Montpellier cyclist death leads to calls for action

“" If a pedestrian gets hit while walking in a cycle lane then it's their lookout."

actually, no - this is not true. the pedestrian has right of way on a pavement regardless of the markings indicating its usage for cycles. It's just another reason why it's wrong to mix cycles and pedestrians on pavements.

and again, it's not about being quicker - it's about being safer for pedestrians and safer for cyclists. if you don't believe me, have a go :)”

“One day i was cycling between the roundabout and the 24 garage on gloucester road, keeping well into the gutter, and a bus came up behind and started beeping. After the 3rd time i stopped and turned round to look at the driver to see what the matter was, and he waved at me with a gesture meaning for me to get out of the way?? I pointed at the sign which says buses, taxis and bikes are allowed in the lane, and again he gestured for me to get off the road. Meanwhile a police car stopped on the other side of the road, and the copper came over to see what the matter was. He spoke to the driver, and then came over to me and told me to get off the road. I pointed out that i had a perfect right to use the road and that the bus could easily pass me anyway. Not good enough, i was threatened with being arrested if i did not get off the road. By this point my blood was boiling, but i agrred i'd get off the road to let him pass, but that i''d be getting straight back on afterwards. The Police always take the side of motorist and pick on cyclists. The driver should have been the one threatened with arrest not me, but what can you do when the Police ignore the facts and the law?”

“OnTheSofa.
At least Lansdown Road pavement has lane markings for pedestrians and cyclists. If a pedestrian gets hit while walking in a cycle lane then it's their lookout.
The cycle lane on most of Gloucester Road between the Benhall roundabout and the end of the bus lane is shared with the bus lane, not the pavement.
Where a cycle lane is provided as part of the pavement, many riders ignore this and ride on the pavement on the opposite side of the road that doesn't have a cycle path.
I agree that the road (being designed for vehicles) is quicker and less uneven than using the pavement.”

“jeesh. the thing is about the lansdown road cycle path is that it's not just slower, it's actually dangerous. it has pedestrians mixed with cyclists (something that's clearly not popular judging by the comments here) and also a massively uneven surface due to tree roots.

add onto that the fact that there are loads of drive-ways and cross roads and you get a very dangerous road. it's actually much safer to ride on the road down there. it's not just about being quicker (although it is).

as for the rest - haven't we done this stuff before and before?

1. helmets don't actually prevent death or serious injury following being hit by a car at 30mph.
2. pushing cyclists off the pavement onto the road is a serious assault and might even be attempted murder if done with intent to cause injury in the road
3. there are stupid cyclists but they don't tend to kill motorists.

and before anyone brings out the standard "but cyclists have killed pedestrians" line... i think that around 2,000 people die on the roads every year and 115 cyclists get killed. on average 3 are killed by cyclists.

i can see where the greatest saving in life can be achieved.”

“I like Charlie's idea of pushing people off when they ride illegally on the pavement, but I wonder if anyone would have the confidence to do this without fear of being made out as the offender rather than the victim of an offence?
Like the incident a while ago where a woman insisted on smoking (illegally) in a bus shelter. She was portrayed as an innocent victim, and the guy who correctly seized and destroyed her cigarette was made out as the aggressor. He had asked her to desist, but she carried on offending. He was probably doing her a favour by saving her a hefty fine.

Seems to me there are two kinds of people in Cheltenham; those who do whatever they like with impunity and those who live strictly according to the rules and still get hassled.
Maybe it's not just Cheltenham, maybe it's Gloucestershire, or Britain as a whole that has this inverted logic of right and wrong. I don't know. And I'm not sure I really care anymore.

We're all going to hell in a handcart. Down a steep hill, with no brakes.”

“null”

“thesmithster, by making cyclists wear helmets you're only preventing a small number of road users from serious head injuries.

A study in the UK from a range of 33 hospitals found that 25% of casualties that suffered a head injury in a car crash died from their injury. A study in Australia counted the parts of the body that were injured during car crashes in 2003-04, and found that 26% of drivers suffered head injuries - the number is higher for pedestrians at 33%.

Although there is a fairly loud call for helmets to be compulsory for cyclists, we are yet to hear a campaign for drivers of convertible cars to wear helmets, who, I need to add, can travel up to speeds of 70mph.”

“I agree that some drivers are not considerate of cyclists. However, I do wish it was law for all cyclists to wear a helmet. I know that some cyclists deliberately don't because they believe people will drive more safely around them. But so many serious injuries and deaths could be prevented if cycling helmets were mandatory. It's like wearing a seatbelt. If that's law, why not a cycling helmet?”

“Cyclists who overtake on the inside are taking a big risk, but why do motor vehicle drivers insist on overtaking bikes just before a junction or set of lights? I always postion myself in the middle of the lane, but drivers still do it!! Even worse, when someone overtakes before turning left, or on a narrow road before stopping to let other traffic come through. For example, i was cycling down Bayshill Road towards Clarence street, the other side of the road filled with parked cars. Just before the line of parked cars a taxi driver overtook me, then stopped suddenly in front of me to let someone come down the road the other way. Typical taxi driver, why not be thoughtful and stop behind me? He so did not realise or care what he'd just done that he seemed surprised when i questioned his parentage!!”

“As a car driver and cyclist all I can say is that anyone breaking road traffic laws should be dealt with. We do not know the facts of this tragic case, but someone has died. As a cyclist I know that if I want to be stupid around a ton of metal I am going to come off worse. I do wear a hi-vis jacket, multiple lights front and rear (even in the day I have the lights in flashing mode). I come across all sorts of idiots as I cycle to and from work. I see other cyclists darting across from one pavement to the other, no lights, and I nearly collided with. A TNT delivery driver today pulled right up into a red cycle zone at a set of traffic lights. Bus drivers that use their vehicles as battering rams making everyone move or be crushed. Cars going over red lights, because on that set there isn't a camera. The thing is though when the police do clamp down on all of this anti-social road use people are up in arms about why don't the catch proper criminals. Well I see more road crime on a day to day basis than any other crime. Maybe we do need a wake-up call as road users to get ALL of our act together and use the roads properly, and if it means a zero tolerance then so be it. Any loss of life of any road user is a tragedy and it needs to stop, and most road deaths are avoidable as very few are accidents.”