chris_suffolk wrote: I read somewhere recently that if as few as 10% of drivers obey the speed limits, especially in an urban environment, that almost all drivers end up obeying the limit (give or take).
In the current climate, it may just be that the '10%' are staying home, and thus their slowing influence is being lost.
That is an explanation that makes some sense. Or at least that the 10% are driving less. They are likely to be the folks who are more cautious, and more conservative about accepting risk, and will also be the folks who are more likely to stay home as much as possible, only shop locally, etc.
“In some ways, it is easier to be a dissident, for then one is without responsibility.” ― Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom
Three more unnecessary close passes today, one by a van on the bypass road which is pretty much 6 metres wide, another large van of a plumber and the other an Arriva bus 300yards from home as I'm just about to pass a parked car Hertfordshire constabulary won't do anything and reporting without video evidence doesn't get investigated at all just a data log.
It's going to be so much worse when every cretin gets back on the road plus all the ones that are fearful of using public transport or are being coerced into thinking public transport isn't safe. The talk about x/y/z being done for cycling will do squat as always.
Must say that today I did about 38 miles on the most quiet main roads on our North coast in my life ever.. I did meet and was greeted by many cylists mostly single no groups. I think in the 30 odd miles i was passed by perhaps a dozen vehicles, Now I did see the local constabulary out on a trunk road waiting for those non locals trying to access Portrush, a popular coastal town, but from there to Bushmills where the whisky is made perhaps one car passed me on the 6 mile coastal route, and then cutting back into the country through Bushmills met my cycle buddy, himself on a run , we are staying apart since the curfew, and we rode together for the latter part of the journey parting at BallyBogey where he had a 5 mile tailwind home and me a 7 mile headwind to finish my ride.. and epic that the traffic was so light.. and any that did overtake were very gracious and left loads of room, well I suppose they were meeting no oncoming vehicles...will
The utility cyclist wrote:Three more unnecessary close passes today, one by a van on the bypass road which is pretty much 6 metres wide, another large van of a plumber and the other an Arriva bus 300yards from home as I'm just about to pass a parked car Hertfordshire constabulary won't do anything and reporting without video evidence doesn't get investigated at all just a data log.
It's going to be so much worse when every cretin gets back on the road plus all the ones that are fearful of using public transport or are being coerced into thinking public transport isn't safe. The talk about x/y/z being done for cycling will do squat as always.
I agree, nearly knocked off twice in the 1st mile today by idiots pulling out in front of me .
John Wayne: "I won't be wronged, I won't be insulted, and I won't be laid a hand on... I don't do these things to other people, and I require the same from them."
Finding, once again, the local railway cyclepaths far too crowded for comfort, I thought ‘OK I’ll do the return leg on the road, it’ll be nice and quiet. And so it was, until I discovered the traffic comes in ‘pulses’. Every time a pulse came by I was subjected to eight or ten hog-whimperingly stupid passes in less than sixty seconds.
Most passed wide, and the few exceptions seemed deliberately close. The wide passers however, nearly all did so into the face of oncoming traffic and on bends with limited visibility. One guy nearly put his large van up on two wheels trying to cut back in in front of me to get through a pinch point. Only by solidly occupying the middle of the lane early did I manage to prevent one or two drivers squeezing past me at traffic islands. Nobody seemed to reduce speed at all. I’ve seen more cautious and considerate driving from emergency services on ‘blues and twos’.
A week later in desperation I tried the same route, but thinking I would use the narrow and poorly surfaced pavement just to save stress. It is usually deserted, but this time was being used by multiple walkers, so back on the road to get home. Same experience with drivers. If anything even worse. I gave up and ditched out where the pavement becomes a (rubbish but marginally better) cyclepath and watched cars steam by on a 50mph section as if they were fleeing justice on an autobahn.
CyberKnight wrote:I agree, nearly knocked off twice in the 1st mile today by idiots pulling out in front of me .
My guess is that a lot of motorists are driving off with the premise that there are going to be less cars around therefore the journey is going to be easier. They have already focussed on ‘cars’ as the theme so bikes are now, largely, invisible. Chances are they are going shopping so, with nothing on the road to concentrate on they can occupy their minds with prescient matters like how long the Tesco queue will be or what is a purchasable alternative to rice or pasta. Those few ‘facts’ mean their minds are even less on the job than they normally would be.
The older I get the more I’m inclined to act my shoe size, not my age.
Fourteen miles today, and to be honest, you wouldn't know a lockdown was in force.
These past few weeks, I've been riding two or three times a week, plus walking the lanes with the doggie. It's been quiet except for walkers and joggers ................ but this morning, the roads were as busy as they would normally have been on a Wednesday 9/10am.
Mick F wrote:Fourteen miles today, and to be honest, you wouldn't know a lockdown was in force.
These past few weeks, I've been riding two or three times a week, plus walking the lanes with the doggie. It's been quiet except for walkers and joggers ................ but this morning, the roads were as busy as they would normally have been on a Wednesday 9/10am.
Wot's goin' on?
Everyone has decided that the lockdown isn’t for them. It was inevitable.
The biggest shock is probably yet to come. People have been whipped into a state where they’re afraid to be within 2 meters of their own shadows. They certainly won’t want to be using public transport, so that will inevitably lead to many more vehicles, on the existing roads, with the probable addition of people who used to car share, driving their own cars instead. A consequence of lots of people deciding that the rules don’t apply to them, will almost certainly be an upstroke in new Corona virus cases, and a much harsher second lockdown.
Mick F wrote:Fourteen miles today, and to be honest, you wouldn't know a lockdown was in force.
These past few weeks, I've been riding two or three times a week, plus walking the lanes with the doggie. It's been quiet except for walkers and joggers ................ but this morning, the roads were as busy as they would normally have been on a Wednesday 9/10am.
Wot's goin' on?
It was never "in force". The mild form of lockdown we had (if you're wondering what a strict lockdown might have been like, look at Italy or China) was only enforced by people's fear for a few weeks.
I agree its inevitable... people will be governed with a curfew until they feel themselves that the bods in Gov have been hoodwinking, lying and generally not listening to the feedback that the experts are giving them.. you can govern until you're allowed to... period.. I said this would happen when they placed the sanction on the country, it has worked so far, but the testing like many other countries not perhaps as well NHS'ed as us was let go and that caused many 'preventable' deaths, not just my view, but many more skilled observers opinions that you'll likely find on here .. YES people have to get on with their lives, rather than sit about waiting on some bod in Gov who has never made himself or herself a shilling using their hands , but in receipt of a thousand or 3 every month thanks very much and they are the ''experts'' who feel they can restart whats not about to burst into life any time soon... just like coaxing a 20 year old tractor that hasn't seen work for a few months without major battery power and a dose of easy start.. these are the boyos who have never worked for themselves , BJ and his gang ...and they are about to tell self employed people how the world works now.. good luck.... Big Liam Neeson Said.. . will
willcee wrote:I agree its inevitable... people will be governed with a curfew until they feel themselves that the bods in Gov have been hoodwinking, lying and generally not listening to the feedback that the experts are giving them.. you can govern until you're allowed to... period.. I said this would happen when they placed the sanction on the country, it has worked so far, but the testing like many other countries not perhaps as well NHS'ed as us was let go and that caused many 'preventable' deaths, not just my view, but many more skilled observers opinions that you'll likely find on here .. YES people have to get on with their lives, rather than sit about waiting on some bod in Gov who has never made himself or herself a shilling using their hands , but in receipt of a thousand or 3 every month thanks very much and they are the ''experts'' who feel they can restart whats not about to burst into life any time soon... just like coaxing a 20 year old tractor that hasn't seen work for a few months without major battery power and a dose of easy start.. these are the boyos who have never worked for themselves , BJ and his gang ...and they are about to tell self employed people how the world works now.. good luck.... Big Liam Neeson Said.. . will
It really doesn’t help when the person who gave the advice to increase the lockdown, extracts the urine by having his bit of fluff come over to his place, gets caught, and has to resign.
Yes.. The thing that gets me the mantra they wail daily were all in this together.. we are not.. over here we have a scenario where the politically green SF want to listen to Dublin advice ...the Health minister a staunch Orangeman is never going to cosy up to them boys.. yet they are out and about at their offices and at Stormont driven in fancy limos AND then preaching to all and sundry stay home it saves the NHS.. well when i was being reared thankfully independant I was told that the NHS was bought and paid for by our national insurance and taxes from the cradle to the grave. Now it seems we are saving them not the other way around....they do a marvellous job and seem to be guided by morons, up to this pandemic in my opinion the docs and the consultants and senior nursing bods were all marking time, just working enough, not under stress but claiming so ,run by these CE's ,so named managers paid huge salaries yet wouldn't know the ins and outs of any job in the hospital or whether the wool was being pulled or not cause they never did the job not the way the old Matrons etc did..you need to manage by walking about not sitting at a Laptop, know the job from backside to toes..rant over.... need to get out more.. will
But an awful lot of "stop-at-nothing" cyclists aren't!
Squezzing passed slower riders (me) in places where social arm-brushing is the norm (in fact, where its hazardous to undertake the manouvre anyway).
A classic example of poor behaviour this morning when out walking valong a narrow lane - cyclist coming the other way moves out to give us a wide berth, suddenly swerves towards us as another syclist hurtles towards her without slowing down! So he closed passed her (head-on) and she wasn't able to social-distance from us.
You have to wonder sometimes
Brompton, Condor Heritage, creaky joints and thinning white (formerly grey) hair ""You know you're getting old when it's easier to ride a bike than to get on and off it" - quote from observant jogger !
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