy trying to turn left onto Mugga Lane. A cyclist was travelling on the shoulder and evidently wanted to travel straight ahead, however I had no way of knowing this at the time. I had no choice other than to slow down behind the cyclist and wait to find out his intentions. Luckily for him as he almost expected the right of way as he left the shoulder and rode across the left turn only lane without even checking or indicating his intentions. The situation was very similar to this video except he was on the shoulder and not a designated bicycle lane. I remember wondering what would have happened if I wasn’t so cautious and who would have been at fault if an accident had occurred.

I also do not remember being advised as a driver about these green cycle lanes. Did I miss an advertising campaign that lets me know how to approach or behave around these lanes? Really, I think the only reason car drivers give way is because they don’t want to kill somebody and any cyclist that takes this for granted is putting thier life at risk.

angrymotorist1 said :

Yeah, but the cyclist had no right to be on the road in the first place, because he hasn’t paid any rego.

Apart from the fact the LAW says he has every RIGHT to be there AND is encouraged (forced) by the ACT network of cycling. He also likely has 3rd party insurance, if a Pedal Power member.

He does pay rego on his car (known from his youtube post), as do most cyclists. And payroll/income taxes, and rates, and GST, etc…(because we know that rego does not pay for road construction and maint, predominately insurance)

In many cases for on-road cycle lanes there is little or no additional cost (mostly paint and signs) as breakdown lanes and shoulders MUST be (or already are) constructed to be compliant with design standards.

If you are after persons with no RIGHT to be on the road then start with Rego dodging motorists (800 caught per year), those with no or suspended licences

Lets not forget those who permanently reside in ACT with interstate rego not contributing to our rego burden.

angrymotorist1 said :

Yeah, but the cyclist had no right to be on the road in the first place, because he hasn’t paid any rego.

Bahahahahahahahahaa, 135 posts before some brought up that old chestnut.

You sir are a legend………laugh of the morning.

angrymotorist1 said :

dpm said :

Jethro said :

I find it shocking how many people here are making excuses for the drivers who broke several road rules and hit a law obeying cyclist, who is apparently to blame for being hit by the law breaker.

+1

I’m amazed at the number of people who, from the safety of their keyboard, are strutting around, chest out, proclaiming joy at someone’s near death.
These are probably the same people who, like the rest of us, find it shocking for asylum seekers to die at sea in a boat, or a pedestrian to be killed by a car when walking across a crossing. Yet they are happy – for reasons unknown – for another human on a bike in Canberra to be fair game?
Really, no matter what your view on other people and what they do with their life (which may not agree with your perfect existence), you have to admit the driver drove poorly here. There’s not too much room for ‘Yeah, buts’…..

Yeah, but the cyclist had no right to be on the road in the first place, because he hasn’t paid any rego.

a blatant troll

dpm said :

Jethro said :

I find it shocking how many people here are making excuses for the drivers who broke several road rules and hit a law obeying cyclist, who is apparently to blame for being hit by the law breaker.

+1

I’m amazed at the number of people who, from the safety of their keyboard, are strutting around, chest out, proclaiming joy at someone’s near death.
These are probably the same people who, like the rest of us, find it shocking for asylum seekers to die at sea in a boat, or a pedestrian to be killed by a car when walking across a crossing. Yet they are happy – for reasons unknown – for another human on a bike in Canberra to be fair game?
Really, no matter what your view on other people and what they do with their life (which may not agree with your perfect existence), you have to admit the driver drove poorly here. There’s not too much room for ‘Yeah, buts’…..

Yeah, but the cyclist had no right to be on the road in the first place, because he hasn’t paid any rego.

Jethro said :

I find it shocking how many people here are making excuses for the drivers who broke several road rules and hit a law obeying cyclist, who is apparently to blame for being hit by the law breaker.

+1

I’m amazed at the number of people who, from the safety of their keyboard, are strutting around, chest out, proclaiming joy at someone’s near death.
These are probably the same people who, like the rest of us, find it shocking for asylum seekers to die at sea in a boat, or a pedestrian to be killed by a car when walking across a crossing. Yet they are happy – for reasons unknown – for another human on a bike in Canberra to be fair game?
Really, no matter what your view on other people and what they do with their life (which may not agree with your perfect existence), you have to admit the driver drove poorly here. There’s not too much room for ‘Yeah, buts’…..

I find it shocking how many people here are making excuses for the drivers who broke several road rules and hit a law obeying cyclist, who is apparently to blame for being hit by the law breaker.

p1 said :

(Canberrans seem bad a merging), but anywhere with cars has people driving them poorly.

As a driver, the green lanes across the exit ramps are an exercise in merging. If I have to give way, I have failed to anticipate.

That said, I’ve never had to deal with the cyclists who stay left , giving every impression that they are exiting, only to jump across to the green lane at the last possible instant. Only observed a few do this as I’ve been approaching some way back. I would have some sympathy for the driver who hits them. Ironically, I suspect they do so because they are scared of the green lanes and having motor vehicles on both sides. Personally, I’m more concerned crossing other traffic than I am going with it.

wildturkeycanoe said :

I’d LOVE to see a cyclist stop with the traffic at lights wherever they are in the queue and not overtake on the left to get to the front of the traffic flow. NEVER GOING TO HAPPEN!!! I’d also like to see a cyclist get booked for riding over a no drive hatched area of the road, or not stop at traffic light when red.

Riding to the left is and always has been legal as there is an exception for Bicycles

Rule 141 No overtaking etc to the left of a vehicle
(1) A driver (except the rider of a bicycle) must not overtake a vehicle to the left of the vehicle unless:…

Painted islands should not be ridden on

138 Keeping off a painted island
(1) A driver must not drive on or over a single continuous line, or 2 parallel continuous lines, along a side of or surrounding a painted island, except as permitted under this rule or rule139 (4).

unless they were turning off

A driver may drive on or over a single continuous line along the side of or surrounding a painted island for up to 50 metres:
(a) to enter or leave the road; or
(b) to enter a turning lane that begins immediately after the painted island.

this is (one) rule ‘jim’ broke

144 Keeping a safe distance when overtaking
A driver overtaking a vehicle:
(a) must pass the vehicle at a sufficient distance to avoid a collision with the vehicle or obstructing the path of the vehicle;

Red Light runner really annoy me too as it gives cyclists a bad image. That said I will see 10 times more vehicles running lights daily compared to cyclists.

Safe Riding

caf said :

You’ll have to do your “victory dance” in the exercise yard of the Alexander Maconochie Centre, in the middle of your stretch for attempted vehicular homicide.

I think singing out “self-defence” is now a guaranteed get-out-of-gaol-free card, going by a few recent psychopaths’ avoidance of incarceration after stabbing people with knives.
“He was coming at me, covered in Lycra! I was terrified.”

wildturkeycanoe said :

. There are usually two sides to a story, what’s the other?..

Crap. The video shows with 100% clarity the actions of a dangerous driver who should be removed from the roads for a minimum of 3 years. That could easily have resulted in death. The roads are crowded enough without allowing utter cnuts to keep their licences.

I suspect he won’t need to plead for a special licence as it is highly likely that he will be signing on for the dole within the next day or so.

gazket said :

I’m in the right , I’m in the right I’m not budging this is my green lane .

All his mate cared about was that he got it on video.

Are you seriously entertaining thoughts like that? The Holden STARTS to pass the rider at 00:04, and the rider is already knocked off by 00:06. Even Formula 1 driver reflexes couldn’t have stopped a bike in the 5 meter space from pass to collect… There is no way the rider had time to react, and probably didn’t even have time to register that a car passed – yet alone connected – with him. There is no possible way that the rider had time to process a thought about hogging the lane… That cyclist is lucky to be alive, and the driver lucky he didn’t have to live with having killed someone through his stupidity and impatience…

wildturkeycanoe said :

I’d LOVE to see a cyclist stop with the traffic at lights wherever they are in the queue and not overtake on the left to get to the front of the traffic flow. NEVER GOING TO HAPPEN!!! I’d also like to see a cyclist get booked for riding over a no drive hatched area of the road, or not stop at traffic light when red.

Overtake on the left – LEGAL in the same lane if you are the rider of a bicycle. Note that it is legal for anyone to overtake on the left IF they are in a separate lane.

Hatched areas are also legal, just like shoulders and breakdown lanes.

Red lights, I’m with you mate.

Eppo said :

Two incidents in 2 days, hmm…

Except that one happened to the rider in front of him, and the other to him. From what I hear, Canberra is just full of moron drivers and this is the par for the course.

Eppo said :

When I first started riding a motorcycle, I had a number of close calls in the first 12 months. None of them were strictly my fault – it was all people pulling out on me, trying to change lanes into me etc, but I’ve found that with experience and getting much better at ‘roadcraft’, those incidents have reduced dramatically. I’ve learnt to position myself to be seen and to anticipate other people’s actions a lot better.

Likewise, you can’t say that the cyclist was at fault in any of these incidents, but I do wonder if he’s just got the mentality of “I’m in the right here” and is putting himself in uneccessary dangerous situations. Even if it’s not your fault, there’s no harm in thinking “what could I have done to avoid this situation?”.

Hopefully for his sake, bad luck doesn’t come in threes!

We have advantages as motorcyclists that we don’t have as a cyclist (I’m both). Motorcycles won’t usually be overtaken by someone who wants to then cut back in and turn in front of you. We accelerate out in front of the traffic. I do that as a bicycle rider too, which at least puts me in the forward vision of drivers at lights, but I have a legal *requirement* to use the bloody bike lane so long as it is practicable to do so. I stretch this, so usually try to ride a metre out, and would argue to the useless copper that would want to pull me over that it is not practicable to end up in hospital because some dickhead opened his car door without looking. Or to hit a bit of unmarked street furniture that was within the painted bike lane. But even knowing the law, I find it hard to force myself right into the right hand wheel track sometimes even when it is very much in my interest to do so, because I don’t know whether or not the guy in the black merc behind me is a psychopath or not (it turned out he was, yesterday). On the moto, being in the right hand wheel track, the left hand, any bloody wheel track I want to be in, is not a problem, because the psychopath behind me is not being limited by me, and even psychopaths realise they’re not going to get any advantage by running my moto over.

There have been quite a few times over the years when I have tapped politely on the bonnet or roof of a car that was apparently unaware of me on my bike and in every case the driver was polite in return – there was an exchange of waves and we both carried on with no evidence of rage. Drivers and riders don’t want to harm or frighten each other and they certainly don’t want to have their day ruined by guilt or by hours of paperwork if there is a tangle.

s-s-a said :

Me too, however Weston Ck to the Parliamentary Triangle takes at least 10 minutes longer via the lake bike path.

True, the bike path running along the Molonglo river and LBG takes 10 mins longer, maybe more – and yet most times i still choose the path because in my mental calculations the increased risk of accident and exposure to noise, hoon drivers and pollution on Cotter Rd and Adelaide Ave (as opposed to idyllic lakeside scenery) is not worth the 10 mins you save.

s-s-a said :

I often wonder whether someone like this will mean the kiss and wave I just left behind at school was a permanent parting gesture.

Sorry if this sounds fatalistic, but each and every day can be a person’s last, even if they don’t ride their bike on Cotter Rd. Anything can happen, sometimes with terrible consequences, and you just can’t anticipate it – as i learnt the hard way once.

I guess acknowledging this at least helps focus on the present on what’s truly important in life

I’m in the right , I’m in the right I’m not budging this is my green lane . All his mate cared about was that he got it on video.

Getting back to the incident.

Maybe “Jim” being a very observant driver noticed the traffic lights ahead were about to turn red. Having previously witnessed hundreds of cyclists (not all, as seems to be the common catch cry!) blast straight through red lights he has snapped and taken time out of his very busy schedule to change course to prove a point.

Agree or disagree I know “Jim” has achieved one thing, bet ol mate with the brown stained lycra pants looks every time from now on!!!

tcol1979s second vid shows him/her being overtaken/cutoff on the left hand side after a stop sign. It may well be the car had to quickly get past the cyclist in order to avoid being t-boned crossing Canberra Ave, because the bike took too long to get into the turn right lane, or the driver was temporarily blinded by the vehicle lights they were checking for prior to crossing and simply didn’t see the small blinking LED. There are usually two sides to a story, what’s the other?
With this example in mind, I’d LOVE to see a cyclist stop with the traffic at lights wherever they are in the queue and not overtake on the left to get to the front of the traffic flow. NEVER GOING TO HAPPEN!!! I’d also like to see a cyclist get booked for riding over a no drive hatched area of the road, or not stop at traffic light when red. Why is it good enough for them and not good enough for the rest of us. We have to give a 1metre wide berth, they can practically brush up against our mirrors. I say what’s good for the goose is good for the gander. C’mon drivers, get your cameras out and start snapping some footage of the outrageous rule breaking of our pedal powered foe….

To be honest with you, I tend to cringe when I hear cyclists complain, but watching this made me feel sick in the stomach. Absolutely disgusting road behaviour by the driver with the trailer.

Im glad the cyclist is OK, and Im also glad that you caught it on video.

Very very poor form by the driver.

Antagonist said :

Postalgeek said :

Yeah, righto champ. You waving your might keyboard around is duly noted.

At least I am not going to be the one doing it from my hospital bed as a paraplegic, in the smug knowledge that I was right and the motorist was wrong. I will do a victory dance for you in the middle of Civic when you get your gold medal at the para-olympics. And I will still be able to walk too.

You’ll have to do your “victory dance” in the exercise yard of the Alexander Maconochie Centre, in the middle of your stretch for attempted vehicular homicide.

Gantz said :

tidalik said :

dazzab said :

Probably at least once a month my husband gets home and tells me about a near miss on his bike just like this. I’m waiting for the day he doesn’t come home at all because some idiot with a twitter account decides it would be funny to take a second swipe at that poor guy riding the push-bike.

I just have to ask, LOL, what exactly do you think the connection between an angry motorist colliding with a cyclist and having a Twitter account is? What do you think Twitter is??

LOL indeed. I don’t know what the connection is yet but I am certain I will find one. Both have the marks of evil IMO; at the very least they are both poor taste.

Antagonist said :

Having a green death lane does not give cyclists an invisible force field that protects them from motorists. They are still cyclists. Metal beats flesh and bone every single time. A green death lane like the one from the (long gone) OP which splits a slip lane from other major traffic is plain stupid. Banging on the bonnet of a car is just as stupid.

I think that cycle lanes are poorly design and a cheap way for the government to seemingly give cyclists a fair go when really they are just tacking them onto roads because making direct paths is too expensive. However that being said Cyclists should be able to expect that motorist will obey the road rules. The “force field” is called the law, the thing that many commentators have failed to realize is that while the law didn’t stop this guy, it has stopped every other motorist who didn’t plow into a cyclist. To put the onus on the cyclist to expect people to disobey the law devalues it, and causes more people to disobey it.

And I will mention again that there wasn’t really anything to cyclist could have done as the car driver clearly drove dangerously and unexpectedly. As for the other video, the rider was obeying all the road rules, which in itself is an attempt to stay safe, since it ensures that every movement is consistent and can be anticipated (unlike the movements of this driver). Motorists complain when cyclists break these rules but they don’t seem to give cyclists the same rights as they would a car when they are following these rules.

My point here is that the road rules are designed to ensure safety and no one should be blamed for not using “road-craft” when another user breaks the road rules. The road rules prevent trucks and larger ramming other cars off the road I don’t see why they can’t prevent motorist hitting cyclists. Sure they are no good when someone is in hospital, but they are quite useful when that person is still on the road.

The fact that the mere hypothetical suggestion of banging on a car bonnet gets y’all so fired up and homicidal tends to indicate it might actually be a very effective way of gaining the attention of any apparently attention deficient driver.

Antagonist said :

Banging on the bonnet of a car is just as stupid.

umm… no it is not; the likely response from an r-tard driver you are more than likely to happen upon is stupid…

Seriously – anyone that would lay a hand on another person because he “was bangin’ on mah bonnet” is in need of some very serious mental-health counseling. SOMEBODY has issues 😛

thatsnotme said :

Putting aside the issue that to be any type of effective death threat, the threaten-er would probably have to know who their target actually is,

There’s no element I’m aware of requiring the person to know who their threatening.

They need only cause in another person a fear of immediate and unlawful violence.

Traditionally threats over the phone (and by extension the internet) for some conduct in the future aren’t taken to be so.

So let’s avoid the legalese and get back to the issue which is that is a marked, green lane, with no alternative for cyclists to use. Cyclist had a clear right to use it safely, the driver was negligent.

1337Hax0r said :

Antagonist said :

Postalgeek said :

Yeah, righto champ. You waving your might keyboard around is duly noted.

At least I am not going to be the one doing it from my hospital bed as a paraplegic, in the smug knowledge that I was right and the motorist was wrong. I will do a victory dance for you in the middle of Civic when you get your gold medal at the para-olympics. And I will still be able to walk too.

Banging on the bonnet of a car, regardless of who is right or wrong, is more likely to turn a cyclist into a cripple than save his life.

Oh I agree,you won’t be doing anything from hospital.You will be doing it from a prison cell which you will share with a bloke called “Ben Dover” who has a thing for dropping soap and wants to test out a theory that if he rams himself up you enough, eventually he’ll be able to prove that male pregnancy is possible. You’ll be wishing you were in a hospital.

Sent there by an ACT magistrate? Pwaaaaaaaahahahaha! Surely, you jest!

Having a green death lane does not give cyclists an invisible force field that protects them from motorists. They are still cyclists. Metal beats flesh and bone every single time. A green death lane like the one from the (long gone) OP which splits a slip lane from other major traffic is plain stupid. Banging on the bonnet of a car is just as stupid.

Grail said :

Also, I wonder what The RiotACT’s policy is when it comes to answering subpoenas for contact details of people making death threats under pseudonyms? Threatening to assault someone with a car can only be construed as a death threat.

Putting aside the issue that to be any type of effective death threat, the threaten-er would probably have to know who their target actually is, I’d expect that the RiotACT’s policy would be to provide whatever was asked for. Subpoenas aren’t optional – refuse to provide the requested material, and you risk arrest, and being convicted for contempt of court. Somehow I don’t see Johnboy, or anyone else associated with the RiotACT, going out on a limb to protect a keyboard warrior.

Antagonist said :

Postalgeek said :

Yeah, righto champ. You waving your might keyboard around is duly noted.

At least I am not going to be the one doing it from my hospital bed as a paraplegic, in the smug knowledge that I was right and the motorist was wrong. I will do a victory dance for you in the middle of Civic when you get your gold medal at the para-olympics. And I will still be able to walk too.

Banging on the bonnet of a car, regardless of who is right or wrong, is more likely to turn a cyclist into a cripple than save his life.

Oh I agree,you won’t be doing anything from hospital.You will be doing it from a prison cell which you will share with a bloke called “Ben Dover” who has a thing for dropping soap and wants to test out a theory that if he rams himself up you enough, eventually he’ll be able to prove that male pregnancy is possible. You’ll be wishing you were in a hospital.

Mr Gillespie said :

Don’t ride on the f***** road then!!! What more dangerous place is there to ride a flippin’ pushbike than a road used by cars whizzing past you at the posted speed limit of 80ks an hour with 500 other cars up your arse???

First THEY took Erin away from you, then THEY took your plastic bags away – now you’re going to make fellow road users pay for what THEY’VE done to you?

Grail said :

Also, I wonder what The RiotACT’s policy is when it comes to answering subpoenas for contact details of people making death threats under pseudonyms? Threatening to assault someone with a car can only be construed as a death threat.

That’s a bit rich, dickheadery and false-machismo aside, I don’t think it can “only be construed as a death threat“. The whole exchange was hypothetical, and not even of the “nice X, shame if Y were to happen to it” kind of way. By all means, I’m not saying you shouldn’t call him out on his bulls*** for being a cyber-hardman, but I’m calling you on your faux-lawyer crap here.

Antagonist said :

Postalgeek said :

Yeah, righto champ. You waving your might keyboard around is duly noted.

At least I am not going to be the one doing it from my hospital bed as a paraplegic, in the smug knowledge that I was right and the motorist was wrong. I will do a victory dance for you in the middle of Civic when you get your gold medal at the para-olympics. And I will still be able to walk too.

Banging on the bonnet of a car, regardless of who is right or wrong, is more likely to turn a cyclist into a cripple than save his life.

What if the cyclist bangs the bonnet of his/her own car? What shall the punishment be then?

Jungle Jim said :

I fully expect that the day we stop seeing your idiotic and ever so angry comments on this board, is the day we’ll read about the latest fatal collision on the ACT roads.

Surely the aneurysm will get him first!!? 😉

Mr Gillespie said :

Don’t ride on the f***** road then!!! What more dangerous place is there to ride a flippin’ pushbike than a road used by cars whizzing past you at the posted speed limit of 80ks an hour with 500 other cars up your arse???

I ride incident free on cycle lanes in 80 zones all the time.

This incident and the other linked incident involved areas where drivers have to use their brains: the first in a roadworks area: why was the commodore going faster than 40km/h and then attempting to overtake in an exit lane? Not thinking. Why was the Tribute driver trying to overtake through a stop sign? Not thinking.

Thus the more dangerous place to ride bicycles is any situation which requires the car driver to think. Long straight stretches of 80km/h or even the exits from those straight stretches are quite safe unless someone driving a car has a chip on their shoulder.

Also, I wonder what The RiotACT’s policy is when it comes to answering subpoenas for contact details of people making death threats under pseudonyms? Threatening to assault someone with a car can only be construed as a death threat.

Moral: If you are going to pick a fight with a motorist, make sure it is a fight you can win.

Spoken like somebody who’s never been in a fight in their life that wasn’t in their head. Nice lunchbox, legend!

PS – are you an A grade footy player? Were you in the special forces? Or was that some other toughtard?

Jungle Jim said :

I fully expect that the day we stop seeing your idiotic and ever so angry comments on this board, is the day we’ll read about the latest fatal collision on the ACT roads.

Amen.

Jungle Jim said :

I fully expect that the day we stop seeing your idiotic and ever so angry comments on this board, is the day we’ll read about the latest fatal collision on the ACT roads.

lol, it’s funny ’cause it’s true! 😀

Postalgeek said :

Yeah, righto champ. You waving your might keyboard around is duly noted.

At least I am not going to be the one doing it from my hospital bed as a paraplegic, in the smug knowledge that I was right and the motorist was wrong. I will do a victory dance for you in the middle of Civic when you get your gold medal at the para-olympics. And I will still be able to walk too.

Banging on the bonnet of a car, regardless of who is right or wrong, is more likely to turn a cyclist into a cripple than save his life.

Mr Gillespie said :

Don’t ride on the f***** road then!!! What more dangerous place is there to ride a flippin’ pushbike than a road used by cars whizzing past you at the posted speed limit of 80ks an hour with 500 other cars up your arse???

^THAT “God-given right”-attitude…

It doesn’t matter one iota what any poster here thinks about those green lanes or cyclists on the road; they are there – and as a result, we HAVE to follow the rules around their use. The cyclist had right of way – the guy in the car is totally at fault. The road is only dangerous for cyclists because some drivers think they own the road or have God-given right to it. *Share* the road, dammit…

Mr Gillespie said :

Don’t ride on the f***** road then!!! What more dangerous place is there to ride a flippin’ pushbike than a road used by cars whizzing past you at the posted speed limit of 80ks an hour with 500 other cars up your arse???

Geez, who crapped in your cornflakes this morning, Gillespie?

I fully expect that the day we stop seeing your idiotic and ever so angry comments on this board, is the day we’ll read about the latest fatal collision on the ACT roads.

Mr Gillespie said :

Don’t ride on the f***** road then!!! What more dangerous place is there to ride a flippin’ pushbike than a road used by cars whizzing past you at the posted speed limit of 80ks an hour with 500 other cars up your arse???

Which news reader are you stalking this week?

Don’t ride on the f***** road then!!! What more dangerous place is there to ride a flippin’ pushbike than a road used by cars whizzing past you at the posted speed limit of 80ks an hour with 500 other cars up your arse???

BicycleCanberra said :

Diggety said :

angrymotorist1 said :

johnboy said :

Curious. The same youtube poster has a second collision up today.

This guy sounds like a trouble maker who is going out of his way to involve himself in these incidents.

Which is what happened in England. He ended up making money out of it eventually, people sending him videos then uploading it to YouTube– “Silly Cyclists” it was called.

But, it all started out with him basically riding like a d*ck, trying to get hit to prove a point– tcol1979 is our Canberra carbon copy I suppose.

What rubbish! The only d*** here is the driver.

So… the driver takes out a cyclist– making me laugh till I cry– and you’re calling the driver a d*ck? The driver deserves an award.

Sometimes I just don’t know about you, BicycleCanberra!

Postalgeek said :

VYBerlinaV8_is_back said :

Close calls happen all the time. Better driver training and more sensible and pragmatic enforcement would likely solve much of the problem.

Can’t argue with that.

Perhaps we could find a way to use evidence of close calls (such as this thread) to lobby our local govco for a new (and smarter) approach?

Diggety said :

angrymotorist1 said :

johnboy said :

Curious. The same youtube poster has a second collision up today.

This guy sounds like a trouble maker who is going out of his way to involve himself in these incidents.

Which is what happened in England. He ended up making money out of it eventually, people sending him videos then uploading it to YouTube– “Silly Cyclists” it was called.

But, it all started out with him basically riding like a d*ck, trying to get hit to prove a point– tcol1979 is our Canberra carbon copy I suppose.

What rubbish! The only d*** here is the driver.

VYBerlinaV8_is_back said :

Close calls happen all the time. Better driver training and more sensible and pragmatic enforcement would likely solve much of the problem.

Can’t argue with that.

Postalgeek said :

VYBerlinaV8_is_back said :

The guy in the car screwed up, for sure, but it seems to me that we’re making a very large mountain over a moderate sized molehill.

You can see it as a molehill because the guy survived through luck and skill, and because it wasn’t you.

He could’ve just as easily face-planted in front of another vehicle when he was sent swerving into the car lane, or been snagged and dragged.

It’s one thing to screw up and cause extra paperwork for someone. It’s another thing to screw up and almost kill someone.

You’re absolutely right. Every time someone has a close call because of a stuff up on the roads we should run a story with 100 or so comments.

Close calls happen all the time. Better driver training and more sensible and pragmatic enforcement would likely solve much of the problem.

angrymotorist1 said :

johnboy said :

Curious. The same youtube poster has a second collision up today.

This guy sounds like a trouble maker who is going out of his way to involve himself in these incidents.

Which is what happened in England. He ended up making money out of it eventually, people sending him videos then uploading it to YouTube– “Silly Cyclists” it was called.

But, it all started out with him basically riding like a d*ck, trying to get hit to prove a point– tcol1979 is our Canberra carbon copy I suppose.

Antagonist said :

Comic_and_Gamer_Nerd said :

Mysteryman said :

Antagonist said :

KB1971 said :

His front guard was 100mm away from my handlebars & he wondered why I smacked it to tell him to back off.

Next time you think it is a smart idea to bang your fist on a car to make your point about cyclists rights, consider this politically incorrect joke:

Q: What is one thing better than winning gold at the para-olympics?
A: Walking.

Bang your fist on the bonnet of my car and I guarantee you I will be the one still walking tomorrow. Will you?

Wow! RA has its very own internet tough guy! This is pretty exciting.

lolol

we all know you would not do a single thing, antagonist. Keep the tough guy talk to your self.

Cyclist bangs fist on car bonnet to make his point.
Driver twitches steering wheelslightly left, before continuing on to his destination.
Cyclist crashes bike and is now a cripple. Enjoy your gold medal.
Driver can still walk.

Moral: If you are going to pick a fight with a motorist, make sure it is a fight you can win.

Yeah, righto champ. You waving your might keyboard around is duly noted.

Two incidents in 2 days, hmm…

When I first started riding a motorcycle, I had a number of close calls in the first 12 months. None of them were strictly my fault – it was all people pulling out on me, trying to change lanes into me etc, but I’ve found that with experience and getting much better at ‘roadcraft’, those incidents have reduced dramatically. I’ve learnt to position myself to be seen and to anticipate other people’s actions a lot better.

Likewise, you can’t say that the cyclist was at fault in any of these incidents, but I do wonder if he’s just got the mentality of “I’m in the right here” and is putting himself in uneccessary dangerous situations. Even if it’s not your fault, there’s no harm in thinking “what could I have done to avoid this situation?”.

Hopefully for his sake, bad luck doesn’t come in threes!

VYBerlinaV8_is_back said :

The guy in the car screwed up, for sure, but it seems to me that we’re making a very large mountain over a moderate sized molehill.

You can see it as a molehill because the guy survived through luck and skill, and because it wasn’t you.

He could’ve just as easily face-planted in front of another vehicle when he was sent swerving into the car lane, or been snagged and dragged.

It’s one thing to screw up and cause extra paperwork for someone. It’s another thing to screw up and almost kill someone.

Antagonist said :

Comic_and_Gamer_Nerd said :

Mysteryman said :

Antagonist said :

KB1971 said :

His front guard was 100mm away from my handlebars & he wondered why I smacked it to tell him to back off.

Next time you think it is a smart idea to bang your fist on a car to make your point about cyclists rights, consider this politically incorrect joke:

Q: What is one thing better than winning gold at the para-olympics?
A: Walking.

Bang your fist on the bonnet of my car and I guarantee you I will be the one still walking tomorrow. Will you?

Wow! RA has its very own internet tough guy! This is pretty exciting.

lolol

we all know you would not do a single thing, antagonist. Keep the tough guy talk to your self.

Cyclist bangs fist on car bonnet to make his point.
Driver twitches steering wheelslightly left, before continuing on to his destination.
Cyclist crashes bike and is now a cripple. Enjoy your gold medal.
Driver can still walk.

Moral: If you are going to pick a fight with a motorist, make sure it is a fight you can win.

how is letting a car know its about to hit you pickign a fight?

johnboy said :

Curious. The same youtube poster has a second collision up today.

This guy sounds like a trouble maker who is going out of his way to involve himself in these incidents.

Comic_and_Gamer_Nerd said :

Mysteryman said :

Antagonist said :

KB1971 said :

His front guard was 100mm away from my handlebars & he wondered why I smacked it to tell him to back off.

Next time you think it is a smart idea to bang your fist on a car to make your point about cyclists rights, consider this politically incorrect joke:

Q: What is one thing better than winning gold at the para-olympics?
A: Walking.

Bang your fist on the bonnet of my car and I guarantee you I will be the one still walking tomorrow. Will you?

Wow! RA has its very own internet tough guy! This is pretty exciting.

lolol

we all know you would not do a single thing, antagonist. Keep the tough guy talk to your self.

Cyclist bangs fist on car bonnet to make his point.
Driver twitches steering wheelslightly left, before continuing on to his destination.
Cyclist crashes bike and is now a cripple. Enjoy your gold medal.
Driver can still walk.

Moral: If you are going to pick a fight with a motorist, make sure it is a fight you can win.

Conspiracy theory? pffft.

It just goes to show that in an average day cyclists have to cope with a lot of fools in cars. This guy was particularly unlucky and I hope he doesn’t score the trifecta tomorrow….

trevar said :

……… The need to share the road with differently-powered vehicles has been in place for centuries, and where there is no bike lane, cars and trucks must still share the road with cyclists (and for that matter horses, horse-drawn vehicles, bullock-drawn vehicles, etc, etc, etc). The only thing that adding a bike lane changes is that, for the most part, bicycles are then not in the main stream of traffic. Without the bike lane, those cyclists are in the main stream of traffic and have the same rights and responsibilities as any other person in charge of a vehicle……….

Sharing the road with high powered vehicles on high volume high speed road has been a difficult one with high rates of casualties over the years. Once cities became car dominant and motor vehicles out numbered people on bicycles the need for separation becomes immediately clear. Cycle lanes provide one level of separation but it is clear from the video and at other major intersections that full separation is needed.

http://youtu.be/XuBdf9jYj7o

The guy in the car screwed up, for sure, but it seems to me that we’re making a very large mountain over a moderate sized molehill.

Mysteryman said :

Antagonist said :

KB1971 said :

His front guard was 100mm away from my handlebars & he wondered why I smacked it to tell him to back off.

Next time you think it is a smart idea to bang your fist on a car to make your point about cyclists rights, consider this politically incorrect joke:

Q: What is one thing better than winning gold at the para-olympics?
A: Walking.

Bang your fist on the bonnet of my car and I guarantee you I will be the one still walking tomorrow. Will you?

Wow! RA has its very own internet tough guy! This is pretty exciting.

lolol

we all know you would not do a single thing, antagonist. Keep the tough guy talk to your self.

Antagonist said :

KB1971 said :

His front guard was 100mm away from my handlebars & he wondered why I smacked it to tell him to back off.

Next time you think it is a smart idea to bang your fist on a car to make your point about cyclists rights, consider this politically incorrect joke:

Q: What is one thing better than winning gold at the para-olympics?
A: Walking.

Bang your fist on the bonnet of my car and I guarantee you I will be the one still walking tomorrow. Will you?

Wow! RA has its very own internet tough guy! This is pretty exciting.

johnboy said :

Curious. The same youtube poster has a second collision up today.

conspiracy afoot!

Curious. The same youtube poster has a second collision up today.

Beau Locks said :

Being a crapulous driver is definitely an Australian thing….

No, there are crap drivers everywhereª you go. Areas differ in the stand out craptacular skill (Canberrans seem bad a merging), but anywhere with cars has people driving them poorly.

a – Disclaimer: I have not actually been everywhere, but I have yet to be told "you should go to [X country], all the drivers there are excellent at controlling their vehicle and very courteous".

Gantz said :

tidalik said :

dazzab said :

Probably at least once a month my husband gets home and tells me about a near miss on his bike just like this. I’m waiting for the day he doesn’t come home at all because some idiot with a twitter account decides it would be funny to take a second swipe at that poor guy riding the push-bike.

I just have to ask, LOL, what exactly do you think the connection between an angry motorist colliding with a cyclist and having a Twitter account is? What do you think Twitter is??

Shane Warne reference maybe? Dunno.

Solidarity said :

and thats why onroad cycle lanes are stupid, no point being in the right if you’re dead.

That’s the philosophy of the roads in places like Delhi, Bangkok, Rome and other places where the road rules are treated as gentle suggestions. In those places, driving the largest vehicle at the fastest speed gives you an absolute right of way, and if that’s the rule, we’d have road trains hurtling down residential streets! Usually, that is not the case in this country. I think it’s good that we can usually expect to drive at a reasonable pace, but the only reason that’s the case is because we have road rules that don’t depend on the size of the driver’s vehicle (or ego).

But the whole idea of arguing against bike lanes is stupid. The need to share the road with differently-powered vehicles has been in place for centuries, and where there is no bike lane, cars and trucks must still share the road with cyclists (and for that matter horses, horse-drawn vehicles, bullock-drawn vehicles, etc, etc, etc). The only thing that adding a bike lane changes is that, for the most part, bicycles are then not in the main stream of traffic. Without the bike lane, those cyclists are in the main stream of traffic and have the same rights and responsibilities as any other person in charge of a vehicle. So when a car or truck needs to cross the bike lane like this, they simply apply the standard rule of pulling in behind the bicycle. The provision of the bike lane improves traffic flow generally, but creates additional complications at intersections. It is mostly an advantage, but even it’s flaws doesn’t make it a stupid addition to the roadscape (I just made that word up, and I really like it, BTW).

Beau Locks said :

…This sort of s*** happens all the time, and as pointed out by a few punters it’s more often than not a near miss. The number of reptoid drivers in Canberra offers a pretty compelling case for regular driving tests. Most people would fail straight up…

No they wouldn’t. They’d behave themselves for the duration of the test, and go back to their usual self-important ways when their license has been renewed. These incidents rarely result from lack of knowledge of the law – more like a belief that they are so important that they don’t have to obey the law.

This sort of s*** happens all the time, and as pointed out by a few punters it’s more often than not a near miss. The number of reptoid drivers in Canberra offers a pretty compelling case for regular driving tests. Most people would fail straight up. Also more cops actually policing bad behaviour like tailgating and other dangerous driving would help, I reckon. (Doing 10k over the speed limit when there’s nobody around and the weather is clear is nothing like as dangerous as chronic tailgating or not indicating when you’re in heavy traffic.)

As a more or less daily cyclist I’ve developed a new response, modelled orf what I’ve seen a few others do: I now not only aim to get eye contact with every person in a metal cage near me, I also point at them. It’s amazing. I stop being something that’s seen and not responded to (i.e. just sail thru a roundabout failing to give way after looking me dead in the eye), and now I’m a human being; another road user. It’s striking how people respond. I’ve also taken to getting a very bright headlight (which I have angled down so as not to get in people’s eyes in the normal course of events) and look directly at people with it for just a moment. Again, the response is striking.

What’s amazing is that when you ride elsewhere (Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane) motorists don’t behave nearly as badly. Being a crapulous driver is definitely an Australian thing, but being unbelievably bad seems to be particular to our lovely little city.

johnboy said :

And late in the month Danny Subasic’s grip on the mully cup is shaken by a dark horse…

Dark horse implies something unexpected.

Bicycles
Speed cameras/limits
ACTION
Public servants
Price of petrol/housing
Do crime no do time

should surely be in the Mully Hall of Fame already.

eh_steve said :

The common nature of incidents like this, and cyclists punching cars and threats to make people paraplegics, are a poor reflection of Australia.

True, it wasnt my finest moment but with the adrenalin going 10-dozen & the startle of this thing appearing beside me at a great rate of knots my fight or flight response kicked in. Being no room for flight then the other happened.
I also agree with you on the hate, you dont see it as pedestrians exit trams without looking in Melbourne, the drivers just stop & wait but as soon as there is a bike in a lane it “WTF is he doing there, blah blah blah”.

I have to say, the people who have nearly killed me dont outweigh the people who are courteous, they always get a wave.

johnboy said :

I blame talkback radio.

It’s clearly because of the carbon tax.

Antagonist said :

Bang your fist on the bonnet of my car and I guarantee you I will be the one still walking tomorrow. Will you?

The couple of occasions I have banged on cars while riding, it is when in a situation where I feel like I am going to be hit either way, and it is more a frustration/fending off thump. One day someone in a convertible will try it and I won’t have to hit the vehicle…

Gantz said :

What do you think Twitter is??

I, for one, am still trying to work that out.

From what I gather it’s like email, except it’s reserved for trivial nonsense and you send it to a large number of perfect strangers.
A bit like commercial TV news, in other words.

And late in the month Danny Subasic’s grip on the mully cup is shaken by a dark horse…

We really need to look to the Europeans on this one. You only truly feel like you are sharing the road there, here it feels like a battle the whole way, and for no reason.

Why is everyone so angry? Why are most people so angry behind the wheel, and so enraged if there is a cyclist using a lane? Why couldn’t the Commodore driver just wait and go behind the two cyclists as he was supposed to?

He probably would have made the distance up after about 20 seconds on the parkway, no damage done.

The common nature of incidents like this, and cyclists punching cars and threats to make people paraplegics, are a poor reflection of Australia.

News flash someone on a Canberra road didnt give way to someone else. Film at 11.

Really this just one amongst what? hundreds of incidents everyday. People dont choose to ignore a certain type of vehicle they choose to be dicks and do whatever they want. There just happened to be a bike there this time.Commodore the Great probably would have cut across the bows of the Queen Mary if he thought he wanted to be somewhere else suddenly.

+1 on the Twitter reference. Obscure comment of the month at least.

s-s-a said :

While I mostly choose to ride on the bike paths instead of the roads so that I can avoid incidents like this

Me too, however Weston Ck to the Parliamentary Triangle takes at least 10 minutes longer via the lake bike path. Trying to get to work ASAP after school drop off means choosing the quickest route. I have tried going via the bike path and coming back up to Cotter Rd via the Lady Denman bike path or Dunrossil Drive to avoid the roadworks, but both of them are also appreciably slower.

IME the green lanes give cars plenty of room to safely cross in front or behind a cyclist. At the Parkway entrance half the green lane is closed off by the roadworks so Mr Jims chose to be an idiot.

I often wonder whether someone like this will mean the kiss and wave I just left behind at school was a permanent parting gesture.

Access between North Woden and North Weston and the New suburbs of Molonglo is very limited by bike with only the bike path along the Molonglo river or the on road cycle lane along the cotter road. There needs to be a physically separated path or cycle tracks here. So that everyone can cycle safely.

If you want to lobby for better cycle facilities then email Cotter.Road@smec.com. There are better solutions that this.

http://youtu.be/2wJNP6VTFcc

Antagonist said :

KB1971 said :

His front guard was 100mm away from my handlebars & he wondered why I smacked it to tell him to back off.

Next time you think it is a smart idea to bang your fist on a car to make your point about cyclists rights, consider this politically incorrect joke:

Q: What is one thing better than winning gold at the para-olympics?
A: Walking.

Bang your fist on the bonnet of my car and I guarantee you I will be the one still walking tomorrow. Will you?

Obey the road rules, give me the 1m from the curb & pass when safe we wont have an issue 😉

So by your logic its ok to endanger my life but not for me to warn you about it?

KB1971 said :

His front guard was 100mm away from my handlebars & he wondered why I smacked it to tell him to back off.

Next time you think it is a smart idea to bang your fist on a car to make your point about cyclists rights, consider this politically incorrect joke:

Q: What is one thing better than winning gold at the para-olympics?
A: Walking.

Bang your fist on the bonnet of my car and I guarantee you I will be the one still walking tomorrow. Will you?

tidalik said :

dazzab said :

Probably at least once a month my husband gets home and tells me about a near miss on his bike just like this. I’m waiting for the day he doesn’t come home at all because some idiot with a twitter account decides it would be funny to take a second swipe at that poor guy riding the push-bike.

I just have to ask, LOL, what exactly do you think the connection between an angry motorist colliding with a cyclist and having a Twitter account is? What do you think Twitter is??

While I mostly choose to ride on the bike paths instead of the roads so that I can avoid incidents like this

Me too, however Weston Ck to the Parliamentary Triangle takes at least 10 minutes longer via the lake bike path. Trying to get to work ASAP after school drop off means choosing the quickest route. I have tried going via the bike path and coming back up to Cotter Rd via the Lady Denman bike path or Dunrossil Drive to avoid the roadworks, but both of them are also appreciably slower.

IME the green lanes give cars plenty of room to safely cross in front or behind a cyclist. At the Parkway entrance half the green lane is closed off by the roadworks so Mr Jims chose to be an idiot.

I often wonder whether someone like this will mean the kiss and wave I just left behind at school was a permanent parting gesture.

That tool needs to be put away for a long time and should never be allowed behind the wheel again.

Having said that:

Solidarity said :

and thats why onroad cycle lanes are stupid, no point being in the right if you’re dead.

Yes. That.

I am as anti cyclist on high speed roads as they come for the simple fact I don’t think speed and bikes mix and I don’t reckon slowing the speed limit isn’t the answer, rather there should be a parallel bike path.

However in this case the driver is 100% at fault and there is no excuse what so ever for what he did. Hope the coppers throw the book at him. Hats of to the rider because looking at the video I reckon it was his skill that prevented the result being much much worse.

Out of interest however is this clearly a road word area so would/should have a lower speed limit, but where are the end of roadworks signs? Looking at where the roadworks end I would guess somewhere down the ramp and probably about 100m in front of the rider, so apart from being stupid, failure to giveway the driver would on the surface appear to be speeding too.

While I mostly choose to ride on the bike paths instead of the roads so that I can avoid incidents like this, there really is no reason why cyclists and cars can’t share the road, particularly in a city like Canberra where our roads are big and empty, and there is often plenty of room for a big wide bike lane.

I still drive my car fairly regularly, and it really isn’t that hard to give way to cyclists who have right of way on an on-road cycle lane. It might mean adding an extra 15 seconds to your trip if you have to wait for a particularly slow cyclist (uni students who ride fixed gear bikes across the Commonwealth Bridge at 6km/hr, I’m looking at you).

The only reason people have difficulties driving on roads with dedicated bike lanes is because there are a minority of arrogant arseholes both behind the wheel of a car, or on a bike. People just need to learn to show respect for others on the road.

I drive in Brisbane semi-regularly, and sharing the road with hundreds of trucks like you do pretty much everywhere in Brisbane takes far more effort and concentration than sharing with a few cyclists.

Great save. I’m not sure if the bike lane placement would have had any effect on the outcome. If i was riding, i would have been in the same position, whether or not the lane was there.

Lets hope the driver is charged with a few offenses so he will learn.

+3 Yep cars and cyclists don’t belong on the same road together. Whats the bet they will start to reduce speed limits on roads wherever these green death lanes are.

Antagonist said :

G-Fresh said :

Solidarity said :

and thats why onroad cycle lanes are stupid, no point being in the right if you’re dead.

+1

+2. I don’t mind cyclists on the road. I know I will always win that fight. But giving them a green death lane is a dumbsh!t idea.

That is shocking!!!!!!!!!! So glad that you are both okay but what a loser!!!! It looks like he forgot that he had his trailer on the back and thought I can get around this bloke (mind you the poor cyclist is in his cycle lane and We as drivers are suppose to give way.)

hermanmunster1 said :

This is a perfect example of just how ridiculous the ACT on road cycling laws are. Don’t get me wrong it was a really bad piece of driving on Jim’s part & a very nice save from the rider, but it is just plain stupid to have these two very different modes of transport travelling a very different speeds wanting to cross each other!!!

Anyway, the great Canberra cycling debate continues.
Hope all is Ok once the nerves settled Mr.Cyclist!

For sure!
Maybe the give way rules need to be changed.
If the rider was made to get off the bike and use a crossing at the slip lane then it would solve this issue.
Just an idea 🙂

1337Hax0r said :

Watch it again – his cadence and speed don’t change anywhere through that clip. he leaves the roadworks and moves left into the bike lane. The cyclist hasn’t done anything wrong. The car pulled level with him and then started to turn across him.

Yep, the rider was cut off. I think that’s pretty clear. Happens to me on a regular basis but I’ve yet to make contact. Wonder why?

I don’t know how many cyclists have to die before their lobbyists give in and realise it’s just not a good idea to ride a bike so near to traffic. Sigh.

Sooo lucky. Yet this sort of crap happens so often when you cycle daily. Even when you stay away from roads like Northbourne. Behaviour gets even worse on back streets.

An observation for those saying he had a mirror so should have seen the car indicating – what a joke. A bicycle mirror vibrates around a lot and helmet ones are very small. Essentially they are good for sensing if something is behind you and that is it. See an indicator? Not a hope.

It’s difficult to even pick a bicycle light out from other headlights in cycle mirrors.

I often have people slow down behind me as I’m approaching the Federal/Phillip intersection and I do appreciate them just being patient for a few seconds for me to me out of their way – they realise that as soon as I am gone, that short delay will make absolutely zero seconds difference to their arrival time. And for their patience I usually put the speed on a bit to clear faster.

Dazzab: “he could have easily created a gap for the car. All he had to do was slow down just a bit and he would have avoided contact with the trailer.”

Do you not see the irony of your statement? Simply swap rider and car.

wildturkeycanoe said :

Could be that Jim’s had no option as it was too late to brake to make the turn. From calculating roughly, it appears cyclist doing about 15km/h, cars about 40-50km/h.

Watch it again, and have a good listen to the audio. You can clearly hear that commodore try to gun it past the cyclist. If there’s enough time to plant it, there’s also enough time to use the brakes. With roadworks like that in the area, there’s no way the speed limit would have been any higher than 40km/h – and at that speed, there’s plenty of time to ease off. This tool just decided that wasn’t for him, and his old commodore hauling a trailer was gonna make it. I hope a hefty fine teaches him otherwise.

The funny (not actually humorous ) thing about those green lanes, is that were it not there it would be equally legal for the cyclist to ride exactly the same line. The green line might (should) draw some attention to the use of the road by cyclists but I think they have also drawn the ire of some fûçktards motorists who resent road riders because they feel inadequate due to possessing very small penises of no good reason.

If the “Jim” had paused for half a second, merged behind the bike they could have overtaken on the left before the end of the sliplane and been in the same position.

Aeek said :

I’d put primary fault on the road works for not factoring in cyclists, they never do in this town.
Secondary fault on the driver for failing to overtake safely.

Tertiary fault on the cyclist for failing to realise he’s always going to come off second best.

As previously mentioned, roadcraft is what will keep you alive , not the law. As a regular user of most forms of transport known to man , my number one rule is ” if it’s bigger than you, get ready to give way.”

dazzab said :

That rider would do well to take a page from how motorcyclists stay alive using ‘road craft’.

He has a mirror on his handlebars so he should have known what was behind him. The car is signalling that he needs to exit left. But the rider actually speeds up when he could have easily created a gap for the car. All he had to do was slow down just a bit and he would have avoided contact with the trailer.

Forget about who is at fault, a bad driver or in the wrong. When you are on a two wheeled vehicle the object is to stay alive and the best way to do that is to stay aware and as far from vehicles as possible. The video indicates that the rider didn’t do either of these. So good on him for being in the right, it’s always great to say that from a hospital bed.

Unbelievable! The cyclist didn’t speed up or slow down. How on earth was he supposed to know the truck was about to swerve at him? Should he slow down every time any vehicle drives past, just in case the driver decides to aim his truck at him? Maybe the cyclist should just get off the road completely any time a car appears on the horizon. Even better, maybe he should just stay home and leave the bike in the shed. Would everyone be happy then?

I don’t believe for a second that behaviour on the roads like this is an accident.

Probably at least once a month my husband gets home and tells me about a near miss on his bike just like this. I’m waiting for the day he doesn’t come home at all because some idiot with a twitter account decides it would be funny to take a second swipe at that poor guy riding the push-bike.

& people wonder why us riders come across cranky…………. This one was a hit, mostly they are near misses. I have had many people do this manouver on me & to the person who said the rider should have slowed down……..give me a break, the manouver is happening before you know it.

What is it with people not understanding the rules of overtaking another vehicle? Yesterday I was riding along Alexandrina Prarade and two cars passed me on the wrong side of the road with blind spots, one with a corner & one with a crest of a hill.

I had a run in with a dick who tried to squeeze past me in a school crossing with a concrete island in the middle. His front guard was 100mm away from my handlebars & he wondered why I smacked it to tell him to back off. The thing is, would he pass a motorcycle or a car there? No. just because I was on a bike he just thinks he can do what he wants.

I hope this bloke gets dragged in front of the beak.

In Sydney’s Centennial Park, in a bike lane, my friend got taken out in similar fashion. Except he briefly lost consciousness and was hospitalised. Police attended the scene, etc, etc, and then it was MY FRIEND who got a ticket in the mail from the police for negligent cycling. The driver escaped scot free.

Even though the ticket was for a small sum, on principle my friend challenged it in court – it ended up being overturned and my friend was awarded costs, but only because another cyclist recorded the collision on his camera and it was clear to everyone (except the police) that it was the driver who was at fault. The police officer involved was reprimanded because his evidence in court clearly contradicted the video evidence.

You can read about it all here: http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/wheels-of-justice-20120623-20ut3.html

Moral of the story: maybe we should all wear cameras on our heads, at all times.

I’d put primary fault on the road works for not factoring in cyclists, they never do in this town.
Secondary fault on the driver for failing to overtake safely.

hermanmunster1 said :

This is a perfect example of just how ridiculous the ACT on road cycling laws are. Don’t get me wrong it was a really bad piece of driving on Jim’s part & a very nice save from the rider, but it is just plain stupid to have these two very different modes of transport travelling a very different speeds wanting to cross each other!!!

Anyway, the great Canberra cycling debate continues.
Hope all is Ok once the nerves settled Mr.Cyclist!

The speeds of the vehicles in question in this incident weren’t all that different. The car just plain cut him off – the results would have probably been worse if he’d done that to another car instead of a bike.

This all looks a little rehearsed.

So what was the Jim’s goose charged with?

hermanmunster1 said :

Hope all is Ok once the nerves settled Mr.Cyclist!

It’s a pity the BMX team has just been announced….that bloke would have sailed in with balance like that.

Fully agree the driver is a wad. Yet, this also highlights 2 problems.
1 – these cycle right of way lanes only cause to slow vehicular traffic behind a car that has to brake from 80km/h to 30km/h, whilst he is trying to get into a “slip lane” or “off ramp” which was designed to prevent exiting traffic coming to a slow pace or complete stop. This then continues back down the flow of traffic to a point where due to reaction speed of every driver involved it is at a standstill.
2 – having a roadwork zone finish with only 2 to 3 car-lengths in which to merge cyclist and vehicle traffic onto the exit is just ridiculous. Incidentally, what was the posted speed limit, 40 or 60? Could be that Jim’s had no option as it was too late to brake to make the turn. From calculating roughly, it appears cyclist doing about 15km/h, cars about 40-50km/h.

carnardly said :

dazzab said :

But the rider actually speeds up when he could have easily created a gap for the car. All he had to do was slow down just a bit and he would have avoided contact with the trailer.

Watch it again – his cadence and speed don’t change anywhere through that clip. he leaves the roadworks and moves left into the bike lane. The cyclist hasn’t done anything wrong. The car pulled level with him and then started to turn across him.

He sure as hell wasn’t clear to do so.

He stopped pedalling as soon as he could and odds on he was ripping the brakes as hard as he could.

I’ll second Canardly. The cyclist didn’t speed up at all. The driver should have given way to the cyclist.
When the green strips came into use I wondered what they were there for. When I found out, I made sure to keep a very wary eye out for cyclists and when I needed to, I simply slowed down and went behind them, not tried to race past or through them. I’m lucky all those years ago my driving instructor told me that you should never try win a race. It is safer just to let the other vehicle go first.

This is a perfect example of just how ridiculous the ACT on road cycling laws are. Don’t get me wrong it was a really bad piece of driving on Jim’s part & a very nice save from the rider, but it is just plain stupid to have these two very different modes of transport travelling a very different speeds wanting to cross each other!!!

Anyway, the great Canberra cycling debate continues.
Hope all is Ok once the nerves settled Mr.Cyclist!

dazzab said :

That rider would do well to take a page from how motorcyclists stay alive using ‘road craft’.
He has a mirror on his handlebars so he should have known what was behind him. The car is signalling that he needs to exit left. But the rider actually speeds up when he could have easily created a gap for the car. All he had to do was slow down just a bit and he would have avoided contact with the trailer.
Forget about who is at fault, a bad driver or in the wrong. When you are on a two wheeled vehicle the object is to stay alive and the best way to do that is to stay aware and as far from vehicles as possible. The video indicates that the rider didn’t do either of these. So good on him for being in the right, it’s always great to say that from a hospital bed.

Yes, you need to practice defensive riding on a pedal or motor bike……but the bloody car towing a trailer has just overtaken him 1 second after the cones have finished ! All the car has to do is slow down a bit, because that’s the law….he gives way.
If you look at the video, the cyclist does glance at his mirror as he exits the cones, and the car then overtakes him when he’s looking forward again.
It doesn’t matter whether he saw the car indicating left, the car was behind and should have remained behind…you don’t indicate left and then overtake somebody else on the right…that’s another reason ?
The video indicates that the driver is an impatient idiot with poor awareness of distance, speed and rules of the road….that’s careless driving bang to rights. Maybe he forgot he had his trailer attached ?

dazzab said :

But the rider actually speeds up when he could have easily created a gap for the car. All he had to do was slow down just a bit and he would have avoided contact with the trailer.

Watch it again – his cadence and speed don’t change anywhere through that clip. he leaves the roadworks and moves left into the bike lane. The cyclist hasn’t done anything wrong. The car pulled level with him and then started to turn across him. He sure as hell wasn’t clear to do so.

He stopped pedalling as soon as he could and odds on he was ripping the brakes as hard as he could.

Whoa! That is despicable! What an idiot that driver is! Having been behind the cyclist through the roadworks they’d have to be aware of them.
I’m glad this has been reported to the police.
Unfortunately the only way send an email to Jims is to book their services;
http://www.jimsmowing.net/free-quote.html

Now I suggest you don’t go to that web page and make fake bookings just so you can put the URL of that video in the comments section, like my mates did. Several times, using multiple computers. 😉

Special G said :

Similar incident happened a little while ago. Easy enough to kill a cyclist do exactly what happened in this video.

http://www.courts.act.gov.au/supreme/judgment/view/4182/title/wilkins-v-hague-and-brian

ahhhh Rhys Wilkins – discussed on here previously. His cronies who stood up for him never did answer the questions – so why was he driving that day given he was disqualified…?

http://the-riotact.com/drink-driving-busts-roll-on/59912

m@ said :

I think this is actually one of the core competencies Jim’s franchisees have to demonstrate before picking up the keys to their trailer…

Jim’s Mowing Down Cyclists?

http://www.tams.act.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0006/64482/Road_Rules_2012_Part_E.pdf

Bicycle lanes are reserved for the use of bicycle riders only. Bicycle lane markings, including the coloured bicycle lanes at intersections highlight the existence of the ‘bicycle lane’ to motorists and the ‘right of way’ legally provided to the cyclist. Therefore, where a motorist sees a bicycle lane, he or she must be on the lookout for cyclists as always. If a cyclist is on a bicycle lane the motorist must give way.

While the bicycle lane alerts motorists to cyclist’s ‘right of way’, the bicycle rider also needs to be vigilant, as these areas pose a much higher risk of collision. The fact that the bicycle lane gives a cyclist ‘right of way’ does not necessarily mean that it will be granted. Cyclists are often difficult to see in adverse conditions and are extremely vulnerable, so as a cyclist, it is far better to be prepared to give way than to have a collision.

That rider would do well to take a page from how motorcyclists stay alive using ‘road craft’.

He has a mirror on his handlebars so he should have known what was behind him. The car is signalling that he needs to exit left. But the rider actually speeds up when he could have easily created a gap for the car. All he had to do was slow down just a bit and he would have avoided contact with the trailer.

Forget about who is at fault, a bad driver or in the wrong. When you are on a two wheeled vehicle the object is to stay alive and the best way to do that is to stay aware and as far from vehicles as possible. The video indicates that the rider didn’t do either of these. So good on him for being in the right, it’s always great to say that from a hospital bed.

I think this is actually one of the core competencies Jim’s franchisees have to demonstrate before picking up the keys to their trailer…

I remember encountering this bloke before driving into dickson – stuck in my mind – not great advertising for Jim’s Mowing.

johnboy, thanks for posting both a picture AND a video.

(I can’t view videos)

G-Fresh said :

Solidarity said :

and thats why onroad cycle lanes are stupid, no point being in the right if you’re dead.

+1

+2. I don’t mind cyclists on the road. I know I will always win that fight. But giving them a green death lane is a dumbsh!t idea.

angrymotorist1 said :

Another good reason to get cyclists off our roads – this poor bloke’s trailer may have sustained damage from this incident. Just another reason why cyclists should be road registered so the poor driver can track down the cyclist responsible for potentially damaging his trailer.

You’re hilarious. What – you created a brand new account just to post this?

Similar incident happened a little while ago. Easy enough to kill a cyclist do exactly what happened in this video.

http://www.courts.act.gov.au/supreme/judgment/view/4182/title/wilkins-v-hague-and-brian

Another good reason to get cyclists off our roads – this poor bloke’s trailer may have sustained damage from this incident. Just another reason why cyclists should be road registered so the poor driver can track down the cyclist responsible for potentially damaging his trailer.

a few years ago I was driving a truck and a bike ran into the back of me at a roundabout, he was actually going quicker than me and caught up and crashed into me, I didn’t even know he collided with me. The gutless wonder had the hide to complain to Police, even though he was at fault! if you want to ride on the road then follow the rules, I do on my bike, never assume a vehicle has seen you.

Pup,

Do you think the driver in the video above has broken the law? Or has the cyclist run into the back of the trailer?

Solidarity said :

and thats why onroad cycle lanes are stupid, no point being in the right if you’re dead.

+1

Endrey – there are a large and growing number of bike riders using cameras now for that very reason. If a cyclist gets taken out by an idiotic driver making a stupid choice, then it can be used as far as charging and attempting to claim for damages (such as damage to a bike or replaced helmet and gear if am ambulance has to cut of clothes etc).

I’m madly saving. Maybe i need to get some NOW rather than wait another week.

unfortunately, events like that (even without a trailer attached) happen every day on the roads where drivers pass and then pull straight across to turn left.

speed cameras would have prevented this

StumpyPete said :

Jivrashia said :

Jungle Jim said :

Nothing to excuse this at all, but expect the driver with the trailer was in some kind of rush and thought he and his trailer were going fast enough to get past the cyclist.

I’d call it carelessness rather than recklessness.

It appears the driver of the commodore thought his car would have made it safely past the cyclist without endangering either parties. Seems he forgot that he was dragging a rather large trailer behind him.

Cyclists are to be given right of way when the lane is Green. Seeking to speed past in the hope that you might not hit the syslist (regardless of whether you have a trailer or not) is a reckless act.

*cyclist

Jivrashia said :

Jungle Jim said :

Nothing to excuse this at all, but expect the driver with the trailer was in some kind of rush and thought he and his trailer were going fast enough to get past the cyclist.

I’d call it carelessness rather than recklessness.

It appears the driver of the commodore thought his car would have made it safely past the cyclist without endangering either parties. Seems he forgot that he was dragging a rather large trailer behind him.

Cyclists are to be given right of way when the lane is Green. Seeking to speed past in the hope that you might not hit the syslist (regardless of whether you have a trailer or not) is a reckless act.

It’s a trailor, is it possible he didn’t realise he hit the bike?

Jeez, the cyclist is the most visible thing there. NO excuse. If the plod doesn’t do something about this, it just proves that the only things they’re interested in is speed and RBTs.

Great riding and filming skills!

Please tell me you had this knob charged

Jungle Jim said :

Nothing to excuse this at all, but expect the driver with the trailer was in some kind of rush and thought he and his trailer were going fast enough to get past the cyclist.

I’d call it carelessness rather than recklessness.

It appears the driver of the commodore thought his car would have made it safely past the cyclist without endangering either parties. Seems he forgot that he was dragging a rather large trailer behind him.

Endrey said :

On the other hand, is it routine for people to film their commute? I hope reasons are sex-related.

No sex, it is an attempt at self-preservation. If certain drivers can be taken off the road permanently, the road will be safer for everyone.

Oh the joys of GoPro’s and Contour video cameras….if only to properly record the stupidity of our fellow road users.

Neg driving, leaving the scene of a collision, failing to give way, being a knob. The list goes on.

My new hero.

A bit of road murder avoided by traffic flow luck and wild bike skills and no swearing, no tears, just, ‘did you get that on video?’.

On the other hand, is it routine for people to film their commute? I hope reasons are sex-related.

and thats why onroad cycle lanes are stupid, no point being in the right if you’re dead.

Nice work controlling the bike after the swipe.

Nothing to excuse this at all, but expect the driver with the trailer was in some kind of rush and thought he and his trailer were going fast enough to get past the cyclist.

As for not stopping, I doubt he even noticed the impact of a front wheel being collected by his trailer and like many Canberra drivers, rarely looks in his mirrors.

Looks like the trailer registration plate is nice and visible at the 5-6 second mark. Wonder if the maker has sent this to police. Certainly looks like dangerous or reckless driving to me.

Great recovery.

I assume the video has also be forwarded to the people who hand out the neg driving tickets?

Nice one Jim!

Quite amusing that the twitter account jims_mowing (doesnt make any mention whether it is affiliated with same organisation) is full of comments on cycling, the most recent is an article about the motorist always being at fault in a motorist v cyclist accident.

T 6447 C – shouldn’t be hard to locate. Great bike control from the cyclist. Hope he reports it.