TRAFFIC HAZARDS

You are riding towards a traffic junction at about 35kph, perhaps only 75m away and you are passed by a car , then it brakes and pulls to the curb , the door quickly swings open so someone can get out but had you carried on in a straight line you would have either been doored or hit the alighting passenger ! So who would be at fault here , and how would the Polizei view the result particularly with no common language to explain exactly what had taken place ? Usually the Polizei side with the driver don’t they!


Hammering along the road you are passed by a car and it passes just in front of you , moves to the right onto the white line then moves back into the centre of the carriageway / traffic lane to continue on it’s journey . What sort of a point do they think they are making by this behaviour , personally I think they may have been drinking and don’t you wish there was a Cop around to check them over ?


You are in a large roundabout trying to hold your speed for the far exit and not hold up following traffic and a large HGV pulls into the roundabout with a “ size is might attitude” causing you to have to avoid being the “ meat in the sandwich “. Conversely as you are rounding a roundabout a car drives into the road in front of you without even looking , thinking that there is time for them to be out of your way , having misjudged your speed . Suddenly they look at you with a " What are you doing there " attitude , "why are you there " ?

You are riding down the road tailgating traffic and leaving about 10m for safety’s sake and a car pulls alongside you and THEN decides to start moving towards the kerb with the attitude of you being smaller and smarter will brake/ slow down . Don’t they get upset when you rap on the window to remind them that you are still there ? Recently a people mover owned by a behinderten organisation did this to me ! We were both following a tractor at 40kph when the tractor moved left with the intention of going into a lane on the left so the van moved right so as not to slow down trying to force me out of the road onto the grass verge . Rapping on the window had no effect on the driver or passengers .


Approaching the roundabout you let some traffic through but take position to follow them with others queuing behind you through the roundabout , then having moved towards the curb after exiting the roundabout , the following car steps on the gas to the extent they narrowly avoid shunting the car you were 10m behind at that time .


Truck / HGV starts passing you on the straight road and then someone coming the other way starts to overtake causing the truck to forget you and in order to avoid a head on collision moves right towards the pavement whilst you are still alongside the trailer so as to hold their speed .


Truck passing you too lazy to signal overtaking and thus the tailgating vehicle suddenly discovers you are there and blares the klaxon to tell all that they were asleep again !


Car passing with driver holding the mobile phone to the ear and pointing out to you they think you should be on the farm track that some call a cycle path . How can they drive with both hands occupied , doing anything other than holding the steering wheel ?



Have you ever gone into a roundabout , had a car come alongside you then leave on the same exit and get 300m down the road and they are still there ? When you are at the speed limit they then complain you are going too fast ? Could be they expect that the car has priority over the cyclist ? So often I have cars choose to overtake in the last metres before the roundabout and then they are wondering why you are still there several hundred metres later !



Driving a car I always come up behind a cyclist and signal overtaking or turn on the “ hazard lights “ so as to warn those following what is happening . If I can do this then 99% of the population driving should be able to exercise those digits called fingers to do likewise . Highway Codes exist in ALL countries and I am sure 95% of the time the requirements placed on Drivers towards cyclists are common and so whichever country you are passing through you can expect “ Fair Treatment ” whether this happens is usually down to the vehicle driver rather than the cyclist !


Certainly I can think of many more examples of sheer inconsiderate driving behaviour but would welcome some of you’re the readers observations !

STILL AWAITING COMMENTS !

TRAFFIC HAZARDS

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FACT that they exist poses danger to all whether on local roads or motorways ! Until the "Rail System" is made to work in Europe there will always be a need for these monstrosities . When you send a parcel/package by DHL , TNT or UPS do you really think that it travels through Europe by Air when the time between despatch and delivery allows the use of road ?

Next time you are on the Motorway late afternoon through to before 8am , see how many Semi trailor vehicles logoed " Air freight/24hr service " you can count ! Chances are there are other vehicles without logoing that are also carrying these small urgent packages ! We , the public created this need for " Speedy Service " and yet we are unable to face up to the consequences of our desire for instant gratification .

We know Christmas is coming so we leave shopping until the last minute and then demand delivery then and there or go hunt the " gift " elsewhere ! What can the store do other than promise " overnight delivery" and you might hang around whilst they make the arrangements to satisfy your needs . Same goes for so many other things in our lives these days .

Businesses also work on " Just in Time " inventories so there are a bunch of trucks on the road delivering those parts to keep whole factories from having to close down for want of parts that were carried as " Stock " in earlier times . Look around the Air Freight Terminals at Heathrow , Charles de Gaulle & Munich and you will see Boeing 747 Freight Aircraft and the larger Semi Trailors busy loading and unloading .

Ever followed a circus moving around the country , well some of them are 3 units truck , trailor and caravan hitched together . Occasionally you will see a farm tractor towing two or three trailors in the country . Outback Australia allows five or more trailors on specially designated routes but i am certain there are occasions where the rules are bent . To travel from Ford in Sth Melbourne to Geelong you will be on a motorway where you will find Rigs towing two large trailors with official approval .

Truck drivers need various classes of licenses and generally they are professional about their approach to their work but the average truck driver presents a less than appealing visage when seen around the outside of their rig . They dress for comfort and a collar and tie is required in the office but would rarely be considered by a driver who will sleep in their truck when away from home .

Considering the investment and a world demanding results , time is the enemy for the average truck driver . From the sign on through to the return of the vehicle to the depot everything conspires to delay their smooth progress through the day , road works , traffic jams and Police Controls . Leaving home in a less than good mood can add to the stress of the day .

Not being mind readers the truck driver has to contend with what he sees on the road and usually that is in front of him but occasionally viewable in their rear view mirrors . Noticed the sign " If you can't see the mirrors , i can't see you " ?

As a cyclist i daily go up the inside of vehicles regardless of size and make absolutely certain that i am aware of the dangers posed before entering an area of risk . Riding in both the UK and Europe i have to be attentive to risks from both sides of the vehicles i am passing and in city streets i am always watching for the darting pedestrian particularly those that step off the pavement without looking . Remember all to well a pedestrian woman in the Strand , London who bowled me off the bike , apologised , offered to pay the damages and when i arrived at the address given told me that i caused HER injury ! Luckily for me the expenses and skinning was slight otherwise the only winner would have been the lawyer .

With using " Sinitron " i bleed too easily from slight scrapes so have no wish to collect any further souvenirs as i pedal around each day . Drivers pay scant attention to cyclists since they regard them as an obstacle as they motor around playing with their " monile toys ", you know the phone , gps gadget , maps , paperwork , cigarettes and refreshments . All of these tasks are far more important than what is going on outside their vehicle not to mention the conversation they are having with their companions which could be absorbing and even heated on occasions .

Road signs , directional signs and road markings are also distracting and that cyclist they are alongside is so easily overlooked ! Nose past the cyclist so they are no longer part of the equation ! WRONG ! When following a cyclist you should never overtake UNLESS you can continue moving forward at the same speed needed in the manoevre . Why fill the cyclist's safety space so that they have to brake through YOUR NEGLIGENCE ?

So many motorists cannot stand the thought of being behind a cyclist , they might fall over or delay your progress ! Filling the space the cyclist reserves for safety is asking to create the problem you would hope to avoid .

WHEN APPROACHING junctions where HGV or other large vehicles frequently make Left Hand Turns could not the authorities mark the road 100m in advance in a manner that the vehicle and other road users will know that there is a danger posed at the junction by turning vehicles ? Some countries have a series of lines as you approach Ped. Crossings or Narrowing of a road ! Could not a similar road marking be applied at junctions where casualties have already occurred as an interim measure and then when European Road Authorities have had an opportunity to consider the success of this measure institute it as part of European Law ?

Cyclists are aware of road markings more than road signs and that is because of the state of the road surfaces they have to travel over . It would be hard to not see these indicators unless Vehicles are parked on top of them illegally !

Introducing Larger Semi Trailors in the UK is only going to add more damage to the roads as well as more danger to other road users . Should the need arise for their use then they should only be allowed on motorways and in Trading Estates or Warehousing Estates adjacent to Motorways ! Allowing these Larger vehicles to travel through villages or small towns is unacceptable since most of these drivers will be unfamiliar with local conditions and could cause chaos to an otherwise tranquil situation .

European Motorways such as the Autobahns have " U roads " to channel traffic off blocked motorways and i am sure this network was put together with thought rather than a cavalier attitude of " She'll be right mate "!
All Large vehicles should be able to access the outskirts of towns but even Sinbury or Tesco Semi Trailors delivering to their stores is causing difficulty to their local population .

Distressing to read of so many Cyclists killed through the negligence of the parties involved , be it the vehicle driver , road conditions or the unwitting actions of the cyclist . So many accidents are caused by road conditions causing the cyclist to swerve in to the path of a following vehicle or even to tumble from their bike ! Road Authorities should be notified of hazardous conditions and I attempted to do this after taking a tumble in the tunnel under Manchester Airport runway in August ! One tunnel well lighted had the same level for walkers and cyclists so it must have been the newer of the two ! Riding into the dark of the other I saw a cyclist approaching and turned towards the left to leave room for him to pass . As it was he had to scrape me off the pavement as the unseen kerb tumbled me off the bike into the wall at speed ! Luckily the helmet took the brunt of the force and the shoulder and hip the rest ! Had it been on the open road a following vehicle would not have had time to avoid an accident .

How many other cyclists experienced the same situation in that particular tunnel over the past years ?

ADDED comment to Roads.cc :

" One point overlooked in this Roads.cc post are the pictures of the trucks at the top of the page ! So easy at cursory glance to miss the difference in length but as Ciaran points out those two metres make a lot of difference in heavy traffic where the truck driver is challenged with a multitude of problems !

The pressure to introduce these trucks is because they exist in Europe and no doubt the operators want to utilise them in YOUR backyard given the opportunity . Well motorway is what they use 99% of their journey so that is what they should be allowed ! Given that there are areas only accesible by "A routes" then they should have a pilot vehicle to guide them to their destination IF it is a situaton where these monstrosities must use single lane routes rather than multi lane / dual carriageways .

Regardless of " BUY LOCAL " campaigns the Supermarket chains will continue to see " PROFIT " in importing goods to the detriment of ALL ! Frankly if Mr Tesco or Mr Aldi could find a way of closing these markets you can bet that they would do so to " SAVE YOU MONEY "!

This comment added to my blog ! "

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