Brakes work, shame brain doesn't

[Mark1978]

I've never liked straight to green. Too much pressure to set off immediately.

[Phil Fouracre]

Surely, whatever the lights/other traffic was doing, self preservation trumps everything. Just look where you are going, is that so difficult?

[beardy]

As can be seen from this thread that pressure is already here but for amber instead of green.

I do take my time and wait for green and I can see the cars behind me doing false starts as they are expecting me to leave a little earlier. On many junctions I even turn off the engine and I use the amber period to start the engine and get in gear.

I like the idea of a countdown, I was waiting at a junction with a cycle group and the lights were taking their time, some cars behind started beeping. There was a discussion between the cyclists with suggestions that our presence was preventing the sensors working. There were however cars waiting at the other junction so I didnt think that likely.

A bit more car beeping and some of the cyclists moved on past the red and crossing other traffic. The motorists were now even more vexed at those of us who remained. I dont know what would have happened if it wasnt for the fact that the traffic lights then changed. A countdown would have prevented all that (as would a bit of patience but I have to say the delay was long enough to consider failure as an option).

[pwa]

Thinking about it, I'm not sure I always wait for amber to turn to green, but starting on amber must mean starting with caution and awareness that the way may not yet be safe and clear. Shooting out towards the centre of the junction without a good look left is not ideal.

[Audax67]

I've been trying to step through the critical bit and watch the cyclist's hands as he set off. From what I can make out he starts with his hands just on or a bit back from the hoods, then sees the lorry and instead of shifting his hands an inch and braking from the hoods - adequate at that speed, I would think - he wastes time by trying to going down on the drops first so as to brake harder.

I think this was a reflexive action: "need to brake hard, go to drops", but at the low speed he was doing, braking from the hoods would have been adequate. My own reaction would certainly have been to grab the brakes from the hoods. No smug merit in this, it's just where I ride most of the time since my gut precludes riding on the drops for very long.

If he had reached the drops and braked hard there's a fair chance he would have gone over the bars anyway and under the truck instead of just hitting it.

[661-Pete]

I don't think I ever go down on the drops in order to brake, not even for an emergency stop. Am I missing something? As long as the brakes are in good condition and properly adjusted, braking from the hoods is quite adequate. But my hands are fairly large with strong fingers, certainly I've never used 'suicide levers' nor any such add-ons. Perhaps others have more difficulty?

[Audax67]

Well, I have long palms and short fingers, and find it much easier to brake from the hoods than from the drops. I have my brakes adjusted accordingly. Virtually the only time I'm on the drops is on long downhills.

[The fat commuter]

If he had reached the drops and braked hard there's a fair chance he would have gone over the bars anyway and under the truck instead of just hitting it.

Does he not go over the bars? It looks to me like he brakes hard, goes over the top and his head/helmet stop him going any further as he hits the side of the lorry (cleaning a bit of muck off the side).

Fortunately he was OK - could have been worse.

With regards to blame - we'd have to see what the other lights were on. They could have still been on amber (changing to red just as the lorry went over the stop line). Bit of a grey area law wise from the lorry driver's perspective if that was the case.

In my view, there were mistakes from both parties. However, who was the most stupid has got to go to the cyclist for not seeing or hearing a blummin' great lorry in his path.

[mercalia]

the idiot cyclist had his head down racing style? what a jerk, an advert for spec savers?

[DaveP]

If the other traffic lights were where they appeared to be, I don't think the lorry driver has much of an excuse for passing them. Given the size of the junction, and assuming that the light timings reflect the time necessary for traffic to clear the junction, he's taken a red light IMO.
So did the cyclist - he was rolling quite quickly past the light as it changed. He certainly didn't wait for a green light. I reckon he didn't actually wait for an amber - he predicted it - and permitted himself to go forwards.

Whose fault was it?
Both parties.

Who committed the additional fault of riding at a moving one way stream of traffic without even looking in the direction from which it was coming?
Not one of natures natural survivors then...

[Audax67]

If he had reached the drops and braked hard there's a fair chance he would have gone over the bars anyway and under the truck instead of just hitting it.

Does he not go over the bars? It looks to me like he brakes hard, goes over the top and his head/helmet stop him going any further as he hits the side of the lorry (cleaning a bit of muck off the side).

Fortunately he was OK - could have been worse.

With regards to blame - we'd have to see what the other lights were on. They could have still been on amber (changing to red just as the lorry went over the stop line). Bit of a grey area law wise from the lorry driver's perspective if that was the case.

In my view, there were mistakes from both parties. However, who was the most stupid has got to go to the cyclist for not seeing or hearing a blummin' great lorry in his path.

Aye, you're right, he did manage to reach the brakes and go over. He'd have been more stable and had more time if he'd braked from the hoods.

Re hearing, it is in traffic, it'd be hard to make out the lorry. But in any case it looks as if he was jumping the gun at the lights and expecting everyone else to obey them to the letter. A bit daft, that.

[Ellieb]

My money is on the cyclist was either very tired or perhaps drunk. Whatever it was there is no doubt his brain is in neutral. I doubt whether he rides like that on a regular basis

[freeflow]

My understanding is that if the lights were on amber then this should not have happened until after the other lights had turned to red. On this basis the lorry is very clearly in the wrong and the cyclists not so much.

[reohn2]

Seems like a classic case of late and early to me,which is par for the course in madland UK.
The amount of motors of all sizes I see driving through amber and red lights is nothing short of phenomenal and a lack of policing to do anything about it means it's going worse.

In that light the cyclist is an idiot pure and simple.
If he is unaware of something that big coming he'd be safer walking.

[JimL]

My understanding is that if the lights were on amber then this should not have happened until after the other lights had turned to red. On this basis the lorry is very clearly in the wrong and the cyclists not so much.

Agreed. Amber only shows when the other light is at red and the video clearly shows the lorry going through a red light but equally amber doesn't mean go and green means go if clear.