Moron Motorists #3

[biker jk]

Got a call from a constable at Dee Why police. Just need to go in and make a formal statement and a TIN will be issued.

Well done mate. She's clearly ignorant of the road rules and shouldn't have a licence. Apart from failing to give way by left hooking you she also crossed an unbroken white line (too many drivers change lanes across them).

[il padrone]

Apart from failing to give way by left hooking you she also crossed an unbroken white line (too many drivers change lanes across them).

I'd agree she doesn't know her road rules, and far too many drivers do cross the solid lane lines. However it is a bit grey with bus lanes (and bike lanes). Drivers of motor vehicles are allowed to travel in a bus/bike lane for up to 50m to enter or leave the road - at a side street or driveway. This is made more dangerous for them and others (more likely to lead to a left hook) if they cannot cross the lane line.

There is also a rule that requires drivers to turn left from as near as possible to the left-hand kerb. Additionally there is an exclusion to the prohibition on crossing the solid (or double?) centre-line, when entering or leaving the carriageway. I think this would apply here as well.

[zero]

IMO rule 147 (video incident occurs in NSW), authorises the crossing of the lines - motorists can use the special purpose lane for 50m prior to a turn.

To be quite frankly honest, rule 147 (c) is so terribly worded that I can't imagine any prosecution succeeding for single solid lane line cross.

[KenGS]

All they need to do is make bike lanes the same width as normal lanes and there would be no confusion about what to do

[fatdudeonabike]

Got a call from a constable at Dee Why police. Just need to go in and make a formal statement and a TIN will be issued.

Well done mate. She's clearly ignorant of the road rules and shouldn't have a licence. Apart from failing to give way by left hooking you she also crossed an unbroken white line (too many drivers change lanes across them).

Apparently I need brushing up on my road rules too! Given the whole car was completely in front of you, I would've given way to the car in that situation.

I wouldn't call myself a defensive rider necessarily, I just didn't think I always had right of way just because I'm in a bike lane and I'm going straight.

I guess I'll know next time I'm driving and/or riding...

[g-boaf]

Hoon driver in silver coloured fake Falcon GT (1970s vintage) doing street racing up and down Cumberland Highway this afternoon. Must have done illegal U-turn as well do be able to go back the other way so quickly. Dumb thing to do anyway, but doing it at peak hour too?

Same goes for the Ferrari 458 Italia driver doing a full-launch control start and going through 4 gears (rev-limit in the first three) from a start on a nearby road. 9000rpm rev limit, with freely available gear ratios and other data, you can work out what speed it was doing pretty easily.

[il padrone]

Apparently I need brushing up on my road rules too! Given the whole car was completely in front of you, I would've given way to the car in that situation.

I wouldn't call myself a defensive rider necessarily, I just didn't think I always had right of way just because I'm in a bike lane and I'm going straight.

Hmm.... you do have priority

Turning left:

28 Starting a left turn from a multi-lane road
(1) A driver turning left at an intersection from a multi-lane road must approach and enter the intersection from within the left lane unless⎯
(a) the driver is required or permitted to approach and enter the intersection from within another marked lane under rule 88(1), 92 or 159; or
(b) the driver is turning, at B lights or traffic arrows, in accordance with Division 2 of Part 17; or
(c) subrule (1A) or (2) applies to the driver

I won't go though all the exceptions. Suffice to say that none of them apply here.

For the lane change required:

148 Giving way when moving from one marked lane or line of traffic to another marked lane or line of traffic
(1) A driver who is moving from one marked lane (whether or not the lane is ending) to another marked lane must give way to any vehicle travelling in the same direction as the driver in the marked lane to which the driver is moving.

My reading of "giving way" would suggest that the driver should not have passed the cyclist in the first place. There is more to lane-changing than just being in front. Overtaking then changing lanes in front and braking to turn is a dubious practice. She would have been clear ahead if the OP did not need to hit the brakes at all. Somehow I doubt this was the case There is more to lane-changing safely and legally than not having a collision by virtue of another driver's avoidance.

give way, for a driver or pedestrian, means—
(a) if the driver or pedestrian is stopped—remain stationary until it is safe to proceed; or
(b) in any other case—slow down and, if necessary, stop to avoid a collision;

[Lukeyboy]

Bet it sounded epic though

[jasonc]

Bet it sounded epic though

remember hearing a 360 modena in nth Adelaide years ago going "through the gears". just a sound I wanted to hear again and again

[GeoffInBrisbane]

*goes on youtube to look at Ferrari videos*

[Lukeyboy]

*goes on youtube to look at Ferrari videos*

I actually spent the next 2 hours after reading the first post watching youtube videos. Damn that Formula 1 V12 and the HD videos of the Ferrari 599XX Evo were music to my ears....

[trailgumby]

I think IP has it right. The other option is effectively turning left from the middle lane, but i think it will be for failing to give way.

I had to brake hard to avoid a collision. Remember that even with discs and fat tyres bikes don't stop as well as cars.

The constable was impressed by the quality of the capture i think. He said "I can't wait until we get them... will stop a lot of complaints". He also went from being disinterested in dealing with the complaint to being quite keen for me to see him when i go in

[g-boaf]

Bet it sounded epic though

Nah, flat and dull. Designed for modern emissions laws. Give me the old F50 or the 412T2.

[GeoffInBrisbane]

You have a point...but if you were overtaken on your commute by a 412T2 then I'd like to know where you work!

[Rhubarb]

The constable was impressed by the quality of the capture i think. He said "I can't wait until we get them... will stop a lot of complaints". He also went from being disinterested in dealing with the complaint to being quite keen for me to see him when i go in

Video makes their job easier for sure. She can't say it didn't happen, wasn't her driving etc etc. The other big thing in your favour I think is the fact that you weren't abusive or irrational at the time. The video paints you as a rational considered person. Conversely, she comes across as ignorant and disrespecting of the rights of bikes, and hence the law as it applies to all.

[trailgumby]

Yeah, the camera removes any need or inclination for me to get ranty. If my view of the incident is the factual one then the ticket in the mail will win the argument.

"Chatting" provides an opportunity for the driver to drop themselves in it further, and removes doubt as to their identity.

If they volunteer an apology (it happens!) then mission accomplished and I haven't bothered pressing forward with a report in the past.

[bychosis]

To Mr 'I must be pretty awesome' in the yellow Mitsubishi evo... no, you are a moron.

Riding home today I go up a rise, 90degree left bend short dip down to a right hander intersection. I see a car coming as I round the left so I move closer to the centre and stick my right arm out. Move into the right hander and the yellow (AT)$%_( mobile ducks around the inside then nearly cuts me off. I yell out something through the open windows (no bad language, there were kids in the car). He slows and says something back. Backwards and forwards a few times with him slowing to continue to argue and I leave him with 'the law says I have the right to the lane'. Hopefully it wasn't completely lost on him. Hopefully I didn't Moe cross like a raving loony but the adrenalin was pumping after a scare. Tempted to drop a letter in his box, polite as possible stating facts and traffic rules.

[Rhubarb]

Pretty tame by this thread's standards but here are a couple of recent observations that belong here:











So what's the penalty for exceeding your MM per post quota ?

[Ross]

Got a call from a constable at Dee Why police. Just need to go in and make a formal statement and a TIN will be issued.

What did they say about you crossing double lines and riding on the wrong side of the road?

[Summernight]

Pretty tame by this thread's standards but here are a couple of recent observations that belong here:
<cut>
So what's the penalty for exceeding your MM per post quota ?

I love your videos. Especially when you turn the camera around.

Mine (already talked about in the commute thread, but he deserves a special place and his own personalised footage in this thread too):
(Romantic blur care of my smudgy fingerprints on the housing that I didn't clean up prior to shooting.)



Yes, he was the motorcyclist at the front of the queue at the lights sitting smack bank in middle of the pedestrian crossing... Must. Get. In. Front. At. All. Costs...
And for those who don't read the commute thread:

Moron motorcyclist doing dangerous riding around the female cyclist in front of me this morning. Goes in the left hand turning lane on the left of the cycling lane then does the cut across behind the cyclist. From my POV he was very close to her back wheel.

[TraceyG]

Twice in 60 seconds this morning! First moron motorist was backing out of a driveway and had absolutely no idea that I was cycling past - not even my super bright flashing headlight caught her attention. She got a hell of a shock to pull out onto the road to discover me at a complete stop, feet on the ground, giving her "the look"! Fortunately I was alert to the danger she posed and was able to stop safely. At least she had the good grace to wave an apology.

But then just up the same road, tradie passes with his ute and trailer than immediately turns left into a driveway, cutting me off in the process! Another sudden stop for me. This time I believe he had to know I was there because he had gone out and around me, just didn't have the patience to let me ride past his destination. His mate in the car behind saw it all and stopped to let me ride on before turning into the same driveway. Hope he told number one how stupid and dangerous he was.

And then 10km further on, I found a black cow wandering on the road in a 100kmh zone so I did the right thing and called the police, who asked me to stay on the scene until they arrived. Dozens of vehicles went through in this time and most of them ignored my attempts to slow them down. Excuse me? I'm only trying to prevent you from having a very nasty high speed accident with a 150kg cow!

[trailgumby]

What did they say about you crossing double lines and riding on the wrong side of the road?

There's always gotta be one...

[il padrone]

What road is this filmed on? You seem to have a really nice bike lane there for most of the way. Must be a very cyclist-friendly local council.

[Summernight]

What road is this filmed on? You seem to have a really nice bike lane there for most of the way. Must be a very cyclist-friendly local council.

Elizabeth Street, Richmond, the continuation of Albert Street, East Melbourne. When you cross Hoddle Street it is in the City of Yarra area. Yarra Council has a cyclist road engineer on its employee books too, which I think is an immense help (he was doing surveys about changing that Hoddle Street intersection on the Yarra side to be more bicycle friendly).

The lane you see is an improvement on this bicycle lane as compared to what was previously there. Done last year or something (I've been riding it for a while so can't quite remember when it was improved). Very much a fan of it, especially the buffer zone (which I pretty much ride on the line of so as not to have issues with dooring).

As soon as you cross Hoddle Street to Albert Street you have to fight with cars for two blocks (thanks City of Melbourne ) before the Copenhagen bicycle lane kicks in.

[jules21]

warning: questionable choice of language may be heard in this video.