Protection of vulnerable road users from motorised traffic (both perceived and actual)

Someone’s taken notice and copied that style.

The problem with those shock videos: the shock wears off. It’s the same with the graphic pictures on cigarette packages.

Er, no. Did you read my post - I still remember the ad vividly from when I was younger.

I suppose for some people with a complete lack of empathy, there may be no shock in the first place - those with psychopathic traits for example.

The shock doesn’t have a chance to wear off with new smokers.
The idea is that it puts them off smoking before it is a part of their life.
For long-term smokers, it’s going to take a lot more than a little photo to put them of their addiction.

Everyone is different, ever heard about neurodiversity?

Thanks for sharing that you learn with spanking to the brain (shock). Great. Not everyone learns with spanking.

BMW drivers, for example.

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Never heard it called that before. I appreciate that modern thinking suggests I was “scarred for life” by watching that commercial.

You youngsters should not be subjected to anything like that - far too upsetting.

What do you think would be an effective alternative?

Lol. You’re already talking like a grandpa’ or something… :grinning:
I talk with “you youngsters” only to my teenager child’s friends! I won’t allow any thirty something someone make me feel old. :rofl:

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I was being a trifle sarcastic.

I was recently listening to a Radio 4 Podcast, Oliver Burkeman’s Inconvenient Truth, about modern life and convenience and it mentioned that many people today feel that any sort of discomfort (mentally or physically) shouldn’t be permitted - thus showing accident videos to shock would be too upsetting and discomforting for people today.

I wrote that the TV commercial was hard-hitting and I still remember it’s message - and act on it, many years later so in my opinion, it did it’s job - perfectly.

There’s another parallel with this thread on the podcast and may explain why so many motorists may be intolerant of being “held-up” by a cyclist cycling defensively, and within the rules of law.
It gave the example of people today finding it hard to wait for two minutes for a microwave oven to ping yet many years ago, a meal would take a couple of hours in a conventional oven yet there was none of that annoyance.

I think it’s the same with cyclists and motorists - the latter find it impossible to wait a couple of seconds before being able to overtake a cyclist safely and get apoplectic if they are inconvenienced at all yet will willingly sit in a queue of traffic for ten minutes further up the road without a thought.

I know… I actually think a “shock” video would serve its purpose with the majority of people and even if it would “irritate” some, it would still make them pause and think for a moment.
So you’re a driver, OK? Take it as having some sort of privilege but also a higher responsibility.
Your duty is not to “punish” everyone less careful or less prudent; your duty is to not cause any accident while driving from point A to point B. If that implies that you have to be much more patient and prudent than other participants in the traffic, so be it.

Extraordinarily, motorcycle riders seem to somehow be less obnoxious than the average cyclist.

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Maybe the shock wears off in time but it has an impact.

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What’s an average cyclist?

Well, they have a bit of a ‘reputation’… arrogant and entitled may come to mind, for example.

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Only amongst a certain “type” of driver.

On the other hand, the entitled drivers who get apoplectic when held up for a few seconds behind cyclists are considered adult-toddlers throwing a tantrum.

Just like toddlers who try and explain their actions with nonsensical remarks, these adult-toddlers do the same:

“Why did you close pass that cyclist causing them to wobble and nearly fall off?”

“Because cyclists go through red lights and don’t pay road tax and they wear lycra!”

Ring any bells with you? Are you an adult-toddler who shouldn’t be behind the wheel of a big car?

Not really, I already explained I would only pass a cyclist closely if they were unnecessarily sitting in the middle of the road / holding up traffic.

As you don’t appear to understand the issues clearly, your idea of “unnecessary” may be a more vulnerable road user’s idea of “necessary”.

Let’s make this a bit more clear:

You are NOT the Traffic Police - it is NOT your business to decide whether someone is holding you up or cycling safely and to punish them if you think they are unnecessarily holding you up.

And to think I have to share the road with entitled wankers like you.

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If someone cuts in line in a queue I am also not the queue police but I will make a point of making it my business.

Maybe you should try using use the bike lane? :smiley:

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Fun anecdote. I drove to the office yesterday in ZH. On the way back, I have to pass through an intersection where going straight or turning left are not allowed. Turn to the right is the allowed move (no pun intended).

I’m alone at the red light, cyclist comes from the back. A bit before he stops light turn to yellow/green so cyclist overtakes by the right and continues straight. I noticed all this happening, so I did not accelerate immediately after the light changed to green, otherwise I put the front of my car in the cyclist’s way.

After realizing how poor the situational awareness of the cyclist is, I just let the idiot pass. But the driver behind me was not that chill. He started using the car horn precisely at the same time the cyclist was passing in front of my car. Cyclist leaves no doubt about his poor situational awareness… he thinks it’s me who is using the horn, looks back in anger makes a gesture, and almost falls from the bike. I cannot help but laugh :rofl:

Take care out there, sometimes it’s sooo random.

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Perfectly legal for a cyclist to filter on the right and get in front of the motor traffic at lights. Many junctions have a bike box marked on the road precisely for this purpose.

He put himself in a position to make himself visible to you. You saw him and avoided him.

I’d say his actions served his purpose perfectly.

Perhaps that was @kingkong?
Horns are for warnings - not revenge.

As for the cyclist thinking it was you - he glanced back, saw a black BMW and put two and two together. Easy mistake to make!

Well done for not getting triggered and not having a fit because you lost two seconds of your day.
That sort of driving makes the roads safer for everyone.

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:joy:

I can somehow see both sides of the argument when it comes to city traffic. Many people are not paying attention, the situations can be complex and frankly many cyclists and pedestrians behave erratically, particularly when traffic is very slow or even stopped. Bike couriers and the likes often super aggressive and without any respect of the rules. I don’t see drivers being aggressive, it is rather they don’t pay proper attention and then create stupid situations.

It is a very different picture on country roads where traffic is often thin and in 99% of the situations I witness car drivers and cyclists are considerate.

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Getting triggered by idiots on a forum is a lot safer than getting triggered whilst in “control” of two tonnes of steel and plastic.

There are lots of different sorts of country roads - many are 80Km/h, many are narrow and quiet.

Some become footpaths on a Sunday (with the occasional driver who is unable to see that their car GPS isn’t giving them the optimum route) and some are mountain passes with sharp hair pins and steep drop-offs.

Some are excellent (especially some of the National Cycle routes) with no traffic and go through forests and across moorland.

Most of my recreational bike rides, encompass all these sorts of roads, by necessity.