Jumping lights

[Vetplant]

Red lights are for practising track stands

Another skill set I have acquired is the ability to stop on dime, to be able to rest the side of my Mtb handlebar against the street sign or traffic light, thus no reason to unclip or to focus on not falling over. Can relax and enjoy the view.

[J∆kk∆ls]

Cyclists get a €100 fine for skipping a red light if caught! 

[RocknRolla]

Just ride around Brackenfell on a weekend morning. Plenty of traffic light poles lying around from the previous night.

 

Here too mate. On the other hand, here's one for general safety consideration.

 

My Wife decided to rather take the car to her morning group ride meeting point, due to the fact that it was saturday morning 6am, and the past incidents of drunk drivers ploughing into cyclists.

[RocknRolla]

From a legal standpoint, we are not permitted to ride over a red traffic light, or stop street as mentioned earlier.

I understand it is legal in more first world cycling progressive countries, but we are not one of those.

For those laws to have changed, the cyclists lobbied their various governmental representatives to get the law changed.

I suggest the same, rather than taking the law into one's own hands and deciding what is relevant from a personal inconvenience standpoint (like taxi drivers and other motorists of low intelligence do)

[Leon O]

Lived in Aus for 2 years - my experience there is that people simply do no speed, do not drive aggresively, do not drive in emergency lanes, do not jump lights, and don't even think about driving after a few drinks - it's astonishing how well their roads work. But then I think that has quite a bit to do with how hard it is to get your drivers and how easy it is to lose it (points system).

 

Also used to commute an hour to and from work every day for about a year - then got a job 4km from home. My mood instantly lifted, I drove better and less aggresively. Pretty much exactly your experience. Traffic can really screw with you - and you don't even realise how badly...

 

Here in the Cape (Somerset West) I also see motorists running reds often - especially in the evenings. The road I stay on is an 80 zone - but heaven forbid you travel anything less than 120 in the right lane - you will get death stares, hooters, and driven on top of. It's ridiculous - if traffic officers just sat on that road and trapped and fined they would make a killing! But I guess that's the other problem - in ZA there is no consequence to any action, you don't get fined, and even if you do - you can just ignore it and eventually the problem goes away.

 

As for cyclists, been running red lights for as long as I can remember, and will continue to do so. It's not right, but nothing new, and I doubt it will change any time soon...

 

 

We encountered the same thing visiting the kids in Aus. And pedestrians are respected, but then, pedestrians also respect the lights at crossings! My daughter gave me a lecture before we took the first drive as passengers! Heads up to them. But then, the same thing found in Poland, where roads are crossed ONLY at the traffic crossings or pedestrian crossing!

[ChrisF]

From a legal standpoint, we are not permitted to ride over a red traffic light, or stop street as mentioned earlier.

I understand it is legal in more first world cycling progressive countries, but we are not one of those.

For those laws to have changed, the cyclists lobbied their various governmental representatives to get the law changed.

I suggest the same, rather than taking the law into one's own hands and deciding what is relevant from a personal inconvenience standpoint (like taxi drivers and other motorists of low intelligence do)

 

Would be nice if PPA and\or CSA at least raised this issue to the authorities.

[porqui]

coming on a cycling forum to whine about other cyclists is also not cool ( not sure how being judgy is good but ok)...but this is bikehub.co.za ..its full of this stuff 

 

Which forum would you suggest we go to?

 

I think there needs to be some sort of law on us cyclists on the roads.

Even if we have to enforce it upon ourselves.

 

 

See below.

Start by obeying them. (in any form of transport)

 

As cyclists we are also governed by the National Road Traffic Act (Act 93:1996). The Western Cape has an additional by-law to include the 1m rule which is also under consideration for inclusion into the National Act.

 

 

Without law enforcement no rule will ever work.

 

The nice thing about the 1m rule being included in the Nat. Act is that then it may be 1.5m (yep) which would override the WC bylaw.

[Pure Savage]

Whole heartedly agree cyclists should obey all road rules at all times unless to avoid death.

 

Do not confuse the jumping of red lights by cyclists as cyclists the forfeiting respect from motorists.

 

Regardless of any argument, motorists perception of cyclists does not have any relation to cyclist safety. Last week the cyclist killed by the driver had nothing to do with drivers perception of cyclists.

 

Be very careful of victim blaming.

[Patchelicious]

Whole heartedly agree cyclists should obey all road rules at all times unless to avoid death.

 

Do not confuse the jumping of red lights by cyclists as cyclists the forfeiting respect from motorists.

 

Regardless of any argument, motorists perception of cyclists does not have any relation to cyclist safety. Last week the cyclist killed by the driver had nothing to do with drivers perception of cyclists.

 

Be very careful of victim blaming.

The driver who brake checked that Hubbers dad into hospital in the Cradle, and the driver who tried to run me over a few weeks back, did so purely because of their perception that cyclists don’t belong on the roads.

 

Careful of using selective cases to make general statements.

 

Cyclists have an imagine problem, and this imagine problem does have direct effect on drivers attitudes towards our safety.

[Chingy182]

Would be nice if PPA and\or CSA at least raised this issue to the authorities.

PPA Newsletter sent out yesterday:

This is where things currently stand...

 

Dear Members 

 

My condolences go out to the family of Lance Botha, who was tragically killed in a crash in Diep River on 29 September. We are also in touch with the family of Lynette Burger, who was hit by a taxi in Johannesburg recently. She has apparently been taken off the ventilator, which is encouraging, but less encouraging is the fact that the driver in Lynette’s crash is only being charged with negligent driving! Through his actions be put a person in a coma, attached to all kinds of life-supporting machines in hospital, but he was only deemed to be negligent. Spilling a cup of coffee over your laptop is negligent! 

 

The driver that crashed into Lance said he was driving while on medication! What does that mean? That it excuses his actions? 

 

By the way, 9 days after the death of Lance, SAPS have still not charged the driver! The ambulance took an hour to arrive and SAPS took even longer to get to the scene. It’s pathetic and tragic at the same time. 

 

Geoffrey Merrick, the driver that was found guilty of killing Greg Basson on Bottelary Road, is going on with his life while he waits for his appeal hearing. The crash happened in 2013! 

 

Drivers are exploiting every loophole to escape with a mere slap on the wrist and the criminal justice system seems to make it easy for them to do so. 

 

Are there any PPA members out there that are willing to assist with some pro-bono legal advice and assistance? It would really help us in those first days after a crash, giving the family the right advice & guidance, asking the right questions of the authorities and guide us in how PPA can help in a meaningful way. I would really appreciate your help. 

[Pure Savage]

The driver who brake checked that Hubbers dad into hospital in the Cradle, and the driver who tried to run me over a few weeks back, did so purely because of their perception that cyclists don’t belong on the roads.

 

Careful of using selective cases to make general statements.

 

Cyclists have an imagine problem, and this imagine problem does have direct effect on drivers attitudes towards our safety.

Same could be said in the above situations, just 2 loonies. Durban killings, guy drunk out of his mind, camps bay hit and run drunk, botlery hills drunk driving, lizette taxi jumping red light.

 

SA drivers just have zero patience, if they could ram other cars off the road like they do to bikes people would.

 

Some people just hate waiting, they see legal bikes as a pest as well. Then what?

[Patchelicious]

Same could be said in the above situations, just 2 loonies. Durban killings, guy drunk out of his mind, camps bay hit and run drunk, botlery hills drunk driving, lizette taxi jumping red light.

 

SA drivers just have zero patience, if they could ram other cars off the road like they do to bikes people would.

 

Some people just hate waiting, they see legal bikes as a pest as well. Then what?

Of course that can be said too.

 

Ok let’s simplify it...

 

Do you think that many motorists have an opinion that cyclists are arrogant and inconsiderate road users?

[Pure Savage]

Of course that can be said too.

 

Ok let’s simplify it...

 

Do you think that many motorists have an opinion that cyclists are arrogant and inconsiderate road users?

Yes, simply by being on the road.

[Jewbacca]

Off topic... I saw the heading and thought 'oohhh, best lights for riding jumps at night!' 

 

This old chestnut.... Meh

 

I have read nothing but will predict how it goes..

 

Patch and Savage disagree on a technicality. The older statesmen claim absolute innocence. Some guys say they do but only if... these guys get flamed.

 

People start debating a 'legal' vs 'Moral' vs 'interpretation' and this goes off on multiple tangents that have little to no relevance to the original topic. DieselnDust comes along and calls people names.

 

The end

[RocknRolla]

Off topic... I saw the heading and thought 'oohhh, best lights for riding jumps at night!' 

 

This old chestnut.... Meh

 

I have read nothing but will predict how it goes..

 

Patch and Savage disagree on a technicality. The older statesmen claim absolute innocence. Some guys say they do but only if... these guys get flamed.

 

People start debating a 'legal' vs 'Moral' vs 'interpretation' and this goes off on multiple tangents that have little to no relevance to the original topic. DieselnDust comes along and calls people names.

 

A lot of weighing in from members on their viewpoint gets added in to drag the fred out another 3 pages. 

(Don't forget, repeatedly quoting lengthy posts making infinite scrolling real.)

 

The end

 

Fixed it for you...

[Pure Savage]

Off topic... I saw the heading and thought 'oohhh, best lights for riding jumps at night!'

 

This old chestnut.... Meh

 

I have read nothing but will predict how it goes..

 

Patch and Savage disagree on a technicality. The older statesmen claim absolute innocence. Some guys say they do but only if... these guys get flamed.

 

People start debating a 'legal' vs 'Moral' vs 'interpretation' and this goes off on multiple tangents that have little to no relevance to the original topic. DieselnDust comes along and calls people names.

 

The end

Spot on.

 

I just don’t want people saying, look at all these deaths, this is due to how cyclists behave. Zero correlation.