Cyclists hold memorial ride for killed colleague

I was almost hit by a guy in a car this morning (why is it always fat men in Ford Falcons?), simply because he couldn't wait for me to pass a bus, as it's my right do. All he succeeded in doing , apart from almost killing someone, is getting to the next set of red traffic lights about 2 seconds earlier. Yes, the roads do need massive improvement to accommodate cyclists but its not going to happen any time soon, as successive governments seem reluctant to do anything constructive about this country's dependence on cars. In the mean time, motorists need to stop being so macho and selfish, and realise that cyclists are vulnerable.

Any death on a road is a tragedy, whether it be cyclist or motorist. There are bad cyclist's and bad motorist's, who can both cause accident's. What I believe, as someone who is driving all day, is the biggest issue, is that our roads are more to blame than anything else. They are not wide enough, nor are the edges safe enough for cyclist's to be able to keep left, therefore forcing people to cycle further out onto the road. This then forces a passing motorist to move to the right to pass the cyclist, often crossing the centre line and potentially into oncoming traffic.
Maybe we all need to get behind the cycle lane debate and make it safer for all.

I think cyclists should be able to ride safely in a cycle lane but as a driver of a car have seen cyclists riding three abreast on a country road refusing to go in single file to let cars get past.When on a bike as soon as I hear a car approaching I pull to the left to allow the car space to get past but also for my safety. If everyone did this the road would be a safer place.

JD, have you ever tried riding to the left a cycle lane or anywhere near the left of the white line on the side of the road? I am not an avid cyclist, more the recreational type, trying to encourage my young son to get out and keep active (and safe). I did the memorial ride on Saturday. I noticed a number of things that were a real eye-opener to me. 1. The bulk of road debris gets flung to the "left" of any lane on the side of the road - even suburban roads - which makes cycling there nigh on impossible. 2. On the main road in the parts where there is no dedicated cycle lane, again cycling to the left of the white line is difficult as many parts of the road have reflectors there, which if you ride over can cause you to fall off. 3. And this is one I was quite disappointed to see particularly as we had been given a safety briefing before we set off - sadly a number of cyclists didn't bother looking over their shoulder to see if there were cars approaching from behind before over-taking other cyclists. I have to say this was the exception rather than the rule, but it shows that we should all be thinking a bit more about courtesy on our roads - something that the average NZ motorist, I'm sorry to say, is not that great at yet (and yes I am a kiwi!!)

JD your comment makes no sense in the circumstances of the wreck where there was no marked cycle lane, and where the cyclist was where he was supposed to be by the laws governing cyclists. I see car drivers breaking the laws all the time, does that mean I can kill one at random because some other driver broke the law a few kilometers down the pike? The cyclist was killed by a drunk driver, how many drivers have been killed by cyclists, drunk or otherwise? I keep track of things like that and I can say that from published reports so far this year there have been 2 drivers killed by cyclists' bodies coming through the windshield after they were hit by the driver they ended up killing, but the cyclists were dead in both wreck prior to killing the driver. At that point they were just debris that went through the windscreen. That's 2 drivers killed worldwide by cyclists and the cyclists were victims of the driver first. You still have more cyclists killed in Enn Zed as the fault of the drivers by a factor of 3 to 1. Stop hating and get your priorities straight. You are driving a deadly weapon, and cyclists are unarmed, you bear the responsibility for what happens to people around you because of that weapon.

You will get 1.5 meters from the car to the cyclist, when cyclists start staying to the left of the marked cycle lane, not riding on, or to the right of this lane. For some reason, the Lycra brigade have a real aversion to the keep left rule, or much any other legal road rule to tell the truth. It's like a car driving with it's wheels over the centre line, expecting all oncoming vehicles to give them clearance. Its just dumb.