Lockdown Nostalgia

Commuting, Day rides, Audax, Incidents, etc.
Golflad
Posts: 32
Joined: 1 Aug 2017, 12:44pm

Re: Lockdown Nostalgia

Post by Golflad »

It has been most nostalgic having the roads almost to our selves. My wife and I ride every week 3/4 rides between 6 and 15 miles. The first two or three weeks of lock down were indeed blissful. The gradual increase has been very evident for the past 3 weeks culminating in the horrendous ride last Monday which is posted on here "Current riding situation". With regard to vans I am firmly convinced that a lot of Van drivers simply do not know the width of the vehicle they are driving. I bet most of them drive cars and then the van for work and they cannot switch from car to van mode. Am I being a little too forgiving here?
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tykeboy2003
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Joined: 19 Jul 2010, 2:51pm
Location: Swadlincote, South Derbyshire

Re: Lockdown Nostalgia

Post by tykeboy2003 »

Golflad wrote:I bet most of them drive cars and then the van for work and they cannot switch from car to van mode.


In my experience most car drivers don't know the width of their cars, judging by the constant close passes I get, not to mention the cars I see passing parked cars leaving barely 6 inches.

I think there is a case for all drivers to have regular "theory" tests, say every 5 years. It could be done online, would cost very little to administer but would have huge benefits both in human lives saved and the costs of accidents. The test would be based on the Highway code and would have the added benefit of keeping people up to date. I passed my test in 1980 and currently there is no compulsion for me to keep up with the HC.
Jdsk
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Joined: 5 Mar 2019, 5:42pm

Re: Lockdown Nostalgia

Post by Jdsk »

Why do you think that a test of knowledge would have any effect on behaviour in a different setting?

I don't know any evidence either way on the effects of universal refresher training, but I suspect that focussed intervention based on estimate of risk to others would be wiser. And probably more acceptable.

Jonathan
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tykeboy2003
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Joined: 19 Jul 2010, 2:51pm
Location: Swadlincote, South Derbyshire

Re: Lockdown Nostalgia

Post by tykeboy2003 »

I agree there is no evidence to support it but it would be a simple and easy way to make sure that people at least KNOW how they should drive. Those that then choose not drive in a proper way can be dealt with by effective policing (as if...). I've had several conversations with drivers about passing clearances and pretty well all of them thought that the couple of feet they gave me was acceptable. I include in that several occasions when I've been a passenger with friends who again thought they were giving plenty of room.
Jdsk
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Joined: 5 Mar 2019, 5:42pm

Re: Lockdown Nostalgia

Post by Jdsk »

I liked that police/ Cycling UK initiative with the rolled out mat that showed the clearance that was needed rather than expressing it in text.

Jonathan
dodger
Posts: 696
Joined: 28 Jan 2007, 9:33pm
Location: East Cornwall

Re: Lockdown Nostalgia

Post by dodger »

Oh dear. Estimated 80,000 tourists on their way here (Cornwall) this weekend.
After a brief excursion on two A and two B roads today I'm going to stick to the country lanes. Lots of traffic and lots of speed on the As and Bs and even when they stick to the speed limit and give a metre clearance, it's frightening.
In fairness, it's not just the tourists. There are two main problems. Tourists are afraid to get close to the hedges, especially with them being rather overgrown at present, and locals drive too fast in the lanes because they are used to them being relatively quiet.
Think I'll have to take up off-road biking.
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The utility cyclist
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Joined: 22 Aug 2016, 12:28pm
Location: The first garden city

Re: Lockdown Nostalgia

Post by The utility cyclist »

Jdsk wrote:I liked that police/ Cycling UK initiative with the rolled out mat that showed the clearance that was needed rather than expressing it in text.

Jonathan

I hated it, everything that is wrong with public information supposedly for safety was wrong IMHO.
As I said at the time why put a distance for people on bikes to be out from the edge of the road, this just puts the thinking of drivers and police, judges/juries that if the cyclist is outside of that they have dome something wrong/against advice, it was totally needless and creates more of an issue than it solved.
Additionally the 1.5m is not even 1.5m at all, it's 1.5 to the centre of the wheel which in reality means 1.1-1.2m to the actual person, this is just unacceptable, yet this is what is/has being promoted as 'safe'. Worse it's less than what the highway code already shows you as the correct overtaking distance.
Frankly it was a waste of money and has not changed matters one iota, it's retrograde in my opinion.

As for lockdown nostalgia, I said months ago that one shouldn't be taking the lack of vehicles on board as it would soon disappear and that in fact you were having to make the same decisions for junctions etc as one would ordinarily. Sure the roads were quieter numerically but we had the much faster/more danger motorists that actually made many roads even worse, the result being more deaths of people on bikes.
For me there is no nostalgia at all, it created a false sense of security for some and created an illusion that things would change for the better, the latter has proven to be correct, ultimately nothing will really change, modal share won't shift in any significant manner and the 70% increase nonsense was simply based on leisure riding.

Even if we had a 100% increase in cycling miles, that would equate to just over 1% of motoring miles, whatever small things councils/national are doing it won't make a dent and when you see the fanfare over the junctions on Chris Boardman's patch it makes me weep to think how they are celebrating such rubbish.
thirdcrank
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Joined: 9 Jan 2007, 2:44pm

Re: Lockdown Nostalgia

Post by thirdcrank »

In the current situation, with little to fill newspapers and the perception that more people are cycling, it's probably inevitable that there will be more claptrap being printed.

Under the headline How well do you know the rules for getting on your bike? today's Daily Telegraph has the usual mixture of fact and rubbish.

eg 3 How much room should a motorist give a cyclist when overtaking?

One of the multiple choice answers is :-

A One metre (approx three yards)
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Graham
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Joined: 14 Dec 2006, 8:48pm

Re: Lockdown Nostalgia

Post by Graham »

Now I'm just barely remembering how the early lockdown days seems like some unreal fantasy.

Loads of people out walking and cycling on the country lanes, with everyone smiling and greeting each other.
Hardly a motor vehicle to be seen/heard/smelt and those drivers that were out behaving very carefully(*).
A paradise found and re-lost.

* Some outrageous exceptions alas !
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