Today: why do people hate cyclists, part 1? This post is dedicated to Malcolm, who told me the other day that he hated cyclists.
The Evening Standard, the Daily Mail, Jeremy Clarkson and Malcolm all hate cyclists. Their complaints are identical - cyclists are generally accused of
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Ignoring red lights
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Riding on pavements
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Assaulting innocent pedestrians
- Wearing lycra
Lets look at these charges one by one over the next few days.
Ignoring red lights Guilty, although I don’t do this myself these days. If you want to understand why cyclists do this, get a bike yourself; it will become obvious quite quickly. Here are the reasons why some cyclists do this:
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It's really annoying having to brake. You lose all your momentum and you have to push off from a standing start, which is where most of the effort in cycling goes. This comes under the heading of a Really Bad Reason to go through red lights, but it is the real reason why many cyclists do it.
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It's actually dangerous to be part of a cavalry charge of vehicles when the lights go green. Your first few yards as you push off can be quite wobbly and most drivers won't give you an inch. This is the reason why ASLs are painted on the road at traffic lights. I recommend cycling in the safest way possible, and therefore if it's safer on a particular occasion to ignore the red light then I would do so.
Cars, vans, motorbikes and scooters often stop in the ASLs although it is a Fixed Penalty offence. I don’t know of any driver who has ever been given a ticket for this offence. Most motorbike and scooter riders actually think they are entitled to use the ASL legally. They are not.
It was when I realised that I was using all sorts of rationalisation to justify going through red lights, but the real reason was Reason 1 above, that I stopped doing it.
Tomorrow - riding on pavements.