Turning Right and Ignorant Drivers

Depending which route I take, as I approach the bottom of my road I have to turn right.

Because of the geography of the road (several small climbs one after another), taking the road can be a little hairy at times, as despite the road being a 30mph through a series of housing estates, it does tend to be a bit of a rat run.

I have lost count of the number of times that in trying to move over to the white lines, I have been over taken, sometimes with horns blasting, and equally, the number of times I have been overtaken even when I have my right arm out, indicating I am turning right.

I kind of put this down to that particular road, but yesterday I had two more examples that just took my breath away.

Riding our horses, my wife and I were indicating right and about to turn the horses, when a woman just came breezing past. This was a bit of a suprise, as the road we were turning off of is a blind brow and left hand corner. :facepalm:

Once home from riding my horse, and with lunch inside me, it was time to get the road bike out. At the end of a long straight 30mph road, just before a 90 degree left hand corner, having checked that the road behind was clear (as I ALWAYS do), I stuck my right arm out, to indicate right and moved out and onto the white lines. This signal and the fact I was now only 20 yards from the junction (on a 90 degree left hand bend don't forget) complete with bollards light, signs, the works, did not deter a black Ford Focus from going right across into the other lane (full marks for giving me plenty of room, no punishment pass here), and overtaking.

I had to ask myself, if I were driving a car, would they have done the same thing?

I am left wondering if, amongst all the other skills that are discarded after passing a driving test; like using rear view mirrors, indicating and parallel parking, do people not know what the hand signal for a left or right turn is any more?

It's not tought in the driving lessons as nothing is formal as you don't actually need lessons.

You need to be able to drive a car fine for a short while, not as easy as it sounds*, but most get there in the end.
The theory relies on common sense and while it's in the book that is all they'll see of it.

Well, that's a great comfort to know that I am sharing the road, and trusting my life to a whole bunch of strangers who have not the slightest idea of why I am riding along with my left or right arm stuck out sideways.

No point in indicating I am slowing down then! (anyone remember that from their cycling proficiency test?).

Its in the highway code ffs:

https://www.gov.uk/general-rules-all-dr ... 103-to-106

hate cycling on the roads - just recently it seems to have go worse but even aged 17, I still had people pulling out or ignoring what I'm doing.

I remember it and that is where most will know the signals from, unless they're old enough to have used them in cars.
It can pop up on the test but really common sense should tell you what it means ;-)

I see the fact you're in the middle of the road should signify it, similar to a car turning.

You would hope, especially with two adults on horses with their arms, and crops sticking out at 90 degrees to their bodies. But apparently not.

I've had a similar thing happen to me on a few occasions, all on the same section of road (pictured below). I knew that it was simply a matter of time before I got knocked off, so I ride this particular section of my commute to work on the right-hand pavement now, provided it's clear (which it usually is at 7.30am). If there are people walking on the pavement then I walk my bike - this particular section is over a bridge and is only about 100m long before I can get back on the road again.

people are just ignorant,

I drive an old austin healey with combined rear lights / brakes / indicators as was legal at the time it was made, so in heavy traffic I frequently give hand signals as well to avoid the frustrated driver being confused by one "brake" light suddenly flashing, the car does over 100 (only tried on the track ) so it's not as if I am ever holding anyone up but that doesn't stop the muppets in their bubbles driving like idiots............

I just think that whether they know the hand signals or not, and I suspect they do, there are drivers that just hate cyclists and even horse riders and will do their level best to be as awkward as possible and even downright dangerous just to make the point that they don't think you should be on the road. :evil:

I once arrived at a traffic light controlled junction on my bike, I stopped in a way that the rest of the traffic would stop behind me, so I could continue straight on when the lights changed, the driver behind me, who wanted to turn left, as the lights changed he drove out and then straight in front of me to go left forcing me into the gutter, why he didn't wait the few seconds for me to pass the turning I don't know :roll:

Alison

What Alison said.
put someone behind the wheel and their mentality tells them they are right and every one else is just in the way.
they hate other cars on the road because they are behind them
They hate cyclists because they hold them up
they hate anything that makes them do something they diddnt want to, thats just the world we live in now.
people have no problem waiting 20 mins in a queue in the supermarket but they will run you down in the car park. The mentality just changes when they get behind the wheel and thats just the average driver. Then you have those drivers who actually dont give a toss and woe betide anyone who gets in their way irrelevant of what transport you choose. I saw a bloke drive his Bentley continental into asda, rolled upinto the disabled part driving past at least 40 vacant spaces, park across 3 disabled bays got out looking like the last lot of steroids he injected went straight into his forehead, wandered into asda bought a paper and wandered back out oblivious to what a complete tosser he was.
anyone remember kenneth noye? Your gonna see much more of that going on, the roads are just too crowded without soft targets like us getting in the way.
To quote the infamous emma way "bloody cyclists" bloody people is what she meant.