[Closed] Angry commuter - justified??

you could have moved over to let her pass?

you had right of way.

tis simple

Too late, never move to talk to them. Make them come out. If they threaten you call the cops and ask for immediate help as you fear for your life. Or take a camera out and start taking pictures of the car and the driver.
Or just get on with your life.

you had right of way.

having right of way doesn't always make you right.

Have a read if you're legally in the right or wrong..

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/TravelAndTransport/Highwaycode/Cyclists/index.htm

My take is, you are a user of the road, therefore must adhere to road signs. If the signs indicate you have priority over oncoming traffic, then just proceed...

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It was your right of way and she was just being awkward and a blatant law breaker, ha!!
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Was there space for both of you?

Charlie your responses appear to be the wrong way round!

Legally, you're right. Practically, if there's only a car's width plus 2-3 feet, then you're right.

Charlie your responses appear to be the wrong way round!

It might look that way, but in fact it's because my thoughts are so far ahead of yours that you are actually being lapped.

I was concerned that sharing the road may lead to her clipping me or bumping me into the barrier on my left.

I would not have chosen to share as you never know how good a driver they are and 2-3 feet is too narrow even at <20mph.

There was one of these on my old commute. Whilst you do have the right of way, it's not worth dying for.

Refreshingly, some drivers would give up their right of way for oncoming cyclists on the way home.

I would not have chosen to share as you never know how good a driver they are and 2-3 feet is too narrow even at <20mph.

You can't take someone's right of way just because you think there's room. It's not a discretional thing.

I got tired of the aggro caused by me claiming my right of way on the traffic 'calming' measures near my house.

You were right. She's a typical stupid idiot behind the wheel of a car.
Though there are so so many of these I can never get used to it.

Put yourself in the position of the car driver. What would [i]you[/i] have done? I would have waited the tenth of a second for the bike to cross the bridge, then crossed myself.

You can't take someone's right of way just because you think there's room. It's not a discretional thing.

you had right of way. I would have accidentally let met pedal rub up against the side of her car as she tried to drive off.

If it was all slow speed I'd have been really tempted to do a controlled dive sprawling onto her bonned with my face smooshed up on the windscreen.

I nearly got squeezed into the kerb / pedestrian rails at a roundabout yesterday. An early 20s female who was too busy chatting and laughing on her mobile to notice me. I RAPPED on her passenger window and bellowed "get off your effing phone you stupid effing slag."

Was it justifiable bahaviour? Hell YEAH!

And she got off the phone.

you should have hit hit her, you wimp. you let her walk all over you like the down trodden man you really are.... 🙁

They'll think they're justified so you should also.

Too late, never move to talk to them.

Aye, I stopped in the road and queried a driver last year as to why they were sounding their horn at me, but made sure that the bike was still blocking them. The rear wheel nut put a lovely scrape down the side of her front wing as she decided to try and drive off 🙂

Whilst you do have the right of way, it's not worth dying for

Agree with Militant_biker, its a hard one to argue if you are six feet under.

I wonder what she would have done had it been a motorbike or a horse coming the other way?

I too have had my fair share of these scenarios (similarly to Molgrips with the traffic calming measures). I did once have someone try to overtake me in order to squeeze in through the traffic calmer as a car coming from the other direction was also trying to duel with them. I just stopped and waited for carnage to ensue (unfortunately it didn't).

You were right, they were wrong.

Was there space for both of you?

If there was room for both, was there room for both with a 40-50mph closing speed? I'd guess not.

Troll 😛

And another one, (maybe 2)

Cars that give you little/no room when overtaking

Cars that overtake and cut back in as close as poss to kerb (sometimes when not fully past you) to stop you underpassing when approaching lights or a junction.

There is a siver VW polo driving round Telford with a broken wing mirror due to the latter, bar ends can be great revenge 🙂

was I being petty expecting her to wait for me to cross?

A little, in those scenarios it's best to wait for them to flash, I always assume they're not going to stop.

The answer to this (given to me by a 60 something year old cyclist) is to remove the door mirror as they come past. I've had a car driver very deliberately pull in on me when I was trying to get into my car. The nearside mirror ended up in pieces. They stopped got out all arsey - because apparently they couldn't stop in time to avoid me. When they got more arsey I suddenly had these incredible pains in my arm and elbow and asked for their insurance details and that I was going to hospital and that they might want to expect an insurance claim. She went very, very quiet and ran back to her car and drove off.
It's exceptionally tedious when the "might is right" folks see others as fair game.

If in doubt, assume the motorist is in the wrong. I mean, they're the people driving the polluting, murdering vehicle that kills thousands every year and damages the air and lungs of tens of thousands more, of course they're not going to card about something as trifling as "road law".

silly old bat, she obviously saw you as an inferior road user and as such doesn't need to comply with the highway code.

let it slide unless you encounter her again in which case have a copy of THC ready to launch at her with the relevant pages marked for her attention.

There's a narrow bridge over the river near my house like this.

The bridge goes over the river and joins a road running directly alongside the river on the other side (i.e. an immediate t-junction).
Anyone crossing the bridge from the road that runs along the river has to turn into onto the bridge, but there isn't always the visibility to see if a car is starting over the bridge or not. There's always stand-offs.

On a bike, there is room to squeeze a car past, but it's quite tight. I generally turn in quite quickly having stood up on the approach to see if there are any cars actually on the bridge, then get out of the saddle and make it obvious that I am coming over by positioning myself fairly central.
It helps in winter with twin Lumi's set on high.

In your situation it sounds like you were in the right.

or a horse coming the other way?

Probably stopped, given way (twice) genuflected before apologising.

Often seems to be the approach we give to horses, its cyclist we want to endangour!

The comparison with horses is ridiculous, they are much less predictable an far more wobbly, even on a tandem, let alone a bicycle.

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I'm justified - and ancient[/url]
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and I drive an ice cream van

Roll-up, Roll-up! Vent your car hate here! 😀

I'd have likely spat in her face - actions speak louder then words 🙂

P.S.
I like motor vehicles - they're great for transporting bikes round the country in.

The funny thing is she'll be exactly the type that harps on about "lycra louts" with no respect for the rules of the road... 🙄

she obviously saw you...

I'd hazard a guess that it was entirely the opposite.

gwj72 - Member
Roll-up, Roll-up! Vent your car hate here!

Is there a better place
❓

Too many car lovers on here Dez - they get all angsty when you point out that their dangerous polluting machines are responsible for all the worlds ills and [i]they don't pay their way[/i]!

Whilst her window was down you had ample opportunity to spit in her face...

C'mon..

Really...?

Or just carry on riding home and forget it, if you were angsty at all the other dumb road users on your commute you'd take 19 hours to get home, no doubt.

One day, when I'm old, I am going to buy a paint-ball pallet gun, and vent my rage on selfish drivers in an annoying but not prosecutable manner.

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go out for a bike ride!!!!

One day, when I'm old, I am going to buy a paint-ball pallet gun, and vent my rage on selfish drivers in an annoying but not prosecutable manner.

Think you'll find it is prosecutable though, which is why we don't have people running around the streets with paintball markers now.

Hence I'll do it when I'm old, who would prosecute the elderly spinster cat lady who nearly got knocked off her shopping bike ??

coffeeking - Member
One day, when I'm old, I am going to buy a paint-ball pallet gun, and vent my rage on selfish drivers in an annoying but not prosecutable manner.
Think you'll find it is prosecutable though, which is why we don't have people running around the streets with paintball markers now

It would be funny though.

What about one of those huge water jet gun thingys...

@TJ

Its not me getting angsty and suggesting violence or spitting in the face of a pensioner. My dad is 83 and sometimes tells racist jokes. Shall I smack him with a shovel next time as a deterrent?

You had right of way.
She should have given way to oncoming traffic.
Bicyles are traffic.

However, she is one of 'those' motorists who have a strange atittude to cyclists, hence her ridiculous comment;

but your just a tiny little bicycle and should move over

[i]..sometimes tells racist jokes. Shall I smack him with a shovel next time as a deterrent?[/i]

I bet he wouldn't do it again

It would be funny though.

Call me, I'll join you.

Haven't read all of that ^^^ but just in case it needs reinforcing - you have right of way and were right. I've had this exact incident [users of the Bathampton toll bridge just outside Bath will concur] when riding across bridge already in the middle and centrally positioned - was faced off (for which read attempted to knock me off) by an 'older woman' who drove at me madly gesticulately for me to move over. Obviously being the obstinate sort, I didn't and we came to a stop head to head; words were exchanged - she was rather posh IIRC - as apparently I was only a bicycle and should be giving way to her... Ahem. A few sharp thumps on her car door & roof soon sorted that one out. 😆

Yeah grannies. Lets round 'em up. They're a ****ing menace to society. Punch 'em in the face and piss on them.

(just trying to fit in)

Ahem. A few sharp thumps on her car door & roof soon sorted that one out.

Don't think I could take it to the extreme of potential criminal damage, it's just a disagreement with no immediate danger, no reason to lose your cool.

I've had this a few times, if you slow down to check the car i sgoing to give way it invites them to floor it and go through, keep approach speed up but cover the brakes, if they don't look like slowing then start to brake or move out of the way.

One near me I approach up a steep hill and there's a junction the other side of the pinch point so me and car are both approaching slowly, I've just held my line and ended up both of us stopped, me shouting at the driver for not giving way, driver shouting at me for...well just for being on a bike really.

Blatant bullying tactics like this really gets my back up so [b]aslong as I consider it safe[/b] I'll stand my ground and argue the point.

Oh also had an incident near skipton last week, very narrow NSL road, me in primary, approaching vehicles slow, I get out the way, vehicle passes at reasonable speed, everybodys happy. Apart from one grey haired woman in a blue pickup truck, kept driving straight at me without slowing down, I got out of the way sharpish.

she's a wrong un!!

hels - you go get 'em - mad cat ladies against cars!

Only one thing for it (short of a final solution). Lobby your MP's to have licenses (and independence) removed from the over 60's.

you should move over.......
she should have a thumb through the highway code! stupid bint.

Or have mandatory retesting for all car drivers every few years - along with a nice hike in taxes to make them pay their way - and much tougher enforcement of driving law along with random breathtests. That should sort it out

@TJ - spoken like a man with only one side of the story.

Make drivers pay their way? Like they don't. I just paid £600 this week in road tax. Plus £40+ in tax on juice to hampshire and back. Then there is the insurance premium tax. And the VAT on the car and it's maintenance. Add in all the fines from numpties.

And your contribution is?.....

gwj72 - if you paid £600 this week in road tax then you've been fiddled - there is no such thing.

SBZ - I have been fiddled you're right. I have to tax on each vehicle (at £200 each), despite only being able to drive one at a time!

Diddums.

gwj72 I seem to recall TJ has the links to numbers and figures, cost of driving staying the same, costs of pretty much everything else (especially public transport) going up up up. Think TJ might be pushing it a bit blaming private motoring for [b]all[/b] ills but car centric society certainly has a lot to answer for.

EDIT It's a pedantic point gwj72 but you don't seem to have registered, it's not road tax it's VED.

Me - I don't own a car. I am not stupid.

It would be nice if motorists paid their way tho - as it is they get a huge subsidy from the general taxpayer.

Road tax - no such thing.

~Fine fishing today 🙂

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Road tax? Oh, you mean VED - which is emissions based so not appropriate for a zero emission vehicle (otherwise called a bike). and also not a hypothecated tax. Actually a lot of cyclists have above average incomes, and also above average tax bills and so pay more towards the roads...

Don't think I could take it to the extreme of potential criminal damage, it's just a disagreement with no immediate danger, no reason to lose your cool.

I don't think my girly fist thumping her car was really going to do any damage to her metal box... it's just the noise that freaks people out most... and for that reaction, it was worth it... 😉

@SBD - I'm not asking for sympathy, Just pointing out the short sightedness of your comment.

Tax/VED - Yeah and marathons are called snickers now (yet still packed with peanuts).

@TJ - You are stupid. And I'm sure your figures stack firmly against drivers.

I don't think my girly fist thumping her car was really going to do any damage to her metal box... it's just the noise that freaks people out most... and for that reaction, it was worth it...

yeah grannies hate that. I wish you'd have took a picture of her frightened wrinkly old face for us 😀

CM said

It might look that way, but in fact it's because my thoughts are so far ahead of yours that you are actually being lapped.

So - does that mean you are going to start paying your way -0 especially as you have 3 highly polluting vehicles? all those children with asthma, all the damage to the buildings, all the cost of road traffic law enforcement.

eerrrmmmm - OK 🙄

Shall we call a halt to this conversation and say Thank You to all those who have made me feel a bit better about my 'encounter' 😆

For the record - I also own three cars and work for a car manufacturer.