Primary line issue this morning

Commuting, Day rides, Audax, Incidents, etc.
Post Reply
The fat commuter
Posts: 292
Joined: 12 May 2014, 7:54pm
Location: The hilly side of Sheffield

Primary line issue this morning

Post by The fat commuter »

Riding into work this morning. Was heading along this stretch of road:

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@53.40063 ... 312!8i6656

You may just be able to see the tram tracks under the silver van. When I ride along here, I ride primary and then hook a left so that I can cross the tram lines at a steep angle. I then ride secondary alongside the tram lines. Never had a problem - got to watch out as it is slightly downhill and there are a few side streets entering onto the road.

Anyway, this morning, around 06:30 - was doing my usual. I knew that there was a moped behind me and a car behind it. As I was cutting over the tram lines, the moped overtook me on the left. I just spotted him out of the corner of my eye before he went past. I had to then change course and stay in primary (or hit him). Unfortunately, staying in primary means that my angle over the lines was extremely shallow. Bit of a brown shorts moment but I managed to not come off.

Legged it after him and caught him up at the next lights that were just changing to green. Pulled alongside him and said, "you're an idiot". I did well not to add any swear words or smack him one. He said something back - not sure what it was but I think that he had already realised that he was close to taking me out. What shocked me as much as his manoeuvre was the fact that this wasn't some spotty youth but someone that looked about my age (forties).

The good news was that I was so wound up I knocked over half a minute off my ride in time.
irc
Posts: 5192
Joined: 3 Dec 2008, 2:22pm
Location: glasgow

Re: Primary line issue this morning

Post by irc »

His fault of course. But also avoidable by you by checking over your L shoulder before swinging in.

I was almost taken out at 6am by a faster cyclist undertaking me in the 3 ft gap between me and the kerb. I'd left the cycle lane by a few inches to avoid a bad surface and this idiot undertook me rather than move out on to the traffic free road. This may have been before I started using a mirror so I didn't know he was there until I shoulder checked.
The fat commuter
Posts: 292
Joined: 12 May 2014, 7:54pm
Location: The hilly side of Sheffield

Re: Primary line issue this morning

Post by The fat commuter »

At that speed I didn't have much choice. I couldn't do an emergency stop because of the surface. I didn't continue left as I knew he was there - so had to go straight on. Had it been wet or had I had thinner tyres on it would have been a different outcome. Basically, if someone was behind me one moment and then decided to pass on the left leaving me choices that each had a potentially bad outcome. Had I continued my manoeuvre, I would definitely have been a goner. Keeping straight without slowing seemed the best way of not falling foul of the tram lines.
User avatar
661-Pete
Posts: 10593
Joined: 22 Nov 2012, 8:45pm
Location: Sussex

Re: Primary line issue this morning

Post by 661-Pete »

Well done for keeping afloat there! The M/cyclist obviously made a mistake and seems to have admitted it. Wouldn't have been much comfort if you were KSI'd...

Tram lines are a real menace - we are fortunate in SE England in being mostly spared them (Croydon and Wimbledon excepted). I suppose the urban planners whose line of thinking is "we've got to have trams - everwhere else does" don't stop for a moment to consider cyclists :evil: .

How easy would it be to design tram rails which are not a cycling hazard? I'm thinking on the lines of some sort of rubber insert, which would be depressed by the tram wheels but otherwise remain flush with the road surface. A bit of googling and I turned up this. If it works for Switzerland why can't it be used here?

Alternatively, there's always the trolleybus. No hazard for cyclists (apart from the usual issues of cycling close to large vehicles). Trolleybuses are practically the norm for urban transport in many parts of the world, especially Russia and the former Soviet bloc. What have the Brits got against them?
Suppose that this room is a lift. The support breaks and down we go with ever-increasing velocity.
Let us pass the time by performing physical experiments...
--- Arthur Eddington (creator of the Eddington Number).
irc
Posts: 5192
Joined: 3 Dec 2008, 2:22pm
Location: glasgow

Re: Primary line issue this morning

Post by irc »

The fat commuter wrote:At that speed I didn't have much choice. I couldn't do an emergency stop because of the surface. I didn't continue left as I knew he was there - so had to go straight on. Had it been wet or had I had thinner tyres on it would have been a different outcome. Basically, if someone was behind me one moment and then decided to pass on the left leaving me choices that each had a potentially bad outcome. Had I continued my manoeuvre, I would definitely have been a goner. Keeping straight without slowing seemed the best way of not falling foul of the tram lines.


With hindsight would the way to do it would have been to let the moped past before doing your turn since taking primary can't stop moped stupidity? Cars on the other hand can be controlled so taking primary before a sharp left turn works for cars.
Post Reply