I remember why I hate cycling…
To the motorists of Cardiff (and elsewhere). Please remember these points…
- Cyclists cannot stop instantly.
- WE ARE NOT TELEPATHIC - use your indicators!
When you’ve done something stupid (like a 180 at a mini-roundabout, outside a school, without signalling), and a cyclist has had to take evasive action to avoid a crash, don’t look at the cyclist with an expression that seems to say “what are you doing?”
Remember, you’re nice and safe in a steel shell. Cyclists aren’t. If we collide, the chances are that you’ll barely feel it, and I’ll be dead.
As the UK authorities like to say to drivers “THINK!”
Petrol, Cycling and Rollercoasters.
The BBC are reporting that the approx. 20% increase in the price of petrol in the last year or so is driving people off the roads. This doesn’t surprise me at all - however in many cases I suspect this means that people are also travelling less, rather than switching to (in many cases, non existant) alternatives like buses and trains.
Despite the ever rising costs of motoring (partly thanks to the Labour government’s obvious policy of “fleecing drivers for every penny they’ve got”) the alternatives are still more expensive - the fuel cost increases also of course affecting buses, taxis etc. Until public transport returns to state ownership and can be subsidised by the taxation raised from motorists, it will not be able to compete with the car - for no matter how much fuel increases in price, those increases will also apply to the public transport operators, who in turn will raise fares in order to remain profitable.
I’m unfortunately stuck with using the car for work as the showers in the building where I work are not working at the moment, leaving me with 2 options. Drive in, or cycle in and not be able to freshen up when I arrive. Urgh. (and walking in leaves me feeling equally unpleasant)
I certainly think twice about getting in the car these days, I’ve not visited any UK themeparks this year - the cost of driving to Alton Towers or Thorpe Park is a substantial part of the cost of the day out (plus travelling somewhere like that on my own just makes it prohibitively expensive - even if I’m meeting someone when I get there). It’s also clear from the availability of offer tickets for the parks that I’m not the only one - the parks aren’t usually giving tickets away in supermarkets this early in the season, it’s obvious that guest numbers must be down substantially.
To anyone reading this in America - $4 a gallon is not expensive. We’re paying £1.15/litre here in the UK, which converts to around $8.50 per US gallon for regular unleaded gas, and with the premium on Diesel, that’s closer to $8.75.
Driver leaves HGV stuck
Another story about another truck getting stuck somewhere it shouldn’t have been that tries to blame the SatNav rather than the driver.
The SatNav may have advised the driver to go up a lane clearly signposted as “unsuitable for heavy goods vehicles” - but it was the driver that decided to ignore the roadsign and go with the satnav - which was no doubt designed for use in a car, rather than being a unit set up for a large vehicle. The driver is ultimately responsible for observing road signs and conditions, he clearly should not have driven up a road which was signposted as being unsuitable.
I think this is just another example of how bad the general driving standards in the UK are. The satnav is there to help you, if it suggests something that is clearly stupid, (i..e taking a narrow country lane in a 40ft artic, or going up a recently redesignated one-way street) IGNORE IT. The driver is responsible for following the roadsigns and the laws - not the SatNav.
v-Day
I wasn’t going to do a v-day post this year, but then I saw this on XKCD a few days ago and could resist…
Year in Review
Filed under: Articles and Essays, Early Christmas, General, Virgin Media / NTL
After 9Â months or so of looking at Christmas merchandise in the shops, I think it’s now time to say “Happy Christmas” (replace Christmas with your choice of winter holiday if it’s not applicable to you).
So, the year in review… Read more
We don’t need no education…
Now, it’s not often I start a rant by being supportive of religion - however this time it’s a classic example of what’s wrong in our education system…
“We want the children to think about the true meaning of Christmas, which is about helping others less fortunate.”Â
Now, noble as that idea is - that Christmas is about helping others, more surprising is that erroneous quote comes from non other than the headmistress of a primary school in Wales, who are making the bold (and positive) move of discouraging the exchange of Christmas cards in favour of donation to Charity. That idea is excellent - however the problem is that statement I quoted above is so very wrong.
“The true meaning of Christmas”
No matter what you’re religious beliefs, the “true meaning” of Christmas (lit. “Christs Mass”) is to celebrate the anniversary of the birth of the central figure of one of the world religions. (for those unaware “Mass” is a type of Church service in some denominations of the Christian Faith - see wikipedia for a fuller discussion).
It’s just shocking that a head teacher in a school in a (nominally) Christian country doesn’t know that.
Brake - Road Safety Week
This week, it’s BRAKE’s annual Road Safety week - this year focussing on the safety of children, both on foot and on bikes.
Now, a lot of this is about education, not only for the children, but for their parents so that the kids are properly equipped when they are outside. My suggestions for this that parents must ensure before their kids are allowed out on bikes…
- Make sure you know where they’re going, and why
- Make sure they’re wearing suitable, light coloured, reflective clothing.
- If they are likely to be out on their bikes once the sun goes down, make sure they’ve got lights, and explain to them that the lights are there to help other road users see them, as well as to help them see where they’re going.
- Make sure they have read the highway code, so that they know which side of the road they should be on, and how to signal their intentions to other traffic.
Now, to people driving larger vehicles - simply be aware of kids, be aware that most children have no road-sense whatsoever and are likely to be riding on the wrong side of the road, at night, wearing black, with no lights. They will also make sudden changes in direction without looking or signalling.
See the Pledge for Drivers for other suggestions for ways to improve your driving skills
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