“If there was ever a clear indication to turn around, go home & climb back into bed”: Barmy bike lane markings leave cyclists scratching their heads; Roglič sets sights to beat Vingegaard and Pogačar at Tour de France + more on the live blog

Talk TV and Daily Mail sums it up really 🙄

mitsky wrote:

And in other news...

"Road accidents still linked to deprivation, TfL tool shows"

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-67936442

That's really sad. The quote from the councillor at the end is good to read though

Rezina Chowdhury from Lambeth Council said: "Road danger is a social justice issue, and we are past the point where it's enough to just ask motorists to slow down or pedestrians to look both ways when crossing a road.

"It is about making sure in the future streets are designed with road safety built in, making them more equal and less dominated by motor traffic."

ROOTminus1 wrote:

I think Southwark council would be best off charging the bike and scooter hire companies to install the spaces for people to dump their short-term rental vehicles. I'm all for boosting active travel but those companies seem a parasitic way to go about things.

Couldn't agree more, they've created a massive problem across the borough (in which I live) by introducing their business to the streets without making the necessary commitment to stop the pavements being littered with their machines and now council funds are being spent clearing up the mess they've made? That money should be going on bike hangars and cycle training, not on helping private companies get out of the hole that they've dug for themselves.

As smarter people have said use of this kind of bike / scooter hire by authorities (opinions vary about what some of the companies are doing...) is usually an attempt to compensate for inadequate surface public transport provision.

It's notable you see this in "developing world" cycling countries* but some years back places in NL started banning dockless (apparently a few are coming back now).  NL does have "last mile" cycle rental but the biggest scheme is national and organised by the railways e.g. intimately linked with public transport. (Of course they have all kinds of stuff there including widespread "cycling as a service" e.g. Swapfiets, VanMoof before it went bust etc.)

* The UK, and ... actually, pretty much everywhere except for NL and some spots in Scandinavia and northern Belgium.

Because too many people in local government think that cyclists are just p1$$ing around on toys instead of being "proper" road users.

Thinking laterally, perhaps planners and designers were thinking "we're tired of 'driver T-bones bike' stories - let's have some 'cyclists take each other out'...

Lights at night, whatever in the day. 

If someone can't see you in normal clothes in daytime, they aren't going to see you in high vis clothes because they aren't looking. Lights are orders of magnitude more visible than any clothing choice at night. 

I tend to run with lights during the day also.  I find when I am driving I often see a cyclist's lights (especially flashing types) before picking up the cyclist.

Have taken to doing the same myself since getting T-Boned when negotiating a roundabout.  Driver was looking in my direction the whole time but first words afterwards was the classic "didn't see you".  To be fair she seemed pretty genuine & was very shaken.  Totally her fault (I had a nice bright jersey on & conditions were perfect, great visibility etc) but I did end up asking myself if there was anything else I could do to mean next time I don't end up in a heap of broken bones & written off bike.  

So I run a flashing (well, pulsing) front light during the day now.  Still get drivers pulling out in front of me - when they aren't looking you've got no chance whatever you are wearing or whatever lights you run - but at least I've got half a chance when the driver's brain is only actively looking for car shaped objects - they might at least clock that "something" unexpected is there. 

This morning, about a quarter past eight so it was dull but light, I was approaching a junction on my left.  I have one of those 'pulsing' front lights.  A car was driven up to the junction where it waited… until I was practically in front of it and the driver decided to pull out, forcing me to slam on my brakes to avoid hitting his car. Lights only work if the driver is paying attention.

That's kind of what I said.....

Clem Fandango wrote:

That's kind of what I said.....

I know  I was providing further anecdotal support.

No they were probably perfectly aware of your presence, but knew you posed absolutely no risk to them and that if you hadn't slammed on your brakes it's you who will be injured.

Same with pedestrians, they will quite happily step in front of me, knowing that I will have to avoid them, but would consider stepping in front of a car, van, lorry or bus would be absolute madness.

I agree. Although I do have reflective points on my clothing I tend to run flashing lights in daytime, solid plus flashing at night. Front and back. The issue I have is being blinded by car headlights, particularly when there isn't street lighting

Patrick9-32 wrote:

Lights at night, whatever in the day. 

If someone can't see you in normal clothes in daytime, they aren't going to see you in high vis clothes because they aren't looking. Lights are orders of magnitude more visible than any clothing choice at night. 

Some (doesn't need to be loads) of reflectives at night is a good idea too (either on you or on the bike).

Patrick9-32 wrote:

If someone can't see you in normal clothes in daytime, they aren't going to see you in high vis clothes because they aren't looking.

It's not that simple - not everyone is simply "not looking". Eyesight acuity, knowledge, experience, perception and reaction times all vary. There are degrees of distraction and inattention and the conditions vary hugely.

Navigating the highway and environment that surrounds it is complex, it would be foolish to use one simple label for not being seen. Most drivers will see you but you surely want everyone to see you. Standing out from your surroundings is an attempt at self-preservation.

In the dark I find that the more vehicles there are the harder it is to see past the LED headlights and super-bright brake lights so riding on busy roads with junctions etc warrants even greater vigilance. Road positioning is important. Reflectives, especially moving ones, catch the eye.

IanMSpencer wrote:

For example, black is pretty much Hi-Viz for snowy conditions. Green-based Hi-Viz fails in the spring countryside.

Black is no use against a gritted road or dark surface, under a bridge or tree cover or in dim/dull conditions like we get in early morning and late afternoon in winter. There's likely far more black in a snowy scene than you might think.

Green doesn't stand out from anything (except if it's a hi-viz-like 'lime' green) and can act like camouflage on country roads when beside hedges, even without much foliage. Been there, done that, won't do it again!

IanMSpencer wrote:

So, pretty much impossible to legislate for, I would say. How do you resolve it to your own satisfaction?

HSE Factsheet on Hi Vis

Quote:

To be effective HV clothing should be of a colour that will allow the wearer to stand out against the ambient background found in the working environment. In practice the best colours for this purpose are likely to be day-glo, or fluorescent yellow. Where necessary the clothing should also incorporate retroreflective material to make the wearer visible when seen in headlights in poor lighting conditions or during darkness. This may require reflective strips at or below waist level on waistcoats or jackets, or strips on trousers.

You can get Hi Vis clothing in 2 colours, it would be very unlikely for both colours to blend in to the background at the same time.

Unless you were riding here.

IanMSpencer wrote:

Bringing this forward based on a late comment on yesterday's blog.

For the cycling world, what is the definition of Hi-Viz? It gets bandied about as The Final Solution but what is the clothing solution that makes a cyclist most visibile, and how does it change by conditions?

For example, black is pretty much Hi-Viz for snowy conditions. Green-based Hi-Viz fails in the spring countryside. Black is a good contrast against the typical light grey of a road, but poor in the wet. Reflective is good at night but pretty much irrelevant in day time.

I'm a believer in being seen, so I like my club colours (blue white and red) and also quite like my DHB orange as a good contrast for the rides I do (which is orange orange, not some dayglo Hi-Viz orange material).

So, pretty much impossible to legislate for, I would say. How do you resolve it to your own satisfaction?

Broughton?

I like to wear anything bright and contrasting so I typically go with bright red or blue too.