Your say / cycling
‘It took all my strength not to push the cyclist off’
**UPDATE** June 10, 2019. Since this opinion piece was published, Bristol24/7 has committed to improving its standards of editorial accountability. Bristol24/7 Editor Martin Booth responds to criticisms here.
I nearly committed murder today. And I nearly did last week as well. Can you guess who I nearly killed? Yes! It was a cyclist.
I was walking slowly in Victoria Park when there was a whooshing noise, and a cyclist sped by my right earlobe. It took all my strength not to reach sideways and push him off.
is needed now More than ever
And I’m not alone; last week another pensioner said she really had to resist sticking her foot out when cyclists come too near. So why this murderous intent to people who are saving the planet by not using their cars?
Judith Brown says that cyclists are good people, but they need to follow the highway code – photo by Jess Connett
Well firstly, cyclists don’t seem to realise that an elderly person may not hear them coming on the pavement and get a nasty shock. You see, when we were young, bikes had bells, and you rang them to tell people you were coming.
Without a bell announcing the arrival, a bike is a shock to anyone who can’t see or hear, has mobility problems, is in a wheelchair, or has a buggy with a young child or baby in it. It’s hard to get out of the way. And secondly, cyclists don’t follow any sort of rules. Ever seen a cyclist stop when the traffic lights are red? No, they just whizz across the road.
And don’t tell me about their behaviour on pavements. I have actually challenged one who was speeding along regardless of anyone else on the pavement. “Oi,” I shouted. “You! Slow down and get on the road!” The incredulous look I got, you would have thought I was a talking dog!
It’s actually illegal to ride on pavements, but Bristol City Council doesn’t seem to care and cyclists certainly don’t. Bristol is a cycling city, said the previous mayor George Ferguson, so it was a case of put up or shut up, in spite of the campaign Bristol Older People Forum ran.
“Look at the Netherlands,” a council officer told me. “Cyclists are so accepted there, they don’t even wear helmets.”
He didn’t seem to grasp the difference between the Netherlands and us: the Netherlands is flat. Bristol is not.
So, what would make me happy then? I’d like to see compulsory bells on bikes. I’d like to see cyclists obey the traffic rules. I’d like cyclists to have to have insurance and bikes to be registered, so when one knocks you down you know who did it. Then I would praise cyclists for the good people they are, helping to improve Bristol’s poor air quality.
Judith Brown is chair of Bristol Older People’s Forum
Read more: ‘Being an oldie in Bristol’
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