New Highway code rules ffs

[Derrick Hughes]

I agree cyclist in middle of narrow road and overtaking vehicles have to leave 1.5 MTR between them where does offside wheel run?

So how would you overtake a slow moving tractor on a narrow lane , but you are totally misunderstanding the rule changes if you ask that

 

[Robt]

And if she'd been facing oncoming traffic she might have seen them as well.

Not excusing her awful death but why jog on the hard shoulder???? We had a twit last week jog over the Orwell bridge. Police got 5 three nine calls …. Some joggers are terrible.

 

[cb387]

I haven’t read the new rules but from what is reported it all seems to unfairly favour pedestrians / cyclists. Do the new rules increase their responsibilities to be more considerate to other road users/ not hold up traffic when they could allow it to pass / not use earpods etc so they can hear traffic approaching?

 

[Renaultman]

Nice bike though, what year is it? I guess 89

91 31 years old this year

 

[Cheesehead]

Why is everyone getting so uptight about this?

The Highway Code is not the Law/a legal document, it's Code of Practice, a recommendation of how you should act as a road user.

Not complying with the Highway Code will not result in you appearing in Court.

However, if you are in Court for a motoring offence (ie accused of breaking the Law) the Prosecution may claim that if you have not followed the Code, that is an indication that you may have broken the Law, but they still have to prove you have broken the law, not just failed to follow the code.

Actually some of them are enshrined in law you have to pay attention to the wording, must and words like should are one indication.

The worse aspect of this is giving pedestrians right of way at junctions. Whoever thought that one up should pay for all the rear end shunts and the medical costs of all the pedestrians that will be mowed down exercising what they will believe to be their right.
Jaywalkers that cross the road anywhere but on a designated pedestrian crossing in America are jailed. I wouldn’t go that far, but why meddle with a system that currently works well in the UK and has done for probably nearly a century.
Same goes for bikes, whose riders, by the way, I’ve witnessed over the years to be the most arrogant, ignorant and nasty types that totally ignore all rules of the road while having the privilege of not being forced to pay for third party insurance or road tax.

Was taught that if they have one foot off the pavement they have the right of way and was told by an examiner that it fails your test even if the step back on the pavement as you turn in across them the same as if you pull on to a dual carriageway from a side road when a vehicle is already moving into the other lane to let you pull out.

 

[Cheesehead]

I do believe people do need to be more conscious of other road users myself included as like in all walks of life there are idiots.

As for pavements they are no guarantee for safety, the son of one of my brother's friends was killed when a dumbass texting mounted the curb doing 80 in a 60. My brother was with him when he got the call to say his kid was dead who was on his way to meet them. After using every excuse in the book the jury found him not guilty of manslaughter and death by dangerous driving as they felt it was a mistake, a fluke accident and he was truly remorseful though he had not once said I'm sorry.


Another was killed near the end of a charity bike ride around the coast of the UK near Thanet his wife was in a transit van florescent signs all over it hazards going, beacon on the roof, he had full florescent clothing lights on helmet and all over his bike a young girl flew past the van and ploughed straight through him. Her excuse she didn't see him or the van got a few points and a 2 year suspended sentence.

Kill a person with a gun or knife and you can get 25 years or whole life sentences kill a person with a vehicle while idiot and unless there was shown intent the most you get is 5.

 

[SteveHants]

tAX AND INSURANCE FOR A START

Why would you tax a bicycle?

Roads need to be as wide as they are and kept as pothole free as they are (or aren't in some cases) for motor vehicles, other road users (pedestrians, cyclists, horses, droving) don't need that level of maintenance, plus their transport isn't polluting.

 

[Derrick Hughes]

 

[Sharpy]

Guessing very few drive, or walk around Bodmin. Some roads in the town are marked with different colours and textures which actually makes negotiating them on foot, or by vehicle easier, ime. There aren't any zebra crossings. Road signage is only for directions. The presumption is that every pedestrian is going to cross the road, and that traffic from side roads is to be permitted to merge with the main road.

Much less stressful than lines everywhere. Much more evidence of good road manners and courtesy all round than in most other urban areas, ime.

Does take a bit of getting used to, but it does seem to work.

 

[Derrick Hughes]

The new rules have certainly fired motorists up, may be a good thing as thinking about the way we drive can't be a bad thing , I just wish people would read the rules and not listen to daft people in the press and on TV who clearly have not
As I have said many times before when I go out on the road my main thought is to stay safe and not make a nuisance of myself , in particular if I see a tractor in front or behind I'm out of the way quick ,which may involve getting off and standing in a ditch ,
Like everyone I have a right to use the road , but in a polite and safe manner

 

[Exfarmer]

Why would you tax a bicycle?

Roads need to be as wide as they are and kept as pothole free as they are (or aren't in some cases) for motor vehicles, other road users (pedestrians, cyclists, horses, droving) don't need that level of maintenance, plus their transport isn't polluting.

So , if you agree that cyclists need to pay toad tax to pay the maintenance for the ovbvious damage they do to the surface. Ignoring the fact the car tax is general taxation and has nothing to do with road maintenance.
How much tax do you think a cyclist should pay per year for maintaining these roads?
How much tax should an average car, an average SUV pay?
We know that lorries are taxed according to weight but we know it is only a fraction of the damage they do.
And lastly, how much should a tractor pay for the damage they do?

We know that damage done to a road is a combination of weight and speed, I guess if a cyclist paid £1 a year it would probably equate to a car paying £1,000 and SUV probably £2,000 and a lorry £10-20,000
Tractors well seeing the size of them and the modern speeds, I think that they should be in a the order of £5-10,000.
I would happily pay £10 a year for my bike to have the sort of roads most of the French have, and sell my SUV

 

[Jameshenry]

Under the new guidelines cyclists are not mandated to stop at traffic lights or pedestrian crossings

Effie joke
A

Sounds like a good rule to me

 

[holwellcourtfarm]

So , if you agree that cyclists need to pay toad tax to pay the maintenance for the ovbvious damage they do to the surface. Ignoring the fact the car tax is general taxation and has nothing to do with road maintenance.
How much tax do you think a cyclist should pay per year for maintaining these roads?
How much tax should an average car, an average SUV pay?
We know that lorries are taxed according to weight but we know it is only a fraction of the damage they do.
And lastly, how much should a tractor pay for the damage they do?

We know that damage done to a road is a combination of weight and speed, I guess if a cyclist paid £1 a year it would probably equate to a car paying £1,000 and SUV probably £2,000 and a lorry £10-20,000
Tractors well seeing the size of them and the modern speeds, I think that they should be in a the order of £5-10,000.
I would happily pay £10 a year for my bike to have the sort of roads most of the French have, and sell my SUV

Surely tractors would have to be taxed on a scale, like LGVs are. A 4t 40k tractor does little road damage. A 10t 65k Fendt or Fastrack is, effectively, an LGV so should be taxed as such?

From basic physics, the main damage is done in cornering and is directly proprtional to kinetic energy so ½MV² comes into play.

 

[bobk]

Apparently this new code has been compiled by a cycling association and a pedestrian group , hardly surprising then

 

[sjt01]

Surely tractors would have to be taxed on a scale, like LGVs are. A 4t 40k tractor does little road damage. A 10t 65k Fendt or Fastrack is, effectively, an LGV so should be taxed as such?

From basic physics, the main damage is done in cornering and is directly proprtional to kinetic energy so ½MV² comes into play.

Much of the damage from heavier vehicles is from compression and then release of pressure on the road surface and the layers below (sub-base), just like a tractor tyre compresses the soil below the soil surface, so weight per wheel and tyre pressure will determine the degree of damage.

 

[Widgetone]

Not excusing her awful death but why jog on the hard shoulder???? We had a twit last week jog over the Orwell bridge. Police got 5 three nine calls …. Some joggers are terrible.

Are pedestrians/joggers not allowed over there anymore? Wouldn't do it myself, but there is a walkway with crash barriers I think? I do know its sadly a regular spot for those wanting to end it all despite the Samaritan helpphone..

 

[Derrick Hughes]

Apparently this new code has been compiled by a cycling association and a pedestrian group , hardly surprising then

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[Nearly]

https://www.facebook.com/NorthYorkshirePolice/posts/10159549628511070

Cyclist v Scania

 

[Exfarmer]

Surely tractors would have to be taxed on a scale, like LGVs are. A 4t 40k tractor does little road damage. A 10t 65k Fendt or Fastrack is, effectively, an LGV so should be taxed as such?

From basic physics, the main damage is done in cornering and is directly proprtional to kinetic energy so ½MV² comes into play.

Have you never wondered why so few farm yards are made of tarmac, very good reason , it does not like tractor tyres.
Goo done nearly any backroad and you can see evidence of tractor tyre damage on the tarmac you do not see the same of the LGVs . The other issue of tractors of course s that very frequently they con tribute heavily to the edge damage due to the increasing size of agricultural vehicles.
In case you think I am anti farmer please see any number of my post elsewhere in the media defending the industry
I personally witnessed a quadtrac I was following as it turned a corner, remove several square yards of tarmac down a local road and commented on here 3-4 years back. I know that is extreme but it is fact.
When I suggested my scale it was to put into context the difference in damage done by a bicycle which would of course be so small as to be unmeasurable, compared to other road users.
As a cyclist I strongly believe we need to put far more into road maintenance which would avoid us needing to ride in the middle of the road to steer clear of the potholes

 

[Cab-over Pete]

Ag vehicles damaging roads is surely relative to tyre width, pressure and axle weight, the same as it is in the field.

A 15t trailer on 650 mm flotation tyres is a different thing to a 15t trailer on 385mm super single road tyres.

There is no way you could put a “one price fits all” on road tax for ag vehicles.

Plus, the time a tractor spends on the road relative to a lorry is, in the vast majority of cases, minuscule.