Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
Fined for jumping a red light
So I can hear many people being pleased about this, but I can promise you fining people for jumping red lights doesnt work
its the 2nd time I have been fined and this time it cost me £50 on a very rainy monday by a very grumpy young PC- not happy- all cars staitonary- and no pedestrians
But will it stop me ( or other serial red light jumpers like me)- well its a BIG FAT NO-
Its just now I will have to make sure there are no police cars in the vicinity- So infact instead of making the roads safer, instead of me previously doing a thorough check of the road of any cars, pedestrians, other cyclists., I now have to check for police which means Im possibly less than 100% focused on everything else
So to put this in context
I am a middle age woman who has been cycling in london on a daily basis for the last 30years. I have been knocked off quite a few times( absolutely none of them my fault)
2 of my accidents in my early years of cycling where when i was leaving traffic lights- so I learnt like many other cyclists, traffic lights are dangerous places to stop- So provided its totally clear, get on your way. The more cyclists on the road, the worst junctions seem with the cluster of cyclists trying to find room with cars behind getting impatient and trying to squeeze through dangerously narrow gaps
So you are never going to convince me or many other cyclists its safer to stop at red lights- although i might be a bit richer
So any PC PlODS out there dont waste your time especially on a rainy day - go and catch real crims
So i know many wont agree wth this, but unfortunately a few cyclists give us all a bad name- such as cyclists
who jump lights in a dangerous way( when there are cars around
cyclists who go on pavments and weave around pedestians- scarring them
cyclists who dont stop at pedestrian crossings when people are crossing-terrible!!!!!!!!!!
But something needs to be done with all these recent deaths, and I would be really interested in what the circumstances were- i would guarantee it wasnt due to jumping a light-unless of course the person had been drinking etc
Most bad accidents/fatalities happen by people obeying the law- so the law needs to be changed
And when are pedestrians going to be fined for jay walking across roads and knocking cyclists off
I got sent flying only 2 months ago by a pedestrian running out in front of me on green lanes, close to the ale emporium- the 3rd time a pedestrian has knocked me off over the years
Right Rant finished
And anyone/cyclist wants to make our roads safer, see the petition below
Replies are closed for this discussion.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Anette on
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Having read though this discussion it's lovely to see that the majority of cyclists on here do not think they're above the law, but quite well balanced individuals who clearly know a thing or two about the highway code. As a driver I am having to try my hardest not to kill some suicidal idiot on wheels every single morning, it's scary and frustrating, so reading this is quite encouraging. Bar the original post, of course..
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Permalink Reply by Gerry Platt on
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TfL figures showed cyclists breaking the law was identified as a factor in just 6% of cases where a rider was killed or badly hurt.
http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2013/nov/18/sixth-london-cyclist...
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Permalink Reply by tigha on
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LSSquared- what planet do you live on that you think ASL are bad idea- cyclists need to be out in full view of cars- go on training
so yes i knew this would be controversial but 7 pages of replies to my very over long post
I think the best argument not to go through lights if it is completely clear(assumed you have stopped and looked) is that it causes bad feeling- at least that was the only argument the police could come to when they invited a load of us to some training (lol) a few years ago
So another death in S. london today,
and rush hour 5ish this evening camden town major crash between cyclist and truck, looked like truck had tried to squeeze though the narrowed junctions at trafffic lights as a cyclist was going through
Thats it- I rest my peace- I really hope cyclist is ok, although I did see the police bluelight the ambulance to hospital (Thats serious)
but hopefully I can avoid these situations by not leaving traffic lights same time as the rest of traffic
And yes stats show more women cyclists are killed or seriously injured by obeying the law- FACT
And thanks to those who suggested cycle training- Im big advocate for it and went on advanced training myself about 10y ago which was great and reinforced to me that I was cycling in the correct way
Enough said but to the idiot who threw an egg in my face out of the car window yesterday about 6 30pm- get a life- yes it really hurt and Im bruised and look like i have been in a fight, but such is the life of a cyclist- was it my reflective jacket
my bright flashing lights
my helmet
i dont know but its the third time someone has hit me in the face with something over the years- i guess its a law of averages, if you spend x amount of hours on your bike every single day,for years- its going to happen
so for those of you who havent had an accident ever- if your only cycling as far as kings x or archway its not surprising
By the way Im trying to find a home for 2 kittens - I wish people would reply to that post
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Permalink Reply by LSquared on
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Eh? When I sit in line with cars I am already in full view of the ones behind me. Why would I need to be in front of the ones in front of me? They are not a danger. In multi-lane roads is a risk that traffic beside me hasn't seen me which I manage as above.
Cyclists only "need" to go out in full view of cars if they did something to put themselves out of view, like filtering to the front when it would be safer to hang back and getting themselves in places out of the flow of traffic where the drivers aren't expecting them.
I do not believe your advanced cycle trainer taught you to filter to a position so dangerous that the only safe thing to do next is to jump the lights. Perhaps cycle training as changed over the last 10 years, but I wonder if you have taken advice on how to handle a specific situation as general advice when the better course would be not to put yourself in that unsafe position in the first place.
A great many cycle safety advocates now feel ASLs cause as many problems as they solve, primarily by encouraging the "front at all costs" mentality.
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Permalink Reply by pamish on
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Car drivers can (should) see you, as their eyes are at your height. Lorry drivers, especially those with flat-fronted trucks, are about ten feet above you and can't see what's in front of them. I could probably work out how far ahead you need to be with a bit of trigonometry but meanwhile jut imagine for yourself. Buses, somewhere in between. 4x4s cant see anything anywhere.
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Permalink Reply by Alison P on
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This is a good illustration of what lorry drivers can and can't see:
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=wzL0Kyk4m-8&feature=youtu.be&d...
Terrifying really. Someone earlier made the point as to why its ok to drive round in these huge things that have massive blind spots - I couldn't agree more. -
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They should have added some bikes directly in front in that video, as if in the ASL. Just as invisible.
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(b). because something is specifically endorsed by road design doesn't mean it's good (eg. it's safer to break the law & approach an ASL to the right of stationary vehicles: see my previous post on this thread).
(c). "add significantly to cycling journey times", when I hang back in the lane I often overtake the cyclists who have taken the ASL because I accelerate with the traffic & am holding my lane position.
"striking a balance between safety and efficiency". Why be efficient if it increases the risk? Avoid striking the balance, just put safety first!
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I agree, the only time I do move forward to the ASL (not often) is when I see the lights change to red so I know I have time to position myself at the front before the lights change to green. When I do, I position myself in the centre of the lane to avoid a left hook or a close overtake.
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Seriously - just get up 5 minutes earlier! I would be aghast at a motorist who put increasing his journey time by fifth ahead of road safety so why should I accept that as a good reason from a cyclist?
I do commute in the City. I occasionally filter, if I know the lights have just changed AND I can see there is space in the ASL. But mostly I don't bother - it adds at most minutes to the journey and the additional stress just isn't worth it. They call that little cycle path up to the ASL the Lemming Lane for a reason.
I used to, of course - like many novice cyclists I thought that was the right thing to do - after all everyone does it and why else would they design the roads that way? I even had the helmet camera :D
Then I tried - not. Instead of acting like a cyclist with special rules, I tried acting like a road user. And I found my commute much less stressful, and drivers much more courteous, and I had far fewer uncomfortably close shaves. And I was frankly amazed to realise just how much of the stresses "everyone" gets cycling are entirely optional.
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No one has suggested safety at absolutely any cost. Safety at minimal cost however I am all for. Plus if people are going to claim that the only way to be safe is to jump red lights of course I am going to counter that, because it is not true.
It's my experience that the time impact of chilling out and hanging back on a bike is very small, and the gain by lowering stress is very high, and that very few of the type of near miss that "happens to everyone" happen to me. Given what we know about the effect of stress on long term health I suggest it's doing me more good than 5 extra minutes of exhaust fumes are doing me harm.
So yes, that's certainly worth an hour of my time a week. Perhaps you could try it and let us know how it goes for you?
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