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Near Miss of the Day turns 100 - Why do we do the feature and what have we learnt from it?

Our regular feature highlighting close passes reveals some common issues faced by cyclists on the UK's roads...

Last week saw the 100th video posted on road.cc in our Near Miss of the Day series – a suitable landmark to look back at some themes that have emerged, plus reiterate why we decided to run it in the first place.

What are we learning from the series?

Unsurprisingly, London is the single most common location, with around one in five submissions.

Several of those highlight that even when dedicated cycling infrastructure is provided, motorists can still present problems for riders.

Van drivers jumping red lights at junctions with separated Cycle Superhighways is an issue we’ve seen more than once, for example, then you also have Quietways being anything but.

London buses and black cabs have also featured – recently, we had a video of a close pass by a bus driver that resulted in prosecution, and a particularly nasty incident involving an abusive and aggressive cabbie hasn’t made it onto the site yet because the Metropolitan Police are investigating.

In many cases, the readers involved tell us they haven’t submitted footage to the police force responsible for the area the incident took place in because when they’ve done so in the past, no action has been taken.

But, like that incident with the London bus driver mentioned above, some do result in a prosecution – not enough of them, as is borne out by your views in the comments, but it shows that some forces at least take the issue seriously.

On that issue, we are aware of some cases where police have requested footage after it’s been featured on the site and our followers on social media have pushed them to take action, so keep pushing.

Granted 100 is a tiny sample size, but those are just the published submissions, and like you, we see many other similar videos on social media.

So, what are some of the other themes we have seen cropping up?

Impatient drivers who simply have to get in front of a cyclist, regardless of whether it is safe to overtake, or if there is a red traffic light 100 yards up the road, or if they plan to turn left immediately afterwards.

Drivers joining a roundabout who fail to see that there is already a cyclist navigating it.

People driving a lorry a tractor with a trailer, or who has a caravan attached to their car, and who pull in too early after an overtake.

Motorists who overtake someone on a bike – and put themselves at risk of a head-on collision with a vehicle coming in the opposite direction.

Why do we publish Near Miss of the Day videos?

As to why we felt the need to start this series, and why we continue to publish these videos (and will keep on doing so), here's what road.cc editor Tony Farrelly has to say.

"We’re frequently asked in the comments on Near Miss of The Day (NMotD) videos what’s the point of running them? 

"The point is to make a point about driving standards and the lack of consideration for vulnerable road users on UK roads. It’s also to show solidarity with our fellow cyclists, because as beezus fufoon pointed out commenting on NMoTD 31 real life through a lens doesn’t always look as scary as it actually is.

"In our view it’s worth acknowledging that for the person on the receiving end of a near miss or close pass it was a damn scary experience and one pretty much any regular cyclist in the UK can empathise with. 

"We’re not trying to put anyone off cycling - we love it and it hasn’t put us off, you all clearly love it too and it hasn’t put you off. And yes, at the moment close passes and near misses are a fact of life of UK roads - but that doesn’t make them right. Pretending they don’t happen isn’t going to help anyone - it’s certainly not going to help solve the problem. 

"We recognise that changing attitudes towards less vulnerable road users amongst all road users – including cyclists – is something of a water-on-stone exercise and that NMoTD is more than likely going to run to a big number before the stone starts to crumble, but it’s not something that is happening in isolation. Attitudes are changing, particularly police attitudes - led by the trailblazing work of the West Midlands Police and Cycling UK’s great Close Pass Mats initiative. 

"Incidents highlighted in NMoTD are already regularly picked up by local news outlets and regional television and radio news and they’ve been the starting point for discussions on local radio stations and newspaper websites about how road users treat each other – so the water is starting to make a mark on the stone."

Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.

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8 comments

Avatar
chaos | 6 years ago
1 like

I regularly cycle in Richmond Park, London (speed limit 20mph). I have experienced many close passes as cars 'slowly' creep past when I am doing 18/19mph. They then invariably brake once past me; not in a nasty way, but in an attempt to hover around 20mph. I guess they just need to feel they are making progress!

People are strange and some car drivers are even stranger!

Avatar
BehindTheBikesheds | 6 years ago
5 likes

Cycling back in the snow from the hospital I had lots of excellent overtakes, well actually I should say they were what one should expect as the standard to keep me safe, and then there were two who just drove like dicks, one of them deliberately cut back in early because he couldn't get past me despite the fact it was a narrow village road and I was doing around 22mph anyway.

Hertfordshire plod are apparently running a close pass operation (I've no idea when), I think I might bother to crack the cam out and sling some stuff their way as examples.

TBH I haven't used it in ages, it's just so much hassle to report stuff that I pretty much gave up after being deliberately intimidated and given the brush off by the police (though I did get a resolution through IPCC).

The thing is though that only the really close passes are shown, there are tens of thousands each day that make even experienced cyclists think negatively or make you shake your head even if it wasn't one of those really close ones that make you want to throttle the driver or really shake you up.

Just think how this feels for the less confident, just think how this feels for children and then we have an MP stating that he doesn't see the safety factor being the reason why people don't cycle, fucking retard.

Avatar
Yorkshire wallet | 6 years ago
4 likes

Unfortunately it's preaching to the converted really. We all know how shit cycling can be at times. It's websites like the Daily Mail that need to see this stuff, not us.

Avatar
Daveyraveygravey | 6 years ago
6 likes

Thank you Roadcc for running this feature, I think anything that can be done to make people accept responsibility for their driving and make people aware how bad it is generally is a good thing.

I hate being close passed, it enrages me.  There is just no need for it.  But the attitude of the public to cyclists is part of the problem.  My wife doesn't cycle, and doesn't even drive, but occasionally she'll complain if I there is a cyclist on the road when we are driving.  If you don't ride a bike, you don't get it.

Avatar
burtthebike | 6 years ago
11 likes

What have we learned? 

That close and dangerous passing is endemic in all parts of the country.

That most police forces won't do anything about it.

That most politicians really, really don't care.

Most drivers are good, some are incompetent and some are downright dangerously mad.

We need more police and politicians on bikes.

We need better laws i.e. cyclists must be given at least 1m space when passing, more for faster roads.

Before affordable vid cams, we were dismissed as whingers.

 

I think that about covers it, but I'm sure there's more.

Avatar
usedtobefaster replied to burtthebike | 6 years ago
6 likes

burtthebike wrote:

What have we learned? 

That close and dangerous passing is endemic in all parts of the country.

That most police forces won't do anything about it.

That most politicians really, really don't care.

Most drivers are good, some are incompetent and some are downright dangerously mad.

We need more police and politicians on bikes.

We need better laws i.e. cyclists must be given at least 1m space when passing, more for faster roads.

Before affordable vid cams, we were dismissed as whingers.

 

I think that about covers it, but I'm sure there's more.

 

May I add;

A capability covering police forces across the country to enable web based reporting and uploading of video of near miss instances.

Proper deterent sentences for those convicted of injuring or killing vulnerable road users.

Trial by qualified expert judges not 12 "oh that could have been me better find not guilty" peers

 

Avatar
maviczap replied to usedtobefaster | 6 years ago
4 likes

usedtobefaster wrote:

burtthebike wrote:

What have we learned? 

That close and dangerous passing is endemic in all parts of the country.

That most police forces won't do anything about it.

That most politicians really, really don't care.

Most drivers are good, some are incompetent and some are downright dangerously mad.

We need more police and politicians on bikes.

We need better laws i.e. cyclists must be given at least 1m space when passing, more for faster roads.

Before affordable vid cams, we were dismissed as whingers.

 

I think that about covers it, but I'm sure there's more.

 

May I add;

A capability covering police forces across the country to enable web based reporting and uploading of video of near miss instances.

Proper deterent sentences for those convicted of injuring or killing vulnerable road users.

Trial by qualified expert judges not 12 "oh that could have been me better find not guilty" peers

 

As above but ensure that the police forces are obligated to investigate and prosecute, not brush it undrr the carpet.

Sad to say our now poorly resourced police forces don't have the manpower or funding to do this.

Avatar
Cugel replied to usedtobefaster | 6 years ago
2 likes

usedtobefaster wrote:

burtthebike wrote:

What have we learned? 

That close and dangerous passing is endemic in all parts of the country.

That most police forces won't do anything about it.

That most politicians really, really don't care.

Most drivers are good, some are incompetent and some are downright dangerously mad.

We need more police and politicians on bikes.

We need better laws i.e. cyclists must be given at least 1m space when passing, more for faster roads.

Before affordable vid cams, we were dismissed as whingers.

 

I think that about covers it, but I'm sure there's more.

 

May I add;

A capability covering police forces across the country to enable web based reporting and uploading of video of near miss instances.

Proper deterent sentences for those convicted of injuring or killing vulnerable road users.

Trial by qualified expert judges not 12 "oh that could have been me better find not guilty" peers

 

The fundamental problem is the car or other motorised vehicle itself. Humans will be human and so, offered the opportunity to be a fool in a dangerous and damaging fashion, many will take that opportunity.

More draconian laws and their vigorous enforcement might reduce the inclination of driver fools to indulge themselves with the accelerator pedal. But the worst offenders offend with the assumption that they won't be caught because they don't want to be - just one variety of widespread wishful thunking in these post-modern times.

Why do we allow the dangerous technology that is the car on an open road to persist? The things are addictive and, inadvertently - or perhaps not - designed to induce & amplify selfish and dangerous human behaviours.

Were I a psycho-analist, my chief diagnostic tool would be the car, as a person's personality and all it's traits are fully revealed by their behaviour behind the wheel.

Cugel

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