General Category > On The Road
I'm a cyclist myself
Tim Hall:
"I'm a cyclist myself". The opening to what is nearly always going to be a rubbish conversation with a motorist.
The most recent example was on Saturday morning as we made our way back fom the FNRttC, cycling through Crawley Industrial estate. To our left is a bus lane. Not a bus and cycle and PTW and taxi lane but a bus lane (guided buses use it). A car pulls alongside and a voice utters the telling phrase:
"Hi guys, I'm a cyclist myself"
My heart sinks.
"Why don't you use the bus lane?" asks the driver, looking at us through his nearside window.
"Because it's for buses only"
"But I ride in it often" he says
"I can't help that. You're doing it wrong"
Off he goes, having not been held up at all by a pair of tandem riding cyclists. It would be handy though if he'd looked forwards and concentrated on driving rather than sideways and engaging us in conversation.
Cudzoziemiec:
Yep. The "advice" usage as above is less frequent IME than the "excuse" deployment, as in "But I can't have done anything wrong, because I'm a cyclist myself, therefore even if I drove into you, it must be your fault." (To which the riposte should be, but isn't, "I'm a driver myself.")
On a minuscule side note, I've never seen a bus lane that didn't allow cyclists, but then I've never been to Crawley Industrial Estate.
Kim:
--- Quote from: Cudzoziemiec on 09 May, 2022, 12:57:04 pm ---On a minuscule side note, I've never seen a bus lane that didn't allow cyclists, but then I've never been to Crawley Industrial Estate.
--- End quote ---
They tend to be ones that were molished from scratch as bus infrastructure, rather than part of a public highway that's been co-opted. The entrance to the bus stop area of Euston station from Euston Road springs to mind as one that's eminently useful for cyclists.
bhoot:
Pretty sure there used to be one outside Preston station when I was a reasonably frequent Brompton equipped visitor there for work purposes. I have vague recollections of having received a justified ticking off
Tim Hall:
--- Quote from: Kim on 09 May, 2022, 01:12:12 pm ---
--- Quote from: Cudzoziemiec on 09 May, 2022, 12:57:04 pm ---On a minuscule side note, I've never seen a bus lane that didn't allow cyclists, but then I've never been to Crawley Industrial Estate.
--- End quote ---
They tend to be ones that were molished from scratch as bus infrastructure, rather than part of a public highway that's been co-opted. The entrance to the bus stop area of Euston station from Euston Road springs to mind as one that's eminently useful for cyclists.
--- End quote ---
Exactly (or nearly exactly) this. Originally there was a Great Plan to install guided bus lanes far and wide across the town at Vast Expense. These are separated from the rest of the road by kerb stones and concrete.The buses have guidewheels at the front to, umm, guide them down this narrow lane. However as the Great Plan progressed there wasn't enough money to meet the ever increasing Vast Expense so the Great Plan got cut back. This resulted in a mish mash of guided bus lanes, normil bus lanes, featuring Coloured Tarmac and no bus lanes at all.
The bit we were cycling next to is a normil bus lane but has the relevant signage showing it is for buses only.
https://www.google.com/maps/@51.1382299,-0.164496,3a,75y,149.22h,69.87t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sCvZUK4gqMG8WsxlNeoDkJA!2e0!7i16384!8i8192
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