Close call with red double decker tourist bus

[steve_hobart]

Hi everyone
Im posting this just to raise awareness of alleged dangerous driving by a driver of 1 of the 2 red double decker tourist buses in Hobart. On Wedneaday 3rd Feb at 1.30 pm I was crossing the road on my roadie (in bright yellow hi vis gear) at Zero Davey Hotel/ coffee shop heading north towards the Cenataph.
The lights showed a Green man and green bike and i subsequently crossed.
I passed the centre median when the red bus travelling from the bridge towards the city suddently turned left at a significant speed and nearly crushed me. I jumped off my bike flinging myself onto the footpath.
I have reported the issue to Police. Who indicated that they were familiar with previous incidents and would get the Traffic Safety Police to talk to the driver.
Please take care if you see these buses while cycling.
Regards
Steve

[m@]

Sounds like the ol' cap'n takes the same approach to safety on land as at sea... glad you dodged him.

[trailgumby]

Sorry to hear about your incident. Was your bike run over or did it escape damage?

[steve_hobart]

Luckily the bike and i escaped major damage except for sratches scrapes and bloody elbows....

[trailgumby]

Luckily the bike and i escaped major damage except for scratches scrapes and bloody elbows....

Very pleased to hear it. Mention that in your report to the cops. Sounds uncomfortably close - acutely so.

Creeps like this need to be reined in. A little financial and demerit point incentive can only help.

[rangersac]

Pretty stupid if deliberate. There's not exactly an abundance of red double decker buses in Hobart...

[steve_hobart]

My thought was that it was inattention rather than deliberate as he didnt slow down, stop or even seem aware. They are continuously talking into their head mounted microphones while driving ...rather than having an additional non driving tour guide..

[Trevtassie]

If it's who I think it is, it's probably a case of "hmmm, probably should have fixed those brakes when they failed in 1999"....

[m@]

If it's who I think it is, it's probably a case of "hmmm, probably should have fixed those brakes when they failed in 1999"....

Yep...

[LG]

Had a similar situation occur a couple years ago at the intersection of Morrison St and Brooke St, not a double decker, but tour bus pulls out of Brooke while I'm riding down Morrison. I could see the driver adjusting then talking on a microphone and simply not look at all to the right when entering the intersection. There was a look of shock on the passengers faces just behind him though as he nearly cleaned me up, I ended in the oncoming traffic lane to avoid an accident with thankfully nobody coming the other way.

A momentary lack of concentration can simply occur. With all the parking, cross roads, tourists, buses, and scenic features to look at I find that stretch of waterfront quite a dangerous place to ride.