Very nearly wiped out a cyclist

B0bbyEwing

Not sure whether this would be better housed in the vent forum or motoring but I very nearly totally wiped out a cyclist tonight. 

Was one of those where the hell did this guy appear from moments & I need to watch that back on dash cam to see what happened.

The A road where I live was nose to tail so I turned off as soon as I could. I'm approaching a T junction on a decline & I'm slowing & paying attention to my right because I already know that it can be bad seeing approaching traffic from that way due to parked cars. There's various ways you can cut off the A road but these ways all lead out at the same end. I took the second turning but there's one before it & some times you get people going way over the limit to 'beat the traffic' - hence me coming in being slow & cautious for anyone flying by.

I see absolutely nothing & so pull out. As I do I see faint light & these arms getting thrown up in the air gesturing - a cyclist from 'nowhere'. 
As the junction is really quite wide though, it wasn't like he will have just appeared out from near a car. He will have been right where I was looking ... except I didn't see him.

Wearing a dark red top, black leggings. Some crappy temu waste-of-time lights. 

As I watch it back on dash cam it looks more obvious than it did in person but still not really that clear. It's obviously dark - it's 6pm. As I said, he had a dark red jacket, black leggings, poor lights & either his jacket had black down the side or he had a black bag wrapped around his side (so whatever colour was there was further minimised).

He had a helmet on though.

I'm actually a cyclist myself (and one who has been knocked off a bike) & whenever I go out in the dark I'm most certainly NOT wearing dark clothing. Sure I wear black bibs but my top is a bright reflective colour. If I wasn't wearing a bright coloured top then I'd at least throw some reflective tape around me or buy one of those reflective jackets. 

The annoying thing is is that if I'd have clipped him it would've probably been my fault because I guess you're supposed to see everything in front of you no matter what. 

But you can be the most correct dead guy in the graveyard but it's irrelevant because you're in the graveyard. I can't fathom why when someone is potentially putting their body vs 1.50ton of metal they don't try to make themselves seen & instead choose to blend in with the darkness because 'this outfit looks nice' or whatever. Even if someone isn't going to buy some decent lights or clothing, some cheap reflective banding you can put over yourself would help a ton.

sheramber

In my area very few cyclists ware easily seen clothing. It is mostly black clothing on a black bike.

where I used to live cyclists wore dark clothing and did not have lights on their bike. Not even for cycling on an unlit rural road. 

B0bbyEwing

I actually had one a year or two ago on the exact same junction. 

This one though was an all black setup. Black tracksuit top with hood up of course, black tracksuit pants & black trainers. No lights of course. The type of "cheeky chappy" "wouldn't hurt a fly" that is forever in trouble with the law kind of lad. 

Wasn't nearly as close as tonight's though. The fact I slowed down for the junction & the fact this guy saw me & got a move on ended up saving us both. 

I should've probably pulled over after he started flapping his arms around & we could've discussed appropriate clothing. 


Dash cams are also frustrating because the amount of times I've watched something back on camera & it's been more obvious than in real time, looks not as close as in real time etc etc. 

But even the dash cam had this one looking close. 

Baldytyke88

We must see and drive close by many thousands of other road users, a small number don't think about being seen, some are just going around the corner.

I am forced to wear a hi-vis at work, for very little reason, so I get your point. Sometimes there is just so much traffic, we need to take more care at these busy junctions.

Bigphil1474

Maybe if it was obvious on the dash cam, there's just a small element of driver error here? Get your eyesight checked every 2 years and be cautious at junctions. Having said that, I've had similar myself. Not all people have the smarts. Hopefully they have a donor card.
The worst one which was definitely not down to me, (which I saved from 2023 as it shocked me so much) is a young kid on a bicycle, cutting straight across the road in front of me. Fortunately I was only doing 20mph and it was a side road. Stopped in time, and he just rode on. I get my eyes checked May every odd year. Still image below.

Mildly_Miffed

B0bbyEwing said:

As I watch it back on dash cam it looks more obvious than it did in person

Mmmhmm.

He was visible. You glanced but didn't see.

leosayer

I'm not the world's greatest driver but blaming the cyclist's clothing isn't something I would do.

The first question I would ask myself is how could I have avoided that mistake - the kind of mistake that could permanently change someone's life.

If you didn't see them then what could you do differently in future to see them next time?

born_again

leosayer said:

I'm not the world's greatest driver but blaming the cyclist's clothing isn't something I would do.

The first question I would ask myself is how could I have avoided that mistake - the kind of mistake that could permanently change someone's life.

If you didn't see them then what could you do differently in future to see them next time?

Some "Long Tall Glasses" 🤣

There are times when there is nothing you can do. Called Accidents. 

Many people look but don't see. Then there are the I don't want to be seen, cyclists. 
When you are a vulnerable road user, it is your responsibility to make sure you do all YOU can to be seen & stay safe.

ButterCheese

I see just as many pedestrians wearing all black, no torch, crossing in very dangerous areas when there are zebra crossings close by.  I think everyone needs to be a bit more sensible, especially in winter and darkness

shera12

Wow, that sounds scary glad you avoided hitting him. 😬 Unfortunately, it happens too often — cyclists in dark clothes with poor lights are really hard to see, especially at dusk. You did everything right slowing down and being cautious. It’s a good reminder for everyone on a bike to wear bright, reflective gear and proper lights even a cheap reflective band can make a huge difference.

LightFlare

born_again said:

leosayer said:

I'm not the world's greatest driver but blaming the cyclist's clothing isn't something I would do.

The first question I would ask myself is how could I have avoided that mistake - the kind of mistake that could permanently change someone's life.

If you didn't see them then what could you do differently in future to see them next time?

Some "Long Tall Glasses" 🤣

There are times when there is nothing you can do. Called Accidents. 

Many people look but don't see. Then there are the I don't want to be seen, cyclists. 
When you are a vulnerable road user, it is your responsibility to make sure you do all YOU can to be seen & stay safe.

I find it surprising at how many people don't follow this -- you might be right, but against a vehicle, being right wont resurrect you