driving standards of road users (1 Viewer)

[emcf]

evening all,

as a recently passed D ) motorbike rider i feel i'm pretty safe on the road and very observant after the training i have had. however, i've almost had a few incidents with other motorists.

i've read opinions from other bikers that if you get involved in incidents then even if it is not your fault you have still 'failed' as you let yourself get into a dodgy situation. i like this line of thought and am keen to be that sort of biker (the safer the better....).

i do intend to take further training (bikesafe day courses, trackday training, IAM) but i reckon the goal of being incident free is impossible. other road users (well, some of them) seem to be idiots. my top five pet hates on the road...


1. car drivers with an inability to use mirrors or turn their heads.
these folk drive me nuts. a habitual non-mirror user should not be on the roads

2. car drivers on mobiles.
i'm not sure what other countries laws are but here in blighty it is illegal to use your phone whilst driving (except if you've got a handsfree kit). can someone please tell car drivers this? i now occasionally rap on the window of the offending car with nice tough knuckle-amoured biker gloves - shocks the bejeesus out of them but not sure if they get my point.....

3. cyclists.
yes, they are the most morally correct mode of transport after walking but a lot of them are plain suicidal. i see so many wearing ipods when cycling....that is just asking to be hit when you can't hear other road users. and they have an irritating habit of lining themselves up in front of me at red lights.....they don't seem to believe that i will pull away significantly faster than them!

4. moped riders
i was one of these for a while and looking back i'm quite shocked at how unsafe i was. mopeds are too easy to ride and therefore do not command enough attention of the rider. bikes are safer as you have to be switched on the whole time. and their engines sound like hedge trimmers

5. white van man.
err...actually i have a good opinion of them. i've found them to be the most courteous type on the road....always seem to be willing to pull to one side of their lane to let bikers filter. not sure if other countries have an equivalent


anyways....i've had me rant so any views? especially from other road users whom i may have offended?

 

[Bodisathva]

1. car drivers with an inability to use mirrors or turn their heads.

Absolutely. The number of people who simply are unaware of what's going on around them scares me to death, even when not on the bike.

2. car drivers on mobiles.

The legality of this varies from state to state, and currently in PA, it's legal. 9 out of 10 cars you pass on the highway has a driver with a hand to their head, yakking away, oblivious to anything else. Their speed is erratic, as is their track in the lane, and they are a menace

3. cyclists.

When you pass them on the motorcycle, give 'em a friendly pat on the back...

4. moped riders

Had one of these fall in line with a bunch of us "big-boys". Completely oblivious to the appearances...one of the funniest things I've seen

I'll add two to the list:

1. Truck drivers who are completely indifferent to the fact that they snag traffic for miles when they cannot pass in a timely fashion.
   
2. Drivers who do not understand that you are only supposed to be in the passing lane if you are actually passing another vehicle

 

[KalelGmoon]

[*]Drivers who do not understand that you are only supposed to be in the passing lane if you are actually passing another vehicle
[/LIST]

I will admit I am guilty of this. I usually drive fast enough that I am passing most other traffic. so I find it pointless to change lanes every couple of minutes. but hey that is just me

 

[Bodisathva]

I will admit I am guilty of this. I usually drive fast enough that I am passing most other traffic. so I find it pointless to change lanes every couple of minutes. but hey that is just me

Guess I should clarify... it's not a "speed limit" and "faster than the speed limit" lane setup, but a "slower" and "faster" lane. So if you're going 100 but I close in at 150, you belong in the other lane

 

[Brianwarnock]

3. cyclists.
and they have an irritating habit of lining themselves up in front of me at red lights.....they don't seem to believe that i will pull away significantly faster than them!

Here the road markings at traffic lights encourage tham to do this.

Can I add one
Motorcyclists who thread through slowly moving traffic, its fine when its stopped, I'll even try to make room.

Brian

 

[ColinEssex]

Interesting comments em. You are correct in your assumption that if you get into a "situation" the chances are it could have been avoided with forward planning. Its bloody hard to do though

There are many clues as to what a motorist will be doing -

* note if the car is in a queue which way are the wheels pointing?

* is the driver looking agitated? both these could indicate it may pull out without warning

* a car waiting to pull out of a side road - are the wheels slowly moving? - have you looked into the drivers eyes (has he/she seen you?) Pass near the crown of the road to give yourself room to escape.

* is it school-run time?, mothers in their 4 x 4's only have little Timmy on their minds and forget about indicators, mirrors (except for makeup and lipstick) etc They will double park and to hell with everyone else.

Its difficult, but having an "escape" plan is good - i.e. don't filter into a no exit situation, you may be carved up by an artic or something.

The key is always to assume the motorist / lorry driver hasn't seen you and be prepared to take evasive action.

Its absolutely phenominal the difference in "respect" I get from my 2 bikes. When I go out on the Pan European "police" bike (see avatar), motorists pull over to let me pass, they slow up on the motorway, they drop their phones, they stop and flash me to pull out, no tail gating, don't carve me up etc etc
On the 400 Suzi they basically treat you like shite as if you don't exist, the reverse of the above list.

We all get into difficulties at some point as the "braindead" driver will always be out there.

Bri has highlighted an area where motorcyclists are annoying, again this area (filiering) can be executed to the millimetre by judging gaps, timing when the lights will go green - I hate to stop and put a foot down, I try to get to the front just as the lights change and using the bikes power to be as unobtrusive to other road users. A bike can be over 100 yards up the road before the first car has even moved, if its done right.

BTW - didn't it sound good when you said "as a recently passed motorbike rider"? I've done a car test and have a PSV coach licence, but the motorcycle test was far harder than those two tests.

Col

 

[Brianwarnock]

It was amusing to read of the different attitudes to Col depending on the bike, back in the 60s a mate had a frog eyed sprite (little sports car 0-60 maybe 20 secs max about 80, the police were always hounding him, but in his dad's big daimler with twice the performance, ok slight exageration, he was ignored.

Brian

PS The bike test was easy when I took it back in '58

 

[ColinEssex]

I agree Bri, I used to have an MG Midget about half the power of the current Mini. It had a "straight-thru" on it so sounded like a [cheap] Ferrari, I got stopped loads of times hammering it at 32mph My dad had a Humber Hawk, we did 110 in it on the A4 (pre motorways) going to London, scared me to death.

Col

 

[jsanders]

Yesterday I saw a crotch rocket doing about 90 (145 k/h) though a crowded street. He’s probably one of those people that claim cars don’t watch out for them.

 

[lmnop7854]

I have one I need to add:

Drivers who do not move over/speed up/slow down when I am trying to get on the highway. God knows they own that lane, and God forbid I get in it. Especially when the on ramp is going to end on me in 500 feet.

I think common courtesy is a thing of the past on the road. Now it is more like uncommon courtesy.

Lisa

 

[Autoeng]

Drivers who do not understand that you are only supposed to be in the passing lane if you are actually passing another vehicle

It is against the law in Kentucky to drive in the passing lane while not passing but I have yet to see or hear of anyone getting a ticket for it. They should though.

 

[emcf]

I'll add two to the list:

1. Truck drivers who are completely indifferent to the fact that they snag traffic for miles when they cannot pass in a timely fashion.
   
2. Drivers who do not understand that you are only supposed to be in the passing lane if you are actually passing another vehicle

yup....artics seem to co-ordiante themselves when one tries to overtake the other with a speed differential of .5mph! clogs up the lanes for a number of miles until one of them gives way (which they never want to do as they try to drive at set speed for efficiency).

middle lane hoggers i do not understand. people i know who do it say they feel safer.....if i was that timid on the road i'd feel safer being as far left (or right in a country that drives on the wrong side ) as possible away from the fast lane.

 

[emcf]

Can I add one
Motorcyclists who thread through slowly moving traffic, its fine when its stopped, I'll even try to make room.

Brian

hmmm....guilty as charged your honour ! well, i do filter through moving traffic but not when it is moving at more than 10/15mph. i tend to use couriers as a guide here...if i'm filtering and keeping up with them i know i am pushing too hard! when the cars pick up speed i always drop into one of the lanes.

good lad for moving over...i really appreciate that as it lets me know that there are at least some aware car drivers out there!

 

[emcf]

Interesting comments em. You are correct in your assumption that if you get into a "situation" the chances are it could have been avoided with forward planning. Its bloody hard to do though

true....i feel i am aware of the other road users but still get the occasional incident. i guess that's why i should get further training to develop awareness to a higher level.

BTW - didn't it sound good when you said "as a recently passed motorbike rider"? I've done a car test and have a PSV coach licence, but the motorcycle test was far harder than those two tests.

Col

i did my car test 12 odd years ago now....i was more confident before that test than the bike test. i was caking it about the u-turn....could do it flawlessly 9 times out of ten in the training but was not sure i'd do it in the test - in the end it was a shoogly turn but satisfactory nonetheless . the lad i was training with got one minor fault in the ride and then got failed as he touched down his foot on the u-turn. surely there must be a better test of slow speed control than a u-turn.

 

[emcf]

Yesterday I saw a crotch rocket doing about 90 (145 k/h) though a crowded street. He’s probably one of those people that claim cars don’t watch out for them.

an idiot who gives the rest of us a bad name.....another example of this is the chap called 'ghostrider'....have a search on u-tube for him - he (or they) must be brilliant riders but driving like that on roads is suicidal

 

[emcf]

I have one I need to add:

Drivers who do not move over/speed up/slow down when I am trying to get on the highway. God knows they own that lane, and God forbid I get in it. Especially when the on ramp is going to end on me in 500 feet.

I think common courtesy is a thing of the past on the road. Now it is more like uncommon courtesy.

Lisa

that annoyed me when i was in a car...i've not had much bike motorway driving yet (about 20 miles) but i'm sure i'll experience it on the bike eventually!

 

[emcf]

It is against the law in Kentucky to drive in the passing lane while not passing but I have yet to see or hear of anyone getting a ticket for it. They should though.

the coppers over here don't seem to care either...and the courts are too busy to deal with 'trivial' motoring offences. although i am glad that the cps (crown prosecution service) are having a public consultation about how to punish driving offences -
CPS consultation

tonight i will be mostly reading this document

 

[Rich]

Yesterday I saw a crotch rocket doing about 90 (145 k/h) though a crowded street. He’s probably one of those people that claim cars don’t watch out for them.

How do you know he was doing about 90?

 

[MrsGorilla]

How do you know he was doing about 90?

You can usually get a fair approximation based on how fast you are going and how fast they fly by you.

 

[jsanders]

an idiot who gives the rest of us a bad name.....another example of this is the chap called 'ghostrider'....have a search on u-tube for him - he (or they) must be brilliant riders but driving like that on roads is suicidal

I'm sure you have them there, but my shop is located near a custom bike shop, where they modify Japanese hot street bikes. Some of them have over 200 hp.

A recipe for early retirement if you ask me.