Oh peds...

londonbairn

Today I was just about to reach work. I was stopped at Lombard Street waiting for the light to turn green. It turns green and off I go...

Outside M&S on Fenchurch Street, a woman walks out in front of me, I brake as much as I could and hit her very low speed, we both fell and got up.

I point out to her that;

A) Her light was red
My light was green

Her response? "You should have swerved out of the way!" :roll:

So I went to check my bike, and she had walked away. Luckily my bike seemed fine, I will get it checked though in case.

I went straight to the police station to report it to be able to use CCTV in case. The person I spoke to there said it was her fault on the basis of the account (i.e. my green, her red) and her reply is no line of defence. Police said I done the right thing.

Ah what a start to the day!

downfader

..you've also done the right thing incase she turns up at the Police station a week later covered in plaster.

Some people just dont realise the mess they can create if they jump in front of a bike. I saw a good letter on this from the cyclists perspective in the local rag last year.

Glad you're ok. We have a duty of care to pedestrians, but do they need to judge it down to the last nanosecond?

londonbairn

downfader wrote:

..you've also done the right thing incase she turns up at the Police station a week later covered in plaster.

Some people just dont realise the mess they can create if they jump in front of a bike. I saw a good letter on this from the cyclists perspective in the local rag last year.

Glad you're ok. We have a duty of care to pedestrians, but do they need to judge it down to the last nanosecond?

Thanks, just a couple of minor scratches on my shin and the bike looked absolutely fine, no tell tale scratches, I guess the pedals took it, but they look fine.

It was lucky I managed to slow down as much as possible and it was low speed as a result. Was very annoyed as if it was a bus instead of me, well....the junction is always a mess, everyday people jump red lights.

That was the first thing that came to my mind, I don't want her to try her luck or something, but for me her response and her walking away is a sign of guilt!

Roastie

Gotta wonder. I find that the peds on Fenchurch St on that corner are the most suicidal (read stupid) I've seen.

Headhuunter

Must say I think I find peds one of the most dangerous things on the road (literally on the road). Buses and large lorries don't really bother me, they move very slowly and don't make sudden unannounced manoeuvres, they're too big and heavy for that. Peds on the other hand often launch themselves into the traffic without the slightest glance, particularly if motor traffic is gridlocked so they assume that they can walk out without any problem.

Another thing that gets me is the long diagonal walk that some peds do across roads. This usually occurs on quieter roads, the ped checks before starting to cross, but then instead of crossing withn the shortest possibe route they take a long diagonal and are surprised that whilst they're in the middle of the road I come whisking past them. If I ever have a bad crash I'm sure it'll most likely be through me bouncing of a stupid ped in the road, in front of a car.

downfader

She was displacing blame so yes, guilty as charged I would say.

Actually I remember hearing when in the top of the city center here a ped got it horribly wrong, stepped out from behind the front of a bus whilst playing with an iPod - hit by a taxi doing 25. Smashed her to bits. just found the LINK

cjcp

Roastiecp wrote:

Gotta wonder. I find that the peds on Fenchurch St on that corner are the most suicidal (read stupid) I've seen.

+1. They must know the light sequence, just like other frequent users of that junction do. They try to beat the traffic turning right off Gracechurch St.

And +1 for Headhunter's points too.

LB - glad you're not hurt.

londonbairn

They are definately the most dangerous, and diagonal road crossing irks me, this always happens in Uxbridge Road in Action and it's usually a "rude boy" who stares at you as if to make a point or they walk in the cycle lane for no particular reason. The worse is when someone steps out and then shouts at you.....

Oxford Street going home is also a mess, they always cross even if it's red.

People need to look before they cross rather than "follow the leader" or assume that everyone will stop.

Glad it wasn't worse, I am flying up to the homeland (Scotland) tonight for the Falkirk cup final on Saturday, I would be distraught if the incident injured me and I couldn't go!

Dudu

downfader wrote:

We have a duty of care to pedestrians, but do they need to judge it down to the last nanosecond?

...which would be fine if they did, in fact, use any sort of judgement, rather than just wandering or sprinting across the street while daydreaming.

londonbairn

Has anyone else had something similiar happen to them?

cjcp

Oh yes - the other side of the junction to you in fact! Ped steps out at traffic lights as I'm continuing across the junction up Gracechurch St (green light/red man). I brake sharply, fly over the handlebars, somehow miss the Ped, and break my arm (didn't realise at the time as the adrenalin was flowing). Ped walks on until he's stopped by a motorcyclist (good man) by the traffic light island. My exchange with the Ped was a lot more heated than yours though, particularly after he said "these things happen". I "red-lined". :x

jonginge

Not recently but I do run the moorgate gauntlet every day. Muppets abound in the square mile.

Looong time ago in birmingham was going down a hill. Saw a ped about to cross from a bus stop on one side to a parade of shops on the other. Gave a 'No', she did the rabbit in headlights thing. Still a reasonable distance away I swung right to near the carriageway dividing line. Then she starts to run across the road. Funnily enough, we collide: head against head. Result broken (splayed way wider than is normal) forks and a splitting headache on the day of an exam.

jedster

Has anyone else had something similiar happen to them?

I've never hit a ped but I've read loads of reports of similar incidents here.

Personally, I expect peds to do stupid things and adjust my speed/cover brakes/move out in the lane whenever I see one wandering towards the kerb. I also give plenty of space around parked cars and don't filter up the inside of traffic. I reckon all that reduces my chances of hitting one.

Doubtless it will happen some time though.

J

artaxerxes

Another thing that gets me is the long diagonal walk that some peds do across roads. This usually occurs on quieter roads, the ped checks before starting to cross, but then instead of crossing withn the shortest possibe route they take a long diagonal and are surprised that whilst they're in the middle of the road I come whisking past them. If I ever have a bad crash I'm sure it'll most likely be through me bouncing of a stupid ped in the road, in front of a car.

+1 and they usually have their back to the traffic too :evil:

Gussio

Painfully slow diagonal road crossing, crossing the road yards from a perfectly servicable zebra crossing, walking out into the gutter without looking, paying too much attention to a mobile call and cutting off the zebra crossing onto the road just before the pavement right infront of where I am about to ride. All get my goat but show no sign of going away so just have to suck it up (or campaign for the return of the Green Cross Code Man 8) ).

Roastie

As much as I hate to admit it, sadly a few week back I was guilty of another annoying ped crime, wandering between stationary queueing cars. (Rightly) Attracted the ire of a cyclist. Not good.

londonbairn

Ouch cj and Jon, glad you're both still cycling and well!

It's a very sheep and shepherd thing, one decides to jump a light and they all follow.

At least I will get to sport a lovely graze on my legs to the cup final on Saturday (wearing my Falkirk kit to show off "cyclist legs" haha) for some symapthy from the female support

nation

londonbairn wrote:

Has anyone else had something similiar happen to them?

Plenty of near misses. There's a particularly bad road for it where the back entrance to New Street Station is, especially at rush hour. The infuriating thing is, if one of them starts to cross then the rest of them will follow and it can sometimes take ten solid minutes for the road to clear. There's a crossing right there, but it gets ignored.

wantaway

I think it (stupidity) must be in the air as the journey in to work this morning was plagued by people not only stepping out in front of me but seeming to make no effort to get out of the way when they did finally grasp the fact that a cyclist was about to hit them.

This follows last night where I clipped someone. Hit the trailing leg as someone ambled over a crossing at a junction whilst lights were on green for me and the wee red man was doing his level best to advise him not to step out. It was not enough to cause me much bother but I feel that was just luck. I was livid.

I may now go and purchase the loudest horn I can find. However I am always wary that somtimes when you shout at / warn people that you are there, people tend to freeze on the spot in the middle of the raod or jump where you don't expect and this can just make things worse.

Landlocked

New to the forum, but had to comment on this!

I cycle from New Cross to Clerkenwell which takes me straight through the city - London Bridge, Bank and Moorgate!

Not had any serious incidents (yet?!) but the number of peds who just step out into the road and then look to see what is coming is unbelievable!

I usually find that a good "you f##king idiot" works quite well. Shout loud enough and they do get out of the way!

bigmat

Had a near miss at the lights at the end of Borough High Street (heading North) this morning, what really annoyed me was some woman smugly stating "red light" when it was clearly a green light, and her and the dozen other peds were clearly in the wrong. I gave a right mouthful, felt bad about it afterwards as usually I'll stop for peds regardless of the lights, it was just her smug tone that wound me up.

londonbairn

Heh, seems like today is the day the peds go mental...

On Oxford Street on way home and a woman had been knocked over by a bus (she looked injured but not serious) turns out she had jumped out in front on a red...

Jeez....people should be made to do CBTs for walking around

simon_ramsey

I sometimes count the PED's that step out in front of me on my commute from Paddington to the City and generally give up when I get to 10 !!. Worse on the way back when I turn right from Lincoln's Inn Fields onto KIngsway (near Holborn) there is a Ped Crossing that the Ped's just walk out on every day when I have the right of way . Can't say anything due to all the RLJ'ers - I'd just get a torrent of abuse.

Rockbuddy

It's annoying enough that peds just step out like mindless idiots but they really seem to have no concept of the consequences of their actions. I've passed more than one couple at the curb, where the girlfriend is holding the boyfriend back and the fella saying "...but it's only a bike..." :shock:
They don't seem to get that although much lighter than a car at 20+mph they'll get more than a little nudge if we collide, not to mention what'll happen to me and my bike :x Anyway like has been said before I tend to treat all other people on / near the road like complete muppets, that way I'm not too surprised when they act like one

simon_ramsey

iPODS or Blackberrys or the Killer combination of iPOD & Blackberry - so I can't hear anything coming I can't see anything coming (as I'm reading my really important mail) so I it must be safe to step out into the road !!

I have been practicing my 1000 yard stare - don't make eye contact with peds and they are not sure if you have seen them

Eau Rouge

Near-silent electric cars will sort this out. Peds will quickly learn to look, not just listen, when crossing the road. They will learn or, well, I wouldn't want to be one of the first to have an electric car!

cjcp

wantaway wrote:

However I am always wary that somtimes when you shout at / warn people that you are there, people tend to freeze on the spot in the middle of the raod or jump where you don't expect and this can just make things worse.

Very good point. If possible, much better to take evasive action then brake (if safe), stop and then l[ook at them wondering WFing planet they're on] [send avolle of insults their way]*.*delete as applicable. 

downfader

Eau Rouge wrote:

Near-silent electric cars will sort this out. Peds will quickly learn to look, not just listen, when crossing the road. They will learn or, well, I wouldn't want to be one of the first to have an electric car!

I thought the same until Lotus started putting motor sounds in their model. :?

chuckcork

S-E England, London in particular, one of the most heavily populated and trafficked areas in the World, certainly is in the context of Europe.

And yet people can't learn how to cross the road? Not exactly rocket science, is it. Not as if you could even do a GCSE in " looking before you leap in front of a 20 tonne lorry" or anything.

How did this happen? Is it a form of darwinian evolution, or did the green crossing code thing stop being done when the powers that be decided that thinning out the thicker elements of the herd was a good thing?

stuaff

They're the same down here. I've had the odd loon who thinks it'll be funny to pretend he's going to jump out (one of those when I'd just come down a railway bridge doing 30 or so, I'm sure he'd have found the impact on his ribcage funny...). Another thing that gets me: people who arrive at a pelican crossing just as you're coming up to it, expect you to stop at that instant, then say things like 'you're supposed to stop'. Well, you're supposed to have common sense. I'm usually going at a fair lick and clipped in. I have neither ABS brakes nor air bags. I can't stop safely to let them across, so I keep going. I could hit them or just crash by the side of the road if they prefer.......

the_hundredth_idiot

londonbairn wrote:

Has anyone else had something similiar happen to them?

Has anyone NOT would get far fewer answers. Although, more by luck than skill, I haven't actually hit a ped yet.