Pillock on Bike malliciously mows down blind pensioner, escapes practically laughing

[Just zis Guy, you know?]

Adrian wrote:

> I've had several very near misses from cyclists riding straight
> through a gaggle of pedestrians crossing green ped lights in London,
> and never from a car.

Translation: This is not a problem as they missed me.

>> Both groups are at far more risk from cars
>> than from each other.

> Not on pavements they're not.

You wish. Of 186 pedestrian fatalities on the footway in a three year
period, 185 were killed by motor vehicle drivers and only one by a cyclist.
Fault is not recorded - it could have been one of those shared use facilites
so beloved of clueless councillors.

> Erm, I hate to tell you this, but if a pedestrian is posing any kind
> of a danger to a cyclist, one of them is in the wrong place*. Usually
> not the pedestrian, although it isn't unknown for peds to cross roads
> without looking.

Pedestrians are far more likely to be the authors of their own demise in
road traffic crashes, often due to alcohol impairment. And councils are
blurring the boundaries by arbitrarily painting pictures of bicycles on the
pavement.

Guy
--
May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle after posting.
http://www.chapmancentral.co.uk

88% of helmet statistics are made up, 65% of them at Washington
University

 

[Just zis Guy, you know?]

Adrian wrote:

>> and probably don't even know or care that it's their.

> Ooh, soddit, how'd I do that? Sorry... That should, of course, be
> "there". I am ashamed.

<pats Adrian on shoulder>

There, there, mate, it was just an accident - could happen to anyone ;-)

Guy
--
May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle after posting.
http://www.chapmancentral.co.uk

88% of helmet statistics are made up, 65% of them at Washington
University

 

[David Hansen]

On Wed, 15 Sep 2004 14:07:19 +0100 someone who may be
[email protected] (Steve Firth) wrote this:-

>From the cities that I visit each week, principally Chester, Birmingham,
>Manchester, Worcester, London and York. I have yet to see a single
>cyclist stop at a red light in any of those cities

I visit Birmingham, Manchester, London and York, though not
frequently. I have seen more than one cyclist stop at red lights in
every one.


--
David Hansen, Edinburgh | PGP email preferred-key number F566DA0E
I will always explain revoked keys, unless the UK government
prevents me using the RIP Act 2000.

 

[Adrian]

Jon Senior (jon@restlesslemon_DOT_co_DOT_uk.remove) gurgled happily,
sounding much like they were saying :

>> we'll ignore the fact that most of the accidents caused by
>> cars are by becoming involved in some ********'s crash that starts
>> elsewhere and spreads onto the pavement.

> Er... I hate to be pedantic here (No really!), but if you become
> involved in "some ********'s crash" it implies that you were probably
> not leaving a good distance, or paying proper attention.

I was referring to a pedestrian being injured by some ********'s crash
that's spread to the pavement.

> This also ignores the possibility of the vehicle mounting the pavement
> being the original ********'s car!

It is. Chav behind wheel ***** up, loses control, mounts pavement, hits
ped. It happens. Like the footballer that put his BMW on it's side
through a house the other day - except he was lucky and nobody was hurt.

>> Three guesses which are more likely to not be just shrugged off as
>> "Well, I'm OK apart from a few bruises and a ripped trouser leg - and
>> there's no way they'll be able to trace the cretin, so no point in
>> reporting it."?

> Given your earlier example, I suspect the cyclist is more likely to be
> in for a kicking.

I hope you're not implying I was in any way involved in the cyclist
getting a kicking? I wasn't. It was the cyclist that started throwing
punches, after picking himself up after riding into the pedestrian - who
turned out to be rather better at throwing punches.

I'm certainly not one for vigilanteism, but would this be a bad thing?
What about if it were a little old lady he hit, who then started
handbagging him or hitting him with her stick?

>> That's not a "pedestrian" posing a risk, though, is it? Not through
>> their activities as a pedestrian. That's a pack of yobs being yobs.

> So if we can accept that a person on foot is not necessarily a
> pedestrian, presumably a person on a bike is not necessarily a
> cyclist! After all, "A ****** is a ******, no matter what mode of
> transport they're using.". So a **** who rides his bike on the
> pavement is a **** foremost, and a cyclist after. Glad we've cleared
> that up.

No disagreement here. None whatsoever. That's the line I've been taking
all along.

Or do responsible cyclists want to be associated with his ilk?

 

[Nick Finnigan]

"Adrian" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Nick Finnigan ([email protected]) gurgled happily, sounding much like they
> were saying :
>
> > Yep. Looking at a 'court report' in a local newspaper, 'no insurance'
> > seems to be about £50 to £100 pounds, but is more often in combination
> > with 'otherwise than in accordance with a licence', which doubles the
> > fine. 'No Mot' seems to be the same too.
> > 'No VED' is a lower fine, but the back duty gets collected.
>
> So the total fine on that prosecution is...?

That was looking at several cases.

'no insurance' doesn't seem to crop up with 'no tax' nor 'no MoT';
so perhaps people with a provisional licence are using cars with
some tax and test on them (and which would presumably have a
not-yet-expired insurance sticker on them, if we used such things).

 

[Adrian]

Paul Weaver ([email protected]) gurgled happily, sounding much like
they were saying :

> Shouldn't cars with no insurance (have a database of cars with license
> plate mapped to tax/mot/insurance etc.) be stopped when tehy are seen
> and the driver arrested.

They are. It's called an ANPR van - cameras trained on the road read the
number plates of all cars going past, and report any lack of
insurance/registration to the operators, who then set the group of waiting
traffic police after them.

The drawback is that there's one very expensive van and six or eight
traffic police units tied up in it, so they're not exactly everywhere.
Unfortunately.

They don't cover MOT, though, as MOTs aren't nationally computerised yet.

 

[Adrian]

Jon Senior (jon@restlesslemon_DOT_co_DOT_uk.remove) gurgled happily,
sounding much like they were saying :

>> If you want to take the same angle, there's no point in buying a bike
>> other than a £80 Halfrauds special, as it'll just cost so much more
>> to replace when it gets nicked or driven over. All you need is two
>> wheels, pedals and a saddle, right?

> Check. Although a Halfrauds special is without comparison in the car
> world.

You haven't heard of Perodua, have you?

Then there's Proton, Kia, Daewoo - and that's ignoring Aixam and Ligier and
just looking at "proper cars"...

> We are in danger of violently agreeing with one another here!

This is scaring me.

 

[JohnB]

David Hansen wrote:
>
> On Wed, 15 Sep 2004 14:07:19 +0100 someone who may be
> [email protected] (Steve Firth) wrote this:-
>
> >From the cities that I visit each week, principally Chester, Birmingham,
> >Manchester, Worcester, London and York. I have yet to see a single
> >cyclist stop at a red light in any of those cities
>
> I visit Birmingham, Manchester, London and York, though not
> frequently. I have seen more than one cyclist stop at red lights in
> every one.

I can confirm that I have ridden with my daughter through Manchester,
London and York this year and we stopped at every red light.

John B

 

[Jon Senior]

In article <[email protected]>,
[email protected] says...
> You haven't heard of Perodua, have you?

No. Is it ridiculously heavy, and inefficient? Does it fall apart after
a very low mileage? Do they offer little or no customer support and
variable mechanical skills from dealership to dealership? (Do they have
dealerships?)

> Then there's Proton, Kia, Daewoo - and that's ignoring Aixam and Ligier and
> just looking at "proper cars"...

None of which appear to be quite as bad, but I see where you're going.

> > We are in danger of violently agreeing with one another here!
>
> This is scaring me.

Best stop now then... you're wrong... and you know it! ;-)

Jon

 

[Adrian]

Just zis Guy, you know? ([email protected]) gurgled happily,
sounding much like they were saying :

>>> Both groups are at far more risk from cars
>>> than from each other.

>> Not on pavements they're not.

> You wish. Of 186 pedestrian fatalities on the footway in a three year
> period, 185 were killed by motor vehicle drivers and only one by a
> cyclist.

As I said - fatalities are fairly obvious. One per week is hardly a MASSIVE
number, though. Fault is pretty obvious, though.

What about minor injuries?

 

[Alan Braggins]

In article <[email protected]>, Ian Smith wrote:
>On Wed, 15 Sep 2004 11:55:06 +0100, Steve Firth <[email protected]> wrote:
>> Jon Senior <jon@restlesslemon_DOT_co_DOT_uk.remove> wrote:
>>
>> > Thus neatly ignoring an earlier post regarding research carried out by
>> > the RAC. If they were unable to prove a majority then it's probably a
>> > minority.
>>
>> Since it is only four days since the last pillock on a bike attempted to
>> charge straight at me on a crossing, I'll call you a liar to your face
>> if you attempt to deny this shocking behaviour is the norm for cyclists.
>
>Only if you only see less than one cyclist every two days on average.

He's allegedly never seen a cyclist stop at a red light, which suggests
that he sees cyclists far less than every two days on average. Which
in turn suggests he ought to pay a bit more attention when he's driving.

 

[Adrian]

JohnB ([email protected]) gurgled happily, sounding much like they were
saying :

> I can confirm that I have ridden with my daughter through Manchester,
> London and York this year and we stopped at every red light.

Oh, well, there we go, then. Obviously since you do, every other cyclist
does.

All we need do is make sure that you never kill, rape or burgle anybody,
and we can save all that money we currently waste on having a police force.

 

[Helen Deborah Vecht]

"Paul Weaver" <[email protected]>typed


> >
> > I'd be quite happy for it to be zero, provided there was a mandatory
> > requirement for the chav-mobile to be crushed. Victims of uninsured
> drivers
> > could put their names into a lottery for the chance to operate the
> > crusher...

> Fully agree with one small ammendment. The chav in question should be
> strapped in the car while it happens.

Much though I admire your humour, I'm against the death sentence...

--
Helen D. Vecht: [email protected]
Edgware.

 

[Adrian]

Jon Senior (jon@restlesslemon_DOT_co_DOT_uk.remove) gurgled happily,
sounding much like they were saying :

>> You haven't heard of Perodua, have you?

> No. Is it ridiculously heavy, and inefficient?

No, they're light and inefficient.

> Does it fall apart after a very low mileage?

Yes, thankfully.

> Do they offer little or no customer support and variable mechanical
> skills from dealership to dealership?

That's not exactly ruling many marques out.

>> > We are in danger of violently agreeing with one another here!

>> This is scaring me.

> Best stop now then... you're wrong... and you know it! ;-)

<phew> That's better.

 

[John Laird]

On 15 Sep 2004 13:46:22 GMT, Adrian <[email protected]> wrote:

>John Laird ([email protected]) gurgled happily, sounding much
>like they were saying :
>
>>>> the average fine for driving without insurance is £150, despite the
>>>> fact that the maximum fine for the offence is £5,000."
>
>>> But it does sound ludicrously low.
>
>> I'd be quite happy for it to be zero, provided there was a mandatory
>> requirement for the chav-mobile to be crushed.
>
>Hmm. That'd lower the actual penalty even more. It's not difficult to pick
>up a car for a ton or even less these days.

Depends on whether you think the scum actually pay the fine. A crushed car
is a real loss, even if it was cheap.

>There's also the unfortunate side-effect of IN10 on a licence - that it's
>going to raise the cost of insurance SOOO much that they're even less
>likely to insure next time.
>
>It's bloody difficult, and almost impossible to solve unless we adopt the
>French model of making proof of insurance visible in the windscreen at all
>times.

Nah, that's just too simple, innit.

--
To err is human; to blame it on someone else is politics.

Mail john rather than nospam...

 

[John Laird]

On 15 Sep 2004 14:25:03 GMT, Adrian <[email protected]> wrote:

>Nick Finnigan ([email protected]) gurgled happily, sounding much like they
>were saying :
>
>> Yep. Looking at a 'court report' in a local newspaper, 'no insurance'
>> seems to be about £50 to £100 pounds, but is more often in combination
>> with 'otherwise than in accordance with a licence', which doubles the
>> fine. 'No Mot' seems to be the same too.
>> 'No VED' is a lower fine, but the back duty gets collected.
>
>So the total fine on that prosecution is...?

....probably never paid in full.

--
Excommunicated: On vacation without a computer.

Mail john rather than nospam...

 

[Ian Smith]

On 15 Sep 2004 14:51:25 GMT, Adrian <[email protected]> wrote:

> Do I infer from that that there's some statistic stating that as a
> pedestrian you're more likely to be injured by a car on the pavement than
> a bicycle?

A pedestrian on teh pavement is orders of magnitude more likely to be
killed by a car than a bike.

regards, Ian SMith
--
|\ /| no .sig
|o o|
|/ \|

 

[Paul Weaver]

"Adrian" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Jon Senior (jon@restlesslemon_DOT_co_DOT_uk.remove) gurgled happily,
> sounding much like they were saying :
>
> > But assuming the same speed would be to change the circumstances. "He
> > was cycling flat out with his dead <sic> down" (I'm assuming that
> > "dead" means "head"!). If a driver hits a stationary car flat out
> > without noticing (head down) the damage will be significant.
>
> I'm surprised that not one of the cyclists has condemned the cyclist in
> this case for riding with his head down and not looking where he was
going.

Pillock on bike, not cyclist. There's a difference. Cyclists are very rare,
POB's are somewhat more common. Like the difference between drivers and
pillocks in cars.

--
Everything above is the personal opinion of the author, and nothing to do
with where he works and all that lovely disclaimery stuff.
Posted in his lunch hour too.

 

[Peter B]

"Paul Weaver" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Shouldn't cars with no insurance (have a database of cars with license
plate
> mapped to tax/mot/insurance etc.) be stopped when tehy are seen and the
> driver arrested.

According to last Saturdays Daily Wail the trick is to get a cover note so
that a VED disc will be issued then cancel the policy.
They also reported that if people are being fined 75 to 150 quid for having
no insurance they're not inclined to pay 1000 pounds plus for insurance.
Maybe I'm a simple sod but surely they should be made to pay (or imprisioned
if they don't have the means) at least as much in fines as what a policy
would have cost thereby negating the incentive.

Pete

 

[Peter B]

"Monkey Hanger" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> [email protected] (Steve Firth) wrote in
> news:1gk4lf3.18bpnwb1tzau67N%%steve%@malloc.co.uk:
>
> > Ian Smith <[email protected]> wrote:
> >
> >> I've been randomly stopped on my bike for a brakes check. Slightly
> >> surreal - a big burly motorcycle policeman in full-face helmet and
> >> full leathers sat astride my battered second-hand small-wheel raleigh
> >> shopper while he tried the brakes.
> >
> > Was he trying to work out why you had gone through a red light without
> > even slowing down, as most cyclists do?
>
> False assertion. Even those who do go through red lights normally slow
down
> to see what's coming. Those who don't are a minority of a minority.

I think he means the black cab and Arriva bus that both ran red lights in
seperate incidences in Leicester this afternoon when I was being given a
lift to pick up my car from a garage 3 miles away.And I don't mean sneaking
over as they changed, the cab accelerated past two lanes of stopped vehicles
and the bus was equally blatant, bearing in mind these are (cough)
professional drivers one of whom allegedly has passed a stringent test and
the other a bus driver
The trick is that if you are sufficiently predjudiced all vehicles
committing misdemeanors will appear to be bicycles

Pete