Guy that hit Cyclists - Oudshoorn out on R500 bail

[Joe Low]

............. go ahead and publicly lambast me but thats my opinion............

 

Ok, your non-use of paragraphs sucks and makes you look unstable.

 

Otherwise fine

 

 

[Guest Big H]

He's a prisoner of his circumstances right now.  That has to be considered a small part of his punishment.

 

I am not defending him as it is the most awful accident I have heard of in a while but let's not forget the word accident. 

 

Collision in the right word, not acident. Sunrise is 06h23 according to Garmin. Collision happened at 06h05, no sun at all yet. Collision happened near a T-junction. Normally solid lines before and after T-junction. It also appears he has a small vibratory roller used in road construction on the bakkie. These things can weigh up to 1,9 tons. I think the odds are stacked against him..... poor man.

[gummibear]

Let him enjoy his last days before visiting Bubba in the Tronk!

 

He won't go to prison....at best he will get a fine.The prisons are to full so it is last resort.

 

I investigated a case  a while back where 8 people were killed 4 in each car and the one driver was 3x over the legal alcohol  limit .

 

He only paid a fine of R15000 and he killed 8 people.

[Lucky Luke.]

the best thing that could happen to this countries roads right now is

this headline tomorrow  " Soweto dicers and mass cyclist killer get

life" three people made an example of. and their tally still doesnt

match even half of the one days death toll.

 

I agree. The law is there for the greater good and in the future there will only be more cyclists on the road. Saying the guy probably feels *** enough about causing the death of 4 people is frankly just fcuking stupid. That kind of logic deserves a darwin award.

 

[Spark]

Sunrise is not first light. If the driver of the bakkie couldn't see them , they were not visible. That is not his mistake. Did they have lights on their bikes, or reflective clothing?

That road is narrow and does not have a shoulder. Even if you ride in a single file , it is still dangerous on the Oudtshoorn- Calitzdorp road. I think at was a terrible accident and we should not judge him. After all, none of us knew what really happened.

Spark2010-03-09 12:25:10

[Lucky Luke.]

No, that is not an accurate report of what happened. The driver has stated he was blinded by the sun. Why would he say that if there was no sun?

 

All over the country our roads are dangerous because there are cars and trucks that do not respect the right of way of cyclists or anticipate their presence on the road. There is a culture that says we do not belong there and ought to be taught a lesson for hogging the road. This sentiment is all over the web and in everyday South African conversations. If we accept this we might as well tell the drivers to go ahead and run us over.

 

In Europe there are many more cars and many many more cyclists on the road, yet their presence is accepted and the death toll is a fraction of what we have here. The bicycle is respected and used en-masse not only as sporting equipment, but as a valid road-going means of transportation. One that is far more beneficial for humans and the environment than a motor vehicle.

 

I don't understand the need to say this was a horrible accident and nothing more. That is surely not a logical response on this, the country's biggest cycling mouthpiece - yes The Hub must be the biggest cycling conversation in South Africa without a doubt. The most active and the biggest regular gathering of cyclists. Here we have the power to help ourselves. The Think Bike guys are keen to help us but it doesn't seem like many guys are taking them up on the offer.

 

I only ride on the road, 14 hours a week on average for much of the year and I have close calls regularly. And given the opportunity I always have a word with the driver concerned. I feel like people who accept the status quo deserve to be run over.

 

I do not accept it and I feel like that is my duty, not just to my own family who need me around, but for all cyclists. Some people are saying we are our own worst enemy because we don't stop at red lights and break traffic laws. Yes that is part of the problem.

 

Worse than that though, is that we do nothing to stop motorists threatening and taking our lives. It is very hard for me to kill a motorist by running a stop sign on my 7kg bike, but the same can not be said for a 2 ton hunk of metal.

 

[gummibear]

In Europe there are many more cars and many many more cyclists on the road' date=' yet their presence is accepted and the death toll is a fraction of what we have here. The bicycle is respected and used en-masse not only as sporting equipment, but as a valid road-going means of transportation. One that is far more beneficial for humans and the environment than a motor vehicle.
[/quote']

 

Here in Europe the guys ride in groups next to each other and the cars sit behind them till they get a gap to pass.......they DON'T hoot or shout or accelerate up to the riders.

 

There are also designated bike lanes and the roads are quiet in the mornings till about 8 am.......but then it's freezing to ride.

 

When i ran this morning there were a huge amount of cyclists out.

[Mojoman]

We went over to Rotterdam a few years ago and I was amazed at the different way of life. They had bicycle lanes, for bicycles, not cars/taxis/motorbikes/pedestrians but only for bicycles!

 
I got into trouble for walking across an empty road (clear both ways!) because the traffic light said it was unsafe for me to walk!  Everyone was stood waiting for the light to change! Here in RSA we just jay walk and don't think twice! However you will also notice there are cameras everywhere you look so eventually I suppose you will get caught doing stupid things and I suppose you will get fined and not just get a slap on the wrist!

[Guest coenie]

 

It does not matter if they were or were not "visible"....what if if was a  small car? Would people also have blamed the car?

 

If the driver of the bakkie couldn't see them ' date=' they were not visible. That is not his mistake. Did they have lights on their bikes, or reflective clothing?

[/quote']

That road is narrow and does not have a shoulder. Even if you ride in a single file ' date=' it is still dangerous on the Oudtshoorn- Calitzdorp road. I think at was a terrible accident and we should not judge him. After all, none of us knew what really happened.

[/quote']

It should not matter how wide the road is, again what if there was a car comming? So he would not have seen that either?

 

Lets wait and see if they will find out what the ROOT cause was for the accident.....

 

I think that if we were to look at the law of passing another car / truck on the road, where it says "when SAFE to do so" if you can not see well enough due to whatever it is not safe......

coenie2010-03-09 13:35:17

[WhuYu]

Why shouldn't he get bail? He may have been negligent' date=' but I don't think he diberately headed for them an killed those cyclists. It was an accident.

 

He is not a flight risk, I bet he will be there in court.

 

I know those guys are dead, I know their families are suffering. But, for one moment, think what he may be going through. That is punishment enough. If I had caused such an accident, I would be a wreck right now.

 

Accidents happen and its nothing to do with Africa. People die on the roads all over the world in accidents 

 

I doubt he will be visiting Bubba, unless they can prove he intentionally ran them down.

[/quote']

Yep - but it is a cop-out to try and make this simplistc.  Accidents do happen, but many "accidents" can be avoided.  People need to be held accountable for their actions.  Although he may not have intended to ride these cyclists over, he could/should have foreseen what his actions could cause. 

[Brakkies Sport Fotos]

Guys, it was a accident, do you really think he went out to ride into a group of cyclist?

 

 

 

Come on, he made a mistake by overtaking a lorrie in a dangerious situation.

 

 

 

He did not plan to ride into a group of cyclist.

 

 

 

He stays in that area since birth, he is not a flight risk

 

 

 

Lets leave this, this topic is really not helping anyone

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Lucky Luke.]

I cannot believe cyclists (or any road users) are defending this guy and making excuses for his actions. An example needs to be made or this will continue to happen.

 

People endanger and hit cyclists every day and get away with it. Fact. I have been on the receiving end myself. This case has the media's attention and letting it go sends a message that will 100% lead to more death on South African roads. If you think this ok I hope you feel the same way when it happens to you.

[Mackie]

Sure he never intended to kill any cyclists when he woke up that morning, but you do not get judged by your intentions, you get judged by your actions. He will have to answer to a court of law, period. We have to live with choices we make everyday, he chose to take the risk when over-taking and it went bad so he will face the consequences. Singlefile or no single file, it is a moot point. On coming traffic has right of way wether it's a car/truck/cyclist/pedestrian period.

 

[Brakkies Sport Fotos]

Luke, this guy openly said that he overtook the lorrie, he did not denied it, he also say that he did not see the oncoming cyclist.

 

 

 

So, yes, maybe because of the light he could see the horizen and did not see a on coming vehicle, si he take the change.

 

 

 

He never saw the cyclist (that was much closer)

 

 

 

We are not defending him, you cannot punish him because we "want to make example"". its a case on its own and you have to look at it in that way.

 

 

 

Ok, last question.... Did the Lorrie Driver stop? And what is in his statement. This will be crutial to the investigation.

[Jakes_1]

there is no excuse for riding on the wrong side of the road and killing anyone, this guy must be made an example of

[Lucky Luke.]

Wow I'm speechless. They told me there was some flawed logic on this forum but I that would make it more fun. This is just depressing.