Silly cyclists, not silly driver

Would now be a good time to propose "Road user bingo"

- Cyclist with headphones
- Van driver reading paper at lights
- Car stopped in "cycle zone at lights"
- Boris Bike cyclist without a helmet
- Car driver on mobile phone
- Motocyclist riding on wrong side of road
- Bus stopped with rear end sticking into middle of road
- Pedestrian crossing in middle of road
- Van failing to stop at pedestrian crossing
- Pedestrian crossing on "red man"

There are losts more, but this would be my starter for 10.

Into each and everyone of our lives comes a cyclist, pedestrian, motorcyclist, truck driver, car driver, bus driver, unicyclist, quad rider, scooterist etc etc that behaves in a bad way. No one is immune from bad behaviour and no group can be singled out as being the worst.

Human nature is such that there is a percentage of people who will always be t*ats either by choice or by accident.

Relax, take it easy and enjoy life.

Can we add "Unicyclist" to the road user bingo. I've seen quad bikes on the roads, and on Brockley Rise roller skaters wearing hoods and headphones. But a unicyclist.....

There is a regular road unicyclist around the Pimlico/Vauxhall area

Michael - I suspect that Silly Cyclist, if he drives, drives in the same inconsiderate manner that he cycles so he is highly likely to be a Silly Driver too!

Can we add to the bingo list

Car/van/HGV/bus overtaking cyclist at speed and then cutting them up on a left turn without bothering to indicate

Cyclists (going straight ahead) cycling up the inside of traffic indicating left - truly suicidal behaviour...

I'd like to add to the bingo list drivers in the left lane turning right without indicating (outside WHSmith)

In addition to car driver on mobile phone we need a special section for browsing the internet/texting while driving through red lights on a pedestrian crossing

And 'cyclist entering main carriageway from a side road without slowing, stopping or looking'

A challenging one: 'Addison Lee driver driving considerately'.

Michael, both lanes outside WH Smith are for turning right (check the arrows painted on the road). It is the road that turns, not the road user (if that makes sense), so indicating is not required (imho).

Tom

I turn right from the LH side outside WH Smith and had some idiot take exception to this by lowering their window and letting rip with a foul mouth rant. I dont mind but my 3 year old and 6 year old did. He even stopped in the middle of the road to remonstrate.

I said "Sir, please pull to the side of the road in a safe manner so we can discuss this". He, thinking I was in HM service, then looked very meek and appologised. I pointed out it was allowed and that he should take more care.

He left.

The arrows on the junction show that the left lane is for straight on and right turns. I often use this lane but I always indicate. It is certainly best to indicate, even if it is not required by law (and I think it is).

Either way, I would point out that some of the other bingo terms are not illegal including pedestrian crossing on "red man" (I checked that one this morning to be sure).

Applespider: Idiot cyclists I despise. Proper cyclists who argue that we can't despise the idiots because they're a tiny minority/car drivers can be idiots/bad things happen/a near miss happened in Borough/pavement cycling is OK if you do it carefully etc etc I despise almost as much. The remainder, who I would call normal cyclists, I entirely respect.

I used to cycle regularly in London at all hours, including the rush hour, with no traffic lights at roundabouts and no cycle lanes (or none I remember). I read Richard's Bicycle Book and followed his advice. Two accidents, no injuries, both my own fault. Glad I never needed his amazing advice on dog-killing (cut from later editions).

It seems to me, however, that the proportion of normal cyclists has diminished a lot over the last ten years, and I suspect it will diminish further if nothing is done - and I see nothing being done. On the contrary, it looks set to get worse. I see reports of councils considering allowing cyclists to go the wrong way up one-way streets, and even changing the law so that any car-bike accident is automatically the driver's fault. Mad.

There's a very clear demographic and cultural shift taking place, and for pedestrians it's for the worse. From our point of view, an increasing proportion of cyclists are selfish, churlish, foul-mouthed and dangerous. I'm anti them, and I'm anti their apologists. But not the rest. Why would I be? I assume from your post that you are in the third group - if so, I'm glad of it.

You are quite right to differentiate, hillsideresident. Your adjectives can be made redundant if we can create the right nouns.

Maybe it is time for a definitive kinda defining type of definition sorta exercise around the term “Cyclist”.

Here is my opening gambit:

Cyclist [sahy-klist] noun. – One who rides a bicycle legally.

Cryclist (from criminal + cyclist) [kris-see-list] noun. – One who aspires to be a cyclist.

(Crcylist is my humble portmanteau for the Oxford English Dictionary wordsmiths to consider.)

Robin Orton - you have permission to open fire on me!

That's a great idea, Cellar Door.

I would put myself as a 'normal cyclist' who moans regularly about idiot cyclists bombing along without lights at night while on all black bikes and in all black clothing in addition to RLJers. It is just frustrating when you mention that you cycle to work and the first thing anyone asks is if you jump red lights and use the pavement. It's a bit like if I asked any driver I meet if they regularly drink drive.

The one-way road is an interesting one. It's not all one-way streets but where the roads are wide enough and it's signposted so that all parties are aware. I don't see that as diminishing standards. There are a lot of road layouts with excessive one-way systems that it's hard as a cyclist to negotiate. Allowing some one-way streets to be bi-directional can stop accidents as it allows cyclist to legally avoid having to traverse junctions with multiple lanes and fast moving traffic.

Dog-killing? Yikes!?!?!

Diminishing levels of responsibility and courtesy aren't just cyclists though - I think that applies across all the idiot groups we mentioned earlier. The majority I see in the morning/evenings are law-abiding and sensible so hopefully the proportion of idiots isn't growing exponentiall. And some stuff is being done - there are quite regular police 'traps' in the City and along CS7/8 to catch RLJers and fine them. Of course, it would be nice if they'd do the ASL jumpers too but I suppose you can't have everything!

Road Bingo
I've spotted the unicyclist a few times near Brixton.

I'll add in
'ninja cyclists' - all in black, no lights or reflectives (doh!)
iPod zombie pedestrians stepping out into the road without looking
Pedestrians who start crossing as the traffic lights turn green but instead of stepping back onto the pavement, dance their way across the junction muttering apologies as the cars rev
Drivers blocking pedestrian crossing and/or yellow grid boxes

And to have some nice ones
Drivers giving lots of room when they pass
Cyclists stopping at zebras at the right time
Dog walkers who call their dogs to them when a cyclist is approaching

CD: I like the thinking behind joining "criminal" and "cyclist" - but perhaps "psycholist"?

AS: The dog thing came about because in the more remote parts of the US you can get Ridgebacks and other big dogs protecting farms etc, and if you get attacked by one of those you need to be able to protect yourself. Graphic stuff! But there was such an outcry that it was cut from future editions. Don't think it should have been.

Perhaps, hillsideresident? PERHAPS?! I say DEFINITELY! Psycholist is my favourite.

I'm so glad I wrote on here to ask others to help refine the term Cyclist.

That has got me chuckling away now. I can't wait to use it in a sentence. I've just written it down and shown one of my friends here and we both agree that it is top class.

Hillsideresident, thank you for introducing me to psycholist!

Applespider,

I very much like your list of the nice ones.

I'd like to add in those road users of all hues that make good eye contact with each other.

Especially at tricky spots like the Elephant and Castle gyratory and the one way system around Wellington Arch at Hyde Park Corner.

For myself, I'm ever so grateful to those drivers who observe me, especially when it is sometimes dark and rainy, and I'm coming from Park Lane into that big one way system at Hyde Park Corner and indicating to move to the right to then position myself so that I can exit for Constitution Hill (next to Buckingham Palace). It's a tricky thing on a bicycle as you need to be like Regan (Linda Blair) from The Exorcist and have your head spinning 360 degrees, especially on the lookout for any last minute decisions of others to leave the system and exit towards Piccadilly, all the while you have your right arm indicating and only holding onto the handle bars to steer with the other hand. It can be quite the adrenalin rush once in a while.

It is a spot where it pays for everyone to have high level focus. Never helped when someone is speeding through in a high spec sports car, not indicating as they move lanes, mobile phone stuck to their ear while smoking a cigarette, music blaring and looking at themself in their rearview mirror and then exiting toward Knightsbridge as they drop the car down a gear to approach the speed of sound.

Making good eye contact with other road users, as I’m pedalling towards my exit down Constitution Hill, I almost always get a friendly wave through so that I feel comfortable that they are conscious of me. It is only then that I can relax. And the person who has waved me through then acts (well their vehicle does) like a Guardian Angel because they are shielding me from the traffic from behind.

Friends sometimes have their jaws drop when I say that I ride through that part of London. I like it because for one brief moment in my day I'm acutely aware of the present moment. That doesn't happen too often, I'll tell you.

I'm glad you like it, CD!!

I love psycholist although it's so cool sounding that it might encourage idiots to aspire to be one which would defeat the purpose.

The eye-contact one is a great point - particularly on tough junctions or gyratories. The other key thing is to 'own' your lane so that you don't end up marginalised. My only problem with hand signals when steering is when something happens suddenly up ahead which requires strong braking. It's one of the few times that I think an indicator light would be useful!

I do believe that if you cycle considerately - making eye contact and raising a hand if a driver 'helps' you by creating a gap for you or waiting if you're coming through a narrow street - that most drivers are courteous in return. It is really just the potential 'SMIDSY's that you need to have that Exorcist head on for.

Bad Bingo addition
Slow cyclists who you've overtaken who then filter forward of the ASL at the next set of lights so you have to overtake them all over again.

Question for the drivers and pedestrians out there now that we're approaching dark commutes. Do you prefer flashing or solid lights on approaching bikes - and does it vary front/back? Some say that 'flashing' helps them identify that it's a cyclist as opposed to a slow-moving UFO but others that they can't judge distance with a 'flasher' so solid is preferable.

If you think Hyde Park Corner's fun now, does anyone remember it before they put the traffic lights in? It's a picnic now by comparison!

Well, I was going to suggest 'cyclopath' (as in 'psychopath') but bow to 'psycholist'