Cyclists can be a nuisance, running red lights, riding on the pavement … but are they dangerous, and if not, is it a problem if they break the law? Peter Wallker, Guardian journalist and author of Bike Nation: How Cycling Can Save the World, explores our fixation on cycling behaviour and whether it’s distracting us from solving the real causes of death on our roads
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Should you wear a bike helmet? ► https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RWhMEkMtLy0

Sources:

Department for Transport cycling statistics ► https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/walking-and-cycling-statistics

Reported road casualties in Great Britain: quarterly provisional estimates year ending September 2015 ► https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/498157/quarterly-estimates-jul-to-sep-2015.pdf

TfL road network performance and research team: proportion of cyclists who violate red lights in London ► http://content.tfl.gov.uk/traffic-note-8-cycling-red-lights.pdf

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36 Comments

  1. Yes it matters, firs they cause more of their deaths. Second almost all run reds and endager pedestrians

    Ban bike riders from all metro area and roads

  2. only today I was waiting at a side road junction with the main road, saw a gap and went to pull away. Something made me stop, a movement in the corner of my eye and a kid on a bike cut across from left to right, right in front of me. He'd been riding on the pavement, against traffic, no helmet and would have been badly injured if I'd been driver who just speeds away. That shook me up all the rest of the day, so there's an unseen consequence of riding like a dork. Time for ID plates, compulsory helmets and training, insurance and fines for transgressing the rules of the road.

  3. Absolutely despise cyclists. In my state the law says drive as far to the right as possible as long as it's safe to do. They interpret that law as driving the middle of the road pretending you're a car going 10 miles an hour maximum when the speed limit is 40

  4. no 1 takeaway from this is for me, that car drivers should be way more educated about how much damage the thing they ride can do.

    maybe i should start driving a car again, at least i wouldnt have to pray for my life to the gods anymore every time i have to commute somewhere

  5. im 47 when i was a kid you got stopped by police if you where on the pavement but we new that if pedestrians where in front of you, you would drop down the kirb if no cars where behind you and back up when you had passed the person because you had breaks and bells and respect we had no helmets and had to pass a cycling perficiency test! but now people mainly foreigner's 'delivering food' use the pavements and will expect you to jump out the way and get nasty if you dont! 4 times this year ive been ran into on the pavement 'and i dont wear earphones lol what can you do police dont care!! i think just eat deliveroo etc should be responsible!!. Then you have the lycra/spandex arseholes on exspensive bikes with cameras on there peanut helmet's riding round abusing drivers for there youtube channel 'and motorcycle go-pro t@@ts are worse!

  6. If everyone who dont drive all of a sudden got a car the roads wouldnt even move and everyone would be straight on a bike stop hating cuz your scared and cant ride a bike well enough to even understand one properly horses are the worst thing on the roads even for bikers there a nightmare

  7. "some cyclists do break the law"

    I see multiple cyclists EVERY DAY cross red lights just like that, not even it was yellow and just turned red, no it was standing red, and they just go over as if it was normal. EVERY DAY:

    I dont see ANY cars do that, ever. Do they go over red last minute? Yes. But that is different than just passing a red light as if traffic lights dont exist.

  8. No there are commuters and cyclists.

    Commuters are those who use bikes as another mode of transport, and wear regular clothing. And they only know a thing or two about bikes.

    Cyclists are those who pursue the sport professionally, pros are one’s who earn money doing what they do. You’ve got the poc helmet, the bib, jersey, mtb/road bike shoes, down turned handlebars (or tt), ultegra? Maybe, 11-13 cassettes again maybe, power meters, hammer head, dhbs and so on.

  9. This goes both ways. Have you cycled through Oxford street? It’s like people don’t want to believe the actual road isn’t just a big pedestrian plaza

  10. I think some drivers also need to understand that we dont have the privilege of starting up. Thats why we rarely slow down or only do when its really needed. If we stopped every 4 seconds we would basically be walking out cycles.

  11. Honestly is this giving a platform to say that breaking the law is fine if you're not hurting anyone, well maybe hurting people, but not killing any, well killing some but only 1-2 a year?
    When people start to think that breaking the law is fine and they can decide for themselves which laws they actually need to stick to then surely you have serious problems ahead?

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