Driver fined £1,100 for passing Bridgend cyclist too closely

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Mike Sales
Posts: 7883
Joined: 7 Mar 2009, 3:31pm

Driver fined £1,100 for passing Bridgend cyclist too closely

Post by Mike Sales »

A motorist has hit out at what he calls an "appalling" fine after being ordered to pay more than £1,800 for passing a cyclist too closely.

Wayne Humphreys, 77, was fined and given four penalty points for failing to leave enough space in his Audi Q8.

The cyclist recorded the close pass on a GoPro camera and reported the incident to roads policing teams.

Mr Humphreys, of Pontyclun, Rhondda Cynon Taf, had refused to attend a course or pay a fixed penalty notice.

The warehouse boss was then prosecuted at Cardiff Magistrates Court for driving without due care and attention and ordered to pay £1,887 in a fine and costs, and received four points on his licence.

Mr Humphreys, said: "The fine is absolutely appalling. I am 77 years of age and the last fine I had was 35 to 40 years ago.

"Other than that I have never had a fine and I have had a licence for 60 years."
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-61815609

He should have taken the FPN or the course.
It's the same the whole world over
It's the poor what gets the blame
It's the rich what gets the pleasure
Isn't it a blooming shame?
Psamathe
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Joined: 10 Jan 2014, 8:56pm

Re: Driver fined £1,100 for passing Bridgend cyclist too closely

Post by Psamathe »

I fail to see the relevance of his claim "Mr Humphreys, said: "The fine is absolutely appalling. I am 77 years of age and the last fine I had was 35 to 40 years ago."

Does he think being 77 yrs old exempts him from the need to drive with due care and attention? Does not having had a fine since he was 35-40 years old mean he is not liable for fines & points for bad driving?

Ian
sjs
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Joined: 24 Jan 2010, 10:08pm
Location: Hitchin

Re: Driver fined £1,100 for passing Bridgend cyclist too closely

Post by sjs »

Psamathe wrote: 15 Jun 2022, 8:56pm I fail to see the relevance of his claim "Mr Humphreys, said: "The fine is absolutely appalling. I am 77 years of age and the last fine I had was 35 to 40 years ago."

Does he think being 77 yrs old exempts him from the need to drive with due care and attention? Does not having had a fine since he was 35-40 years old mean he is not liable for fines & points for bad driving?

Ian
It's the kind of thing people say. What's the point of discussing it?
Mike Sales
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Joined: 7 Mar 2009, 3:31pm

Re: Driver fined £1,100 for passing Bridgend cyclist too closely

Post by Mike Sales »

sjs wrote: 15 Jun 2022, 9:01pm [
It's the kind of thing people say. What's the point of discussing it?
I have had a driver I remonstrated with just say the same. Why? Just because they have gotten away with their bad driving for decades, it means it must be OK?
It's the same the whole world over
It's the poor what gets the blame
It's the rich what gets the pleasure
Isn't it a blooming shame?
Carlton green
Posts: 3646
Joined: 22 Jun 2019, 12:27pm

Re: Driver fined £1,100 for passing Bridgend cyclist too closely

Post by Carlton green »

I read the BBC article and watched the video, what I don’t know is how close the car passed and that would have been helpful context. The guy receiving the fine and costs didn’t do himself any favours really, he’d have been better served by backing down earlier ‘cause whether you think the law’s wrong or not is pretty much irrelevant.
Don’t fret, it’s OK to: ride a simple old bike; ride slowly, walk, rest and admire the view; ride off-road; ride in your raincoat; ride by yourself; ride in the dark; and ride one hundred yards or one hundred miles. Your bike and your choices to suit you.
Stevek76
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Joined: 28 Jul 2015, 11:23am

Re: Driver fined £1,100 for passing Bridgend cyclist too closely

Post by Stevek76 »

Not sure the exact distance really matters other than it was quite clearly 'too close'.

That said, looks under 1m to me.

Note that the 1.5m isn't an exact limit but a guideline, the speed and size of vehicle can place the the careless driving bar above or below that distance. On a higher speed road like that you'd really want more, particularly from larger vehicles. Little reason not to provide more either, the audi was already over the dashed line, safest approach is to simply move over to that side of the road entirely.
The contents of this post, unless otherwise stated, are opinions of the author and may actually be complete codswallop
Pete Owens
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Joined: 7 Jul 2008, 12:52am

Re: Driver fined £1,100 for passing Bridgend cyclist too closely

Post by Pete Owens »

The most comical quote was:
Mr Humphreys said he and his son later measured the road and estimated the gap he left for the cyclist was sufficient and safe.
He said: "Taking into account the cyclist and his bike, there would have still been at least 4ft (1.2m) space.
He is doing the prosecution's work for them!

On a more serious not this is a really good news story. However much sympathy the petrolheads might have for Humphreys the message is clear - Don't give cyclists enough space and you could end up with a very big fine.
Nearholmer
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Joined: 26 Mar 2022, 7:13am

Re: Driver fined £1,100 for passing Bridgend cyclist too closely

Post by Nearholmer »

I’m planning to rob Mr Humphrey’s warehouse tomorrow, and when I get caught and sent to jail, I’m going to moan and groan about injustice, because it’s been thirty or forty years since I last got caught robbing a warehouse.
jimster99
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Joined: 18 Jun 2012, 7:00pm

Re: Driver fined £1,100 for passing Bridgend cyclist too closely

Post by jimster99 »

I cheered when I read this article, cycling in London people passing too close to me (especially when I have my toddler son on the back) is one of my bugbears, 49 out of 50 drivers are considerate and give enough space and then the 50th zooms past way too close and way too fast & does deserve a bit of a talking to by Mr Plod.

The headline is a bit misleading, the guy wasn't fined that much until he fought the case all the way to court, had he taken the FPN it would probably have just been £60. He's driving a £100k+ car so presumably he can afford the fine anyway!
pwa
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Joined: 2 Oct 2011, 8:55pm

Re: Driver fined £1,100 for passing Bridgend cyclist too closely

Post by pwa »

This is the location.
https://www.google.com/maps/@51.5438954 ... 2?hl=en-GB
I wonder if the driver's judgement was impeded by an age related eyesight problem and the sun being low in the sky ahead of him. The road is angled slightly upwards at that point, so the driver may have been uncertain about what he could and couldn't see on the road ahead. That road is one of the worst in the area for drivers going too fast for the conditions, and lacking patience when someone gets in their way.

Heol y Cyw, by the way, translates as Chicken Street. It is a former mining community, now the home of Rockwool insulation.
tatanab
Posts: 5033
Joined: 8 Feb 2007, 12:37pm

Re: Driver fined £1,100 for passing Bridgend cyclist too closely

Post by tatanab »

Pete Owens wrote: 15 Jun 2022, 11:58pm The most comical quote was:
Mr Humphreys said he and his son later measured the road and estimated the gap he left for the cyclist was sufficient and safe.
He said: "Taking into account the cyclist and his bike, there would have still been at least 4ft (1.2m) space.
If you assume that the motor vehicle has 20" wheels then you can extrapolate that the distance to the kerb is over 40". Say the rider centre line is 18" from the kerb, and the rider's elbow is another 12" beyond that, then the driver has cleared the rider by about 10". Mr Humphreys has confused distance to the cyclist with distance to the kerb. I wonder if this is a common misinterpretation i.e 1.5m clearance means 1.5m to ride in.
Nearholmer
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Joined: 26 Mar 2022, 7:13am

Re: Driver fined £1,100 for passing Bridgend cyclist too closely

Post by Nearholmer »

Crikey, it could be couldn’t it.
thirdcrank
Posts: 36776
Joined: 9 Jan 2007, 2:44pm

Re: Driver fined £1,100 for passing Bridgend cyclist too closely

Post by thirdcrank »

tatanab wrote: 16 Jun 2022, 6:42am
Pete Owens wrote: 15 Jun 2022, 11:58pm The most comical quote was:
Mr Humphreys said he and his son later measured the road and estimated the gap he left for the cyclist was sufficient and safe.
He said: "Taking into account the cyclist and his bike, there would have still been at least 4ft (1.2m) space.
If you assume that the motor vehicle has 20" wheels then you can extrapolate that the distance to the kerb is over 40". Say the rider centre line is 18" from the kerb, and the rider's elbow is another 12" beyond that, then the driver has cleared the rider by about 10". Mr Humphreys has confused distance to the cyclist with distance to the kerb. I wonder if this is a common misinterpretation i.e 1.5m clearance means 1.5m to ride in. (My bold)
I think you have it. And your explanation is not far-fetched. Think of a driver imagining a typical cycle lane and believing that's the sort of room they must leave, lane or no lane.

(I just assumed this was an oldie believing he was untouchable, but I now see he seems to have believed he was in the right.)
=================================================

PS This is the sort of story which will attract attention for a few days. Today's Daily Telegraph runs the BBC piece verbatim but also has this from Go Safe - the relevant road safety partnership
"This includes promoting one of the fundamental things to remember when overtaking a cyclist, to reduce your speed and always leave 1.5 metres (4.92ft) between your vehicle and a cyclist, whenever safe to do so.
(My bold)
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2022/0 ... t-closely/

The bit I've highlighted seems ambiguous. IMO "Do not overtake until it is safe to do so" should be the message
Carlton green
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Joined: 22 Jun 2019, 12:27pm

Re: Driver fined £1,100 for passing Bridgend cyclist too closely

Post by Carlton green »

Nearholmer wrote: 16 Jun 2022, 6:44am Crikey, it could be couldn’t it.
Very possibly, but more likely is that the driver has his own views on what’s sufficient regardless of the law of the land. The drivers course of action with challenging the prosecution seems daft to me and I wonder if he ignored legal advice.

It’s a big car with heigh sides so it takes up a lot of the road and seeing what’s beside you isn’t that easy. One more reason to remove SUV’s from the road IMHO.

It’s a pity that things have come to this needed change in the law. Perhaps the law won’t be heavily imposed and drivers will be allowed a bit of wriggle room but fundamentally a close pass (with evidence) is now more easy to prosecute, let’s hope that that accountability message gets across to those that chance with the lives of others.
Don’t fret, it’s OK to: ride a simple old bike; ride slowly, walk, rest and admire the view; ride off-road; ride in your raincoat; ride by yourself; ride in the dark; and ride one hundred yards or one hundred miles. Your bike and your choices to suit you.
Jdsk
Posts: 24640
Joined: 5 Mar 2019, 5:42pm

Re: Driver fined £1,100 for passing Bridgend cyclist too closely

Post by Jdsk »

This includes promoting one of the fundamental things to remember when overtaking a cyclist, to reduce your speed and always leave 1.5 metres (4.92ft) between your vehicle and a cyclist, whenever safe to do so.
Yes, that is awful wording.

It could be used as an exercise in how advice should and shouldn't be given.

Jonathan
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