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Sewinman
Joined: 01 Sep 2008
Posts: 770
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 Posted Tue Nov 3, 2009 9:36 am |
I got very very angry this morning. Generally I take it easy on my commute and avoid confrontation but today it came to me.
Pootling along in the bus lane when about 3 metres in front of me is a minor scene of carnage. A woman had cycled into the back of another cyclist and sent them both flying. How she managed it is anybody's guess as there was no reason to slow down or speed up suddenly. I managed to stop and avoid them and the guy was in a lot of pain and making a fair amount of noise. I pulled in to the side of the road and was making sure that the guy was ok. All of a sudden a horn blows, and I turn around to see a bus driver remonstrating at me to get out of the way. He had witnessed the incident and knew what I was doing. I was in the bus lane but right up against the curb and he could have pulled out a foot to pass me or been slightly more patient. I pointed out that I was making sure the guy was ok and he kept pointing at me to get up on the pavement. I unclipped and did as he asked and as he drove by he pointed at the guy on the ground and put his hand over his mouth and made a laughing gesture.
At that point I went absolutely ballistic, lost it totally. I was so angry at his gesture. I caught up with him and pulled along side his cab and asked him what his f’ing problem was and called him every name under the sun. He kept looking straight ahead. What a fat loser ****!
Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr! 
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will3
Joined: 16 Jun 2008
Posts: 1130
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Posted Tue Nov 3, 2009 9:43 am |
Report to bus company
Cnut
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el_presidente
Joined: 02 Feb 2007
Posts: 1182
Location: London
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Posted Tue Nov 3, 2009 9:46 am |
Can't blame you for losing it. I was quite please I managed to keep my temper this mornign (see separate thread) - first time for a while.
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The Beginner
Joined: 30 Apr 2009
Posts: 474
Location: Leamington Spa
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Posted Tue Nov 3, 2009 9:49 am |
Report him to the bus company, inexcuseable behaviour.
Simon
FCN9 using a home built hybrid (believed to be a Carrera touring frame) also building an MTB from a Kraken frame. |
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Always Tyred
Joined: 27 Dec 2007
Posts: 4073
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Posted Tue Nov 3, 2009 9:51 am |
| Sewinman wrote: | I got very very angry this morning. Generally I take it easy on my commute and avoid confrontation but today it came to me.
Pootling along in the bus lane when about 3 metres in front of me is a minor scene of carnage. A woman had cycled into the back of another cyclist and sent them both flying. How she managed it is anybody's guess as there was no reason to slow down or speed up suddenly. I managed to stop and avoid them and the guy was in a lot of pain and making a fair amount of noise. I pulled in to the side of the road and was making sure that the guy was ok. All of a sudden a horn blows, and I turn around to see a bus driver remonstrating at me to get out of the way. He had witnessed the incident and new what I was doing. I was in the bus lane but right up against the curb and he could have pulled out a foot to pass me or been slightly more patient. I pointed out that I was making sure the guy was ok and he kept pointing at me to get up on the pavement. I unclipped and did as he asked and as he drove by he pointed at the guy on the ground and put his hand over his mouth and made a laughing gesture.
At that point I went absolutely ballistic, lost it totally. I was so angry at his gesture. I caught up with him and pulled along side his cab and asked him what his f’ing problem was and called him every name under the sun. He kept looking straight ahead. What a fat loser ****!
Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr! |
I think you have a choice in that scenario of remaining calm but informing the driver that you are going to report them to their employer (remember that there is probably a camera pointing at him for his own safety) or going ballistic within the earshot of his passengers. Its a tough call as to which is going to have most impact.
You could still do both, but you have to bear in mind that your own behaviour is no longer entirely beyond reproach.
Its extremely vexing and I am almost certain that I'd have reacted exactly as you did and I really wouldn't worry about it.
It is clear to me that we aren't seen as people. If a pedestrian is hit; shock horror its a person. If a cyclist comes down, we are seen as irritating vehicles, in the same way as people who have had a fender bender on the motorway are often subject to abuse from people caught up in the tailback.
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Sewinman
Joined: 01 Sep 2008
Posts: 770
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Posted Tue Nov 3, 2009 9:56 am |
Yeah, I can't really report him. Some of the things I said would be regarded as more serious in the eyes of the law. He seemed a bit sheepish after I finished my rant, so who knows. I could not help myself at the time, I would have not reacted anywhere near that badly if he had told me to f'off etc. It was the laughing gesture.
I was thinking only yesterday that I find bus drivers generally pretty good!
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ride_whenever
Joined: 17 Oct 2006
Posts: 8281
Location: United Kingdom
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Posted Tue Nov 3, 2009 10:02 am |
drag him out the bus and d-lock him to a lamp post, then snap the key off in the lock.
Then we'll see whos laughing at anothers misfortune...
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456!
silly little bike |
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Clever Pun
Joined: 02 Aug 2007
Posts: 3014
Location: London
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Posted Tue Nov 3, 2009 10:05 am |
That is a perfect example of when you should use the emergency engine cut off
that'll get their attention
Purveyor of sonic doom
Very Hairy Roadie - FCN 4
Fixed - FCN 5
Subject to occasional hat wearing
Bearded Bromptonite - FCN 14 |
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deffler
Joined: 15 May 2009
Posts: 446
Location: Tyne & Wear
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ride_whenever
Joined: 17 Oct 2006
Posts: 8281
Location: United Kingdom
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Posted Tue Nov 3, 2009 10:07 am |
just about to suggest that!
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456!
silly little bike |
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Sicknote
Joined: 20 Aug 2008
Posts: 749
Location: North London
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Posted Tue Nov 3, 2009 10:08 am |
| Clever Pun wrote: | That is a perfect example of when you should use the emergency engine cut off
that'll get their attention |
Would be funny but everyone on the bus would suffer then.
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cee
Joined: 16 Jul 2007
Posts: 2531
Location: Edinburgh
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Posted Tue Nov 3, 2009 11:26 am |
| Sicknote wrote: | | Clever Pun wrote: | That is a perfect example of when you should use the emergency engine cut off
that'll get their attention |
Would be funny but everyone on the bus would suffer then. |
and guess who they would all be p1ssed off at?? hint..probably not the driver.
again...makes any complaint worthless.
I went out with a scruffy girl once......turns out she was just crazy! |
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Clever Pun
Joined: 02 Aug 2007
Posts: 3014
Location: London
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Posted Tue Nov 3, 2009 11:32 am |
| Sicknote wrote: | | Clever Pun wrote: | That is a perfect example of when you should use the emergency engine cut off
that'll get their attention |
Would be funny but everyone on the bus would suffer then. |
true but so does stopping the driver with a foul mouthed tirade... if the bus is stopped and you explain to the bus driver they'll see he's at fault and might complain themselves (as they're now late) weight of complaint = smacked wrists so he might not be such an utter twunt next time
All conjecture of course
Purveyor of sonic doom
Very Hairy Roadie - FCN 4
Fixed - FCN 5
Subject to occasional hat wearing
Bearded Bromptonite - FCN 14 |
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DonDaddyD
Joined: 19 Jun 2007
Posts: 4153
Location: The middle distance
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Rich158
Joined: 20 Nov 2008
Posts: 1634
Location: Kent
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Posted Tue Nov 3, 2009 1:32 pm |
It's not unusual for people to get irate with anything that hinders their progress. I had an accident in my car with a motocycist many years ago. As he was lying in the road an HGV nearly took both his legs off because he couldn't wait, and the guy was clearly unconscious and needed medical attention. On another occasion I was rear ended in a 3 car shunt on the A2, the guy in the middle car was out cold as he wasn't wearing his seat belt. The abuse I took from other user as I tried to make sure the guy didn't swallow his tongue whilst someone called an ambulance was unbelievable.
In my opinion most people become total arseholes when they get behind the wheel of a vehicle, and the worst of all are so-called profesional drivers. Don't worry about what you said, report him, he deserves it.
pain is temporary, the glory of beating your mates to the top of the hill lasts forever.....................
FCN 4 - Fixie
FCN 5 - Mad one |
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SecretSam
Joined: 13 Jun 2007
Posts: 1119
Location: In a lonely place
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Posted Tue Nov 3, 2009 1:35 pm |
+1 take his number and report to his employer
Tw&t
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Old. Fat. Slow. Bad tempered. And those are my good points. |
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Jehannum
Joined: 23 Mar 2009
Posts: 34
Location: Suffolk
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Posted Tue Nov 3, 2009 3:54 pm |
Report him to his employer. If you feel your tirade may detract from the value of a complaint, write it as if you were one of the passengers on the bus? Sometimes a slight distortion of events may be justified.
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Wallace1492
Joined: 03 Jul 2009
Posts: 1147
Location: North Glasgow
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Posted Tue Nov 3, 2009 4:06 pm |
| Jehannum wrote: | | Report him to his employer. If you feel your tirade may detract from the value of a complaint, write it as if you were one of the passengers on the bus? Sometimes a slight distortion of events may be justified. |
"There i was sitting on the number 25 bus, in a rush to get to my work, when ahead of us two of these "lycra lout" cyclists had a fight and started rolling on the ground. Then another one behind them stopped and joined in. It was disgraceful, they held up the bus. However the driver politely asked him to move, he growled, gestured and was just nasty. The Driver held his nerve and eventually this lout moved to the sdie. At this point the other two were still fighting on the pavement, the driver then put his hand over his mouth, as he appeared to be as sickened to this sight as I, and the other passengers were.
Then can you believe what, one of these louts chased the bus and began to hurl abuse at the driver!! Outrageous. I mean these people dont even pay Road Tax or have a proper license. Well, I think he returned to the fight......
I must praise your driver, Jeremy Martin for his superb handling of the situation..."
Kona Caldera - nobblies back on
Specialised Tricross - rack mudguards and panniers
FCN : 9/7
"Encyclopaedia is a fetish for very small bicycles" |
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deptfordmarmoset
Joined: 05 Sep 2009
Posts: 385
Location: Sour Feast Lahn'n
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Posted Tue Nov 3, 2009 4:29 pm |
| Wallace1492 wrote: | | Jehannum wrote: | | Report him to his employer. If you feel your tirade may detract from the value of a complaint, write it as if you were one of the passengers on the bus? Sometimes a slight distortion of events may be justified. |
"There i was sitting on the number 25 bus, in a rush to get to my work, when ahead of us two of these "lycra lout" cyclists had a fight and started rolling on the ground. Then another one behind them stopped and joined in. It was disgraceful, they held up the bus. However the driver politely asked him to move, he growled, gestured and was just nasty. The Driver held his nerve and eventually this lout moved to the sdie. At this point the other two were still fighting on the pavement, the driver then put his hand over his mouth, as he appeared to be as sickened to this sight as I, and the other passengers were.
Then can you believe what, one of these louts chased the bus and began to hurl abuse at the driver!! Outrageous. I mean these people dont even pay Road Tax or have a proper license. Well, I think he returned to the fight......
I must praise your driver, Jeremy Martin for his superb handling of the situation..." |
Dear passenger, have you considered writing for our Daily Mail blog? We are always on the lookout for people of your calibre.
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duncedunce
Joined: 28 Jun 2008
Posts: 238
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Posted Tue Nov 3, 2009 4:48 pm |
I'm probably wrong (may as well get that out of the way at the start - but playing devil's advocate is a large part of my job).
Might it have been that the driver saw what had happened in the 'shunt' and that it was a classic 'you've been framed' (God, I hate that show) moment? Perhaps, not realising the seriousness of the injury he was laughing at the comedic slapstick? That (the 'not realising the injury') might also explain why he thought you were unnecessarily (in his view) holding him up?
Still foolish behaviour by him (both the gesture and the pushiness). I am not trying to excuse him, and I defer to your knowledge of what happened (I was not there), but might it explain his actions?
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