cycle tracks

[UKPhil]

I was shouted at by a taxi driver this morning because I was cycling along the road and not on the shared cycle track /footpath along the causeway between Portland and Weymouth.

My view as a road bike newbie is that it is a lot safer for me to be doing 20mph plus on the road than on a shared path where there could potentially be pedestrians stepping in the way or dogs on leads etc.

I'm not really sure what his problem was, the road was quiet at 0830am on a Sunday morning and there was plenty of room for him to pass me.

I this just the something we have to put up with?

Phil

 

[Bigtwin]

I this just the something we have to put up with?

Phil

Err - yes. Yes it is. Frequently.

 

[jig-sore]

wish I'd been cycling near Weymouth today

my favorite part of the country we usually stop in Swanage when we're in the area

 

[roadjunkie]

Yes! Bus drivers and taxi drivers (not all obviously). I was overtaken by a bus yesterday and nearly got run off the road, as the driver decided to quickly move back towards the curb assuming I was going slower than I was!! grrr.

 

[colinr]

My view as a road bike newbie is that it is a lot safer for me to be doing 20mph plus on the road than on a shared path where there will be pedestrians stepping in the way or dogs off leads etc.

Adjusted. I agree, though am still waiting for my first "get on the path / pay tax" abuse though.

 

[Will1985]

Tell them where to go - thankfully the Highway Code proposal to make it compulsory* for cyclists to use cycle lanes/tracks where provided, was scrapped.

I'd never take my bikes on cycle lanes...broken glass, poor surfaces, and 23mm road tyres don't mix. And of course, not forgetting errant pedestrians!

I've never had a problem with drivers getting agitated, even near Daventry last month where I elected to use the contraflow on a roadworked DC rather than the adjacent cycle path. Mind you, I was doing 40km/h for several miles and the drivers would have lost about a minute of travel time.

*I'd prefer to use a better word - basically, non-compliance meant cyclists could be liable for any accident they were involved in near provided facilities.

 

[ufkacbln]

write to the licensing office expressing your concern over his ignorance and lack of knowlege of the Highway Code.

For your reassurance...

DfT Code of conduct for Cyclists

Ride at a sensible speed for the situation and ensure you can stop in time. As a general rule, if you want to cycle quickly, say in excess of 18 mph/30 kph, then you should be riding on the road.

The difference is that taking a responsible attitude to speed and local conditions is suficiently alien to many taxi drivers he probably has a problem with the concept.

 

[simongrant]

Mind you, I was doing 40km/h for several miles and the drivers would have lost about a minute of travel time.

5 seconds let alone a full minute is road rage killing tackle for some drivers as for the comment about road tax etc,whenever a driver comes at you with this one just remind them that road tax was abolished in the 1930's and replaced with VED which is not ring fenced for roads but goes into the treasury income pot.Roads are paid for from council tax.

Simon

 

[Randochap]

That's the trouble with "bike tracks." They are often worse than useless and encourage the attitude from motorists that that's the only place cyclists belong.

Here's an answer to the tax/licence bikes bollox.

 

[Will1985]

Only had the road tax argument aimed at me once - just corrected them and said I paid VED too (although £35 is small fry compared to a guzzling 4x4 ).

IME, taxi drivers are the worst drivers on the roads and regularly cut me up, but never had any verbal from them. In Birmingham, there is only one thing worse than a taxi driver and that is a Toyota Avensis Mk1 driving taxi driver.

 

[atbman]

I'm afraid that you're all suffering from the same misapprehension. All cyclists pay VED, altho' at the same rate as electric cars. VED is, after all, based on a vehicle's emissions and, like electric cars, bicycles are zero emission vehicles, so pay zero tax. The fact that the sum involved is zero is irrelevant. We still have to pay it.

 

[AWG]

Have to admit I prefer to use tracks whenever provided, but one of the greatest problems are these long extending dog leads. Also annoys me how tracks just end and thrust you back into traffic in dangerous locations. As a cyclist and driver (one car being an old 4x4) I am acutely aware and careful of cyclists and some of the very expensive bikes they use, especially with the number of events held in Cheshire (the cycling county). I also used to tow a caravan and some cyclists are very difficult to get past I have to say. I guess we all need to learn to get on better. A motorists way to understanding bikes is undoubtedly to frequently use one.

 

[Speck]

I was shouted at by a taxi driver this morning because I was cycling along the road and not on the shared cycle track /footpath along the causeway between Portland and Weymouth.

My view as a road bike newbie is that it is a lot safer for me to be doing 20mph plus on the road than on a shared path where there could potentially be pedestrians stepping in the way or dogs on leads etc.

I'm not really sure what his problem was, the road was quiet at 0830am on a Sunday morning and there was plenty of room for him to pass me.

I this just the something we have to put up with?

Phil

You're not Portland Phil are you?

 

[HJ]

... I also used to tow a caravan and some cyclists are very difficult to get past I have to say. I guess we all need to learn to get on better. A motorists way to understanding bikes is undoubtedly to frequently use one.

Caravans are the sporn of the devil and should be banned...