Why do people cycle on busy roads?

[RocknRolla]

For my commute, that I sometimes do, i have to get from Honeydew to Close to Rosebank (a bit south of rosebank)

 

It's 20kms taking the shortest route. The shortest route includes some major roads, none classified as freeways.

Some of the roads also meanders throgh the burbs, but traffic being what it is, even the roads in the burbs get quite busy. Add in an accident on a major route, and the burbs become almost unridable due to impatient drivers in the oncoming lane, unpredictable U-turns etc.

 

So it's a bit of a Catch22.

 

while i'm rambling...

 

I have on one occasion, while i still owned a motorcycle traveled on the N1 ( Before Sanral installed their scrap metal arrangements) from Weltevreden Park to Pretoria east at 5 am on a saturday morning. I encountered 5 vehicle roll-overs/vehicles that left the freeway in the 45 minutes it took me to reach my destination. Each of these the occupants were visibly intoxicated.

 

In our area, quite densely populated, there are single vehicle accidents through residence walls almost every weekend.

 

My point is, no matter which route you may take, you are at risk of being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

[Hennie VR]

To be honest. Driver's behavior towards cyclist does not change weather your on a busy road or a quiet back road. Most of them still think you don't belong there and they will scare you off by passing as close as possible.

 

And there's simply no "quiet" open roads for road cyclists to ride anymore. I train a lot in the Pretoria East region. Lynnwood road is busy most of the day until you get to Boschkop road. These roads are used a lot by cyclists and they are good training areas but they have become very busy lately with a lot of trucking companies buying property to park their vehicles in the area. With no yellow lane it has become very dangerous to use these roads and the drivers become more impatient every day but I simply cannot drive 50+km to get somewhere were I can train.

[Spoke101]

Today coming down from Pinetown, +/- 12:30pm there was a female in Lotto cycyling gear behind her pace car on the M13 near the N3 split to Durban.The car had Limpopo plates on and the hatch was open. Unfortunately no team branding on the car. 

She would have been in the centre lane at some stage before the split.

 

Cars doing 100kph.... don't know how that will work when she hits the hills.

 

And we wonder why motorists see us as a menace.

 

They will be pre riding the SA Champs route.

 

We did the same thing but at 5am on a Sunday morning with a front and rear vehicle and we were done by 6:30am. 12pm is just plain crazy.

[jimmycool]

I guess then that we are really lucky in the Howick area. We have a choice of several routes that are just perfect for cycling. I have at times done a 2 hour ride and seen no more than 5 cars.

[Hairy]

1. don't cycle like a chops

2. don't drive cars like chops

3. world peace will follow

[Hairy]

Oh, in this week alone I have had three cars fly through red lights and nearly taking me out .....

[Lurch the stalker]

I guess then that we are really lucky in the Howick area. We have a choice of several routes that are just perfect for cycling. I have at times done a 2 hour ride and seen no more than 5 cars.

 

I wouldn't be telling people that if I was you, we'll all be moving there at this rate

 

Oh, in this week alone I have had three cars fly through red lights and nearly taking me out .....

 

... and here I thought it was only me this happened to. Not last weekend but the one before I even had the idiot have the audacity to hoot at me as he was going through the red light.

[RocknRolla]

I wouldn't be telling people that if I was you, we'll all be moving there at this rate

 

 

... and here I thought it was only me this happened to. Not last weekend but the one before I even had the idiot have the audacity to hoot at me as he was going through the red light.

 

The new thing is, if you proceed to stop on amber, that the farkers actually overtake to go over the red.

[jimmycool]

The new thing is, if you proceed to stop on amber, that the farkers actually overtake to go over the red.

Yup. I see that all the time.

Recently I have noticed, sometimes when I do happen to squeak through the amber light and then think to myself that I had cut it a bit fine I look in my mirror and see that the car behind me has also gone through the now red light and then even the taxi behind that car has also gone through the light which has now been red for quite some time. What can one do other than shake ones head and just hope and pray that you are not crossing the intersection in the other direction when the next idiot does the same thing.

[Lurch the stalker]

The new thing is, if you proceed to stop on amber, that the farkers actually overtake to go over the red.

Yup. I see that all the time.

Recently I have noticed, sometimes when I do happen to squeak through the amber light and then think to myself that I had cut it a bit fine I look in my mirror and see that the car behind me has also gone through the now red light and then even the taxi behind that car has also gone through the light which has now been red for quite some time. What can one do other than shake ones head and just hope and pray that you are not crossing the intersection in the other direction when the next idiot does the same thing.

 

My comment was probably a bit unclear, but that is what happened to me, I was coming from the side that had the green light and this genius rolled through the red and hooted at me.

[jimmycool]

My comment was probably a bit unclear, but that is what happened to me, I was coming from the side that had the green light and this genius rolled through the red and hooted at me.

Aha. Just goes to show that you have to have eyes in every side of your head. And also to remember that every car on the road is being "driven" by an idiot.

[RocknRolla]

makes my blood boil.

 

 

. What can one do other than shake ones head and just hope and pray that you are not crossing the intersection in the other direction when the next idiot does the same thing.

 

Tell you what I do, when the light changes green for me, give it another couple of seconds, checking both directions again before crossing an intersection.

 

Both in car, and on bicycle.

[Edition 507]

It is difficult to ride any meaningful distance in cities without having to use busy roads and increased population density has contributed to roads getting busier and busier. I remember many years back what a super training road HP was and how many cyclist were using it, particularly around 'Argus' time. I won't go near it on a bike anymore.

[Frosty]

The new thing is, if you proceed to stop on amber, that the farkers actually overtake to go over the red.

Today, on Hendrick Potgieter, the lights turn amber, cars accelerate to get through. Problem comes for the cars wanting to turn right across the main road - when do they go?

 

Fast lane traffic eventually stops, middle lane too so car turning starts to cross and subsequently hits the rear end of the car speeding through the red light (in the slow lane).

 

No injuries, no deaths - luckily. Just two people having to claim from insurance when either/both could have avoided it.

 

Then, on Sunday morning, on the corner of Barry Marais and the R103, a car and taxi collide head-on... again caused by someone deciding an amber light/red light is a reason to accelerate.

 

3 fatalities, 18 injured.

Road closed for ER24 helicopter to land. Families left without a father, mother, sibling, child, etc., all because they couldn't wait 1 minute - lights change anywhere between 20-40, sometimes 60 seconds).

 

Road rage, inconsiderate and negligent behaviour from drivers in general is a big concern across the country.

 

I'm a cyclist, a pedestrian, driver and passenger and the risk is there every day irrespective of the mode of transport I choose. My wife pleads with me to not go riding, yet we both witness accident scenes where innocent people are in the right place at the wrong time.

 

Thankfully the south of Joburg appears to be less busy than main roads of the various main centres, but doesn't mean it won't happen.

[Brickleberry]

There is also not always back roads to get places, like if one wants to go to the Cradle from Randburg (as an example) - the road I think most people use is Cedar of which there isnt really a back road option (as far as I know).

 

Then I guess there is Malibongwe, Beyers Naude, Hendrik Potgieter and Ontdekkers - non of which are good 'alternatives'...

 

What I do not get is when there is a road with double lanes (for traffic both ways) and the cars INSIST on riding in the lane closest to the cyclist even though there isnt another car within a 2km front or back or in the furthest lane - what's up with that? Been hooted at multiple times for this - then I just think "use the other damn lane"

Unfortunately we can't fight with them there. The keep left pass right rule applies. So they should be in the left lane

[RocknRolla]

I have been fortunate not to have witnessed such accidents. I have seen some close calls because of the exact reason you are stating gerald.

 

The other major factor is, on multiphase intersections, people are ignoring the red light with the arrow indicating to stop if waiting to turn left or right..these are put into place on major, multi lane intersections where visibility is not great..

The red light gets a flat ignore, and people seem tomdo their own thing.

Multiple times i get hooted at, sworn at and abused because I dare stop.

In stead of gettin angry ( i have a very low tolerance for stupidity in general, made worse by being subjected to idiots behind the wheels of cars, i have been in a roadrage incident and have subsequently changed my ways) i smile, wave and the more upset they get, the funnier i think it is.