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news
Near Miss of the Day 652: Driver overtaking group ride almost causes head-on crash (includes swearing)
A Volkswagen Passat driver overtaking club cyclists on a group ride last month almost caused a head-on crash with another vehicle, with the motorist having to slam their brakes on so hard that you can hear the tyres squeal and see smoke billowing around the tyres.
Footage of the incident was filmed on the morning of Saturday 23 October by road.cc user Sevenfold, during a Wylde Green Wheelers group ride heading towards Nether Whitacre in North Warwickshire.
He said: “The white pick-up performed a perfect overtake having sat patiently behind us for a couple of minutes, then the driver of the blue VW Passat decided to overtake as well …
“Reported via Operation Snap with the result being that the driver has been sent a warning letter by Warwickshire Police.,” he added. “The vehicle is also untaxed so this has been handed over to DVLA to follow up.”
Although there’s no forward-facing footage, it’s apparent from how hard the driver had to brake that they had not ensured “the road is sufficiently clear ahead,” as required by Highway Code Rule 162.
Moreover, Rule 163 tells motorists to “Overtake only when it is safe and legal to do so,” and to give motorcyclists, cyclists and horse riders at least as much room as you would when overtaking a car.”
It’s possible that some non-cyclists viewing the video might question why the cyclists are riding two abreast and not in single file.
Despite a widespread misconception among many motorists that riding two abreast is illegal, it is expressly permitted by the Highway Code, and it is also often safer for groups of riders two cycle side-by-side rather than in single file.
Besides reducing the time it takes a driver to overtake the group, riding two abreast can also discourage dangerous manoeuvres – here, for example, had the cyclists been in single file, it’s not hard to imagine the Passat driver trying to squeeze through a non-existent gap between the riders and the oncoming vehicle.
> Near Miss of the Day turns 100 - Why do we do the feature and what have we learnt from it?
Over the years road.cc has reported on literally hundreds of close passes and near misses involving badly driven vehicles from every corner of the country – so many, in fact, that we’ve decided to turn the phenomenon into a regular feature on the site. One day hopefully we will run out of close passes and near misses to report on, but until that happy day arrives, Near Miss of the Day will keep rolling on.
If you’ve caught on camera a close encounter of the uncomfortable kind with another road user that you’d like to share with the wider cycling community please send it to us at info [at] road.cc or send us a message via the road.cc Facebook page.
If the video is on YouTube, please send us a link, if not we can add any footage you supply to our YouTube channel as an unlisted video (so it won't show up on searches).
Please also let us know whether you contacted the police and if so what their reaction was, as well as the reaction of the vehicle operator if it was a bus, lorry or van with company markings etc.
> What to do if you capture a near miss or close pass (or worse) on camera while cycling
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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185 comments
It's official policy of Warwickshire Police to issue only warning letter for the first two incidents, unless there is an actual collision.
It's mind boggling really. But that's the situation.
That driver could do exactly the same again tomorrow, and they would just get a 'sterner' warning letter.
That is a ridiculous policy.
You could have three members of the same family, all on the insurance policy. Two drive dangerously, generating two warning letters for the registered keeper. Then the third does a half hearted close pass and gets investigated.
Or someone gets two warning letters and sells the car on sharpish.
Poor
That is one video where you honestly wonder whether the motorist looked *at all* before starting their manoeuvre...
Only one?....
One for emphasis, not meaning that's the only one.
I'm in little doubt that I'm noticing two things whilst out on the bike.
1) I'm certainly being given far more space when being overtaken by the vast majority of drivers.
2) Drivers are increasingly overtaking in, frankly, fucking stupid places such as bends and brows of hills.
The video is a good example of both. The van being point 1 and the car being point 2.
Actually the van was a perfect example - he waited behind us for virtually 3 minutes patiently (I've checked the full rear recording) then overtook. No horn honking, abuse, histrionics, hand gestures or a 'punishment' pass - just how an overtake should be. It's a shame there is no livery on the vehicle as I would have phoned to pass on my appreciation to his manager/H & S representative.
Textbook example of the safety benefits of disciplined group riding by adopting the correct 2 abreast formation.
Absolutement mon frere
Also textbook example of why knowledge of HWC rules 162-169 are vital to any driver. Any that do not understand them are a risk to all other users (adopting any mode) and should be removed until they can demonstrate otherwise.
“Reported via Operation Snap with the result being that the driver has been sent a warning letter by Warwickshire Police.,” he added. “The vehicle is also untaxed so this has been handed over to DVLA to follow up.”
Pathetic. The car is untaxed, so just seize it and crush it.
Textbook example of one group using the road in full compliance with the law and another person breaking the law but the trollmeister siding with the latter simply because s/he's in a motor car and they are on bicycles.
At 8-9s into the video, you can see clearly that the width of the lane and the width of the car are closely matched, and no amount of positioning would have made any difference to the need for any overtake to be done on the other side of the road.
The size (length) of the group is also a red herring, since the car had not even adequately* cleared the rearmost pair before the brakes locked up (* not just ahead, but clear enough in front for it to be a safe pass). That's without considering what we may euphemistically call the driver's "thinking" time.
A large group actually makes it clearer that the pass is unsafe.
I'd like to thank Nigel for supplying once more the idiot comment, although it would be useful if he used some kind of symbol to indicate, "we all know this is a stupid comment: I'm just playing devil's advocate". Otherwise we'd think the idiot comment was being stated from a position of sincere idiocy.
"Trollmeister"? Trollinfant, or trollbaby, surely?
It's a good point, we should extend that to drivers. The roads would be much safer if we place limits on how many cars/vans/hgvs we allowed on them at the same time.
Textbook example of why Nigel Garage should just disappear.
You need to learn to cope with opinions that differ to yours.
Different, Yes,
Stupid, No.
And who will judge the stupidity quotient?
Oh, you of course!
Again, think you need to accept that an opinion is not automatically 'correct' just 'cos you hold it!
Or, to put it another way - think you need to grow up a touch. You know, become a fraction more mature in your approach to issues.
.
With less riders the car would have likely attempted a close pass, since they're in such a hurry. Your "solution" would have put the riders in more danger.
How small a number of cyclists is it safe to overtake approaching a blind bend? Even if you genuinely believe small groups are safer, this is a textbook example of nothing but dangerous driving.
I, for one, am amazed that no-one wants to cycle with you.
I reckon he was in a cycle group and was kicked out sharpish once he had opened his mouth a few times to give his thoughts. Hence his hatred for them.
No-one?
I'd happily ride with him.
So you're wrong again.
But he wouldn't ride with you, because he only rides alone.
Then we should be banning these people from the roads, not trying to appease them. Driving is a privilege, not a right, and people shouldn't have to put themselves in danger to appease dangerous drivers.
Nice one Jeno, well put!
This would still have been a dangerous overtake even on just one or two cyclists - as someone else has pointed out, the driver is barely clear of the rearmost pair before they see oncoming traffic and have to perform an emergency stop. If you think that riding in groups creates conflicts - fine, that's your prerogative. But if you think this is the textbook example to illustrate your point, I think you're doing your argument a disservice.
Last Saturday afternoon I was out cycling on my own. I had a similar incident when a car overtook in an inappropriate place and caused an oncoming car and the overtaking car to brake sharply before the overtake was abandoned.
I don't ride with a camera. I think it was less likely to happen if I had been on the Club run rather than a single cyclist.
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