44 tonne lorries and towns don't mix (part 2 of 2)

[elaineclews]

i think the problem is that as soon as an articulated vehicle starts to make any kind of turn it imediatly is in a blind spot left turn right turn you cannot see down the side of the trailer until you straighten up the use of smaller trucks in the towns and cities would create jobs and make the roads safer for pedestrians it would use less fuel and sometimes artics only deliver one thing or one pallet

[Tarunthakur01]

I would advise fitting along the near side of the large vehicle " A LOUD SPEAKER" shouting a message "THIS VEHICLE IS TURNING LEFT, PLEASE STAY CLEAR AND DO NOT UNDERTAKE ON THE NEAR SIDE" when you turn on your left indicator. Would that work???... I think that would be cheaper than anything else. SO no need for more silly videos on TV ... saves lots of money

[DinoDoesStuff]

ALL THE SKILL AND TRAINING ALREADY EXISTS ON THE HGV DRIVERS PART - WHAT IS MISSING IS APPROPRIATE TRAINING AND AWARENESS ON THE PART OF IGNORANT, SELFISH AND IMPATIENT CAR DRIVERS. MY DRIVING EARNS MY LIVING AND IS MY TRADE & SKILL - YOUR DRIVING IS THE FASTEST ROUTE BETWEEN HOME AND BINGO!

[DinoDoesStuff]

Swinging right before turning left is a typical car drivers manoeuvre born of ignorance. HGV drivers do not need to swing right and rarely do so. Often, a LH turn will dictate that the HGV must command more room, to do so an artic will often use two lanes and block out other vehicles for their own safety during the manoeuvre - this is perceived as bad manners. When an HGV must drive on the centre line to turn left - this is perceived as an opportunity to squeeze through the gap!

[DinoDoesStuff]

I love these people that have great solutions for solving perceived problems on vehicles that they have never driven. You can't get any more mirrors on an artic - it is possible to hide a house in the blindspot behind the existing mirrors - adding more mirrors will only add more blindspots not reduce them. Bringback the cycling proficiency course as a mandatory course - make cyclists pay road user insurance and then they may be more aware of other traffic. Cyclists have the better view!

[TheNameIsBEATTIE]

This all comes down to education and common sense, Now i don't work in a zoo, but my common sense tells me not to get in between an Elephant and a hard place (i.e. wall) or in fact to walk to close to it, its far to heavy for me to push away, and education tells me that man Vs Elephant = man looses, same with lorries and people, it's self preservation looking out for number 1 !!!

[foundationsedge]

the vehicles you show not fitted with side guards are exempt.

[KingOfTheRoadMods123]

0:56 - 1:02

What do you want them to do exactly? Get out and walk round the other side?

[pimpUK1]

"there should be more mirrors on HGVs so they can see better on thier left".

You thick bint, we already have 5 mirrors, with each mirror causing a blind spot. Not good for emerging from junctions and missing that motorbike that was obscured by the mirror. Simle solution is to tell cyclists not to cycle down left side of trucks, if they do then its just natural selection and Darwins theory wins.

[tomski3]

@pimpUK1 Haha! Yes! I love natural selection. It's why I hate health and safety so much; it prevents brain-dead retards from being cancelled out of the genepool, (which, let's face it, is what we need).

[MultiTheHood]

How about cyclists,pedestrians, and car drivers being educated to the dangers that exist on the road.

Lgv drivers now undergo more training and have to pass more tests just to earn a living. As a LGV driver with 25+ yrs experiance I know the dangers and also know as soon as I get in an HGV some one somewhere will want to nick me. Get real we DON,T want to go into towns and citys but you are the people who order the goods so live with it or go without.

[riley01278]

No driver wants to kill, hurt or scare anyone, and no 44 ton trucks are not suitable to towns cities or villages...The only reason they are there is because the goods have been ordered..I would much rather deliver outside of town but as always economics comes in to play i.e a 44ton truck carries a payload of about 26ton this would need about 7 x 7.5ton gross distrib trucks....i wish it was possible. more cycle paths and corner guard rails...town planners wake up and do the jobs your paid to do..

[romfordtony]

yeah theres that old" argument" again.Push bikes should be taxed and insured.Why would this make any difference to drivers wiping out vunerable road users?

[romfordtony]

Drivers really need to appreciate that cyclists are vulnerable road users and are not surrounded by a steel box.Whether they are in the right or not.All it needs is good observation and courtesy.There are plenty of cyclists that do observe the rules and plenty that dont but they all share the same vulnerability

[iib8903]

drivers already appreciate most cyclists but not all break every rule in the book, fit them with number plates and make them have insurance and mot, the ammount of un roadworthy bikes and the ammount that run red lights should be removed from the roads then the attitude towards bikes will improve

[peterjune1]

what a load of bollocks, fing cyclists dont pay tax/insurance/or mot the bikes, if wasnt for the likes of these trucks you assholes would have nothing! not even a pot to piss in, left indicator flashing cyclist ignores it then fuck him hes done his own death.

[wigglysaddle]

I'm a cyclist and I pay tax. I wouldn't mind betting that I pay more tax than you. Also, I don't know of a single cyclist that doesn't pay tax, so I don't know where you get your figures from, but they're wrong!

[peterjune1]

as a cyclist you do not pay road tax. my road tax costs £1500 year so no you dont pay more tax than me, you do not have road traffic insurance either..

[wigglysaddle]

Would you care to send me your last tax return, and we can compare who pays the most tax?

You don't have to pay vehicle excise duty to use a cycle on the road because cycles have a right in law to use highways. Cars don't, the VED gives you a licence to use a car on the highway.

I'm not even sure what "road traffic insurance" is, does that insure you against being stuck in traffic jams? I don't need that because bikes don't get stuck so easily :) I have third party liability insurance instead.

[kierenmarie]

Go on then - just how much per year do you pay to tax your cycle? If you can manage to actually prove that you pay a single penny directly related to the use of that "vehicle" I will post up a set of my accounts for the running of 1 x 40tn truck - a small hint for you - I spend more on different forms of tax related to that vehicle than you probably earn.

[Schivaa66]

Lorie drives should be banded to go on B roads and in to town residental areas, there is always other ways, but the isn't always barain in the lories drivers heads.

[peterjune1]

get real mate. the sooner the public realises if you got it a truck brought it the better this country would be.

[WNxRadeon]

that woman at 1:25 is stupid. the truck drivers can't pay more atention cuz they alrdy doing so, and more mirrors? lol that's pathetic.

and for the turning, when a truck has it's blinkers on people know which direction it's going so that's BS.

and i am sorry for your daughter.

[VolvoFH12580]

They will turn our units into mobile hubble teliscopes if they fit any more mirrors to our trucks its hard enuf to see in the diagonal cause of them now, and banning lorries in london at night instead of day wouldnt that solve 90% of the friggen problem?

[wigglysaddle]

They don't always indicate!

[bobbynogs17]

Lets all get a massive chip on our shoulder and pick on the truck driver.....oh you already have sorry. Educate drivers ,cyclists , etc the art of patience. Remember if you buy off a shelf a truck put it there. Truckers are highly skilled people who work very hard.

[bivvyfox]

A combination of measures is needed. We cannot just rely on one solution. Certainly fitting all lorries with proper protection would take out the human element error - be it drivers or cyclists. An extra idea is for cycle web sites to host free ads warning of the dangers.

[Kokoots]

Let's go back 50 years and deliver on 3 wheeled scammels. Where do we decant onto these "small lorries" and who will drive them. One 44 tonne truck or 8 small ones? That's 8 times the cost. Educate the idiots in cars and on bikes, don't keep blaming the lorry drivers. I've even had two idiots try and overtake whilst I was waiting to turn right! The first one just made it the second had to reverse back, I made sure of that. They are just inpatient fools.

[stevielr]

you are aloud to mount a curb on your test as long as its a controled mount and your watching it on and off the curb i had 2 do it or i wouldn't of been able to take a left turn because of the traffic on the other side of the road i was turning in 2

[chubbybrown4real]

its handy to close the gap between the wheels and the kerb and yet they will still cylce up the side of you no matter what your indicating your intention is.

[johnnystevens1975]

The highway code needs to be updated. It should say " cyclists or motorcyclists must not pass large vehicles."

[Graeme380]

What the so called experts fail to realise is the fact that by putting more mirrors on big trucks you can cause more blind spots in other areas just ask anyone who drives a volvo fh or fm.Better education of cyclists would be more practical as they can always see the trucks not the other way round but thats an easy answer might put all these expert out of a job.

[A429244]

de-cant..... lets de-cant some of the fuel while we are at it or should we just use twice as many vehicles, people and feul to do the job. bigger is better and cheaper.educate all road users properly, don't just blame the biggest target.

[harperandyman]

better still lets take all the hgvs off the road, all go on the dole and sit back and watch the public moan when theres no eggs milk and a paper at the local store ! countries on its arse !

[madeljacky]

In case you dont know its because you need to move to the middle of the road before you start to turn 45 feet of trailer and 16 feet of lorry into a left hand junction because the trailer WILL try and take a short cut over the footpath or into what ever else is there.

[tetris418]

your not taught to drive like that, if you pull that manouvre on your driving test you will fail!!

[madeljacky]

Well i was taught like that because if your trailer wheels touch the kerb or mount it, you will fail your test. Try turning a extended 60ft skelly into a left hand junction without pulling out to the white line and not even paul daniels could do it!

[Nano200852]

yeah that is how we are taught tetris418, take it you don't have class1. have a look at juntions with railings. Notice how many on the left hand side are bent cus the driver didn't straddle both lanes. I had a classic today delivering to a builing site. Hazards on, span round to reverse into site, only for 2 cars to go directly behing me and sit there for 5 mins whilst im in reverse.Then have the check to beep at me wondering why I'm not moving. I swaer I'm gonna end up in gail for ABH soon!

[VolvoFH12580]

I was straddleing earlyer last week i stopped i was over white line already in the turn turning left on a sharp 90 degree bend had railings on my left so had no choice but to steal a bit of other side, some woman in a BMW drove right into me, got my insurance through and was pleased to see "We have found your driver not at fault" the fact is she could blatently see me and had no excuse wonder what her premium is after that one.

[hitchhiker38]

What a brainless Point that was. I took a curb on my test and passed, because i told the examiner i had no choice and i watched the trailer up and down the curb, and he was happy with that. Luckily he didn't see the two cyclist and a dog i caught on and dragged um down the road. Why dont you get a first clue about road haulage before commenting again.

[madeljacky]

I think every body that has a license to drive on the road should be made to go on a driving awareness course for H.G.V'S to make them more aware of what its like to drive a h.g.v and then the silly fuckers wouldnt drive up the left hand side of a truck turning left because they would now know why there is a gap on the left hand side of the truck when its left hand indicator is flashing.

[VolvoFH12580]

Agreed !

[dogsoldier05]

At 2 mins 30 seconds they say about banning Artics from inner citys and using 7 half tonne trucks instead. Good idea BUT for 1 Artic fully laden you would need approx 10 smaller trucks to deliver the same amount on tonnage . What will the green people say about that .Its a hard one 1 artic versis 10 smaller trucks =( pollution road wear COST etc)

[mailpauljonescouk]

Yes, it could make things worse to split the load. A more practical solution would be to fit better mirrors to trucks and use them properly so that blind spots are eliminated. An incident in Cambridgeshire late last year involved a lady cyclist killed by a left turning truck with a mirror partially obstructed by a curtain.

[dropscale1]

@mailpauljonescouk the solution is simple.....if u see an orange flashing light on the left side DO NOT PASS on that side

[TridentTrucking]

@mailpauljonescouk problem with decanting loads is londons traffic would more than octuple in the space of 12 hours currently we are not allowed in city untill 7am and have to be out by 7pm so we catch both rush hours and the buisest parts of the day my guy who goes to switzerland cant run in the major areas unless at night and cant run at weekends and they have less fatalities and accidents (on compairing with a smiliar size city) than we do for every one fatal in swis theres 25 in london

[TridentTrucking]

@dogsoldier05 what about STGO loads how do you break a 150ton machine down to put in a 7.5ton truck bear in mind the counterwieght can be 60ton on its own , the local MP there clearly has no clue im in favour of the european approach ban all trucks in major cities over 18ton and only permit them in at night she did the opposite, id rather pay my drivers extra to run a night than have the worry of months of court cases because a driver took a cyclist off.

[6axe1man5]

Im currently a bus driver soon to be a HGV1 driver, i personally think that cyclists should either be banned or be made to take a road test...if they cycle down the side of my vehicle then its their fault, not mine. It does say and i quote "very clearly", rule 72 of the highway code "Do not ride on the inside of vehicles signalling or slowing down to turn left"

[mailpauljonescouk]

How do you know for sure that your indicators are visible and working? You need to be sure you're not running someone over when turning don't you? It's not about fault it's about responsibility. Both cyclist & driver responsibility to be aware of the danger and do what you can to avoid it.

[6axe1man5]

well before you take over a vehicle you do a walk around to make sure everything is ok, including indicators...and considering theres often 2 at the rear, 1 on the side and one on the front per side of a vehicle, how can they not be seen? as other people have commented cyclists often do the exact opposite of the highway code.

[mailpauljonescouk]

Yes, cyclists make mistakes and some demonstrate a poor knowledge of Highway Code. However, we've all seen vehicles turn without indicating or indicate one way then go the other. I've had lorries and buses come alongside from behind without completing an overtake then run me off the road at the next junction. Everyone makes mistakes or omissions sometimes. Bulbs can fail unexpectedly and occasionally sunlight can make some indicators impossible to see.

[6axe1man5]

sometimes we dont signal, but iv only ever seen a cyclist signal a couple of times...tell you what, ill be more than happy to invite you to spend a day at work with me watching cyclists and my standard of driving...then we'll draw up a conclusion

[mailpauljonescouk]

It's true a lot of cyclists don't signal properly but it's not always easy to take hands off handlebars & brakes on a busy bumpy greasy road... and there's plenty who do signal at night with nothing reflective on the arm so how is anyone else going to see that easily?

[mailpauljonescouk]

Cyclists who drive or advanced drivers will usually see a subtle change in the movement of a non-signalling cyclist before a turn. Often a glance back or a wobble. Watch out for the hooded cyclist who can see nothing behind. These are awful.

[6axe1man5]

being a cyclist myself I know exactly what its like to take my hands off of the handle bars so dont even try to outsmart me...I'm able to speak for both sides. As i said, come to work with me and watch reality, cyclists rarely signal, are extremely unpredictable, unsafe with less than half using lights at night, ignore traffic lights and signs and should be banned or a licence issued...fact

[mailpauljonescouk]

Not everyone is confident to take hands off bars. Some roundabouts are so greasy with spilled diesel that it's dicey to do anything that can affect steering on a bike. It's usually safe to signal when cycling straight but not necessarily if turning on a roundabout. Advanced drivers would be patient and watch from behind until a cyclist's intended direction is clear, not push and make assumptions after losing cyclist in blind spot.

[arniecommando]

If you cannot take hands off as you feel road is that dangerous you shouldn't be on a cycle at that time,,, simple really... Bet this one still won't get added...

[mrspivvy]

I have a great idea. Let's ban all HGVs from delivering to inner city areas. I am an HGV driver and trust me I wouldnt have a problem with that. Then you can deliver your 26 pallets of groceries weighing 25 tons to the high street by fucking bicycle.

[VolvoFH12580]

im a HGV 1 driver i second that ! id be overwhelmed if they banned all lorries in inner london save me getting stressed and damaging my unit.

[Griffencph]

Yeah, and people could bring their own waste to the transfer or incinerator in the outskirts, so we wouldn't have to deal with thousands of 1-person-cars running the asphalt off the streets. How many car trailers would you see around, and how far would the waste get?

At the moment I'm shooting vids of my usual routes to show the time difference before/in/after rush hour.

[Griffencph]

Around 1:30 that woman says there should be more mirrors on the trucks.

I don't know about UK, but I have 5 mirrors and 8 windows to check on my truck each time I turn. I've only got 2 eyes, ant just to make it worse, those eyes point more or less the same direction.

[Griffencph]

The politicians speak of adding yet another mirror to cover the front bumper area for "tight crossers" hiding under the edge of the window. What more can we do up here? When do they start discriminating those down there on the tarmac instead?

[VolvoFH12580]

i have 6 mirrors 2 cameras on my lorry and trailer4 mirrors on the left 2 on the right camera at the front and rear of my trailer, the only way you can obliterate the blind spot to a more resonable standard is just fit the thing with monoverable cameras.

[VolvoFH12580]

@Griffencph did see something in a dutch truck he has side and rear mounted cameras he can see every angle eliminating the blind spot if that was law never a problem again and yes i have about 8 or 9 mirrors on my truck too no amount of mirrors will ever see properly because of the convection objects appear closer or further away

[janjancummings]

@VolvoFH12580 unfortunally there are several problems with the camera solution, you still get the distortion due to the wide angle lens on the camera, (without it you get blind spots) dirt on the lens quicly obscure large areas due to the small size of the lens, and the camera tries to focus on the dirt, leaving everything hazy, sunlight reduces visibility of the screens too much, sunlight flood the camera with too mutch light, having multiple monitors in the truck during night is a nightmare

[jumbodoug]

@Griffencph so obviously the problem is with the design of truck drivers heads, the driver should be built with more eyes so they can use more mirrors.....

im a city bus driver. we have one nearside, one offside, and one interior to watch the muppets, oops passengers. but over the last few years the trend has moved away from the smaller, convex mirrors which are surprisingly effective because of the curved glass to larger mirrors with flat glass. now our peripheral view is a lot less.

[Griffencph]

@jumbodoug

On the offside we have both the flat and the curved mirror, according to danish law.

On the nearside we must have the flat one and more than half have the curved mirror.

This goes for both lorries and buses as far as I've noticed...

[M245475SH]

Of course it can't possibly be the fault of myopic cyclists / car drivers.Simple answer keep well away from the fucking trailer, and if I'm signalling (yes, I'm an artic driver) I'm probably turning in that direction.Take some responsibility for YOUR actions.

[YorkshireDaz]

Once again lets all have a go at highly-trained and ultra-regulated HGV drivers. Here's a thought, how about banning cyclist from riding two-a-breast or running red lights? Then again it might upset the liberal morons out there who only see the good in the two-wheeled menace.

[leewink]

It would be easier to just enforce the law that would STOP bikes overtaking cars or LGV's", inside or outside, then they'd be no problems ?

If cyclists took a extremely wide avoidance tactic towards trucks, then they wouldnt get squashed, you cant beat a truck in a battle !!

[mixxyuk]

IF the law cannot be enforced to stop cyclists jumping lights, riding on pavements, jumping off them into traffic without looking, undertaking, failing to use signals when manouvering, failing to look before manouvering, not using lights after dusk at night and before dawn, failing to give way, riding up one way streets the wrong way, what hope is there of them stopping bikes doing that??

[mixxyuk]

Paul posts some good points from a cyclists view. what I do see is most of Pauls gripes on his lists are against buses and cars and vans though. But more education for cyclists is essencial for there safety.

[trucker111111]

a 2 year old boys leg was broken yesterday by a cycleist near where i live and he was in a pedestrian zone so it aint just truckers

[mailpauljonescouk]

...and a 15 year old pedestrian reportedly standing on the pavement was killed by a lorry in my city this month, in the same month that an HGV driver was found guilty in court after running over an old man's leg when he was crossing a road with his zimmer frame. Doesn't look good. HGVs can be fairly hostile in the city if you're a cyclist or pedestrian, even if driven carefully.

[trucker111111]

hey i was only sayin that it aint just truck drivers who hurt and kill people on the roads because all iv found on you tube is videos like ur 2 about truck drivers and how bad they are so my suggestion to you is to make a video from the truckers point of view with proper facts like this video hasnt got some trucks there are not 44 tonners

[mailpauljonescouk]

OK I like truckers actually : you guys gave me lots of lifts when I hitch hiked around the country years ago. This video isn't mine but it does describe the blind spot problem quite well. Is there any way the nearside blind spot on trucks can be eliminated? Are there any better designs?

[trucker111111]

well unless we have huge mirrors lol you probs cant eliminate them and mirrors cause blindspots 2. all trucks have blind spots including 7.5 tonners so the answer is not too change the haulage industry but is too educate other road users about the blindspots on trucks

[trucker111111]

and also i find cycleists to be the most ignorant and rude road users around they think they can do wotever they want and mostly ignore the highway code by running red lights and undertaking. and they do all this without having to pay a penny towards the upkeep of the road or get a license to ride their bikes safely

[mailpauljonescouk]

Some cyclists maybe but the majority aren't like that. One way or another we all pay for the roads. Many cyclists (like me) also drive. It's asking a lot to expect everyone to understand the blind spots on trucks without driving one, but we need to know. I can remember being overtaken by lorries entering roundabouts, placing me in their blind spot. A better driver would see the cyclist thru the junction first.

[trucker111111]

yeah but come on cycleists always have go's at truckers yes i am ride a bike i have just done the coast to coast bike ride thats 144 miles from whitehaven to sunderland and it was bloody hard i tell ya but yes not everyone can understand blindspots but come on its a bit obvious that a truck is hard to drive and cycleists shudnt give so much greif yes we all make mistakes but sometimes you become invisable i always like to see a cycleist in hi-visas they are really easy to spot

[trucker111111]

and also we have lots of other things to be looking out for rather than cycleists coming up the inside which they shudnt do

[mailpauljonescouk]

You're right about high viz. How about cycle lanes which place cyclists on the left hand side of lorries at junctions? If there's no advanced stop line, the cyclists would be in blind spot. Even with ASL I'm sure you can stand left front of a truck and not be seen by a driver

[trucker111111]

ur right this was especially bad wen i drove a t-cab for a while i think it shud be law for cycleists if they ride on roads not if they ride on pavements to wera hi-viz and a helmet

[mixxyuk]

Common sense would say "that driver CANT SEE ME as I am clever and riding defensively, I had best stay here where I can be seen in his mirrors." Oh also forgot.Sitting ready to turn left indicator on taking centre line for room to manouvre and cyclists still come up inside to go straight on. NO BRAINS or eyes??

[mixxyuk]

The majority of city cyclists ARE like that. I wish I had a video cam to prove it. Cambridge I visit often, London, Manchester to name a few cities and majority of cyclists are horendous.

[mixxyuk]

Im going thru these 1 by 1 so hope Im not repeating. EU I believe is now speccing trucks must have another mirror mounted on front to try and illiminate prob for alot of cases but blind spots will still exist and it will not cure the few ignorant 2 wheelers and cars that try to pass on the near side.

[mixxyuk]

You hit the nail like I did.These videos are one sided and full of info given by someone who hasnt a clue of the facts.Accident I know of trucker told if he slowed down 5MPH accident MIGHT not have happened. If van hadnt overtaken on blind bend accident COULDNT have happened. Another case of trucks arent liked as normal.

[trucker111111]

absolutely lol we need to do something about it but i dont know how to make vids and tbh i dont have the equipment

[mixxyuk]

Now lets look at the WHOLE pic. Easy to say truck this truck that.Can you let me know how many killed by cars this month, Vans this month. More than by trucks at a guess. More light vehicles are driven aggresively in built up areas and accidents do happen.

[levellingtheland]

maybe we can deliver all the food etc to the shops with a bicycle?

[mailpauljonescouk]

well, we obviously can't do that (!) so the best we can do is improve awareness on all sides about the issues and look for sensible solutions

[levellingtheland]

People want the convenience of a supermarket, but not the hgs's needed to deliver the food. it may be cheaper than using a local supplier but you pay in other ways, more pollution,noise,big ugly supermarket built on the edge of town. If you shop at these places i cant see how you can complain about hgv's, YOU are the reason they are delivering there.

[mailpauljonescouk]

levellingtheland: Yes, I see your point. We pay a price for the convenience of a supermarket near home, including mixing with HGVs on crowded city streets ...and some cyclists pay a very high price : about half the cycling fatalities in Cambridge seem to involve HGVs: reason enough to think about why that is so and what can be done about it, I'd say.

[mixxyuk]

WHy do you think that London MET are holding safety awareness classes for CYCLISTS. On the HGV Test it is drummed into you keep an eye out for bikes. HGVs are aware of dangers of bikes. MOST cyclist do not understand the meaning of BLIND SPOTS thats why the MET are holding awareness classes.

[mixxyuk]

You keep saying ABOUT 1/2 the cycling fatalities in cambridge SEEM to involve HGV's. Perhaps you need to ring Cambs Police and get your figures right. The gross majority are caused by cars. Yet again, cyclists riding into drivers blindspots & ignoring highway code.

[mixxyuk]

Perhaps this is one point not mentioned on behalf of drivers. Drivers have to pass highway code to pass driving test.Bike riders NO they dont! I should think most drivers see a fair number of cyclists a week jump a red light, undertake or jump off footpaths onto roads.What to do,how about eduacate or prosecute them like drivers? (and I drive to Addenbrooks regularly by car)

[mixxyuk]

AWARENESS and EDUCATION on the part of cyclists would help alot of the problem, How many people passed there cycling proficiency & when? And how much do they remember? More people stopping on an amber instead of red and perhaps everyone not haggling to get there 1st & waiting there turn at junctions.

[cosmick75]

Large trucks in cities arent ideal, better to do deliveries in the early mornings when its safer but wait we aint allowed to do that in some areas. Other option is to really restrict deliveries but then people won't be happy when there is no fresh fruit or milk. or they wont be happy when they goto the shops and there is very little stock. Smaller trucks still dealing with blind spots but more trucks on the road.

[cosmick75]

One thing i do when driving arctics in built up areas and want to turn left is use the left hand mirrors loads before. Mental note is a cyclist approaching to beware. Also sitting waiting at lights to turn left i'll keep an eye on the left mirror watching for anyone approaching so won't be a surprise if i turn someone is there.

[mixxyuk]

Its all you can do, I se in one of the big UK truck mags they are saying the MET police are trying to educate the cyclists about blind spots on large vehicles,They have even been advertising these training events on TV & radio in London.

[mailpauljonescouk]

cosmick75: nice comments, thank you

[mixxyuk]

I never actually put in my last response, the anguish suffered by most people involved in a RTA involving anyone injured. The trouble is ALL should be more aware of what is happening around us, of our actions and the possible reactions to what we do on and near roads, on FOOT & on wheels.

[mixxyuk]

Unfortunately motor vehicles do damage the enviroment,all the more reason to use as eco friendly vehicles as possible. A vehicle is as dangerous as the HUMAN driving it, be it cycle car van or the human walking. EVERYone makes mistakes and as there are more pedestrians crossing roads in a dangerous manner? Cyclists like David Cameron stand out Talks Green and rides through Red.

[rower40]

mixxyuk, you're quite right that everyone makes mistakes. BUT the wayward pedestrian or cyclist is a risk only to themselves. When did a pedestrian last kill a car occupant? It's the car driver who is in charge of a lethal weapon, and must act suitably responsibly.

[mixxyuk]

Only at risk to themselves? You try and explain that to anyone who had the misfortune to knock down/kill a pedestrian/cyclist. ANYONE ON OR NEAR a road should act responsibly.The car is a weapon like a gun,but pedestrians can still walk in front of a gun. Also,man walks in road, car swerves, hits tree kills driver?? Pedestrian killed driver?? Its happened

[mailpauljonescouk]

The videos show the environment where we live and move around - I'm not suggesting the pedestrians and cyclists are perfect, but they create relatively little risk to others, whereas motor vehicles moving about really do create risk and damage the environment. It's amazing how much nicer it is on the streets of Cambridge during the summer holidays when traffic volumes go down.

[mixxyuk]

As one person has offered before, you think cyclists & pedestrians are the innocent in towns and cities, you grab your video camera and come out for the day.You'll need the camera to believe how many people are uneducated to or ignore road safety when they walk out of there door each morning. I think you will be amazed and go home with a different attitude to how you see other road users.

[mixxyuk]

My turn to point the gun. HGV license now about £1400 to learn to DRIVE the vehicle DEFENSIVELY after passing car test etc. Coach much the same, car several lessons at what £15-20 a go. Most 7.5T trucks driven by grandfathers rights of car license, NO EXPERIENCE neccesary, jump in off you go. Cyclist, point pedal and expect all to give way to you including the law. Pedestrians well if I run across and jump the railings I cant be bothered to use the crossing 100yds away.....

[mailpauljonescouk]

A 15 year old boy was killed by a lorry in central Cambridge this weekend

[7859bram]

mxxyuk reply is on the ball

[mixxyuk]

Improve economics by decanting to 7.5 tonners,, HILARIOUS........ 6 x 7.5tonners to take the same load as 1 44 tonner, Thats economical 6x wages 6x emissions. I dont want to go into big cities with Lunatic riders,drivers,but someone has to supply the goods for these fools to survive on. Try educating people that life is more important than time.

[UnclePhilP]

You've made the point yourself. Life is more important than time.

So how many pedestrians and cyclists' lives does it take to outweigh the extra cost of transferring loads to smaller wagons?

What if it was your wife or son that was killed?

44 tonners and crowded urban streets just don't mix.

[mixxyuk]

6x 7.5 tonners to do the same job as 1x44 tonner =6 vehicles likely to kill, 6 drivers possibly distracted not 1. HGV drivers have to pass a test, alot of 7.5 Tonners are still driven by people with no experience other than cars and are driven at higher speeds than HGVs. Educating cyclists not to undertake or jump red lights might help some. Pedestrians are mainly hurt within 100yds of crossings. Enough said. Nothing to do with vehicle size. Down sizing = 6x the risk to all.

[gianipower]

Its not always the lorry driver.