Cyclists' Safety in the light of Burry and other's recent deaths - Merged Thread.

[pbp2007]

Now I'm getting confused, so is the M5 and M3 in Cpt legal or not?

The M5 is a freeway from Klipfontein Rd to where Prince George Drive starts.

The M3 is a freeway from Wynberg Hill to the end of the Blue Route.

[TNT1]

 

Cause you should quote the part where I made it perfectly clear I don't even own a bicycle

[King_Crispy]

No need to become personal.

You will just land yourself in *** and get warning points if someone reports you

[Tumbleweed]

I'm off to read the comments on News24 rather…

[TNT1]

I'm off to read the comments on News24 rather…

 

I read somewhere in the news they called you a journalist. They'll print anything these days...

[Tumbleweed]

I read somewhere in the news they called you a journalist. They'll print anything these days...

 

Can't trust the media…

[Wayne Potgieter]

This thread is depressing me already.

 

Is it BE:ER yet?

 

IKm gonna go check out the "drinking to harm thread..." those girls sound like they know how to party.

[SeaBee]

Back to the original issue of us being our own worst enemy... I was livid yesterday. Before leaving from Jonkers on the ride for Burry, we were explicitly asked (never mind that it's actually the law) to remain our side of the white lines. Need I go on as to how many idiots I saw cutting blind corners over solid white lines going down?!

 

Do people not realise the seriousness of exactly why we were up there?! It starts with yourself.

Edited January 7, 2013 by SeaBee

[Pappa Bear]

Answerin the OPs question: Cyclist, and all road users, will only follow the rules if they perceive that they are in danger.

[HappyMartin]

I like the logic. If the roadies in the cradle start to obey the law then a taxi driver in Shelly beach will suddenly start looking out for bicycles.

 

Let me know how that works out.

[Bianchisti]

.Few bits and pieces of info that sends warning bells to me.

 

“peak traffic”, “tailwind”, “downhill”

 

“+/- 50kph” (this bit is pure speculation)

 

I can’t believe anyone will do 50kph on a busy, open road approaching an intersection (at that speed even if you have right of way) with the presence of other road users and the associated risks. We probably have it all wrong! Time will tell when the facts appear in the court case.

Edited January 7, 2013 by Bianchisti

[Azonic]

Make lights compulsory!

 

And who is going to enforce that law? I'm thinking of the multitude of commuters. Isn't it a law to use a helmet when you ride? Have yet to see the average oke that comes out of the township with a helmet on.

[El Dodgius Bastardo]

You seem to have, a short attention span, a inability to spell and to understand what you read.

 

Please go and read my earlier posting defining different surfaced roads. Please read the WHOLE posting attentively and try to understand. Take breaks to rest if it becomes to much, then come back and tell us what you missed regarding freeways.

 

Not to be picky here, but it's "an inability to spell" and "if it becomes too much"

[TNT1]

And who is going to enforce that law? I'm thinking of the multitude of commuters. Isn't it a law to use a helmet when you ride? Have yet to see the average oke that comes out of the township with a helmet on.

 

What I want to know, is how many of these average commuters get killed a year. It's like we only ever hear of a "real" cyclist getting killed on the roads, but there sure are plenty of workers that use bicycles daily. And postmen. What's happening to them? And if they aren't being killed, then we should be learning from them? And if they are, we should be fighting for them just as much as for our own safety?

[flymango]

The number of cyclist I saw on highways over Dec/Jan was incredible - especially in the garden route

 

+1 on that. The amount of cyclists between Keurbooms and Knysna on the N2 was staggering. Not that they aren't allowed to be there, but with so much vehicle traffic in all those speed controlled zones, there are always idiots pushing up your tail and too many drivers giving in to that pressure and pulling over into the emergency lane. Recipe for disaster.

[Muddy]

Let me start out in saying I'm not starting this thread to start a huge debate (but it will). Everybody have their view and this is mine (and I have the hospital records to prove it).

 

Something that was said more than once during the Burry tragedy is that both cyclists and motorists must obey traffic laws. It does not imply guilt on anybody' part but does insinuate that both cyclist and motorist break the law while out on the roads, which is true. I saw these two letter that states the obvious - some cyclist have an attitude that breeds disregard with other road users.

 

http://www.beeld.com/MyBeeld/Briewe/Gee-arrogante-fietsryers-eie-pad-20130106

 

http://www.beeld.com/MyBeeld/Briewe/Sommige-ander-fietsryers-se-selfsug-bekommer-my-20130106

 

This is not really about the fact that you agree/disagree or whether you feel others also break the law, it's about common sense. How often have I seen people point out quickly that the other party also broke the law i.e. just as guilty etc. or argue that since you sometime ride 110 km/h in a 100 km/h zone you are just as guilty of breaking the law as the one who rode though a red light. While this might be true it changes nothing about perception. If we always apply the logic of we are all guilty it would mean that since you exceed the speed limit by 10 km/h I am now entitled to kill you, an extreme that illustrates the basic principle that 'wrongs' cannot be measured equally, you need to consider the consequences.

 

People by nature, are followers (monkey see, monkey do) and most will look for any excuse to do something because 'they' did it. Not very long ago we saw taxis starting to use stop streets as yield signs and eventually red traffic lights as well. People were outraged but now, a few years down the line look around you - you will see many shiny family sedans doing the exact same thing. One thing that has not changed though is the fact that we all scream about the lawlessness when that taxi kills a pedestrian but our screams is now somewhat mitigated by the fact that the finger now points both ways.

 

So what exactly am I trying to say here? It's not about being the perfect model citizen who can claim to have never broken the law, it's about applying common sense and think about those coming after you. Most people do not apply the logic to a situation that it deserves. Take the fact that a bicycle weighs ~10kg while a motor vehicle is a few tons have a huge bearing on the outcome of your decisions. If I (the cyclist) make a judgement error on the road worse case I will pay with my life, if I do the same with my car I could potential take another life. The average motorist do not think like that. Their thinking is more in the line of 'well if they can do it so can I'. More than once when I have confronted a motorist who turned in front of me their response has been 'you cyclists ride like you own the road', very rarely do I get a 'I'm sorry'. They will justify their wrongs by pointing out 'yours' even though you were in the right in that particular case. The sad thing is the 'your' wrongs are not really yours but that of the person whose path they crossed days before. So the animosity build up against other arrogant road users are being taken out on me. Although you arrived home save you may have just killed somebody else by telling the angry motorist to F himself or flipping him the bird because he shouted at you to get out the middle of the road. Common sense really. If you don't care about yourself cool but please consider others. You loose a few seconds by stopping at an intersection and you can practice your sprints to make up those seconds.

 

So fourietjie maybe consider that my child might cross the path of the same road users that you alienated before you threaten to 'moer' me for asking you, and your buddies to stop at a red light next time.

 

PS. I'm not perfect and probably break the letter of the law at least once a day. I don't flaunt it or think it is my right.