2009-09-17 - Cyclist down, Poynders Road roundabout

[QUOTE=flxh;952334]got hit by a van yesterday. Then after getting home i heard about the cyclist, now another.

ok, so why did you get hit? what kind of van? how could you have avoided it? was it possible to avoid? who admitted culpability? etc etc

proper analysis of collisions and near misses will help us find the solutions.
the authorities dont care or bother to work out why.

typical white van. i was approaching traffic lights in dulwich village. There was no room to proceed to the front of the queue on my left as a woman had opened her door and was getting out of the car with her family. I didnt want to take the middle of the road as there was a steady stream of oncoming traffic in the other lane, and quite a tight fit. I decided to trackstand behind the car infront of me and wait for a gap to open up or for the lights to change.

van comes up behind me way too fast, hits my back wheel and i fall forward. This was as the lights changed practically, i got up and he was already driving off. I wasnt hurt but it really fucked me off. Was so angry i didnt think to get the reg or anything.

there's quite a bit happening out there on making london safer for cyclists.
i thought this pdf has some really positive things to say along with interesting statistics

http://www.ctc.org.uk/resources/Campaigns/CTC_Safety_in_Numbers.pdf

shit this is right round the corner from me, hope they're ok

Jesus. Two horrible accidents in two days. What is wrong with this city? Why do I only hear about cyclists being injured, run over and killed when I log onto this forum? Why isn't this news?

And we've got celebrity chefs mouthing off and telling tales about intimidating cyclists and no one thinks twice about it until it creates a shit storm. It's disgusting.

Thoughts go out to the rider; really hope whoever it is pulls through okay.

I am praying for their safety, this is just too much.

any news on this?

I asked a journalist for thelondonpaper (I work for same company) to look into this. I hope they will do a piece on the this & the Whitechapel Road accident in today's paper.

Sounds bad but could have been worse. Also I have been told that there have been no arrests in relation to fatal accident.

The police have said the cyclist collided with a concrete mixer on the junction with Atkins Road at 1.23pm.

A police spokeswoman said: "The male cyclist aged 20 from Vauxhall received a broken lower left leg and broken upper right leg and general abrasions. He was taken to a south London hospital where his injuries are being treated as not life changing. "No arrests have been made. The incident is being investigated by our traffic department."

Thanks for the update - so glad he's (relatively) OK.

Good. Glad he's OK - as in not dead - looked terrible when I went past.

Thanks for the update - so glad he's (relatively) OK.

^^If 2 broken legs falls into the '(relatively) OK' category, then I fear for all of us. Better than death though, so I'm thankful for that.

He was taken to a south London hospital where his injuries are being treated as not life changing.

^^NOT LIFE CHANGING??? Seriously? If not a typo, then this goes to show that we are ceratinly not being taken seriously as cyclists.

Glad it's not worse. Speedy recovery x

^^If 2 broken legs falls into the '(relatively) OK' category, then I fear for all of us. Better than death though, so I'm thankful for that.

relatively OK as not being a vegetable frankly.

thank fuck he's ok.

^^NOT LIFE CHANGING??? Seriously? If not a typo, then this goes to show that we are ceratinly not being taken seriously as cyclists.

Probably meant 'not life-threatening'. That's one of the stock terms...

"not life changing" means, for example he won't loose his limbs or spend the rest of his time in a wheelchair.

Ask BigBadAd about breaking shit-loads of bones and it not being 'life-changing'. He's not riding on roads now, spent a more than a year in various stages of being pinned together, casts, endless physio, drugs and many, many operations.

This is still really bad - yes it's good the guy's not been killed by this, but ... he got squashed by a concrete mixer!

It is life changing. No doubt.

"not life changing" means, for example he won't loose his limbs or spend the rest of his time in a wheelchair.

I should think it is massively life changing, maybe not life threatening, but imagine the mental scarring !

Whilst I understand the legal/official side of "NOT LIFE CHANGING", BGA got a point about not treating cyclists seriously if that kind of language is used, it clearly portrays the overall attitude!

Speechless. Lorry...cyclist. Lorry...cyclist. It doesn't take a genius to work out there's a pattern here. Totally unacceptable whoever's at fault. My heart goes out to the rider. May he have a speedy recovery.

Glad that the rider is (relatively) ok

I rather suspect that the "Not Life Changing" was decided by a medical professional who actually treated the injuries, and might know a bit more about the situation than any of us. I wouldn't get so angry just yet.

relax guys! that's the 'stock' definition. i have no doubt that the incident will be physically and mentally life changing for the rider and his loved ones

Given the circumstances, this can sound patronising, but hearing so often about these tragic collisions, I'd like to point out, that your local council can provide some form of cycling training and marshaling for all of you, who are not very confident on the road or simply don't know the highway code at all.
We all participate - either cycling, driving, riding motorbikes or simply walking - in the same London traffic. If a simple, often free course can save someone's life, then go for it!
Of course it will not get rid off any arrogant and ignorant bullies, but perhaps make you more aware on the road.
As a cyclist I know there are some road users who treat us like a nuisance and users of some kind of "lesser" vehicles ("can't afford a car", but as a driver I'd like to point out, that you should always take care while riding past a car on a narrow busy road, becasue I often seen a situations when a driver swerved to the left to avoid a maniac on a moped/motorbike in the middle of the road only to cut into a cyclist on the left (there's no way one can look at both side mirrors at the same time).
As for the lorry drivers - chill the fuck out! You will get there eventually - don't take somebody's life on the way :-/

^^If 2 broken legs falls into the '(relatively) OK' category, then I fear for all of us. Better than death though, so I'm thankful for that.

that's what I meant - the majority of these threads sadly end in Fatalities, I'm glad this wasnt another statistic.

I too live just around the corner from this and that junction has borne witness to many accidents. My sympathies to all involved.

At the risk of sounding very controversial, given the circumstances, I witnessed a cyclist get crushed by a truck at the junction of Sloane Street and Cadogan Place earlier this year. In this particular incident the cyclist was totally at fault as the truck was turning left off Sloane Street, having indicated his intent, but for some reason the cyclist decided to undertake him. Inevitably there was no way that the truck driver could have seen the cyclist as at the point of turning the cyclist would not have been visible in his mirrors. I have also witnessed many other incidents of cyclist stupidity undertaking busses and other vehicles that are turning left having properly indicated their intent.

The summer always brings out the fair weather brigade many of whom have very little road craft,if any, and it's hardly any wonder that such accidents occur. Those of us who are more experienced (and particularly as car drivers ourselves) might be less likely to be involved in such incidents.

Perhaps cycle retailers should do more to encourage more riders to take part in cycling proficiency schemes, or even make it compulsory when purchasing a new bike, so that can at least some basic road craft skills can be taught particularly to those that do not or never have driven/ridden on public roads.

I am in no way defending car/truck drivers as of course there are a great many of them who drive in a most idiotic and dangerous way, I'm merely saying that in some cases they are not always at fault and that as a community we ought to perhaps do more to encourage safer riding skills.

but is it appropriate that these trucks are in our community ?

for example you may find that the truck movement was generated by the construction of an innapropriate development. say a basement car park for the rich. (and then it is the poor residents that have to suffer their anti social behaviour).

so from this kind of perspective i think that the truck driver, the truck manufacturer, the landowner of the construction site, the builder and the road owner that are all at fault.

the construction industry is displacing its dangers into our community.