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news
Three quarters of Brits want drivers to retake their driving test; Alexandar Richardson smashes London to Brighton (and back) at 40km/h solo; Burgos organiser blames RIDER for crash; Fly tipper caught thanks to cyclist's camera + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
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Cars on the A4 at Brentford (copyright Simon MacMichael).JPG05 August 2022, 15:30
Three quarters of Brits want drivers to retake their driving test
Almost three quarters (74 per cent) of Brits believe you should have to retake your driving test, with two thirds (66 per cent) saying this should happen before drivers turn 80. That's according to research from personal finance comparison site finder.com.
There is currently no law that drivers must retake their test when they reach a certain age, although 74 per cent said there should. 10 per cent suggested this should happen before drivers reach 55 years old. Laws apply to drivers who have been disqualified or have certain medical conditions, but the research suggested only 18 per cent of Brits agree with the current regulations and think drivers should never retake their test at a set age.
In the age-specific breakdown, Gen Z (18-25 year olds) said 65 years old was the right age to retake a driving test, while those aged 74 and above said 76 years old would be an appropriate age.
Thoughts?
05 August 2022, 15:24
05 August 2022, 14:59
Want to host bike races? Sort your potholes out then
Editor Jack, having watched the Commonwealth Games TT visit his local roads, might baulk at the suggestion bike races only visit areas with good road surfaces...BUT Derby City Council is in the market for hosting a bike race, with the Tour Series, Women's Tour and Tour of Britain on their radar, reports the Derby Telegraph.
However, concerns have been raised about whether the streets are "smooth" enough to host such events. With the Conservative council ready to approve a bid, Lib Dem councillor Lucy Care asked: "My question is about the renewal of roads to ensure they'll be smooth enough to be ridden on at speed because some of our roads at the moment are not as good as they might be. Is there going to be an additional budget provided or do we have to find it ourselves to ensure the race roads are to a very good standard?"
Before calling the state of their roads "dubious", aren't they all, Lucy, aren't they all...
05 August 2022, 13:40
"It would be an achievement to average that speed on that route in a car, let alone a bike... astonishing": We're all in awe of Alexandar Richardson's speedy seaside smash
Local Legend on Turner's Hill to Ditchling! Congratulations!
— CaptainDalgetty (@CaptainDalgetty) August 5, 2022
Of course, I'm sure that local legend is his proudest achievement from this one...
Under the live blog comments, PRSboy suggested it would be a decent average speed in a car, let alone on a bike, given the built-up nature of the route (and avoiding the M23/A23).
peted76 added: "London to Brighton and back at 25mph.. the more I think about it, the more impressive it gets. Chapeau sir!"
Secret_squirrel replied: "Doubly amusing to me as the First London to Brighton car rally had the cars limited to a top speed of 14mph."
Over on Facebook, Mikael Rasmussen commented: "Yeah OK .. now try that from Central London. rather than somewhere south of the South Circular 😉" We'll assume that's tongue in cheek, but I'm sure Alex could arrange a two-up TT to the south coast if you think you've got 41km/h in you, Mikael...
Seymour Yang commented: "At first I was like, L2B in four hours doesn’t sound impressive, then I saw that it was L2B and back again. Wow!"
05 August 2022, 07:46
Alexandar Richardson smashes London to Brighton (and back) at 40km/h solo
Chances are if you live somewhere in and around London or the the South East, you've had a big day out on the bike down to Brighton and back. It's a popular weekend route for riders in and around the M25 — you'll normally clock up close to 100 miles, and have a photo-worthy halfway stop by the coast with the added lure of ice cream or fish and chips...
Or, if your name is Alexandar Richardson, you can smash there and back in four hours at a quad-burning average speed of 40.5km/h... solo.
To be fair Richardson isn't your usual club rider spinning the legs at the weekend, he was third at British National Champs behind that guy from Quick-Step whose name escapes me...
Taking in a berg under 2,000m of elevation, the Saint Piran pro, who spent the last couple of seasons with Alpecin-Fenix, hit a top speed of 78km/h descending the South Downs on his way home and maintained a metronomic 91 cadence.
Brutally, the wind from the north meant a less-than-ideal tailwind out, headwind home, but he still managed to take six KOMs on the way out and a few top 10s back into the headwind.
Top of the KOM list? The 20km 'London to Brighton fast section' covered by thousands of riders at the annual charity ride (with the benefit of drafting and closed roads), which Richardson ticked off at 45.5km/h...as you do...
05 August 2022, 13:27
05 August 2022, 13:25
Which of these four WorldTour bikes is your favourite?
Which of these four WorldTour bikes is your favourite? 😍
1⃣ @INEOSGrenadiers Pinarello Dogma F
2⃣ @TrekSegafredo Trek Madone SLR
3⃣ @Lotto_Soudal Ridley Noah
4⃣ @TeamDSM Scott Foil RC pic.twitter.com/SqNGDqqRLd— Velon CC (@VelonCC) August 5, 2022
05 August 2022, 11:24
Burgos organiser blames RIDER for sprint crash
Okay I think I've tracked it down...
Speaking to L'Équipe the race organiser Marcus Moral (dubbed Marcus Immoral by some clever people on Twitter) denied the speed bump was a speed bump...
"It was not a speed bump, but a zebra crossing no more than 2.5 centimeters high. On a slope," he said. "This obstacle was indicated by markings on the ground and by a signalman's flag. In preparation we showed the last three kilometers to the riders. It is impossible to find a track by removing roundabouts or passages like this one."
Brace yourselves... "It is a mistake by David Dekker," he continued.
"He has since realised this and has asked for forgiveness. I do now. I'm not saying it's just the rider's fault. It's everyone's fault. But we cannot attack the race organisation if the obstacle is indicated. I think the last kilometers of the second stage were correct. We take our responsibility, but people should not demonise us for that."
05 August 2022, 11:17
UPDATE: USA Cycling says Leia Genis was ineligible to race in the Elite Women’s category as she "had not completed the required steps to meet the UCI's Athlete Eligibility Regulations"
05 August 2022, 11:02
Vuelta a Burgos organiser blames THE RIDERS for huge sprint pile-up
So @VueltaBurgos director Marcos Moral blames the riders for crashing...
You should be ashamed of yourself.— Jos van Emden (@josvanemden) August 4, 2022
This from Jos van Emden, teammate of Jumbo-Visma sprinter David Dekker, who was brought down by the speed bump on stage two's run-in, causing a terrible crash...
> "Disgrace": Pro riders rip into UCI over "unacceptable" speed bump sprint crash
We haven't yet seen any comments from the race director, so have to rely on Van Emden's word for the accusations. We'll see what we can find...
05 August 2022, 10:26
Count the cyclists
More cyclists on Vauxhall Bridge than motorists!#CycleToWorkDay pic.twitter.com/oGRy3gRy75
— CycleGaz™ (@cyclegaz) August 5, 2022
05 August 2022, 10:19
Fly tipper caught thanks to cyclist's camera
The Dorset Echo reports a man has received a hefty fine after a cyclist's camera footage proved he had illegally dumped stones and gravel on a roadside verge in Dorchester.
Richard Dunn appeared at Poole Magistrates Court after a rider's handlebar-mounted camera caught the act, with the cyclist reporting the footage to Dorset Council along with a statement.
The cyclist asked "That's not being fly tipped, is it mate?", to which Dunn replied "It's stones" before driving away. Last May he was issued a Fixed Penalty Notice of between £200 and £400 (depending on how promptly it was paid), but this was not paid.
Dunn was subsequently arrested and pleaded guilty to violating Section 33 (1)(a) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990. He was sentenced to pay £479, including £150 fine, costs of £300 and £29 compensation.
05 August 2022, 09:40
All of us seeing Alexandar Richardson's Strava activity...
— Foxy (@FoxyN77) August 5, 2022
05 August 2022, 09:20
Surrey traffic cops add Brompton folder to force fleet
We use the phase 𝙒𝙚 𝙘𝙖𝙣’𝙩 𝙗𝙚 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙗𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙮𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 quite a bit.
The #VanguardRST deploy in an array of different vehicles, from pedal bikes, to unmarked HGVs.
Our latest edition, the @BromptonBicycle enables us to zip around… pic.twitter.com/jSe4YvNpAp
— Roads Policing Unit (RPU) - Surrey Police - UK (@SurreyRoadCops) August 2, 2022
The Surrey Roads Policing Unit, known for its social media schoolings of ignorant road users, has managed to go up even further in our estimation after revealing it has added a Brompton folder to the fleet of crime-fighting vehicles.
> Surrey traffic cops tell driver spouting Highway Code whataboutery to return licence
Apparently "many people" in the Surrey town were pleased to see the "bobby on a Brommy" and ITV reports the force will also launch a road crime reduction team this autumn with the aim of reducing "the number of people killed and seriously injured on Surrey's roads by targeting and reducing road crime", specifically by reducing the so-called 'Fatal 5' — inappropriate speed, not wearing a seatbelt; driving under the influence of drink or drugs; distracted driving, such as using a mobile phone behind the wheel; careless driving.
Dan is the road.cc news editor and has spent the past four years writing stories and features, as well as (hopefully) keeping you entertained on the live blog. Having previously written about nearly every other sport under the sun for the Express, and the weird and wonderful world of non-league football for the Non-League Paper, Dan joined road.cc in 2020. Come the weekend you'll find him labouring up a hill, probably with a mouth full of jelly babies, or making a bonk-induced trip to a south of England petrol station... in search of more jelly babies.
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80 comments
'There must be some tangible benefit'
still non found. Mogg did mention something about Hoovers though.
Whilst this is very off-topic, newer vacuum cleaners do seem to have managed to get good performance with lower powered motors. I'm not sure Mr Victoriana 1876's nanny is giving him good information about the state of below-stairs equipment.
With the price of electricity trebling then efficiency does seem to be a way forward.
Damn those protesters of Insulate Britain, if only they were not so disruptive we might of had to see they actually had a point.
But that's the thing - everyone knows what they stand for and even those who don't like their tactics must now know that insulation is an easy way to deal with a bit of the climate crisis. If the building trade and government schemes could be generally trusted, good things could be done.
mdavidford
|
2 years ago
1 like
74 per cent of Brits believe you should have to retake your driving test
...
There is currently no law that drivers must retake their test when they reach a certain age, although 74 per cent said there should.
Well that's two different claims - seems unlikely they'd be the same number. What about the people who think you should have to retake the test, but not at a set age (e.g. at regular intervals)?
only 18 per cent of Brits agree with the current regulations and think drivers should never retake their test at a set age.
So what about the other 8%? Does that include the people above, or are they all 'don't knows'?
Hirsute
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2 years ago
3 likes
The war on cars is a war on women (maybe this could replace the trans debate on here !)
https://twitter.com/gazza_d/status/1555249654203285505
Why oh why won't these LTN fanatics / infrastructure fascists / militant cyclists think of the children?
Given Dejesky's alleged apologist position on Russia, this poster is practically compulsory.
Given Dejesky's alleged apologist position on Russia, this poster is practically compulsory.
She was writing crap like that more or less right up to the date Russia invaded Ukraine on 4 February. Now we know how accurate she was on that front we can make a judgement on how accurate she's likely to be on anything else.
DoomeFrog
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2 years ago
6 likes
Hirsute
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2 years ago
7 likes
https://twitter.com/road_ss/status/1555460052965883904
It's Dash Cam Day 2022. With one in five vehicles now fitted with a dash cam, motorists are being warned to ‘drive like they’re being filmed’ every time they get behind the wheel
SNITCH !! GRASS !!
https://twitter.com/road_ss/status/1555460052965883904
It's Dash Cam Day 2022. With one in five vehicles now fitted with a dash cam, motorists are being warned to ‘drive like they’re being filmed’ every time they get behind the wheel
SNITCH !! GRASS !!
They just go out looking for trouble!
https://twitter.com/road_ss/status/1555460052965883904
It's Dash Cam Day 2022. With one in five vehicles now fitted with a dash cam, motorists are being warned to ‘drive like they’re being filmed’ every time they get behind the wheel
SNITCH !! GRASS !!
They just go out looking for trouble!
Vigilantes! Just want clicks!
Vigilantes! Just want clicks!
Disgusting behaviour! Just look at this cyclist, shouting at a poor motorist simply checking their phone whilst sat stationary at traffic lights! Not doing much for driver/cyclist relations, I don't know why we all can't just get along...
brooksby
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2 years ago
2 likes
https://metro.co.uk/2022/08/04/london-terrifying-footage-shows-what-cycl...
The driver then pulls in suddenly forcing the cyclist to swerve and hit the wing mirror and the side of the car.
The cyclist is heard saying: ‘You f****g stupid c**t! You f*****g idiot! Are you f****g blind?’
When the driver gets out of his car to check the damage, the cyclist shouts: ‘Woah, woah, why are you bothered about your car, you nearly f****g maimed me!’
The tense situation risked getting out of hand when a passerby got involved to stick up for the driver.
Nasty looking (yet somehow familiar) experience.
Of course, according to the BTL comments it's all the cyclists fault - a car overtaking = bike undertaking, should be responsible for their own safety, think they own the road, something something road tax.
Have drivers killed as many people as cigarettes yet? Just ban driving already, it's clearly way too hazardous for people's health. Too extreme? well maybe we could just licence drivers for the protection of others and make sure that they understand the basics of road safety.....oh hang on
London to Brighton and back at 25mph.. the more I think about it, the more impressive it gets. Chapeaux sir!
It would be an achievement to average that speed on that route in a car, let alone a bike... astonishing, particularly when the route included urban roads with junctions, traffic etc.
It would be an achievement to average that speed on that route in a car, let alone a bike... astonishing, particularly when the route included urban roads with junctions, traffic etc.
Looking on Strava 4:20:36 is his moving time, total elapsed time is 4:46:48, so that presumably accounts for lights, junctions etc.
It would be an achievement to average that speed on that route in a car, let alone a bike... astonishing, particularly when the route included urban roads with junctions, traffic etc.
Looking on Strava 4:20:36 is his moving time, total elapsed time is 4:46:48, so that presumably accounts for lights, junctions etc.
True, but he'd still need to slow to a virtual standstill and accelerate away again, so presumably spent a lot of time well over 40kmh. Overall, its still 36.6kmh, 22.7mph. I wonder if he was on TT or road bike.
brooksby
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2 years ago
7 likes
I tried to google it to find this 'story' somewhere else, but no luck...
https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/19422100/lazy-brits-car-bus-forced-walk/
LAZY Brits will use the car or hop on a bus if they have to walk for a third of a mile or more.
The maximum distance we are prepared to walk is just 537 metres — or for roughly ten minutes, a poll shows.
...
Yves Benchimol, CEO of walking app WeWard, which polled 1,500 people, said: “It’s clear that Brits are jumping in the car a little too easily, even though they acknowledge all the benefits that walking can offer.
"We want to get more people walking, even for just a few more steps each day.”
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