This is what we are up against!

squigs

http://www.thisisplymouth.co.uk/news/Cy ... ccess=true

Check out the comments on this article!

Ps, I am Marc, southwest

mattward1979

shocking that drivers are so retarded about cyclists...

Hope the guy gets better!

cenonfrancis

man there are a lot of haters out there. hope the guy is ok.

Bobbinogs

Blimey, that really is a depressing thread

father_jack

Same idiot attitudes from people at work...should pay road tax, should pay license, should pay MOT, shouldn't be on roads, shouldn't be on paths, shouldn't be..

malcolmfrost

It's just the usual green ink brigade. Anyone who is close to illiterate doesn't deserve any attention!

if people want cyclists to use the road they should have to abide by the laws of the road. i have to pay 120 a year in car tax 40 a year for my mot pay for my lessons and for my leicence so i think cyclists should have to do all of the above, who payed for these cycle lanes, oh road tax payers cyclists should have to do basic road safety corse have an mot on their cycle pay road tax pay insurence ( saw a cyclist take a wing mirror off a car just to go strate through a red light and nearly get knocked off by a law abiding motorist) they should also have to do a theory and hazard perception test, in short cyclists have no right to be on our roads

silverpigeon

Graham, from Stoke (?) sounds like a well educated and rounded individual :roll:

mmmcheese

before cars and lorrys i dont think there was the need for road tax, m.o.t, and insurance. cars and people do not damage the roads, accidents didnt cost much.

daveydave43

just read the article, but i'd prefer to think that the drivers with misguided views on there are the very few.
i must go past thousands of cars when im out during the year; very few of them are abusive, or what i would class as 'against cyclists'.
Seems we only remember drivers when they get our attention, either because they have been really considerate, or the contrary,and we forget about the other cars that had no problem with us.
and, those drivers with misguided views, yes can be dangerous... but, yano, they'd still have misguided views and be dangerous with.... a kite?
speaking of which, i do love the guy who said that bicycles are toys; im inclined to agree with him. bt then drivers have their toys too, right? supercars etc.

ive not been killed yet...

jackp

where i am there are too many stupid drivers,have at least 1 problem with them every week :evil:

daveydave43

yes, but the question is, how many drivers might you have gone past in that week to get to that 1 or 2? it's a pretty clear minority.
there are more people (both cycling and in cars) on the roads then ever, it'll take some getting used to on both sides, i think. hopefully involving as few crashes and deaths as possible... there have been a few highlighted by the press this year.

-liam-

There are some complete spanners chatting rubbish there (Just like there are some complete spanners allowed to ride bikes on public roads) but there are also some valid points being made......

Only this morning in the middle of Shrewsbury, I witnessed a chap on a Trek racing bike, clad in purple lycra hoon around a corner, on the pavement, having to drop off the pavement into the path of oncoming traffic, causing a car in front of me to swerve into the opposite lane to avoid him, all because he had to avoid a woman walking in the same direction as he was riding...if you get that.... :?

Chaps, at the end of the day, secondary to idiot drivers, of which there are a few, the biggest danger to any cyclist, is the chip that can develop on their shoulders as they form this self righteous attitude that they are always in the right.

Take care

anto164

i don't see why everyone says cyclists should pay tax.. Going on the current tax bands, i'm pretty sure that the bike produces less than 100g c02 per km..? Putting it in the £0 bracket..

Me however..

Paul32uk

As above. It isnt CAR tax anymore, it's emission tax!!

Most cyclists over the age of 20 will no doubt have passed their driving test in either a car or on a motorbike and thus be aware of all the rules of the road. I'm unsure whether kids get any education at school these days with regards to cycling.

There are good and bad on both side. There are numpty cyclists and numpty drivers as are there good of both.

I agree its when they get a chip on their shoulder that car drivers become dangerous. As it was when I rode a motorbike, people should be made to cycle and ride a motorbike on our roads for at least a month and that way they'd soon learn to appreciate some of the reasoning behind things.

edhornby

it;s a vehicle excise duty - just a straight tax on having a motor, as paul said levied by emissions

and with the exception of motorways that are paid for directly by the exchequer, the roads are paid for by the councils that are covered within their jurisdiction so everyone who pays council tax pays for the roads, not just motorists.

daveydave43

erm... im a student.. i dont pay any tax... yet.
am i banned from riding my bike?

maybe i should just stay indoors and spend my student loan.... no, wait, thats taxpayer's money too....

s1lko

daveydave43 wrote:

erm... im a student.. i dont pay any tax... yet.
am i banned from riding my bike?

maybe i should just stay indoors and spend my student loan.... no, wait, thats taxpayer's money too....

Why are you not out drinking subsidised beer?

Bunneh

Saw some terrible driving yesterday. Mr Poll was nearly split in two by a d*ckhead driving a horse wagon, missed by mere inches. An old bugger in a Jag over taking another car in a 20mph zone almost take me down as I came in the opposite direction. One knuckle dragging moron swirving in and out of us, almost clipping the guy in front. I really need to get that mounting for this Muvi camera.

Mark Alexander

Paul32uk wrote:

As above. It isnt CAR tax anymore, it's emission tax!!

That's the most politically advantageous way to do it.

I'm a non-driving non-motorbike riding, leisure and commuting cyclist. I don't pay any driving related taxes but I do use dirty, smelly crowded and expensive public transport to get all over the country.

There are irresponsible cyclists out there. They ride through lights and have no regard for other traffic. Anyone who rides on the pavement is not a cyclist but a 'person on a bike' (POB). Many accidents I think, are caused through car drivers' unintentional ignorance about the speed and maneuverability of a bike. To finish off my rant, The inconsiderate car driver is likely to be the inconsiderate cyclist that we all see and cringe at.

Austlid

If I saw that Shipmate Ron next to me waiting at traffic lights and he shouted the same rubbish as he spouted in the comment thread, I'd haul him out of his car, esp if I was in the middle of a training session and was fired-up. I know it's not the ideal image representation for cyclists to be that aggressive, but I feel better now that I've said it. :roll:

Hope the cyclist who suffered head injuries gets better soon.! Yes, "the world is for riding".

neeb

speaking of which, i do love the guy who said that bicycles are toys; im inclined to agree with him. bt then drivers have their toys too, right? supercars etc.

My first reaction to reading this was the obvious rebuttals, e.g. bicycles being the most efficient and least polluting form of urban transport, most practical transport over distances of less that 10 miles, contribute to health and productivity etc. You could argue that cars qualify more as toys when they are used in towns because they are unnecessary, and the reasons for using them rather than less damaging forms of transport are down to laziness, wanting to be in a private comfortable environment with own music, enjoying driving, etc. Toys used by people unable or unwilling to grow up and face their responsibilities to the wider community, the environment and their own health. Of course I'm sure all of these arguments would have been lost on Mr. Eyely, who I'm guessing is a few neurons short of a ZX81.

And then I thought... hold on a minute. Most of the cycling I do these days is "training" rather than transport. So you could argue that what I am actually doing is engaging in a sporting activity in the middle of the public highway... Best not go there...

owenlars

-Liam- wrote:

Chaps, at the end of the day, secondary to idiot drivers, of which there are a few, the biggest danger to any cyclist, is the chip that can develop on their shoulders as they form this self righteous attitude that they are always in the right.

Take care

Spot on!!!

Austlid

Chaps, at the end of the day, secondary to idiot drivers, of which there are a few, the biggest danger to any cyclist, is the chip that can develop on their shoulders as they form this self righteous attitude that they are always in the right.

Take care

Yeah but...no but, yeah!

I have been the most courteous cyclist since I started cycling more and often consider other road users at the expense of my own progress...this is why when I hear of louts posting arrogant and annoying comments against cyclists who actuallly make the effort to exercise and be environmentally friendly it really annoys me. So, when I get out on my next training run(tomorrow) and I'm tackling a hill I'll take my anger out on the pedals and my thighs. 8)

StillGoing

Oh to be a fly on the wall if there's a reclaim the roads protest the next time one of the whiners is on the road.

Cycling is a choice. I have two cars and motorcycle sitting in the garage. If I want to drive or need the use of the car for work, I'll drive. I'll hoon around the race track on the motorcycle for my own pleasure. I couldn't give a stuff about the environment because I sit in the camp that says all tha talk of global warming is a load of political statistics being used as disinformation. For what purpose I have no idea or interest. There are far more important targets for the environmental lobby to put pressure on than your average motorist. If you get the airlines to stop sending empty planes everywhere then the rest of the public might take you more seriously.

It is of course everyone's choice to sell their motorised transport and live by the use of public transport or walking/cycling. I admire your choice, but I don't cycle for that reason. I cycle because it helps me maintain a level of fitness, keeps me fairly healthy, helps me unwind and because I enjoy it.

shmo

Stupid thing is that the whole anti-cycling mentality has led to the situation today where roads haven't been designed at all with cyclists in mind. Drivers raging against cyclists does nothing to fix the problem, and they will continue find themselves obstructed on narrow, inadequate roads until popular opinion gets to the point that something must be done now.

Course my viewpoint is based on my experiences in Swansea, where two white lines painted on a regular high-street pavement is considered to be a suitable provision for cyclists.

EX DH

If you had to tax a bike you would have to register it and give it a reg number!

I work for the DVLA and i can tell you its a big job keeping all the countrys cars records up to date never mind the millions of bikes there have to be knocking about.

StillGoing

There's no need for cyclists to pay any VEL. What damage does a bike do to the road in order for it to be repaired at what seems like every other month around here? Even a heavy bike with a 30 stone rider isn't going to generate enough forces to ripple the road surface under acceleration or braking. What emissions does a bike emit that will be hazardous to the atmosphere that the rider wouldn't be emitting anyway? Nil. They'd probably fart as much sitting in a car and have the aircon on to get rid of it.

bigpikle

its the same lack of tolerance for others that pervades every element of society isnt it - religious, political, you name it? People just seem incapable of co-existing peacefully in whatever we do, which is really so sad...

I heard a colleague say somethng years ago which really struck a chord with me:

"the only thing guaranteed to happen when you put a group of people together is conflict"

It always depresses me that it continues to be played out every day of the week

Peace, love and understanding man.....

gary.hounsome

I was approaching traffic lights the other day in my car in the right lane going straight on. There was a line of cars in the left lane to go left. A cyclist rode around the right side of the cars through the red light and accross the front of the waiting cars as the lights went green, had he been slower he would probably been knocked off.

On the other hand i was cycling up a hill last week a few mph slower than the tractor behind, and he decided it would be a good idea to pass me giving me an inch of room, almost took my arm off and he had a trailer that got even closer to me. Not to mention drivers that overtake, slow down and turn left right in front of me. Just wait behind for 5 seconds!!

Needless to say there ae idiots in cars and on bikes.

Penhydd

Marc

About 6 months ago there was a story on the Plymouth site about a young girl, aspiring model, who was cycling at Burrator reservior & got forced off the road by a car, gashing her face badly on a barbed wire fence. Nasty pictures showed the extent of her injuries.

Far too many posters concluded that it was her fault because she was an inexperienced rider. Then, to add insult to injury, who was she to complain because there were servicemen / women losing lives and limbs in Iraq & Afghanistan? (taking nothing away from their bravery of course).

There really do seem to be some ignorant & unsympathetic Janners out there.

squigs

Penhydd wrote:

Marc

About 6 months ago there was a story on the Plymouth site about a young girl, aspiring model, who was cycling at Burrator reservior & got forced off the road by a car, gashing her face badly on a barbed wire fence. Nasty pictures showed the extent of her injuries.

Far too many posters concluded that it was her fault because she was an inexperienced rider. Then, to add insult to injury, who was she to complain because there were servicemen / women losing lives and limbs in Iraq & Afghanistan? (taking nothing away from their bravery of course).

There really do seem to be some ignorant & unsympathetic Janners out there.

I remember it well

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