Search found 102 matches

by danhopgood
19 Dec 2019, 3:15pm
Forum: On the road
Topic: Getting worse out there?
Replies: 31
Views: 2462

Re: Getting worse out there?

I think standards are going down and a lack of enforcement is a big factor. People think they can get away with poor standards of driving, licencing, insurance, mobile phone use etc. After cycling for nearly 50 years now I got knocked off for the first time on Monday morning. Will be on crutches all Christmas. At least I'm still here, many haven't been so lucky.....
by danhopgood
20 Nov 2019, 1:42pm
Forum: Cycling UK Topics and Discussions
Topic: Future of CUK - survey
Replies: 24
Views: 2842

Re: Future of CUK - survey

Nothing in the new objects about using members as a marketing opportunity for advertisers.

I for one am quite happy to pay more for membership to avoid being treated as a commodity. I made comment to that effect in the survey response. I suspect most people minded the same as me would have abandoned the survey way before the opportunity came up to add comments though....
by danhopgood
19 Nov 2019, 10:04am
Forum: Cycling UK Topics and Discussions
Topic: Future of CUK - survey
Replies: 24
Views: 2842

Re: Future of CUK - survey

I got the marketing one. It was almost enough to cancel my membership. All I got from it was my membership is worth no more to Cycling UK than being a marketable commodity. What happened to the CTC values “To promote, assist and protect the use of bicycles, tricycles and other similar vehicles on the public roads.”
by danhopgood
28 Oct 2019, 1:59pm
Forum: On the road
Topic: Cable ties failed on Carradice quick release
Replies: 13
Views: 1395

Re: Cable ties failed on Carradice quick release

I'm a fan of cable ties, but they get brittle after a few years. If their colour starts to fade, it's time to replace 'em.
by danhopgood
17 Oct 2019, 5:58pm
Forum: On the road
Topic: Road Safety Outside Schools
Replies: 8
Views: 821

Re: Road Safety Outside Schools

Thanks for those replies. This an independent school, so as far as I'm aware not so well attached to local authoritiy ways of doing things. I think the council are doing what they can - they put in a traffic island with more double yellows to improve the road crossing at the school. That work was instigated by the council and not the school.

There used to be a Police community meeting, but when I raised the subject about road safety about another school, the response from the Police amounted to "the congestion caused by vehicles parked everywhere slows down the traffic, so the risk is low".(!). Those meetings don't take place now, there's just an occasional drop in session during wekday working hours that I can't get to.

The school minibus incident involved the "full monty" of blocking an access, blocking visibility to a junction and parking on double yellow lines.

I did go through a phase of putting notes on cars with details of the risks they were causing with their behaviour. That did result in me getting a letter form a parent, delivered via the school, saying that they'd seen the errors of their ways and would change their behaviour. I must admit speaking to people directly it is hard to have a sensible conversation. I can try that tactic again with a couple of pre-prepared notes.

My main gripe is with the school though. They just don't think they have any responsibilty to manage activity outside the chool gates that's a result of the operation of the school.

Maybe there's a requirement for them to produce and deliver a travel plan that I could hold them to account with? I'm not sure what the regulations are.
by danhopgood
17 Oct 2019, 10:44am
Forum: On the road
Topic: Road Safety Outside Schools
Replies: 8
Views: 821

Road Safety Outside Schools

I take my son to primary school on a tandem and experience really poor parking behaviour outside the school - blocked driveways and junctions, parking on double yellows - including recently by a minibus run by the school itself.

I don't loiter, but in passing I speak to those I see parking dangerously and have written to the school about its own behaviour - which has resulted in the following written response from the school Trust "I urge caution in approaching others with regard to misdemeanors on the road / pavement, you maybe hold liable for any accidents or injury that may occur out of such action. It can also be perceived as harassment, which can have its own set of repercussions by the law."

That feels to me like a threat for asking people to obey the law. Should I just turn a blind eye this behaviour? I find it hard to do that when it's a safety issue. I've suggested several times to the schoool they use education to encourage better behaviour and given examples of how they can do that, but no action has resulted. Any suggestions of action that might be more successful?
by danhopgood
18 Oct 2018, 10:04am
Forum: On the road
Topic: Car Indicators - Is it me?
Replies: 36
Views: 2584

Re: Car Indicators - Is it me?

Of course the value of the indicator varies in different situations. Right turners at a tee junction are pretty obvious even if they don't signal.

Single lane entry roundabouts are one example of when a signal is essential to understand where a vehicle is going to go. No signal left turners are a pain. Right turners that don't signal - or not seeing a right turn signal, can be fatal for vulnerable users.
by danhopgood
17 Oct 2018, 1:39pm
Forum: On the road
Topic: Car Indicators - Is it me?
Replies: 36
Views: 2584

Car Indicators - Is it me?

Maybe it's my age (52) but I struggle to see the front indicator of modern cars - especially when they have lights on. I experience this both in the car and on the bike, I had a near miss this morning with my son on the back of a tandem where I failed to spot a car turning across me who had right of way at a mini roundabout. It was raining (I wear glasses), I was being overtaken and there were roadworks - I was thinking about narrow lane widths on the other side of the junction that distracted me. Barriers and cones also blocked the view of the other car, but I find it frustrating that I still didn't see the indicator. Anyone else have this issue? It seems to happen more when I'm looking at the car from the side rather than head on.

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1gNFmxovjzRMV8ddmBwMb6lB8XqGolRQr

Dan H
by danhopgood
4 Oct 2018, 4:52pm
Forum: Campaigning & Public Policy
Topic: 2017 Road casualties annual report
Replies: 19
Views: 1424

Re: 2017 Road casualties annual report

Road Safety group comments on this:

Road safety charity Brake’s campaigns director Joshua Harris lamented the “shocking lack” of progress on road safety. “Our laws are only as strong as their enforcement and roads policing is fundamental to improving UK road safety,” he said. “Shockingly, the number of traffic officers fell 24% from 2012 to 2017 and the stagnation in road safety performance shadows this trend. We urge the Government to make roads policing a national investment priority.”

Pedestrian charity Living Streets’ head of policy Tanya Braun added: “The current justice system is simply not an effective deterrent to dangerous behaviour. We are calling for an urgent review of how the justice system deals with mistakes, carelessness, recklessness and deliberately dangerous behaviour by all road users.”
by danhopgood
19 Apr 2018, 12:26pm
Forum: On the road
Topic: You Tube Head Cam footage
Replies: 20
Views: 4073

Re: You Tube Head Cam footage

Airsporter1st wrote:You were assaulted and have proof of same. I would be asking to speak to the Superintendent and would want to know why he felt that violent crime should not be prosecuted.


My initial reaction was anger and wanting to take it further. I've now made peace with myself now about letting it drop. The sad reality is bad stuff happens and the Police resources are insufficient. They have to prioritise and this incident just didn't make the cut. I've written to my MP to say resources are insufficient and asking something be done. If society wants more effective law and order they'll have to vote and pay for it.

I'll just continue to try and stay clear of the idiots and hope I stay lucky.
by danhopgood
13 Apr 2018, 3:30pm
Forum: On the road
Topic: You Tube Head Cam footage
Replies: 20
Views: 4073

Re: You Tube Head Cam footage

The issue is lack of Police resources. I ended up writing a note to my (tory) MP to say I wan't taking it further with the Police as they are obviously short of resources and it wouldn't make any difference what I say to them. I said to her the government had cut Police resources too far and suggested she try and reverse this situation. I got a reply saying she'd go back to the Police for a response, but "they are taking a long time to respond at the moment". I said the issue is a lack of resources, which is in her control, not theirs. I haven't heard anything more.....
by danhopgood
6 Apr 2018, 3:08pm
Forum: On the road
Topic: You Tube Head Cam footage
Replies: 20
Views: 4073

Re: You Tube Head Cam footage

Debs,
I wasn't injured, other than a sore arm for a couple of minutes. I think I would have been injured if I'd been slower going up the hill - and if I hadn't avoided the car swerving towards me I hate to think what the outcome would have been. I worked out the distance between the kerb and his wing mirror was <200mm more than the width of my handlebars. Lack of injury was one of the factors the Police said means they're not taking more action.
by danhopgood
6 Apr 2018, 2:53pm
Forum: On the road
Topic: You Tube Head Cam footage
Replies: 20
Views: 4073

Re: You Tube Head Cam footage

Hampshire Police. They have told me the car reg is not straightforward so they can't automatically trace the driver - they said the car may be in the trade. I said can't they just find the driver and give him a talking to. The response was they haven't got the resource for that....
by danhopgood
6 Apr 2018, 12:33pm
Forum: On the road
Topic: You Tube Head Cam footage
Replies: 20
Views: 4073

Re: You Tube Head Cam footage

Having been using an "always on" camera on the bike for the last three years, I had my first proper "incident" the other day. A car gave me zero space pulling away from a pedestrian crossing where I had given way. I gave him a warning wave, he kept coming. I tapped his car, following which he tried to swerve me off the road and then stopped, got out and punched me as I rode past. All on video. Police currently saying "not in public interest to take further" without even looking at the video evidence. That's the state of the nation.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1MdzH8VnZH6LCFTXCJDA9SuXNrbpwEmpG/view?ts=5aba0a59
by danhopgood
29 Mar 2018, 12:48pm
Forum: Campaigning & Public Policy
Topic: Self driving car kills pedestrian.
Replies: 140
Views: 12630

Re: Self driving car kills pedestrian.

I'm a doom-monger by nature. The way I see the future of driverless technology going is this:

Development is overwhelmingly USA based, where there's already a culture of driving everywhere. There's already a lot of big money going into development - and the developers want a quick return on investment. There will be pressure brought to bear on politicians by the developers to bring the technology to market. The risks to "outliers" like cyclists and pedestrians are the hard to do bits in safety management. Therefore there'll be pressure to overcome that problem quickly - and the easiest thing to do is just remove the problem. To say to pedestrians - you may only cross at a designated crossing point and to cyclists no you can't cycle down that road as it's reserved for autonomous vehicles. The ban on cyclists would start on high speed roads and gradually work its way down to local roads. A similar thought process has already started with the probable banning of cyclists from the A66 as cyclists are seen as incompatible with the majority of traffic and therefore need to be removed.

Motorists who don't cycle much are the majority even in the UK, who will keep in power those who put forward such policies. Not a problem for cyclists in countries with decent infrastructure, but the UK is near the bottom of that list - and that is not going to change for decades even if there were a will to improve it.

My teppenceworth anyway.