I'm not going to respond to every comment here regarding helmets. I have worn a helmet in literally every other video I have made on this channel, when I am out on road rides, bikepacking, or gravel. I chose not to wear a helmet on this commute to work - this decision affects no one but myself. In the same sense, I don't care if drivers choose to not wear a seatbelt, but I do care when they behave in ways which endangers others. This helmet discussion is a complete distraction to the point of the video - the harm that driving causes. Don't lose that perspective by focusing on whether I chose to wear a helmet or not. I won't be responding to any more comments about helmets. And thank you to all those who engaged with this video positively and to the actual points being discussed. Cheers.
I'm a professional truck driver, I've driven full time for 7 years. Most people shouldn't be driving at all, they're just not capable of doing it safely; by itself, the number of people who should be disqualified because they can't stay off their phones would reduce the driving population by half. You can see how common that is from a few feet higher up in a commercial truck cab, it's pretty ridiculous.
Thing that gets me the most is nearly all modern cars come with some sort of massive tablet "infotainment" system. How come using a built in tablet while driving is legal but a phone isn't its pretty much the same thing? In my own personal opinion cars should be as barebones as they can be. They are transportation tools not somewhere you're supposed to have fun but rather pay attention to your surroundings.
I pretty much agree with all your points 100%. For me the elephant in the room is the gig economy. I used to live in London for years, I now live in rural Somerset. It's very hilly by the way, and as I'm over 65 I just bought a motor assisted bike. If I stop peddling my heavy e-bike stops moving fairly instantly. I regularly visit London and food delivery e-bikers are moving at speed while not even peddling. The food delivery job is paid per delivery, and the restaurant can incur a cost if the food is delivered late. So yeah, it's no surprise that very low paid workers, under a time constraint, have purchased powerful e-bikes, ride them at speed in pedestrianised areas and the wrong way on one way streets, through red lights etc. The gig economy is the culprit here, not the e-bike. I hardly ever see an e-bike in rural Somerset. If I do, it's someone like me travelling quite slowly up a hill with the help of a hub motor. The danger of e-bikes is all about big cities and food delivery.
@@ChrisWhittenMusic I agree that the food delivery companies are largely to blame for the illegal e-bike problem. They need to be dealt with by government. If their business model only works by encouraging dangerous use of e-bikes (and mopeds ridden on L plates beyond the six months limit), then their business model doesn’t work. They should be forced to bring in insurance and safe delivery targets for their riders. If they can’t make money that way, then they go out of business.
@@randysgutful We are so lucky to have them on the road with us, such a privilege to share the same space with careful, focussed individuals who (might) have passed a test and (might) have insurance!
Something people don't talk about enough is larger cars. This is a trend on both sides of the Atlantic. For the UK, it means over 50 years we've shifted from a world where a 61 inch wide Morris Minor was a compact and a 67 inch wide Cortina Mk 3 was considered wide, to a world where a Peugeot 208 is 69 inches wide and some German SUVs are hitting 80 inches. That's eight to 12 inches wider pretty much. You think of a road with a lane of traffic in each direction and parked cars on both sides of the street, that's FOUR FEET of safety margin just gone. Ouch!
I'm a roadie, almost 20 years. I appreciate how e-bikes help some overcome entree into the hobby. But there are a number of young male riders (most < 30) who are simply jerks who can now ride at experienced speeds while doing newbie things coupled with the carelessness of youth. It's not "run lights". We all do. It's "run lights without checking for car or bike traffic crossing". Same with stop signs. It's riding the wrong way down not just roadways, but bike paths. It's not going on sidewalks and slowing precipitously for pedestrians who have the right of way (and here in Chicago, riding on the walk is illegal if you're over the age of 12), but riding full speed down sidewalks and being annoyed when you inevitably hit someone. Yes I drive also. Certainly there are asshole drivers and many who don't pay attention. But they do not excuse how bad many ebike operators are. And I'm viewing this as a driver and a cyclist. They are an annoyance added on top of the existent annoyances of traffic.
If you haven't watched it, GCN's video on Moto-normativity is fantastic. The way as a society we ignore/excuse everything cars do and will go to great lengths to try and argue something else is the problem. It's a fantastic watch, not too long, and very well informed.
@ I don't think there's any denial of that. An arsehole is an arsehole regardless of their mode of transport. The video was taking it out of a car vs cyclist debate and looking at how motor vehicles are excused in nearly ALL circumstances. It was fascinating.
@@JakeMay Your stats are don't represent the reality. There are likely more cars, they on average do more miles per year than bikes. Of course the accidents with cars is higher than bikes. Cars are safer than bikes because people would rather brave bad weather in their cars than on their bikes. Also E-bikes with motors running at speeds above 25kph doesn't exist under the UK law. If a machine does not cut it's motor at 25kph it is automatically reclassified as E-moped, E-motorbike etc. The point people are making is that E-mopeds(etc.) are illegally using pedal bike infrastructure. They are not simply speeding, they are clearly breaking the law. Getting more people on bikes is a good thing, but breaking the law to do it is not how it is done. Life is not clear cut like cars being polluting; it's all about balance. Cars can be unimaginably useful for necessary trips in the freezing cold and pouring rain. Cars simply solve a different set of problems to bikes.
Good points in your vid. Ebikes are brilliant. Antisocial behaviour is a problem for everybody, whether it's by cars, bikes or anything else. Also, most cyclists own cars, we're just using up less public resource by riding our bikes.
e bikes ftw mate. i ride a cube mountain ebike, mostly DH and enduro. its a bloody revelation having to not push back up the hill which is more tiresome than riding, i can now eeeb it all the way back to the top. happy days.
As a cyclist and a wheelchair pusher, I am not a fan of Lime and Forrest bikes because they are too often dumped in the wrong places, but a lot of this is down to a small section of users (about 10% according to the operators) who hack and use the bikes without paying. I also find uses of hire-bikes and also various deliverey bike users are more likely to do dangerous cycling (ie red light crossing, jumping pavements). As for cars using mobile or other distracting devices it is crazy in london.
yes, a bit like the people who dump other stuff that they can't be bothered to dispose of properly - shopping trolleys, rubbish, fridges, mattresses, cars etc. It's the offender that's the issue, not the item that they are abusing.
Last week I had to run a bunch of errands about the place and couldn't take my bike so was bussing it about. As I was waiting for the bus on a typical road in Bromley, I counted at least 5 drivers using their phone whilst driving in about a 2/3 minute window.
Don't you have laws in the UK re this? We've had no phone use rules since around 2005 I think - the state of Western Australia - so it sounds as though you have a lot of people who flaunt the law over there. I picked up my phone a couple of years ago as I thought I saw a message come in. I was stationary at the time. Within seconds, the unmarked car behind me pulled me over. I don't know how he saw me but he did even through tinted windows! I was fined $500 and three demerit points - he asked me when he was taking my details, what I was doing with the phone. I told him and he then told me that if I had been initialising a message, the fine would have been $1000 and I think double demerits. That's the way to do it.
Surprised air pollution in cities caused by cars hasn't been brought up. As someone who walks to work in a city daily the stink of fumes is horrendous. What illness does that pollution cause i wonder?
There is some correlation to suggest fumes, which are improving all the time as cars without catalytic converters and DPF etc are fewer and fewer, reduced lifespan by about one year in large cities. I'd suggest not worrying about it and get on with your life.
I am a road cyclists and favour ebikes for those who want and need them. My pet peeve is E-motor cycles masquerading as ebikes with their fat tyres and weighing over 25 kilos. A real danger in a collision with vulnerable bi-cyclists on bike only routes. These need regulating. Your thoughts?
In most places in the USA there are no regulations enforced to e-bikes, so you can get these bikes that go 30-40 mph, which is better to keep up with car traffic. That’s a problem in the USA. There may be little white lines on city roads that designate bike lanes, but there is no physical barrier separating bike lanes from heavy and high speed city car traffic, which means that you don’t feel safe riding a bike in these bike lanes.
Our limits here in Australia are 25kM/Hr. I wish we had the same speed regulation as NZ which is 32 but hey, this is Australia! Isn't the speed limit set by the manufacturers 25kM/Hr in the UK too or is this just Europe?
I am 72 have raced and rode bikes all my life unfortunately coming up to my 70th birthday i found i was going slower and tired easily, eventually diagnosed with a heart complaint, thought my cycling days were over ,but bought a Specialized Creo ebike and now happy as larry ! ,although i agree that the fast food couriers are Mostly to blame with what are illegal bikes with twist grip controls. never go out without a helmet no matter how far your going !
It is probably a good thing to emphasize that the problem is caused by CARS and not just blame the people who drive them. The fact that cars are in much of the world the default means of transport and that the car industry, with the help of governments and media have been pushing their use and pumping out bigger, more powerful, and much more dangerous to anyone outside of them vehicles for over a century now is the problem. It is a systemic problem. Driver's are often just along for the ride. I have not personally owned a car in years and when I rent one now I'm amazed at how much more power they have now and how much more insulated I feel as a driver from any sense of speed when driving them than one did in cars made forty years ago when I first got my driving license and when I drove a delivery van for several years. From the Motor City, Detroit MIchigan;)
Not the rant I expected from the title but instead a very balanced and sensible point of view. Motorists are by far the greatest danger on the roads, without question! I hail from Cape Town, South Africa - try riding a bike around there! Absolutely terrifying!
One thing not mentioned is there are many who ride both. In my city (San Diego) I know some guys who ride e-bikes for commuting purposes but ride their road bikes in full spandex kit for fun and exercise. I'm sure it's the same in the UK.
I tend to agree with what you said. I've been cycling for about 40 years and have recently switched over to an EMTB and it's great. It's such a joy to be out in the hills without struggling too much. I can do up to 60 miles on it and feel reasonably good afterwards. The problem, as you said, is people in general, whether they're driving or cycling. I see just as many drivers breaking the rules as cyclists but thankfully, they are in the minority. Most people are ok. I know you said don't mention helmets but it only takes one mistake or one bad driver to ruin your life. I always wear one.
Wear a lid mate, most objects you will come into contact with following a crash/collision/side swipe etc are a lot harder than your cranium. I believe they have saved me from a serious head injury on a couple of occasions. Whether the wearing of one makes you more or less vulnerable due to other road users perceptions, is for me beside the point, I'd far rather wear one with the protection provided than not.
Totally agree, especially in London. I had a black ice slip a couple of years ago and I hit my head on the kerb as I landed. Fortunately I was wearing a helmet. I dread to think how it would have been without one. I might not be here.
Yip, not wearing one whilst making this vid was a mistake unfortunately. I know that they are not legally required in the UK (Lord knows why given this country's obsession with health and safety?) but they are essential. I know people who have died in their driveways by falling over, whilst not even moving, and hitting their head. Ive also smashed a helmet to pieces before at quite slow speeds. NEVER sling a leg over any kind of bike without a helmet on - PLEASE.
Sorry can't stop myself. I'm a cyclist, do around 5000kms annually. Filming and looking at yourself in the camera and no helmet in what looks like busy streets in London is the most stupid cycling video I've watched. It's no wonder cyclists get such a bad reputation.
Good work. I couldn't agree more about saying 'car' rather than 'driver'. It's language that is willfully ameliorating by ascribing agency, and by extension, culpability to machines.
A narrative 100% invented and driven by the auto motive industry. Even the term 'jaywalking' was invented by the car manufacturers to shift the blame for the extraordinary number of deaths caused when cars were first introduced, onto pedestrians.
Totally agree - and it is quite amazing how cars have become such a dominant force and we as as society accept the thousands of road deaths caused every year by accidents involving cars. I always equate that to flying - if the same amount of people would die every year in plane crashes (around 1.700 deaths a year in the UK which would be more or less the equivalent of 8 passenger aircraft dropping from the skies every year) all planes would be grounded, investigations would be on-going and the outcry in society would be huge. But hey, it's road deaths and our cars are sacred, so we better look the other way.
Thats because cars contribute massively to the economy. Not just with taxes Theme parks Out of town shopping centres Rural Festivals National trust properties Campsites/caravan sites, static and mobile Country hotels, coffee shops, restaurants. National parks An estimated 80% of domestic tourism as a whole depends upon cars and vans. Does is still seem amazing how cars are the dominant force? Cars are owned and run by hard working people, and we more than pay our way. Reduce car usage by half? for example. And see how all the people who work in industries mentioned above will suffer. Please click on the vid attached to this channel? Less than 4 minutes long.
@HighwayPoetrya lot of these places don’t even need cars to get there, you just need the infrastructure to get you there. For example, out of town shopping centres only exist because of cars. They were designed around cars. If there was cycle infrastructure all these places will still be reachable. We’re only focusing on cars in busy built up areas/highly pedestrianised areas which I doubt a car benefits you very much.
@ People who own cars in cities venture out a lot of the time to the places ive mentioned. if we remove to many cars from cities. And try and discourage an entire generation from driving at all. Who will drive buses, lorries, vans, bin trucks, vans, council maintainance vehicles? All of the above struggle to get drivers as it is. Like it or not, the country needs cars and drivers if we wish to remain a rich country. Public transport and urban cycling can be dangerous, especially for women. Driving doesn't have to be dangerous if we co exist and use common sense. please click on the vid attached to this channel.
@HighwayPoetry Those places that you mention still aren’t even frequently visited by private car owners. I don’t think you get it. We are talking about private vehicles being used by just the driver in cities that are clogging up the road. W weren’t talking about commercial vehicles. Did you know that cyclists are actually richer than drivers the same age as them? How does that benefit the economy if drivers are spending their money on running their car? Out of town shopping areas were built for cars. Also with out of town shopping areas like IKEA and Costco you can get free delivery or low cost delivery, so why should have to drive over there? Urban cycling is dangerous because of what you want. You want more drivers on the road. Public transport can be dangerous for women but did you know that women are still more likely to be attacked by their own partner? Women can learn how to defend themselves and sit close to others to prevent being assaulted. Even drivers who have to drive to work, when it’s not the primary thing that they do are the worst drivers. Like builders, gas engineers, plumbers and all the other trades. They just drive More recklessly than other drivers. The other places you said, people don’t even go to those regularly it’s just cope and trying hard to justify driving for all. Trust me we already have enough bad drivers. If you build cycling infrastructure to get to those place mentioned you wouldn’t need a car. There is always long queues to get to places that are seen to require a car. Most journeys in London are under 5 miles, for me that is an easy cycle.
@@danieltesfaye8517 car drivers support the economy far more than non drivers. Not cos of what they spend on theer cars, all though thats part of it. They spend money in more places that are further from where they live. Country Hotels being one example of many examples. Take a small percentage of cars out of the economy, lets say 10% for example. Well this has been tried and failed. Wales created there genius 20 MPH zones everywhere. Visitor numbers fell last summer, and the ones that felt it? Owners of hotels Pubs Campsites plus many more visitor attractions had less customers. One of the main reasons they scrapped the idea. The more cars you take away, the more you destroy UK domestic tourism. Yes, you do get some people camping by bike. But he'll be the only one in the campsite plus 50 cars. I know this for a fact cos i do a lot of cycle camping every summer. I'm one of the few people on earth that can see both sides of the argument, i love my Ebike for fun/leisure purposes. Its nice cycling into York for example via the off road cycle track, then Q jumping the mugs trying to get into the City centre. But the fact remains tourists arrive by car in far greater numbers than all other transport, then spend a ton of money in such places.
Hey man. Thanks for the video, I've got to say. Everyone on 2 wheels are our brothers and sisters. That said, our brothers and sisters don't always behave very well.... but, also, he whoever has never sinned etc etc.less cars equals more good. Ride safe brother. Peace.
I understand you point on motorists, I would not dispute that. I feel however the term E-bike has not been clearly defined here or in the article. In the same way that I could refer to all "Traffic" as cars, even though in the real world, "Traffic" would consist of vans, cars, trucks, motor bikes and various other power vehicles. In the same sense, e-bikes have many different variants that function very differently to one another. As a cyclist myself I have no issue with pedal assisted E-bikes(The ones that only offer powered assistance when you move the pedals) As opposed to the kind used by delivery drivers etc that do not require you to pedal at all for them to run the electric motor. These ones are more like electric motor bikes\scooters than actual bicycles. This is where the issue comes in. I must admit I have seen the lime bikes and Boris bikes left strewn around and this is not right. This is usually in an area where there is a high population of young people, who seem to find it funny to ride and drop the bike on the floor instead of placing it out of the way. This is more a youth culture thing than a bike thing. I used to belong to cycling club and when E-bikes first came out, I was opposed them, until I saw the number of new members it brought to the club, that could not ride normal cycles due to age, fitness level or even prior injuries. I have seen e-bikes allow more people to cycle, for me that is always a win. I think though we need to place the focus on the actual problem which is the electric motor bike type cycles.
Good report. In life, nothing is perfect. I ride an eBike and thanks to it, I got back on two wheels after about 50 years. What a boon. The bike helps to keep me fit. Where I live here in Western Australia, is an exceptionally beautiful area as I live between an estuary and the Indian Ocean. As you say, cars are without question the biggest problem and whilst BEV's will help in many ways, such as pollution, they will still be driven by ignorant, uncaring, uncouth people and we'll be back to square one with the argument. The answer is to tax vehicles off the road and encourage more people to use public transport, bicycles, ebikes etc. I too would much prefer to be amongst other people on two wheels, rather than four. Driving is not a rite. Being able to cycle may well be so.
E bike riders are regarded in the same way that motorcyclists were in the 60's and 70's .Apperentley we all the modern equivelent of modern Vikings or the The Mongol hordes of Genghis Khan..Hence at 70 years of age I have grown a pony tail and glued plastic horns on my cycling helmet .
My beef is illegal ebikes ! Delivery ebikes if they run red lights or exceed ebike speed limit they should face the law same as everyone else . My main beef is a Ebike that 40,50 + mph without pedaling is not a Ebike it's classed as a motorcycle and should have insurance, registration and all the rest . Ebikes that comply with law fine . Just recently 2 killed in Ebike crash in Moray NE Scotland, 3 youngsters on 1 Ebike crashed into a car . This is going to happen more and more as people completely ignore laws . The genie is out of the bottle.
Agreed , after 15-20mph there should be no more assistance from the electronics , i still dont see why anyone would need to go 40mph on a damn bicycle . I also agree in regards to the throttle , if there is a throttle to control the hub motor its an E-MOTO and not a pedal assisted ebike
I've cycled ever since being kid. over that more than 60 years I've seen a lot of craziness on the roads, including 2 car and one bus driver deliberately trying to run me over. In my opinion the way to improve road safety is to get rid of all vehicle safety features, to make seatbelts illagal, and a requirement to have a 200mm spike fitted to the cetre of all steering wheels. I'm also a car driver.
I was a bit surprised that "ebikes" are equated to "rented bikes" in the video. Is this something regional to London/England? I think there may be a few issues with rented bikes that probably don't exist to the same extend for owned bikes (like where they're parked). From my experience as (mostly) cyclist and (sometimes) car driver in a German city, crossing red lights is much, much more prevalent with cyclists (and pedestrians) than it is with cars. However all the other transgressions (lack of indicating, speeding, cutting off, U-turning etc.) are very much things that happen with car drivers as well if not to a greater degree. So yeah, in that regard I totally agree with him.
This shouldn't even be a debate let alone the trench warfare it has become. The problem isn't cars, bikes or ebikes, it's people. The idiotic attitudes I see everywhere are a deflection. We all need to behave with consideration and drop the bad attitudes. Not people vs cars or bikes. It's people vs people and this craziness will go on until we recognise the right of everyone to share the roads safely.
The Panorama e bike menace programme on 6th Jan, or what I saw of it before I switched off in disgust, was a complete misrepresentation and travesty. I have cycled for more than 60 years now and have been a member of what was the CTC. I now have an ebike because many hills in my area of Devon are between 15 and 20% gradient. So it was ebike or heart attack. As stated below, on any slight incline, my ebike stops when the power cuts out. It may be very heavy but I weigh 70 kilos and the bike 24, total 94 so it's only 1/3 of my weight. My Boardman hybrid weights 11 kilos, so total weight =81 kilos. Not much difference if you hit a pedestrain at speed (not on the pavement!) A heavier rider means even less of a percentage difference. Panorama elided ebikes and electric motor cycles -totally different - and yet showed the latter at 30-40-mph and labelled it an ebike. My hybrid is much faster than my ebike because above 15.5 mph, it is much lighter to pedal, so in theory the danger to pedestrians is more than for my ebike. It really is about time that anti ebike complainers stopped using London as their example of bad riding.
I’ve been hit by a Line Bike and an illlegal e-bike in London. The Lime Bike left me with a bruised knee and fixable damage to my bike. The illegal e-bike that shot out of a park from behind a hedge without checking put me in hospital for eight days and destroyed my carbon road bike. I’m not a fan of e-bikes and it’s not just because of the wanker who rode past me up a hill in Yorkshire on Saturday!
The helmet debate is not a debate. You won’t be debating with anyone if you end up with brain damage or worse due to a bike accident whilst not wearing a helmet.
I always wear a helmet to ride to work (in Belgium some insurances demand it for commuting) BUT do you know where more headinjuries happen?? In a CAR!!! I don't see them asking to drive with a helmet!
How stupid can you be? The passengers in a vehicle are surrounded by safety aids and a reinforced structure. A bicycle does not have these advantages. As for wearing a helmet I am not in favour of enforcement but think it is a good idea and I choose to wear one when cycling..
@@newbeginnings8566 How stupid can you be? The passengers in a vehicle are surrounded by a hard metal structure capable of inflicting serious damage to a human body. When accidents between two vehicles occur, the vehicles are normally violently thrown in the opposite or angular direction. This causes the occupants to be thrown against the strong hard metal structure that you say protects them.
Your also missing the fact that not all the pedestrians killed will be the car drivers fault. The amount of people with earphones in and wander about is crazy
The crux of this issue is that EBIKES are blamed, rather than the operators. Why?! We don't blame CARS & TRUCKS for traffic fatalities, we blame the operators. The reason? I think it's laziness on the part of government. It's easier to restrict an inanimate object than to enforce laws regarding peoples' behaviors. Enforcement is expensive. Writing laws is cheap. Then, the laws are often not enforced and the problems are not solved. Enforce the laws already on the books. I see London is already starting to do that re. illegal eBikes; GOOD! Have motorcycle cops enforce speed limits on bike paths and elsewhere. Why should it matter the specs of the eBike? It's the BEHAVIOR that needs control. Re. cluttering up sidewalks, etc., this one is TOO easy to solve. The eBikes have to be returned to charging/lock-up stations when not in use, or the renter continues to be billed by the minute. It should be ILLEGAL for the rentals to NOT be set up this way. It would be very expensive to clutter up the sidewalks. This is how eBike rental stations are set up stateside. For some stupid reason, scooter rentals are NOT, and they clutter up the place, just as you describe. Re. disobeying traffic signals, there is a theory that when cyclists disobey these signals, they are only risking their OWN wellbeing. THEY will be the ones killed if they are hit by a car. It's not 100% right, as we can hurt pedestrians and other cyclists, but the consequences are decidedly less severe. It usually doesn't mean death. I agree 100% that cars & trucks are the real menace here, and cyclists and eBikers are a convenient scapegoat, a handy new victim to blame to allow our car-centric culture to continue as usual. On the other hand, from what I've seen, you Londoners have much more infrastructure than most American cities.
I'm a cyclist in Cambridge. I'm not anti-car, but you seem to be anti-car. The more taxes go up for ICE vehicles, the more you are going to pay when you do your weekly shop. Does that make any sense? The main reason I gave up my car, is because of the insane costs of repairs, for just stupid problems, that were not around 20 years ago. My Mondeo needed around £1000 to be spent on it for the next MOT, so I sold it to someone who could afford it. I love my mountain bike. But it's not good for carrying a lot of items. But, I'm a lot fitter, 20% richer, and I've got a nice firm bum, that compliments my boobs.
5:40 Categorically false, at least in the US. Here, fuel is taxed and that fuel tax pays for the roads. Plus, it is taxed multiple times. It's taxed at the wellhead by the state it is produced in and by DC. Then it is taxed again at the pump for the express purpose of road maintenance. Some road maintenance is paid by the general funds, but it is primarily paid for by fuel taxes.
Most car driver also fail to realise that house insurance normally comes with a public liability that also extends to the bike, cover 3rd party in most cases. So that argument also gets a bit tiresome. It’s why there so little bike insurers out there it really isn’t needed unless your trying to cover somthing very specific like bike packing. Though I do agree there needs some sort of ID system brought in for the ride especially if they don’t own a car all. Registration they’ll never bring in, it will cost to much for very little gain
Your route you’re cycling in this video how many people have been killed by cars? Just on January 13th a cyclist died where you turn left on to carpenters road. You make fantastic points.
Tests, license, registration, insurance and helmet obligation would be good for e-bikes. Good bike infrastructure is needed. Nobody is complaining about an e-bike or motorcycle in for example Bangladesh, Thailand and so on.
The fact that you're not even wearing a helmet riding a bike through busy city streets while recklessly filming yourself just negates everything that comes out of your mouth tbh.
I was hating on ebikes when I was taking my four year old son along side me and was yelled at constantly by ebikers wanting to pass where they couldn't. It was rather the bikers attitudes though. And given the choice I like them better around me than stinky 2 stroke mopeds, let alone huge cars. The latter isn't that big a problem here in the Netherlands though, because of the infrastructure.
Bravo for everything. It is your right to be without helmet. It just never ends how problematic drivers and cyclist try to teach us who were never injured by our own fault. Your points stand. Moto normativity is the term that we need to fight against!
Pretty spot on - but I do have a couple of minor niggles. Cyclists certainly kill more than one per year. It's typically between 5-10 people (roughly what drivers kill in a day or two). But as you correctly pointed out this is far far far less than motorists (even when you take into account the relative numbers of cars/bikes). The other thing Id like to point out is about the "road tax" myth - an additional thing you mention one thing that many people forget is how much of a road infrastructure is put there to protect others from the dangers of drivers. Even the humble cycle path is needed not because of cyclists, but because of the dangers of sharing the roads with drivers. Anyway, excellent video.
Well balanced. It seems that bike renters (e-bike or not) tend to be more of a concern, lacking in skill, awareness, etiquette, etc. I think reasonable laws about licensing and insurance for the faster e-bikes (those that approach speeds of scooters and motorcycle) as well as limiting access from bicycle/walking areas would help in situation... not completely fix it obviously, law/rule breakers exist in all fields (and yes, I know this also presents a law enforcement issue, but it would help in some aspects surely).
While you don't care to hear our opinions on wearing a helmet, your hairline is certainly calling for one! No hate mate and with good vibes I love the video and appreciate the info and take on the meat and potatoes you include. Ride safe!
I was shocked at how many cyclists in the UK don't wear helments when I lived there. I lived in east anglia and instead of having to fight the traffic in cities, I rode through approx 671 different villages on my work commute. In my experience drivers in the UK seemed better about bikes but worse about pedestrians than in the US. Drivers in the UK are heads and shoulders better than drivers in the US (especially Massachusetts...whew!). Not bothered by e-bikes at all, also not worried about what people wear when cycling, have it at whatever you want (including to wear or not wear a helment) and enjoy the ride. Still surprised at how terrified people are when they're riding. Not sure I'd continue to do it if I was that scared. However, I tend to stay away from busy city streets through, perhaps I'd be scared all the time too with cars in such close proximity while trying to get to work.
No doubt in my mind: the push back agaist ebikes is being stirred up by car companies who want to make it look like ebikes are a bad change for society. Some people complain and it get picked up by big publications and thrown everywhere to make it look like bikes are bad, and we should just stick with what we have now: cars.
I ride an e bike, and my health has improved since I started riding it, I also stick to the rules of the road, but was horrified by the behaviour of e bike delivery riders I saw in Cardiff, no consideration for other road users at all, these parasites are the ones giving e bikes a bad name,
Great video and I am in furious agreement with you. But could we please stop calling rental bikes e-bikes? There's an important distinction between the two and an important distinction, I would guess, between the type of cyclist using e-bike rentals and those who own an e-bike.
Good video with many valid points especially regarding pavement parking. As regards deaths and injuries caused by cars v bikes, I may be wrong, but I think those with concerns about ebikes/bikes is that they are ridden on the pavement (pedestrian space) and although death via collision is unlikely, injury no matter how small is likely. How many of those pedestrian injuries/deaths by cars occurred on a pavement? Those are the statistics you should be comparing. Maybe then go deeper and see how many accidents there are on per journey made for each form of transport. Unfortunately, it is likely that many accidents and near misses (even pedestrians having to dodge a bike on a pevement) between pedestrians and cyclists are not reported. As such the figure will be artificially low. The problem is far greater than statistics will show. Pedestrians, by and large, do not fret about being injured by cars driving on the pavement so felt safe, but they do now worry about bikes/ebikes on the pavement and no longer feel they are in a safe space. The worst thing to happen was that chief Policeman saying that cyclists can use the pavement if they feel unsafe on the road. That by definition makes ALL pavements shared spaces. If you feel unsafe on the road do not cycle. It is not a right. I am a pedestrian, cyclists and driver.
You're not a cyclist; you are a rider. You can't buy a piano and magically become a pianist... About half of all pedestrian deaths from the actions of a car driver occurs on a footpath, mostly from car drivers failing to give way as they enter or leave a property. The next most common is simply crashing; leaving the road due to car driver incompetence, distraction, mechanical issue or having another vehicle crash into them.
@@petergibson7287as I mentioned 'I may be wrong'. Pedestrian negative perception of bicycles/ebikes though is valid. Oh, having raced bicycles in the 80s and commuted in London by bike for 15 years (before bike lanes) and still ride over 5,000 miles a year I feel confident I can call myself a cyclist.
@@chrisfilby9678 That’s ridiculous. I don’t feel safe cycling on busy roads and that is ALL on motorists, not me. So I should sacrifice my health, let alone reduce carbon emissions, just because of ill disciplined motorists??? I very rarely see any cyclist on a pavement, except food delivery riders. I’m a motorist most of the time - by the way.
@ChrisWhittenMusic I ride most days on busy roads and dual carriageway and feel perfectly safe. 'Feeling' unsafe is purely subjective and is likely not actually how the road is from an accident statistic perspective. And so is the individuals issue to overcome. With your logic, many would do 90mph+ on M-Ways as 70mph feels far too slow. Until such times as countries such as China, USA and others commit to massive C02 reduction, what we in the UK do will have no effect on global C02 levels.
@@chrisfilby9678 I feel unsafe when white vans scrape past me, when there is no room to overtake. Getting to the pub at the end of their workday has more priority than my safety. But that isn't my mental state...it's the reality of sharing roads with powerful metal objects.
I use multiple forms of personal transport?…my car, my motorcycle, my bicycles/ebike. I use other vehicles such as vans for work. As you say most complainers only use cars. They have zero empathy for other road users. In all the forms of transport I use 99% of the time it is a car driver being an idiot. I also pay road fund license for both of my motor vehicles that are sat doing nothing while I am pedalling.
Yep, your lack of helmet is not a crime but it's a bad look when your commenting on cycle culture. It impacts yourself, the paramedics and your loved ones if you're unfortunate enough to get a head injury. E-bikes are a positive, the law needs to be tweaked to temper them, the charge for using the bikes only encourages them and this also influences other cyclists to light jumping as well. The problem is the charge, all ebikes should be free and then red light jumpers will start to disappear. You are completely correct about driving though.
In Germany, single-trail-vehicles (bikes, motorbikes) are obliged to keep at the right lane´s right edge, thus not disturbing POTENTIALLY faster vehicles: Law isn´t valid if the motorized bi-cycle (aka: motorcycle) is driving that fast, that it overtakes the cars, instead of blocking their way...!!! Still, law is valid even for fast motorbikes (not just slow scooters/mopeds, which are only allowed 45km/h, and are thus, "slow by law"), as soon as their drivers decide to drive especially slow, where they again must drive at the right lane´s right edge. I BET, Britain (not living in the Dark-Ages), has the exact same law...!!! But it´s neither enforced in Britain, nor in Germany, with the result, that many cyclists have the effect of a tractor/tank in urban environments: A single bike drives at 5km/h in the middle of the road, and a column of 20 cars, also driving just 5km/h, soon forms behind it, which is a shame. That´s why we need separation...!!! Cause bikers, not having license-plates, are ruthless and irresponsible...!!! In today´s time, if cyclist were forced to carry license-plates, each 2nd of them would soon face jail-time, for the cumulative degree of law-breaking (and a bit of help from the car-driver´s cellphone-cameras)... I drive scooter and bicycle 99% of the time, and car 1% of the time, and that 1% is horrible, I then get the impression, that every 2nd cyclist is heavily depressive, and extremely suicidal, them executing the most impossible actions, so that I may drive them over (what I´ve avoided till now)..!!! PS: Cyclists are, of course, sometimes allowed to drive on the lane´s middle: 1st: For over-taking another, even slower cyclist... 2nd: For arranging a left-turn at the next crossroads (may have to cross several lanes, in order to get from the right lane´s right edge to the left lane´s left edge for finally turning left at the crossroads)... Cyclists aren´t allowed to drive beside each other, in order to be able to chat along the way... From all the above, switch "right" with "left" and vice-versa if you on British roads, of course...
My main beef with ebikers is them riding recklessly fast on non-motorized trails. That's it. I've not seen issues with them on the road. It's just bloody uncomfortable doing, say, 18mph on your regular bike on, say, Chicago's lakefront trail, and have a modified ebike suddenly whiz by six inches away at 35mph, to say nothing of how you'd feel if you're the kind of biker who'd do 11 or 12.
Drivers drive like they are entitled just because they have a death machine. I drive, ride bikes and walk. I always find walking dangerous because most drivers don’t pay attention and don’t want to give way when pedestrians have the right of way.
I love cars, love bikes, have a car, ebike and normal bikes. First, you can't legally drive your car without paying road tax, have insurance and a licence to ride a bike you have to have enough limbs to pedal. The problem you fail to mention is whether cars, bikes, e-scooters, or pedestrians. Accidents happen because someone wasn't paying attention. If everyone paid attention to what they were doing less people would die. I can see where you are coming from but it's not the car 🚗 it's the car user.
Mate I'm a cyclist all my life since childhood. Yes vehicles are a problem, however I see cyclists without lights, dressed in black, run the lights, don't stop at lights or corners. I'm mostly into mountain biking, however I see road cyclists (not commuters) no lights, dressed in black. No wonder cyclists are being killed. Another problem is road rage from everyone, pedestrians, cyclists, cars drivers. Have respect for all road users, use common sense, use lights, bright clothing, a bell this works for everyone, walkers, cyclists, pram driver, car drives. It's called RESPECT people.
I can't agree more on that. Sry, I am speechless. Nothing to add, nothing to contradict. Oh wait, one thing: According to a German study, every car is subsidised at an amount of approx. € 5.000 (don't know how that translates to £) on average - per year! AFTER all that taxes are collected. Let that sink in.
I am an eBiker from Russia and I absolutely HATE eBikes for hire. We have lots of couriers that use ebikes, they often speed up and can violate some traffic rules, but they are not even near as dangerous. Firstly, companies that provide ebikes or escooters for hire could not care less about who's using them. That's why you can see a lot of dumb underages on wheels. Secondly, very few bike paths force cyclists as well as electric vehicles to be on a driveway or pedestrian road. And there's a big problem o coexisting. I mean, who cares about others, right? Pedestrians walk eyes locked on their phones and earhpones in their ears, so no reality could diturb them. Drivers paying attention at anything but the road... If the situation won't improve, I think it will be an eBiker drivers license.
Ebikes are just great! I'm commuting daily with an ebike fitted with the rear rack and 1 pannier here in Bucharest Romania and it's just great, even though we don't have much cycling lanes. The auto industry is just mad because they can't fool us anymore into believing that we need a car to commute. They would bribe the local authorities in any way possible, pay for articles, do anything to delay the inevitable. I mean, let's face it, automobiles are so outdated and harmful as a mean of urban transportation. They're even the primary reason for population decline as it's risky to let the kids grow up in the street and so kids become ultra expensive to raise when there are cars speeding outside. Ebikes and bikes generally are much safer for our lives and our future.
ITs common sense if you fall off and hit your head, most of the people in your video were wearing bicycle helmets. It is law in Australia to wear a helmet.
Which probably isn't helping to get more people onto bikes. Simply wearing a helmet isn't so much important as what you are doing and the environment around you. The Dutch barely wear helmets for relaxed riding and they aren't a nation with epidemic head injuries. Whereas in Australia the road design, lack of bike lanes (or suicidal bike lanes), giant cars, and mentality of many drivers often makes a helmet seem about as useful as a cocktail umbrella.
Cycling without a helmet causes baldness in older men . Love my emoto bike 6500 watts so not really powerful but is heaps of fun but if i actually have to go somewhere for a reason i use my car like most people . people who use phones while driving and dont indicate or go through red lights are idiots.
I have got rid of my car a few years ago riding bicycles instead in a big city, covering a few thousand miles a year. I rarely see a vehicle going through red lights, but every cyclists I see does. Recovering from paralysis , rode an ebike as unable to get up hills with a normal bicycle. Got rid of the ebike and got a lighte bicycle when strong enough. I no longer ride bicycles due to being uncomfortable, but got a recumbent trike which was converted to electric due to it's weight , but also have a sports recumbent trike now which is alot more fun and just as fast. When I was riding a bicycle have been passed very closely by kids at 50mph or so on illegal ebikes wearing all black with nolights at night, no point reporting them as will be logn gone and they cant be identified as all black. Couriers ride illegaly powerful ebikes and will go up steep hills at about 15mph passing you very closely giving you a surprise. Sometimes they do this without even pedalling which is also illegal as 4mph is the limit . Couriers ride without lights at night for some reason and alwasy jump red lights like other cyclists. With regard to using cycle lanes, was forcefully cut off and stopped by a car driver so his wife could tell me I must use the cycle lane. The police had him prosecuted . What I found amusing is that he assumed I am ignorant of the highway code as a cyclist, not knowing I am a qualified advanced driver.
Advocates of commuter cycling like you always frame the debate as people vs cars. It's not a bunch of robotaxis cluttering the streets, it's people who are choosing to drive cars. Cars are inanimate objects that only move or park under the operation of a person. As a commuter cyclist myself, I am not entirely unsympathetic, but the simple matter is that under a percent of people use a bicycle of any kind for transportation for most or all trips. That is only the average. It is much worse than that in most places. Why should 99+ percent of people be robbed of their share of the road to benefit a tiny fraction of people?
3:35 Drivers driving with mobile in there hand! But aren’t you cycling with just one hand on the bars while filming yourself with the other? I could argue your not in full control of your bike!!
E-bike do not resolve major traffic issues, but road hazard, crime rate, and accidents. Most of crimes , attacks, theft. and robberies are done using e-bikes.
How can we can’t be against cars. Are we out of our minds here? In those cars are us. If you are being rushed to the hospital it will be in a car. I’m sure we all used a car to pick up the bicycle. We sound so stupid discussing these irrelevant topics. All we have to do is be mindful of each other.
I would say there is nothing wrong with electric bikes at all, illegal ones get right on my nerves. And Lime bikes left in the middle of cycle lanes, the road, or in big massive groups on the pavement are just wrong. Santander bikes had the right idea, but I was always put off by the fact you never knew if there was space to leave it, once you got to where you were going. I think more Japanese style bike storage is needed, by where you slide your bike into a unit, and a robot stacks it away out of sight.
I'm not going to respond to every comment here regarding helmets. I have worn a helmet in literally every other video I have made on this channel, when I am out on road rides, bikepacking, or gravel. I chose not to wear a helmet on this commute to work - this decision affects no one but myself. In the same sense, I don't care if drivers choose to not wear a seatbelt, but I do care when they behave in ways which endangers others. This helmet discussion is a complete distraction to the point of the video - the harm that driving causes. Don't lose that perspective by focusing on whether I chose to wear a helmet or not. I won't be responding to any more comments about helmets. And thank you to all those who engaged with this video positively and to the actual points being discussed. Cheers.
I'm a professional truck driver, I've driven full time for 7 years. Most people shouldn't be driving at all, they're just not capable of doing it safely; by itself, the number of people who should be disqualified because they can't stay off their phones would reduce the driving population by half. You can see how common that is from a few feet higher up in a commercial truck cab, it's pretty ridiculous.
Thing that gets me the most is nearly all modern cars come with some sort of massive tablet "infotainment" system. How come using a built in tablet while driving is legal but a phone isn't its pretty much the same thing? In my own personal opinion cars should be as barebones as they can be. They are transportation tools not somewhere you're supposed to have fun but rather pay attention to your surroundings.
I pretty much agree with all your points 100%. For me the elephant in the room is the gig economy. I used to live in London for years, I now live in rural Somerset. It's very hilly by the way, and as I'm over 65 I just bought a motor assisted bike. If I stop peddling my heavy e-bike stops moving fairly instantly. I regularly visit London and food delivery e-bikers are moving at speed while not even peddling.
The food delivery job is paid per delivery, and the restaurant can incur a cost if the food is delivered late. So yeah, it's no surprise that very low paid workers, under a time constraint, have purchased powerful e-bikes, ride them at speed in pedestrianised areas and the wrong way on one way streets, through red lights etc. The gig economy is the culprit here, not the e-bike.
I hardly ever see an e-bike in rural Somerset. If I do, it's someone like me travelling quite slowly up a hill with the help of a hub motor.
The danger of e-bikes is all about big cities and food delivery.
@@ChrisWhittenMusic I agree that the food delivery companies are largely to blame for the illegal e-bike problem. They need to be dealt with by government. If their business model only works by encouraging dangerous use of e-bikes (and mopeds ridden on L plates beyond the six months limit), then their business model doesn’t work. They should be forced to bring in insurance and safe delivery targets for their riders. If they can’t make money that way, then they go out of business.
its NEVER THE DRIVERS. DON'T LOOK AT THE DRIVERS. DONT MENTION THE DRIVERS. *ITS NEVER THE DRIVERS*
I think I mentioned the drivers once but got away with it...
They're the salt of the earth!
@@randysgutful We are so lucky to have them on the road with us, such a privilege to share the same space with careful, focussed individuals who (might) have passed a test and (might) have insurance!
Something people don't talk about enough is larger cars. This is a trend on both sides of the Atlantic. For the UK, it means over 50 years we've shifted from a world where a 61 inch wide Morris Minor was a compact and a 67 inch wide Cortina Mk 3 was considered wide, to a world where a Peugeot 208 is 69 inches wide and some German SUVs are hitting 80 inches. That's eight to 12 inches wider pretty much. You think of a road with a lane of traffic in each direction and parked cars on both sides of the street, that's FOUR FEET of safety margin just gone. Ouch!
I'm a roadie, almost 20 years. I appreciate how e-bikes help some overcome entree into the hobby. But there are a number of young male riders (most < 30) who are simply jerks who can now ride at experienced speeds while doing newbie things coupled with the carelessness of youth. It's not "run lights". We all do. It's "run lights without checking for car or bike traffic crossing". Same with stop signs. It's riding the wrong way down not just roadways, but bike paths. It's not going on sidewalks and slowing precipitously for pedestrians who have the right of way (and here in Chicago, riding on the walk is illegal if you're over the age of 12), but riding full speed down sidewalks and being annoyed when you inevitably hit someone.
Yes I drive also. Certainly there are asshole drivers and many who don't pay attention. But they do not excuse how bad many ebike operators are. And I'm viewing this as a driver and a cyclist. They are an annoyance added on top of the existent annoyances of traffic.
If you haven't watched it, GCN's video on Moto-normativity is fantastic. The way as a society we ignore/excuse everything cars do and will go to great lengths to try and argue something else is the problem. It's a fantastic watch, not too long, and very well informed.
Yeah, that was a great film, and something I wish they'd do more of. The interviews with the public was eye opening.......and depressing.
Agree, it's a great watch
Yes true, but cyclists do the same. The problem is we are all a bunch of self righteous, selfish know alls with no regard for others.
@ I don't think there's any denial of that. An arsehole is an arsehole regardless of their mode of transport. The video was taking it out of a car vs cyclist debate and looking at how motor vehicles are excused in nearly ALL circumstances. It was fascinating.
@@JakeMay Your stats are don't represent the reality. There are likely more cars, they on average do more miles per year than bikes. Of course the accidents with cars is higher than bikes. Cars are safer than bikes because people would rather brave bad weather in their cars than on their bikes.
Also E-bikes with motors running at speeds above 25kph doesn't exist under the UK law. If a machine does not cut it's motor at 25kph it is automatically reclassified as E-moped, E-motorbike etc. The point people are making is that E-mopeds(etc.) are illegally using pedal bike infrastructure. They are not simply speeding, they are clearly breaking the law. Getting more people on bikes is a good thing, but breaking the law to do it is not how it is done.
Life is not clear cut like cars being polluting; it's all about balance. Cars can be unimaginably useful for necessary trips in the freezing cold and pouring rain. Cars simply solve a different set of problems to bikes.
Good points in your vid. Ebikes are brilliant. Antisocial behaviour is a problem for everybody, whether it's by cars, bikes or anything else. Also, most cyclists own cars, we're just using up less public resource by riding our bikes.
e bikes ftw mate. i ride a cube mountain ebike, mostly DH and enduro. its a bloody revelation having to not push back up the hill which is more tiresome than riding, i can now eeeb it all the way back to the top. happy days.
As a cyclist and a wheelchair pusher, I am not a fan of Lime and Forrest bikes because they are too often dumped in the wrong places, but a lot of this is down to a small section of users (about 10% according to the operators) who hack and use the bikes without paying. I also find uses of hire-bikes and also various deliverey bike users are more likely to do dangerous cycling (ie red light crossing, jumping pavements). As for cars using mobile or other distracting devices it is crazy in london.
yes, a bit like the people who dump other stuff that they can't be bothered to dispose of properly - shopping trolleys, rubbish, fridges, mattresses, cars etc. It's the offender that's the issue, not the item that they are abusing.
Last week I had to run a bunch of errands about the place and couldn't take my bike so was bussing it about. As I was waiting for the bus on a typical road in Bromley, I counted at least 5 drivers using their phone whilst driving in about a 2/3 minute window.
Don't you have laws in the UK re this? We've had no phone use rules since around 2005 I think - the state of Western Australia - so it sounds as though you have a lot of people who flaunt the law over there. I picked up my phone a couple of years ago as I thought I saw a message come in. I was stationary at the time. Within seconds, the unmarked car behind me pulled me over. I don't know how he saw me but he did even through tinted windows! I was fined $500 and three demerit points - he asked me when he was taking my details, what I was doing with the phone. I told him and he then told me that if I had been initialising a message, the fine would have been $1000 and I think double demerits. That's the way to do it.
Surprised air pollution in cities caused by cars hasn't been brought up. As someone who walks to work in a city daily the stink of fumes is horrendous. What illness does that pollution cause i wonder?
Been driving/delivering in London almost 30 years.
And its way cleaner than it was in the 90s, Buses were the worth offenders.
@HighwayPoetry True, although that's London...my city and most others stink, and yes buses are a big issue especially in my smaller poorer city.
if you drive your the problem
There is some correlation to suggest fumes, which are improving all the time as cars without catalytic converters and DPF etc are fewer and fewer, reduced lifespan by about one year in large cities. I'd suggest not worrying about it and get on with your life.
I am a road cyclists and favour ebikes for those who want and need them. My pet peeve is E-motor cycles masquerading as ebikes with their fat tyres and weighing over 25 kilos. A real danger in a collision with vulnerable bi-cyclists on bike only routes. These need regulating. Your thoughts?
In most places in the USA there are no regulations enforced to e-bikes, so you can get these bikes that go 30-40 mph, which is better to keep up with car traffic. That’s a problem in the USA. There may be little white lines on city roads that designate bike lanes, but there is no physical barrier separating bike lanes from heavy and high speed city car traffic, which means that you don’t feel safe riding a bike in these bike lanes.
Our limits here in Australia are 25kM/Hr. I wish we had the same speed regulation as NZ which is 32 but hey, this is Australia! Isn't the speed limit set by the manufacturers 25kM/Hr in the UK too or is this just Europe?
I am 72 have raced and rode bikes all my life unfortunately coming up to my 70th birthday i found i was going slower and tired easily, eventually diagnosed with a heart complaint, thought my cycling days were over ,but bought a Specialized Creo ebike and now happy as larry ! ,although i agree that the fast food couriers are Mostly to blame with what are illegal bikes with twist grip controls. never go out without a helmet no matter how far your going !
You Sir, are right on the money.
It is probably a good thing to emphasize that the problem is caused by CARS and not just blame the people who drive them. The fact that cars are in much of the world the default means of transport and that the car industry, with the help of governments and media have been pushing their use and pumping out bigger, more powerful, and much more dangerous to anyone outside of them vehicles for over a century now is the problem. It is a systemic problem. Driver's are often just along for the ride.
I have not personally owned a car in years and when I rent one now I'm amazed at how much more power they have now and how much more insulated I feel as a driver from any sense of speed when driving them than one did in cars made forty years ago when I first got my driving license and when I drove a delivery van for several years.
From the Motor City, Detroit MIchigan;)
This was great insight and perspective. Thanks for sharing!
Not the rant I expected from the title but instead a very balanced and sensible point of view. Motorists are by far the greatest danger on the roads, without question! I hail from Cape Town, South Africa - try riding a bike around there! Absolutely terrifying!
If its not the cars and ESPECIALLY those fokken taxis its some nyaope kop trying to rob you 😂
A very fair analysis.
There is a problem with occasional users of e-bikes; there is a much greater problem with regular car-users.
One thing not mentioned is there are many who ride both. In my city (San Diego) I know some guys who ride e-bikes for commuting purposes but ride their road bikes in full spandex kit for fun and exercise. I'm sure it's the same in the UK.
I tend to agree with what you said. I've been cycling for about 40 years and have recently switched over to an EMTB and it's great. It's such a joy to be out in the hills without struggling too much. I can do up to 60 miles on it and feel reasonably good afterwards. The problem, as you said, is people in general, whether they're driving or cycling. I see just as many drivers breaking the rules as cyclists but thankfully, they are in the minority. Most people are ok. I know you said don't mention helmets but it only takes one mistake or one bad driver to ruin your life. I always wear one.
i completely agree. its refreshing to hear somebody else talk about the great elephant in the room, cars.
Well I'm both an eBiker and a road cyclist, must mean I'm bike curious or trancyclist.
same, a lot of cyclists are both.
Wear a lid mate, most objects you will come into contact with following a crash/collision/side swipe etc are a lot harder than your cranium. I believe they have saved me from a serious head injury on a couple of occasions. Whether the wearing of one makes you more or less vulnerable due to other road users perceptions, is for me beside the point, I'd far rather wear one with the protection provided than not.
@@iainhuddart8496 Agreed. I’ve had a couple of spills. The last one smashed my helmet, but I walked away from it with not even a concussion.
Totally agree, especially in London. I had a black ice slip a couple of years ago and I hit my head on the kerb as I landed. Fortunately I was wearing a helmet. I dread to think how it would have been without one. I might not be here.
@@KarlVaughanA good mate of mine had a low speed spill 10 years ago,paralysed from the neck down he died last year.No helmet.😢
@GG-ml3vr really sorry to hear that mate, the worse I had was slow speed too, without the helmet I think, I'd have had a concussion at least.
Yip, not wearing one whilst making this vid was a mistake unfortunately. I know that they are not legally required in the UK (Lord knows why given this country's obsession with health and safety?) but they are essential. I know people who have died in their driveways by falling over, whilst not even moving, and hitting their head. Ive also smashed a helmet to pieces before at quite slow speeds. NEVER sling a leg over any kind of bike without a helmet on - PLEASE.
Sorry can't stop myself. I'm a cyclist, do around 5000kms annually. Filming and looking at yourself in the camera and no helmet in what looks like busy streets in London is the most stupid cycling video I've watched. It's no wonder cyclists get such a bad reputation.
A dude not wearing a helmet complaining about cars, really my guy?
Good work. I couldn't agree more about saying 'car' rather than 'driver'. It's language that is willfully ameliorating by ascribing agency, and by extension, culpability to machines.
A narrative 100% invented and driven by the auto motive industry. Even the term 'jaywalking' was invented by the car manufacturers to shift the blame for the extraordinary number of deaths caused when cars were first introduced, onto pedestrians.
Totally agree - and it is quite amazing how cars have become such a dominant force and we as as society accept the thousands of road deaths caused every year by accidents involving cars. I always equate that to flying - if the same amount of people would die every year in plane crashes (around 1.700 deaths a year in the UK which would be more or less the equivalent of 8 passenger aircraft dropping from the skies every year) all planes would be grounded, investigations would be on-going and the outcry in society would be huge. But hey, it's road deaths and our cars are sacred, so we better look the other way.
Thats because cars contribute massively to the economy.
Not just with taxes
Theme parks
Out of town shopping centres
Rural Festivals
National trust properties
Campsites/caravan sites, static and mobile
Country hotels, coffee shops, restaurants.
National parks
An estimated 80% of domestic tourism as a whole depends upon cars and vans.
Does is still seem amazing how cars are the dominant force?
Cars are owned and run by hard working people, and we more than pay our way.
Reduce car usage by half? for example.
And see how all the people who work in industries mentioned above will suffer.
Please click on the vid attached to this channel?
Less than 4 minutes long.
@HighwayPoetrya lot of these places don’t even need cars to get there, you just need the infrastructure to get you there. For example, out of town shopping centres only exist because of cars. They were designed around cars. If there was cycle infrastructure all these places will still be reachable. We’re only focusing on cars in busy built up areas/highly pedestrianised areas which I doubt a car benefits you very much.
@
People who own cars in cities venture out a lot of the time to the places ive mentioned.
if we remove to many cars from cities.
And try and discourage an entire generation from driving at all.
Who will drive buses, lorries, vans, bin trucks, vans, council maintainance vehicles?
All of the above struggle to get drivers as it is.
Like it or not, the country needs cars and drivers if we wish to remain a rich country.
Public transport and urban cycling can be dangerous, especially for women.
Driving doesn't have to be dangerous if we co exist and use common sense.
please click on the vid attached to this channel.
@HighwayPoetry Those places that you mention still aren’t even frequently visited by private car owners. I don’t think you get it. We are talking about private vehicles being used by just the driver in cities that are clogging up the road. W weren’t talking about commercial vehicles. Did you know that cyclists are actually richer than drivers the same age as them? How does that benefit the economy if drivers are spending their money on running their car? Out of town shopping areas were built for cars. Also with out of town shopping areas like IKEA and Costco you can get free delivery or low cost delivery, so why should have to drive over there? Urban cycling is dangerous because of what you want. You want more drivers on the road. Public transport can be dangerous for women but did you know that women are still more likely to be attacked by their own partner? Women can learn how to defend themselves and sit close to others to prevent being assaulted. Even drivers who have to drive to work, when it’s not the primary thing that they do are the worst drivers. Like builders, gas engineers, plumbers and all the other trades. They just drive More recklessly than other drivers. The other places you said, people don’t even go to those regularly it’s just cope and trying hard to justify driving for all. Trust me we already have enough bad drivers. If you build cycling infrastructure to get to those place mentioned you wouldn’t need a car. There is always long queues to get to places that are seen to require a car. Most journeys in London are under 5 miles, for me that is an easy cycle.
@@danieltesfaye8517
car drivers support the economy far more than non drivers.
Not cos of what they spend on theer cars, all though thats part of it.
They spend money in more places that are further from where they live.
Country Hotels being one example of many examples.
Take a small percentage of cars out of the economy, lets say 10% for example.
Well this has been tried and failed.
Wales created there genius 20 MPH zones everywhere.
Visitor numbers fell last summer, and the ones that felt it?
Owners of hotels
Pubs
Campsites
plus many more visitor attractions had less customers.
One of the main reasons they scrapped the idea.
The more cars you take away, the more you destroy UK domestic tourism.
Yes, you do get some people camping by bike.
But he'll be the only one in the campsite plus 50 cars.
I know this for a fact cos i do a lot of cycle camping every summer.
I'm one of the few people on earth that can see both sides of the argument, i love my Ebike for fun/leisure purposes.
Its nice cycling into York for example via the off road cycle track, then Q jumping the mugs trying to get into the City centre.
But the fact remains tourists arrive by car in far greater numbers than all other transport, then spend a ton of money in such places.
Hey man. Thanks for the video, I've got to say. Everyone on 2 wheels are our brothers and sisters. That said, our brothers and sisters don't always behave very well.... but, also, he whoever has never sinned etc etc.less cars equals more good. Ride safe brother. Peace.
I understand you point on motorists, I would not dispute that. I feel however the term E-bike has not been clearly defined here or in the article. In the same way that I could refer to all "Traffic" as cars, even though in the real world, "Traffic" would consist of vans, cars, trucks, motor bikes and various other power vehicles. In the same sense, e-bikes have many different variants that function very differently to one another. As a cyclist myself I have no issue with pedal assisted E-bikes(The ones that only offer powered assistance when you move the pedals) As opposed to the kind used by delivery drivers etc that do not require you to pedal at all for them to run the electric motor. These ones are more like electric motor bikes\scooters than actual bicycles. This is where the issue comes in. I must admit I have seen the lime bikes and Boris bikes left strewn around and this is not right. This is usually in an area where there is a high population of young people, who seem to find it funny to ride and drop the bike on the floor instead of placing it out of the way. This is more a youth culture thing than a bike thing. I used to belong to cycling club and when E-bikes first came out, I was opposed them, until I saw the number of new members it brought to the club, that could not ride normal cycles due to age, fitness level or even prior injuries. I have seen e-bikes allow more people to cycle, for me that is always a win. I think though we need to place the focus on the actual problem which is the electric motor bike type cycles.
Good report. In life, nothing is perfect. I ride an eBike and thanks to it, I got back on two wheels after about 50 years. What a boon. The bike helps to keep me fit. Where I live here in Western Australia, is an exceptionally beautiful area as I live between an estuary and the Indian Ocean. As you say, cars are without question the biggest problem and whilst BEV's will help in many ways, such as pollution, they will still be driven by ignorant, uncaring, uncouth people and we'll be back to square one with the argument. The answer is to tax vehicles off the road and encourage more people to use public transport, bicycles, ebikes etc. I too would much prefer to be amongst other people on two wheels, rather than four. Driving is not a rite. Being able to cycle may well be so.
E bike riders are regarded in the same way that motorcyclists were in the 60's and 70's .Apperentley we all the modern equivelent of modern Vikings or the The Mongol hordes of Genghis Khan..Hence at 70 years of age I have grown a pony tail and glued plastic horns on my cycling helmet .
Go dog, go! 😂
My beef is illegal ebikes ! Delivery ebikes if they run red lights or exceed ebike speed limit they should face the law same as everyone else . My main beef is a Ebike that 40,50 + mph without pedaling is not a Ebike it's classed as a motorcycle and should have insurance, registration and all the rest . Ebikes that comply with law fine . Just recently 2 killed in Ebike crash in Moray NE Scotland, 3 youngsters on 1 Ebike crashed into a car . This is going to happen more and more as people completely ignore laws . The genie is out of the bottle.
Agreed , after 15-20mph there should be no more assistance from the electronics , i still dont see why anyone would need to go 40mph on a damn bicycle . I also agree in regards to the throttle , if there is a throttle to control the hub motor its an E-MOTO and not a pedal assisted ebike
I've cycled ever since being kid. over that more than 60 years I've seen a lot of craziness on the roads, including 2 car and one bus driver deliberately trying to run me over. In my opinion the way to improve road safety is to get rid of all vehicle safety features, to make seatbelts illagal, and a requirement to have a 200mm spike fitted to the cetre of all steering wheels. I'm also a car driver.
Earlier enthusiasts almost always come to grief with later enthusiasts WHEN the technology significantly changes.
I was a bit surprised that "ebikes" are equated to "rented bikes" in the video. Is this something regional to London/England? I think there may be a few issues with rented bikes that probably don't exist to the same extend for owned bikes (like where they're parked).
From my experience as (mostly) cyclist and (sometimes) car driver in a German city, crossing red lights is much, much more prevalent with cyclists (and pedestrians) than it is with cars. However all the other transgressions (lack of indicating, speeding, cutting off, U-turning etc.) are very much things that happen with car drivers as well if not to a greater degree. So yeah, in that regard I totally agree with him.
This shouldn't even be a debate let alone the trench warfare it has become. The problem isn't cars, bikes or ebikes, it's people. The idiotic attitudes I see everywhere are a deflection. We all need to behave with consideration and drop the bad attitudes. Not people vs cars or bikes. It's people vs people and this craziness will go on until we recognise the right of everyone to share the roads safely.
bravo one of the best comments made on this video
Good video mate. Decent points raised, done well. Also enjoyed seeing the sights of my lovely home town! Let's catch up for beers soon? 😘
This video was suprisingly good, thank you! Stay safe, helmet or not.
I'm always interested to see what would happen with the cancer rates without cars pumping out toxic crap everywhere.
Cancer has existed forever..and we'll before the combustion engine..
The Panorama e bike menace programme on 6th Jan, or what I saw of it before I switched off in disgust, was a complete misrepresentation and travesty. I have cycled for more than 60 years now and have been a member of what was the CTC. I now have an ebike because many hills in my area of Devon are between 15 and 20% gradient. So it was ebike or heart attack. As stated below, on any slight incline, my ebike stops when the power cuts out. It may be very heavy but I weigh 70 kilos and the bike 24, total 94 so it's only 1/3 of my weight. My Boardman hybrid weights 11 kilos, so total weight =81 kilos. Not much difference if you hit a pedestrain at speed (not on the pavement!) A heavier rider means even less of a percentage difference. Panorama elided ebikes and electric motor cycles -totally different - and yet showed the latter at 30-40-mph and labelled it an ebike. My hybrid is much faster than my ebike because above 15.5 mph, it is much lighter to pedal, so in theory the danger to pedestrians is more than for my ebike. It really is about time that anti ebike complainers stopped using London as their example of bad riding.
There was a Danish study done where 5% of the cyclist broke road rules and 65% of drivers broke road rules.
I’ve been hit by a Line Bike and an illlegal e-bike in London.
The Lime Bike left me with a bruised knee and fixable damage to my bike. The illegal e-bike that shot out of a park from behind a hedge without checking put me in hospital for eight days and destroyed my carbon road bike.
I’m not a fan of e-bikes and it’s not just because of the wanker who rode past me up a hill in Yorkshire on Saturday!
Was it a rogue Lime Bike or was somebody riding it?
@ it wasn’t self-propelled! Not rogue, no clicking. The rider had his AirPods in and was looking at his iPhone in his hand.
The helmet debate is not a debate. You won’t be debating with anyone if you end up with brain damage or worse due to a bike accident whilst not wearing a helmet.
I always wear a helmet to ride to work (in Belgium some insurances demand it for commuting) BUT do you know where more headinjuries happen?? In a CAR!!! I don't see them asking to drive with a helmet!
so true.
How stupid can you be? The passengers in a vehicle are surrounded by safety aids and a reinforced structure. A bicycle does not have these advantages. As for wearing a helmet I am not in favour of enforcement but think it is a good idea and I choose to wear one when cycling..
@@newbeginnings8566 How stupid can you be? The passengers in a vehicle are surrounded by a hard metal structure capable of inflicting serious damage to a human body. When accidents between two vehicles occur, the vehicles are normally violently thrown in the opposite or angular direction. This causes the occupants to be thrown against the strong hard metal structure that you say protects them.
Your also missing the fact that not all the pedestrians killed will be the car drivers fault. The amount of people with earphones in and wander about is crazy
The crux of this issue is that EBIKES are blamed, rather than the operators. Why?! We don't blame CARS & TRUCKS for traffic fatalities, we blame the operators. The reason? I think it's laziness on the part of government. It's easier to restrict an inanimate object than to enforce laws regarding peoples' behaviors. Enforcement is expensive. Writing laws is cheap. Then, the laws are often not enforced and the problems are not solved. Enforce the laws already on the books. I see London is already starting to do that re. illegal eBikes; GOOD! Have motorcycle cops enforce speed limits on bike paths and elsewhere. Why should it matter the specs of the eBike? It's the BEHAVIOR that needs control.
Re. cluttering up sidewalks, etc., this one is TOO easy to solve. The eBikes have to be returned to charging/lock-up stations when not in use, or the renter continues to be billed by the minute. It should be ILLEGAL for the rentals to NOT be set up this way. It would be very expensive to clutter up the sidewalks. This is how eBike rental stations are set up stateside. For some stupid reason, scooter rentals are NOT, and they clutter up the place, just as you describe.
Re. disobeying traffic signals, there is a theory that when cyclists disobey these signals, they are only risking their OWN wellbeing. THEY will be the ones killed if they are hit by a car. It's not 100% right, as we can hurt pedestrians and other cyclists, but the consequences are decidedly less severe. It usually doesn't mean death.
I agree 100% that cars & trucks are the real menace here, and cyclists and eBikers are a convenient scapegoat, a handy new victim to blame to allow our car-centric culture to continue as usual. On the other hand, from what I've seen, you Londoners have much more infrastructure than most American cities.
I'm a cyclist in Cambridge. I'm not anti-car, but you seem to be anti-car. The more taxes go up for ICE vehicles, the more you are going to pay when you do your weekly shop. Does that make any sense? The main reason I gave up my car, is because of the insane costs of repairs, for just stupid problems, that were not around 20 years ago. My Mondeo needed around £1000 to be spent on it for the next MOT, so I sold it to someone who could afford it. I love my mountain bike. But it's not good for carrying a lot of items. But, I'm a lot fitter, 20% richer, and I've got a nice firm bum, that compliments my boobs.
5:40 Categorically false, at least in the US. Here, fuel is taxed and that fuel tax pays for the roads. Plus, it is taxed multiple times. It's taxed at the wellhead by the state it is produced in and by DC. Then it is taxed again at the pump for the express purpose of road maintenance. Some road maintenance is paid by the general funds, but it is primarily paid for by fuel taxes.
I like driving and cycling for sport but i cba commuting on a bike as work is 40 miles away
That’s very far, you have to take a train or drive that kind of distance there and back
@@danieltesfaye8517 keeping a bake at work going for few laps before you start...you if possible I feel a bike ride a great way to start the day
Most car driver also fail to realise that house insurance normally comes with a public liability that also extends to the bike, cover 3rd party in most cases. So that argument also gets a bit tiresome. It’s why there so little bike insurers out there it really isn’t needed unless your trying to cover somthing very specific like bike packing. Though I do agree there needs some sort of ID system brought in for the ride especially if they don’t own a car all. Registration they’ll never bring in, it will cost to much for very little gain
would love to see you and gn discuss this
Your route you’re cycling in this video how many people have been killed by cars? Just on January 13th a cyclist died where you turn left on to carpenters road. You make fantastic points.
Tests, license, registration, insurance and helmet obligation would be good for e-bikes. Good bike infrastructure is needed.
Nobody is complaining about an e-bike or motorcycle in for example Bangladesh, Thailand and so on.
The fact that you're not even wearing a helmet riding a bike through busy city streets while recklessly filming yourself just negates everything that comes out of your mouth tbh.
I was hating on ebikes when I was taking my four year old son along side me and was yelled at constantly by ebikers wanting to pass where they couldn't. It was rather the bikers attitudes though. And given the choice I like them better around me than stinky 2 stroke mopeds, let alone huge cars. The latter isn't that big a problem here in the Netherlands though, because of the infrastructure.
Bravo for everything. It is your right to be without helmet.
It just never ends how problematic drivers and cyclist try to teach us who were never injured by our own fault.
Your points stand. Moto normativity is the term that we need to fight against!
Pretty spot on - but I do have a couple of minor niggles. Cyclists certainly kill more than one per year. It's typically between 5-10 people (roughly what drivers kill in a day or two). But as you correctly pointed out this is far far far less than motorists (even when you take into account the relative numbers of cars/bikes). The other thing Id like to point out is about the "road tax" myth - an additional thing you mention one thing that many people forget is how much of a road infrastructure is put there to protect others from the dangers of drivers. Even the humble cycle path is needed not because of cyclists, but because of the dangers of sharing the roads with drivers. Anyway, excellent video.
Well balanced. It seems that bike renters (e-bike or not) tend to be more of a concern, lacking in skill, awareness, etiquette, etc.
I think reasonable laws about licensing and insurance for the faster e-bikes (those that approach speeds of scooters and motorcycle) as well as limiting access from bicycle/walking areas would help in situation... not completely fix it obviously, law/rule breakers exist in all fields (and yes, I know this also presents a law enforcement issue, but it would help in some aspects surely).
While you don't care to hear our opinions on wearing a helmet, your hairline is certainly calling for one!
No hate mate and with good vibes I love the video and appreciate the info and take on the meat and potatoes you include. Ride safe!
I was shocked at how many cyclists in the UK don't wear helments when I lived there. I lived in east anglia and instead of having to fight the traffic in cities, I rode through approx 671 different villages on my work commute. In my experience drivers in the UK seemed better about bikes but worse about pedestrians than in the US. Drivers in the UK are heads and shoulders better than drivers in the US (especially Massachusetts...whew!). Not bothered by e-bikes at all, also not worried about what people wear when cycling, have it at whatever you want (including to wear or not wear a helment) and enjoy the ride. Still surprised at how terrified people are when they're riding. Not sure I'd continue to do it if I was that scared. However, I tend to stay away from busy city streets through, perhaps I'd be scared all the time too with cars in such close proximity while trying to get to work.
No doubt in my mind: the push back agaist ebikes is being stirred up by car companies who want to make it look like ebikes are a bad change for society. Some people complain and it get picked up by big publications and thrown everywhere to make it look like bikes are bad, and we should just stick with what we have now: cars.
I ride an e bike, and my health has improved since I started riding it, I also stick to the rules of the road, but was horrified by the behaviour of e bike delivery riders I saw in Cardiff, no consideration for other road users at all, these parasites are the ones giving e bikes a bad name,
Great video and I am in furious agreement with you. But could we please stop calling rental bikes e-bikes? There's an important distinction between the two and an important distinction, I would guess, between the type of cyclist using e-bike rentals and those who own an e-bike.
Good video with many valid points especially regarding pavement parking. As regards deaths and injuries caused by cars v bikes, I may be wrong, but I think those with concerns about ebikes/bikes is that they are ridden on the pavement (pedestrian space) and although death via collision is unlikely, injury no matter how small is likely. How many of those pedestrian injuries/deaths by cars occurred on a pavement? Those are the statistics you should be comparing. Maybe then go deeper and see how many accidents there are on per journey made for each form of transport. Unfortunately, it is likely that many accidents and near misses (even pedestrians having to dodge a bike on a pevement) between pedestrians and cyclists are not reported. As such the figure will be artificially low. The problem is far greater than statistics will show. Pedestrians, by and large, do not fret about being injured by cars driving on the pavement so felt safe, but they do now worry about bikes/ebikes on the pavement and no longer feel they are in a safe space. The worst thing to happen was that chief Policeman saying that cyclists can use the pavement if they feel unsafe on the road. That by definition makes ALL pavements shared spaces. If you feel unsafe on the road do not cycle. It is not a right. I am a pedestrian, cyclists and driver.
You're not a cyclist; you are a rider.
You can't buy a piano and magically become a pianist...
About half of all pedestrian deaths from the actions of a car driver occurs on a footpath, mostly from car drivers failing to give way as they enter or leave a property. The next most common is simply crashing; leaving the road due to car driver incompetence, distraction, mechanical issue or having another vehicle crash into them.
@@petergibson7287as I mentioned 'I may be wrong'. Pedestrian negative perception of bicycles/ebikes though is valid. Oh, having raced bicycles in the 80s and commuted in London by bike for 15 years (before bike lanes) and still ride over 5,000 miles a year I feel confident I can call myself a cyclist.
@@chrisfilby9678 That’s ridiculous. I don’t feel safe cycling on busy roads and that is ALL on motorists, not me.
So I should sacrifice my health, let alone reduce carbon emissions, just because of ill disciplined motorists???
I very rarely see any cyclist on a pavement, except food delivery riders.
I’m a motorist most of the time - by the way.
@ChrisWhittenMusic I ride most days on busy roads and dual carriageway and feel perfectly safe. 'Feeling' unsafe is purely subjective and is likely not actually how the road is from an accident statistic perspective. And so is the individuals issue to overcome. With your logic, many would do 90mph+ on M-Ways as 70mph feels far too slow. Until such times as countries such as China, USA and others commit to massive C02 reduction, what we in the UK do will have no effect on global C02 levels.
@@chrisfilby9678 I feel unsafe when white vans scrape past me, when there is no room to overtake. Getting to the pub at the end of their workday has more priority than my safety. But that isn't my mental state...it's the reality of sharing roads with powerful metal objects.
I use multiple forms of personal transport?…my car, my motorcycle, my bicycles/ebike. I use other vehicles such as vans for work. As you say most complainers only use cars. They have zero empathy for other road users. In all the forms of transport I use 99% of the time it is a car driver being an idiot. I also pay road fund license for both of my motor vehicles that are sat doing nothing while I am pedalling.
Yep, your lack of helmet is not a crime but it's a bad look when your commenting on cycle culture. It impacts yourself, the paramedics and your loved ones if you're unfortunate enough to get a head injury. E-bikes are a positive, the law needs to be tweaked to temper them, the charge for using the bikes only encourages them and this also influences other cyclists to light jumping as well. The problem is the charge, all ebikes should be free and then red light jumpers will start to disappear. You are completely correct about driving though.
In Germany, single-trail-vehicles (bikes, motorbikes) are obliged to keep at the right lane´s right edge, thus not disturbing POTENTIALLY faster vehicles: Law isn´t valid if the motorized bi-cycle (aka: motorcycle) is driving that fast, that it overtakes the cars, instead of blocking their way...!!! Still, law is valid even for fast motorbikes (not just slow scooters/mopeds, which are only allowed 45km/h, and are thus, "slow by law"), as soon as their drivers decide to drive especially slow, where they again must drive at the right lane´s right edge.
I BET, Britain (not living in the Dark-Ages), has the exact same law...!!! But it´s neither enforced in Britain, nor in Germany, with the result, that many cyclists have the effect of a tractor/tank in urban environments: A single bike drives at 5km/h in the middle of the road, and a column of 20 cars, also driving just 5km/h, soon forms behind it, which is a shame. That´s why we need separation...!!! Cause bikers, not having license-plates, are ruthless and irresponsible...!!! In today´s time, if cyclist were forced to carry license-plates, each 2nd of them would soon face jail-time, for the cumulative degree of law-breaking (and a bit of help from the car-driver´s cellphone-cameras)... I drive scooter and bicycle 99% of the time, and car 1% of the time, and that 1% is horrible, I then get the impression, that every 2nd cyclist is heavily depressive, and extremely suicidal, them executing the most impossible actions, so that I may drive them over (what I´ve avoided till now)..!!!
PS: Cyclists are, of course, sometimes allowed to drive on the lane´s middle: 1st: For over-taking another, even slower cyclist... 2nd: For arranging a left-turn at the next crossroads (may have to cross several lanes, in order to get from the right lane´s right edge to the left lane´s left edge for finally turning left at the crossroads)... Cyclists aren´t allowed to drive beside each other, in order to be able to chat along the way...
From all the above, switch "right" with "left" and vice-versa if you on British roads, of course...
My main beef with ebikers is them riding recklessly fast on non-motorized trails. That's it. I've not seen issues with them on the road. It's just bloody uncomfortable doing, say, 18mph on your regular bike on, say, Chicago's lakefront trail, and have a modified ebike suddenly whiz by six inches away at 35mph, to say nothing of how you'd feel if you're the kind of biker who'd do 11 or 12.
People look at cars they're not currently in like animals herding, a part of nature
Drivers drive like they are entitled just because they have a death machine. I drive, ride bikes and walk. I always find walking dangerous because most drivers don’t pay attention and don’t want to give way when pedestrians have the right of way.
I love cars, love bikes, have a car, ebike and normal bikes.
First, you can't legally drive your car without paying road tax, have insurance and a licence to ride a bike you have to have enough limbs to pedal.
The problem you fail to mention is whether cars, bikes, e-scooters, or pedestrians. Accidents happen because someone wasn't paying attention.
If everyone paid attention to what they were doing less people would die.
I can see where you are coming from but it's not the car 🚗 it's the car user.
Mate I'm a cyclist all my life since childhood. Yes vehicles are a problem, however I see cyclists without lights, dressed in black, run the lights, don't stop at lights or corners. I'm mostly into mountain biking, however I see road cyclists (not commuters) no lights, dressed in black.
No wonder cyclists are being killed.
Another problem is road rage from everyone, pedestrians, cyclists, cars drivers. Have respect for all road users, use common sense, use lights, bright clothing, a bell this works for everyone, walkers, cyclists, pram driver, car drives.
It's called RESPECT people.
I can't agree more on that. Sry, I am speechless. Nothing to add, nothing to contradict.
Oh wait, one thing:
According to a German study, every car is subsidised at an amount of approx. € 5.000 (don't know how that translates to £) on average - per year!
AFTER all that taxes are collected.
Let that sink in.
I am an eBiker from Russia and I absolutely HATE eBikes for hire. We have lots of couriers that use ebikes, they often speed up and can violate some traffic rules, but they are not even near as dangerous.
Firstly, companies that provide ebikes or escooters for hire could not care less about who's using them. That's why you can see a lot of dumb underages on wheels. Secondly, very few bike paths force cyclists as well as electric vehicles to be on a driveway or pedestrian road. And there's a big problem o coexisting. I mean, who cares about others, right? Pedestrians walk eyes locked on their phones and earhpones in their ears, so no reality could diturb them. Drivers paying attention at anything but the road...
If the situation won't improve, I think it will be an eBiker drivers license.
A great post.
5:20 '....road tax....' - car drivers pay about $0.05/Km in petrol tax and get a road repair subsidy of about $1.50/Km from government.
My opinion the ONLY requirement for riding these Lime bikes etc, is an APP ! Road sense NOT required
As a cyclist where is your helmet you know you should have one on for your own safety
Ebikes are just great! I'm commuting daily with an ebike fitted with the rear rack and 1 pannier here in Bucharest Romania and it's just great, even though we don't have much cycling lanes.
The auto industry is just mad because they can't fool us anymore into believing that we need a car to commute. They would bribe the local authorities in any way possible, pay for articles, do anything to delay the inevitable. I mean, let's face it, automobiles are so outdated and harmful as a mean of urban transportation. They're even the primary reason for population decline as it's risky to let the kids grow up in the street and so kids become ultra expensive to raise when there are cars speeding outside. Ebikes and bikes generally are much safer for our lives and our future.
ITs common sense if you fall off and hit your head, most of the people in your video were wearing bicycle helmets. It is law in Australia to wear a helmet.
Which probably isn't helping to get more people onto bikes. Simply wearing a helmet isn't so much important as what you are doing and the environment around you. The Dutch barely wear helmets for relaxed riding and they aren't a nation with epidemic head injuries. Whereas in Australia the road design, lack of bike lanes (or suicidal bike lanes), giant cars, and mentality of many drivers often makes a helmet seem about as useful as a cocktail umbrella.
Cycling without a helmet causes baldness in older men .
Love my emoto bike 6500 watts so not really powerful but is heaps of fun but if i actually have to go somewhere for a reason i use my car like most people . people who use phones while driving and dont indicate or go through red lights are idiots.
Driving tests are way too easy. Bicyclists should also be required to pass a road test. With lights a bell and helmet.
I have got rid of my car a few years ago riding bicycles instead in a big city, covering a few thousand miles a year.
I rarely see a vehicle going through red lights, but every cyclists I see does.
Recovering from paralysis , rode an ebike as unable to get up hills with a normal bicycle. Got rid of the ebike and got a lighte bicycle when strong enough.
I no longer ride bicycles due to being uncomfortable, but got a recumbent trike which was converted to electric due to it's weight , but also have a sports recumbent trike now which is alot more fun and just as fast.
When I was riding a bicycle have been passed very closely by kids at 50mph or so on illegal ebikes wearing all black with nolights at night, no point reporting them as will be logn gone and they cant be identified as all black.
Couriers ride illegaly powerful ebikes and will go up steep hills at about 15mph passing you very closely giving you a surprise. Sometimes they do this without even pedalling which is also illegal as 4mph is the limit . Couriers ride without lights at night for some reason and alwasy jump red lights like other cyclists.
With regard to using cycle lanes, was forcefully cut off and stopped by a car driver so his wife could tell me I must use the cycle lane. The police had him prosecuted . What I found amusing is that he assumed I am ignorant of the highway code as a cyclist, not knowing I am a qualified advanced driver.
Advocates of commuter cycling like you always frame the debate as people vs cars. It's not a bunch of robotaxis cluttering the streets, it's people who are choosing to drive cars. Cars are inanimate objects that only move or park under the operation of a person.
As a commuter cyclist myself, I am not entirely unsympathetic, but the simple matter is that under a percent of people use a bicycle of any kind for transportation for most or all trips. That is only the average. It is much worse than that in most places. Why should 99+ percent of people be robbed of their share of the road to benefit a tiny fraction of people?
3:35 Drivers driving with mobile in there hand!
But aren’t you cycling with just one hand on the bars while filming yourself with the other? I could argue your not in full control of your bike!!
E-bike do not resolve major traffic issues, but road hazard, crime rate, and accidents. Most of crimes , attacks, theft. and robberies are done using e-bikes.
How can we can’t be against cars. Are we out of our minds here?
In those cars are us. If you are being rushed to the hospital it will be in a car. I’m sure we all used a car to pick up the bicycle. We sound so stupid discussing these irrelevant topics.
All we have to do is be mindful of each other.
Preach!
Cars are THE problem - end the massive car subsidy.
⚔️💪😎🏴🇬🇧👍(stroke) ICE Tour
I never rode an ebike and never will but i dont mind them.
Where is the helmet?
I would say there is nothing wrong with electric bikes at all, illegal ones get right on my nerves. And Lime bikes left in the middle of cycle lanes, the road, or in big massive groups on the pavement are just wrong. Santander bikes had the right idea, but I was always put off by the fact you never knew if there was space to leave it, once you got to where you were going. I think more Japanese style bike storage is needed, by where you slide your bike into a unit, and a robot stacks it away out of sight.
Its the human not the machine thats the problem ❤❤❤
Good take !
Hopefully it's not helmet vs. non-helmet wrong war, to hide the car problem... oh wait I just read the comments... nevermind 😆
Great take 👍
it is really funny how we just accept car deaths and injury as a fact of life
You generalize from rental e-bikes to private e-bikes? seriously?