2011-04-05 - Rider Down/Fatality, Camden Road

Do we have a proper safe cycling/what could make cycling safer thread? Discussing everything in rider down threads feels wrong.

+2, there are a lot of qualified cycle instructors on here - I'm not saying the info isn't already out there on tinternet for anyone who goes looking, but a thread here that had good advice, diagrams, links to cycling specific safety videos, etc, would be good.

We should try to foster a view that if someone pulls up next to you at some lights and politely tells you that you did something dangerous, they should be thanked (so long as they're right) as opposed to the current state of things where they might well be told to f**k off. I often see people doing stupid shit but I don't really want to say hey, going up the inside of that bus was a suicide move or whatever, because I don't want to appear snooty or "i'm a better cyclist than you" etc. But we should aim to get rid of this, because it'd result in less accidents, and that means more cyclists on the road, a safer perception of cycling, basically it's all good without any negatives.

btw not saying i'm a perfectly safe cyclist, I make mistakes like anyone does and sometimes I take calculated risks deliberatley. But that's different from just not knowing any better. And as this thread sadly shows, a lot of folk seem to find themselves in really bad situations just because nobody told them to be extra careful of the door zone during the school run / watch out for left turny things / etc.

My brakes were severely tested today by a late left turner from the going straight on lane who didn't indicate - just mashed the anchors on instinct without really knowing why and was surprised and alarmed when some lady in a skoda missed me by inches. She properley came from behind, over my right shoulder but just inside my peripiheral vision, across the front of me. Scary to think what'd have happened if my subconcious hadn't taken over and made me hit the brakes. Crazy bitch.

Anyway bit of a ramble but yes lets please have a "how to cycle safely" thread, and lets keep it organised..

There is a whole forum essentially dedicated to this topic.
https://www.lfgss.com/forum49.html

Don't let the name Cycle Training put you off. No one thread can possibly hope to cover a subject like 'how to cycle safely'.

I saw that there was a ghost bike put up at this junction a few weeks ago. When I rode past yesterday spotted that someone had nicked the rear wheel!

Same happened with one at the A10/Manor Road junction in Stoke Newington

I rode up camden road with daughter on sunday, forgot how dangerous it was :(

http://road.cc/content/news/39415-campaigners-demand-action-over-londons-death-mile

+2, there are a lot of qualified cycle instructors on here - I'm not saying the info isn't already out there on tinternet for anyone who goes looking, but a thread here that had good advice, diagrams, links to cycling specific safety videos, etc, would be good.

We should try to foster a view that if someone pulls up next to you at some lights and politely tells you that you did something dangerous, they should be thanked (so long as they're right) as opposed to the current state of things where they might well be told to f**k off. I often see people doing stupid shit but I don't really want to say hey, going up the inside of that bus was a suicide move or whatever, because I don't want to appear snooty or "i'm a better cyclist than you" etc.

That's the issue with unsolicited advice. Some are genuinely thankful for the tip but others will tell you, "I've been doing this (undertaking thing) for years and I don't need your help>>>>>"

The ghost bike at this junction was featured (briefly) in a piece on last night's Channel 4 News

Cyclist, 20, crushed to death by lorry with faulty indicator after it pulled across her path at busy junction
Student Paula Jurek died in the accident at a busy central London junction
Witnesses said they did not see the lorry driver indicate before turning
Lorry driver Barry Roe cleared of death by careless driving at earlier trial
The lorry had a faulty bulb in one of its indicators, the inquest hears
By ROB COOPER

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2345052/Cyclist-20-crushed-death-lorry-faulty-indicator-pulled-path-busy-junction.html#ixzz2WmBQch6e
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

Sickening how the courts just shrug it off like 'yeah, this stuff happens all the time' as if we should feel sorry for them having to 'deal' with it while they stubbornly refuse to learn any lessons There is a pattern of innocent people being crushed to death. Something is wrong somewhere.

Paula's mum and dad turned up at the inquest expecting to see the driver go to prison. Nobody had told them he had already been dealt with.

http://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/parents-anger-after-court-case-over-cyclists-death-collapses-8668255.html

^^^^^ that's appalling, we didn't know why the case collapsed, this is what I said to the Mail
'It is difficult to understand how the driver in this case was acquitted for failing to see Paula. If he was turning into a "blind spot" he should have done it with extreme care."