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Yeah. I should have said highest punishment for a close pass minimum. I guess we agree whatever the punishment, it shouldn’t be light. The bus company should also be fined for not conducting proper training/overworking staff/unrealistic targets as appropriate as to which has factored into this situation.
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Yeah, agreed on the French thing. They're less excellent on the South coast that's for sure. More to make the point that excellent driving is possible.
My bottom line is, the driver has ignored road infrastructure directing how to use the road safely, putting a life at risk. The driver has not demonstrated safe driving which is the base minimum to perform their job. If the situation was chaotic and busy the margin for error would be higher and there would be some leeway to allow for some conflict. But in this situation that wasn't the case. The driver has quite simply broken the law and no level of time pressures, stress, SMIDSY should inflict on how severe the punishment received is. The law is a £100 fine and three points for close passing a cyclist. This is what the driver should receive.
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Long comment is long...
My favourite analogy to contribute to this conversation comes from spending a few days cycle touring along the north coast of Normandy a few years ago. Generally speaking on those coastal roads, when you're not passing through villages you're either climbing towards blind hills or pushing towards obscured corners, rarely with a good amount of passing opportunity. A similar story to many British lanes.
Within about half an hour I'd cottoned on to the fact I knew the nationality of the driver behind me before they had even passed. French drivers would wait and wait and wait far behind me. Wait until there was heaps of space, absolute certainty that there was no oncoming traffic and pass entirely out using the other lane at a gentle speed. Belgian drivers would wait fairly far back. Mostly wait until it was absolutely safe to do so, or at least 90% sure it was safe to do so and then pass mostly out in the other lane. British drivers would leave at most a car length distance between us, wait as long as it takes to sing one round of I know a song that will get on your nerves and then pass at high speed, leaving at most a metre between us side by side more or less regardless of making an informed safety assessment.
If the average French driver (admittedly self-concluded) can deal with passing cyclists sensibly and safely, why shouldn't we expect professional drivers on our roads to employ the same level of quality driving? If they can't do that, they shouldn't be driving. So yeah, an environment where professional drivers are at very high risk of losing their job for unsafe driving should totally be encouraged.
The driver posted up thread didn't make a safe judgement by passing a cyclist on a corner he couldn't see around, with markings to indicate not to leave his lane and a cyclist ahead in a cycle lane that was clearly running out. If the cyclist had been going a bit quicker (which would be hard for the driver to judge), he would likely have ended up under the side of the bus. The driver would likely fail his driving test if he performed said manoeuvre during it. Therefore he hasn't met the base legal requirement of driving safely drive on British roads, non? He hasn't demonstrated he isn't legally capable of performing his job. He should have waited to pass until it was safe to do so. He took too much risk and requires sanction or removal of his licence.
I used to teach DT. If a child were to get badly injured by a tool whilst under my supervision, it would have been highly likely I could have lost my job, maybe lost my qualification to teach. At least suspended, pending investigation. Any small injuries would have to go through a rigorous process of investigation and I would have to call parents directly to apologise and explain what had happened, why and how I intended to ensure it wouldn't happen again. I was mostly exhausted from too much work and high levels of stress whilst doing this job, but was still expected to perform safe classroom practice day in and day out. Most public sector employees who deal directly with the public are under a similar level of scrutiny, pressure and employment risk. Surely we should hold professional drivers to the same level of scrutiny? There is record of their involvement with the general public causing life changing injury and death.
It is just luck that the cyclist was not injured.
Luck shouldn't have to come into it in these situations. He shouldn't have passed. If he hadn't the risk would have been eliminated.
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So... You're suggesting eating and drinking the entire way along the route non-stop?
I like your thinking.
I like you. -
Having just seen the input following your comment, it sounds definite rough stuff material. Fuck yes! Let's coax some others into it on Tuesday Souths before setting it in stone? Or farm track? (Baddum tsh)
Date and either route works for me.
Wokeness and steel workhorses are all I got.
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I'm sorry. :(
My arrangement is I get about 2 weeks worth of a big holiday with her and some long weekends.
About a week cycle adventuring on a long trip with pals and some long weekend camping cycles. She does similar length trips with pals or family that we try to overlap.
We hang out together. We hang out with pals. Everybody is happy.
I can highly recommend the arrangement!
Edit: Rob's responsonse was much funnier!
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I have 3.
Sometimes I take leave.
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Actually in reply to #113 . Downs Way trackbed to Brighton.
I'm not sure I understand the London Stone(?). Also not sure if either of my bikes are appropriate(?). Really don't get the lightweight wheel comment. Am I awake yet?
However... The 31st of July suits me just fine!
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Has this been resolved...?
It's summer. Just look outside! Let's plan a date for some fish and chips?
I'd be tempted to head to Ljubljana (really really nice city) via the Triglavski national park which looks amazing and is on my bucket list. Could probs fit in a ride around Lake Bled on the way.
Took a train between Munich and Ljubljana years ago and remember it fondly - wasn't cycling though and haven't cycled in the area much as I want to. Slovenia is cheap and feels a bit more like an adventure.
Edit: I got curious so drew it up roughly. I think it would be a real good time, packed light with places booked to stay along the way. Do some street view in Triglavski - it's incredible.
https://ridewithgps.com/routes/30282150