Cyclists that just drop onto the road without looking are a mystery to me. It's not even about not following the rules, it's basic self preservation. Do they think that somehow they aren't going to come off worse if there's a vehicle there? It's utter mind boggling stupidity.
It's a really weird clip. 1. He drops onto the road carelessly (can't tell whether he shoulder checked or not as too small to see on my tablet), this is dangerous. 2. He then appears to be wary of the cars near him which leads to him taking to the pavement to get away from them/let them past. 3. He then carelessly drops back onto the road alongside them. It's a complete mess of caution /lack of caution. Cars and traffic are scary for some, which is why good segregated infrastructure is such a boon. Less opportunity for the wary and/or untrained to pull such silly moves.
Despite how calm and placid Ashley is throughout every single video, even he can't resist that following stare you give to a driver who has just committed utter stupidity.
Kids not strapped into their seatbelts breaks my heart. Thank you for highlighting this one Ashley. It’s really important that people know how dangerous it actually is. Some time ago I answered a 999 call from a distraught member of the public who had witnessed some kiddies being ejected from a car during a road collision. I’ve taken thousands of 999 calls since but that is one of the few that will stick in my mind forever. I don’t think people realise that even what would be a minor bump can cause serious injuries when seatbelts.
Its sickening how many people try and get into my private hire taxi and want to have a child on their lap and also overload the taxi with more than 4 passengers when there's only 4 seats for them. I get abused for looking after their children's safety and refusing to break the law and potentially be responsible for their injuries/death so they can save a few quid.
I used to film car crash testing. We had one test with a dummy in the rear with no seatbelt. In the test they flattened the seat in front, went through the windscreen head first and ended up 20ft in front of the car, wrapped in the windscreen glass like a cloak. Death would have been instant.
As a kid in the 80s when there were cars around without rear seat belts and wearing them if fitted was optional I always wanted to wear one in more modern cars to feel grown up like the people in the front (and the safety thing was kinda obvious too). That's not to say I was adverse to lying on the rear seat when there was no belts...
I'm surprised your local council hasn't set up more red light cameras. With the amount of red light jumpers, they'd make their money back on fines in no time.
The cycnic in me believes red light cameras don't make enough money to justify the installation costs. They may catch a few of the deliberate and persistant offenders when first installed. But word soon gets around, and then the cameras hardly ever catch anyone. Meanwhile the maintenance and running costs remain, and are simply seen as a drain on the balance sheets.
I like your little dig at 6:00, but you have to bare in mind cycling mikey lost his dad to a drunk driver using his mobile phone, so you can see why he does what he does
@@stuinNorway I was going to say something similar tbh. Usually I agree with basically everything Ashley says but having watched multiple "gandalf corner" vids I don't think its a fair comparison. Ashley is safe inside a car and could see the car coming with enough time to hold back and create a safe situation with relative ease. The corner Mikey goes on is a high traffic (vehicles and on foot) blind corner and the people most at risk are the pedestrians who won't be looking that way at the crossing and cyclists and even motorcycles turning the corner correctly who won't expect to come face to face with a car. Keeping the flow of traffic is all well and good but not at the expense of safety. You might as well say speeding or running a red is fine if no-one is around because it keeps traffic flowing. I think its even more clear that the gandalf stop vids that he is only acting due to the inherent danger when when you consider the mobile phone catching vids Mikey also does - they are also very unsafe drivers, surely he would sit in front of the cars till they put the phone down properly if he was only doing it to be facetious? No, he films them and rides on. Immediately dangerous? = stop it Generally dangerous and unsafe? Film, report, keep moving
@@haveabossday I thought he was just holding his ground to make a point. There's far more provocative and antagonistic channels on RUclips. I take your point though.
Dear Ashley, there is a thing called "low cut" sometimes "low cut filter". This thing exists in all types of audio equalizers. If it is not a button or a preset, you can just do it manually with few clicks. Basically you can cut all the sound bellow 100, 200 or even 500 Hz, which will drastically remove a lot of humming and vibrations that your microphone picks up when inside the car. I don't think there is a problem just to throw it for entire project and not only for "in car microphone" moments. I almost never see anyone doing this on youtube, but it is so simple and useful, and these frequencies are absolutely useless outside the music or some movies soundscape. Anyway =) Just sharing something specific. Keep the good job.
@@DjDayOnepeople are freakin annoying. I called it right and then added other thing that will help to google it, just in case, to have more context, but they start to argue about the second, ADDITIONAL thing :| I didn't know, but "low cut" in google shows haircuts...yet suggest to specify and add audio, but first link still says "low cut filter", because too many people calling it wrong and everyone just gave up. Not the youtube comments, of course
That justification for being mindful for those types of cyclists is a good one. I think most of those types of cyclists are acting out mainly of fear having had near misses in the past. They feel like they shouldn't be on the pavements (they shouldn't) but they also don't feel welcome on the roads when they get buzzed by motor vehicles or yelled at by less patient folk. Its a self fulfilling problem. Had the same issue myself 15 years ago getting back in the saddle for the first time since being a kid and it was only after reading through cyclecraft (cycling's version of roadcraft) and forcing myself to taking a more assertive stance on the roads that I finally felt safe doing things like turning right across traffic, etc. I still have to deal with impatient fknuckles from time to time but coming to terms with the fact that I have every right to be on that road was a big deal, especially when society seems to condition us otherwise.
Fortunately I have no parts of my commute where I need to "turning right across traffic, etc." this scares me because with the way people drive around me, I can imagine getting hit / rear ended.
@@Pattoe You have to think only a psycho actually wants to hit someone and thankfully very few of them are about. They will shout, they will intimidate, they will call you names, you just have to wear a thick skin and ride assertively. You can be the meekest person on the roads, riding at high risk right in the gutter and never turning right and you will still annoy those idiots. So best just do it as safe as possible and if you need to make that right, signal, pull out like you would in a motorised vehicle and make it. If you have to stop, stop and defend your space so that you don't have cars pushing by you on both sides if you feel it would be dangerous to do so. Its 30 seconds, they'd be waiting there anyway if you were a car so don't worry too much about it.
@@lmaoroflcopter there's surprisingly many of those psychopaths about. The bigger issue though is people who wouldn't deliberately hit you, but don't care if they hit you while trying to pass. They are very common and almost as dangerous
@@georgelane6350 Mate i'm trying to post positive encouraging thoughts to encourage someone who clearly has difficulty reconciling how to ride safe on our roads. Yes there are arseholes in all walks of life, but putting yourself at risk by riding hesitantly doesn't help, if they'll hit you when you're turning right, they'll hit you when you're in the gutter.
@@lmaoroflcopter sorry if I wasn't very clear. The people who don't care if they do hit you while passing are much more likely to try and pass if you ride in the gutter. Riding centrally protects you from those people
As a cyclist, I can [almost] understand riding on the pavement due to our sadly-lacking cycle infrastructure, but personally I feel safer riding legally on the road rather than cutting in and out of it - which is why I frequently don't use shared cycle/pedestrian paths, as they tend to just peter out at points.
They either peter out or, as is the case with one shared path near me, have you wait at 6 separate pedestrian crossings (must dismount) in order to turn right, and then the path Peters out after 50m anyway. If you ride on the road you need only wait for one change of the lights.
I prefer to stay on the road rather than use shared paths (or even some dedicated cyclepaths that are alongside pedestrians), simply because motorists are more predictable. The one serious crash I've had was due to a dog on an extendable lead running across a cyclepath.
@@Thurgosh_OG If you can provide the location I can often give a few reasons why they might not use the cycle path. Someone was saying something similar the other day about a cycle path near them. I pointed out that to access it involves crossing 4 lanes of traffic and the starting point was down a side turning and that over head branches were down to handle bar height at points and that the path petered down to being only a few inches wide. A dirt strip along a grass verge. Don't misunderstand me I'm sure this one won't be as bad.
@5:50 cracked me up“…I then have a look around to see whether there’s anyone who wants a race….” 😂 Brilliant 👍🏻 Some pretty silly stuff in this one, however for me, the cyclist riding in lane 2 with no hands on the bars was just mental. Someone could hit him and have to deal with the consequences. Not good at all.
@@luvstellauk I can’t even ‘allow’ that either. I’ve spent 36 years driving in U.K. and when I go to Vegas I don’t drive the wrong way up the road, albeit tempting to try 😉 😂 👍🏻
@@luvstellauk or just some bellend in Liverpool. Quite common to see them. Think they own the road and kick off at anyone who takes issue. Normally wearing a balaclava
@@luvstellauk I wouldn't subscribe to the might be foreign theory either. It's pretty obvious which side the traffic drives on when there's a ton of cars about doing just that. I could understand a momentary lapse if there's nothing to reference, but that's just a div being a div.
@@luvstellauk highly doubt it. Like Pedro said, the other cars should be a dead giveaway, but the fact that he's riding with no hands and running the red light shows he's just a prick and doesnt care.
I've been driving for over two years now and learned a lot from your videos. I don't jump lights, use my phone or break speed limits. However, I still make some stupid mistakes sometimes, especially when in unknown areas. So, I would like to thank everyone here who doesn't go ape at someone making a prat of a decision, as it could be me who was driving. I've had to beep my horn once when a car was reversing into my car in a supermarket car park. I think the main point I'm still trying to improve is being fully aware of what is happening and what could happen. It's a good feeling when something strange happens but I've already prepared and planned for it ahead of time. Thanks :)
We all make mistakes, even if we have been driving a long time. Don't feel to bad about making a few errors as you're new driver, just be aware of what's going around you as some drivers are completely oblivious to everything.
We all make mistakes, most of the time they're harmless but sometimes we have to have a word with ourselves about what we just did, so there's no need to make things worse for others by 'going ape' - as Ash says, good drivers fix others' mistakes.
@@PedroConejo1939 Ohh, I do have a word with myself. Sometimes I'm beaming red even when I'm alone in the car. A big thanks to everyone who forgives other peoples' errors.
@@paulp458 Unless on a long journey, as I used to travel 250 miles plus to locations to work, I won't even put the radio on. I'm not anti-music I just find I need to concentrate just driving. I'm not at that level where I can automatically take it all in and multitask. I've not yet hit that level where I can sing along to a bit of Queen and thump the steering wheel in tune with it.
@@martinbobfrank I'm a silent driver too. Sometimes when work is a bit stressful, I have a playlist that allows me to decompress but even that gets switched off at junctions or on the twisties. When I watch some of the crash-bang-wallop channels, it shocks me the kind of stuff people listen to.
Ashley, I honestly don't know how you have the patience to teach new drivers when there is so many bad experienced drivers setting a bad example. I drive for a living and don't get more than 5 minutes into a shift without seeing something dangerous.
Admittedly, part of the problem is people don't share Ashley's patience. Since I started watching Ashley, I've got myself to be more patient and I've found that my driving's improved, other people's bad driving is much easier to deal with, and the whole experience of driving is substantially less stressful. All this with no notable change to how long it takes to get places
@@goodguykonrad3701 I thought i was the only one. Do you also come to a sanario when driving and when thinking of solutions think of them in Ashley's voice?
I disagree, being one of them myself. Most of us get calmer and safer over time. The newbies or the ones who rent a car, so only have a set amount of time behind the wheel per day, are the dangerous ones. Owner drivers tend to be a lot safer than your average road user because its their vehicle, their already huge insurance policies and their wear+tear maintenance costs. If they drive mad, they very quickly price themselves off the road. The ones who drive on someone else's insurance and in someone else's car are the nutters.
4:55 (#9) Even a high-viz is no replacement for proper lighting (and reflectors, also in the pedals). Very clear from this video, it seems that the high-viz has lost some of its reflective value if it is a reflective one in the first place. Budget vs. safety, budget always wins.
HiViz Yellow/Orange is for Daylight, If they have reflective they are good at night, don't forget Ashley's dipped headlamps are biased towards the nearside and it is dusk which is the worst kind of light. the cyclist is obviously missing the required lights.
Another fail and I wish I had a rear cam: I was driving along an A road at 60mph and I notice the car behind me had been tailgating me for ages. I couldn't even see his number plate in my mirror. About 10 minutes later, I slow down on an approach to queuing traffic and I hear tires squealing behind me. The idiot tailgater had to perform an emergency stop and swerve into the oncoming lane to avoid hitting me. He was also probably looking at his phone at the moment I slowed. From then on, he stayed about 100 meters behind me. I hope he learned his lesson not to tailgate.
@@henryginn7490 I actually did that at the next roundabout. He was keeping his distance after the emergency break but I was concerned his lesson would be quickly forgotten.
The red-light jumpers have always made me more cautious when the lights change now, always a quick left and right check before going through the junction. Also the mobile phone at the wheel is only getting worse by the day, it's every other car now, and it's not up to their ears anymore it's on the wheel in their hand looking down at it which to me is even more dangerous. It's insane and something needs to be done.
I know it's a technical thing to do e.g. for a test but I am curious about 4:20 - you say to indicate to pull away but you can see in the previous 10 seconds of footage there are no cars coming either way, so who are you indicating to? The DPD van doesn't appear for another few seconds and wouldn't be able to see, let alone be looking for, an indicator. I always check mirrors and indicate if there are people coming, but if the road is empty, I don't bother because I am not indicating to anyone that I am doing anything
ohh - a sneeky reference there to CylingMike ... I think there's room in the world for both approaches of improving driving. One just keeps traffic flowing, while it's flowing, the other actually educates drivers, at a small cost to flow ... (or large cost if the driver is very determined to not learn). The thing is, Mike rarely does it in traffic that's flowing (that's usually the problem and why people are jumping) so I don't see why he shouldn't stand out.
My way of looking at it is, if drivers get away with it, they will just do it again. You can often see on Mikey's videos, how they pull out well before the junction with every intention of passing on the wrong side right from the start.
Ashley says "something needs to be done" with the red light jumper. Andy Cox, UK head of road policing would say that the something is people with dashcams reporting things. I know it a load of time and effort and I don't do it myself, but that's the direction the "strategy" is looking at.
@@kenbrown2808 I believe most people shamed for their actions through having their illegal/poor driving posted to RUclips by Mikey, would not wish to be shamed again. That and any fines/points on their licences should have an overall positive effect.
@@roaduser6438 you're assuming they have shame. also, there are those for whom "fine" means legal for a fee. they may be affected if their license gets pulled, but some aren't even deterred by that. and my point is, if they're stubborn enough to drive in the wrong lane to run a red light, they're too stubborn to be deterred by being in a shouting match with a youtuber. just look at other dashcam channels where the cammer comes in and defends their bad driving in the face of the viewers calling them out. even Ashley occasionally has submitters refusing to learn from his lessons.
People's lane discipline is one of the first indicators I have of how bad of a driver they are and likelihood they're going to do something stupid. Even if I hadn't noticed the BMW on his phone the first instance he went over the line... id be staying well away
I know cars are wide these days, but some drivers seem to think they're pushing 3 metres. I often wonder why these people choose big cars, but maybe they feel protected from their poor driving.
11.53 Motorist and cyclist like you, Ashley. Hopefully I'm not in need of much education but all of us have to be learning all the time (42 years after passing the test). Irresponsible people (which could be us if we stop concentrating) are the cause of so much hassle, regardless of how many wheels we're using at the time. Your videos have been an great encouragement in both my driving and cycling road skills. Why does it have to be a competition? Most cyclists have driving licences and most car drivers can ride a bike. I've had brilliant and increasing acknowledgement from car drivers while on my bike in the North of Scotland roads I cycle and have been increasingly conscious of bikes since returning to driving after a medical ban which put me firmly on the bike for nine months. Courtesy and thoughtfulness , are our only weapons! Lets arm ourselves with these.
Ashley - at some point could you do a video about the correct distance to drive past someone before pulling back in when overtaking on a motorway? My personal bugbear is people who pull in way too soon (I've coined this "headgating"), but I'm worried I might overcompensate and leave it too late sometimes.
I generally wait until I can see the whole of the front of the vehicle I’ve passed in my rear view mirror. That gives a reasonable distance which should be growing and continuing to grow unless they start playing silly buggers.
If you are driving faster than the car you are overtaking even a millimetre is enough to ensure you don't crash into them. Simple physics. Bearing in mind that the majority of motorway drivers see no need to pull back to the left or DRIVING lane when they have finished overtaking and therefore don't use their mirrors anywhere near as often as they should do and that becomes a bad habit to fall into. If you don't practice these things you will not know how much space you need to pull back in
I have been driving for many years. I was licenced to drive most vehicles including buses and coaches. One thing I do not do while driving is have the radio on. I like to keep my mind totally on my driving and I like complete silence when I am driving.
Yep, some terrible driving, pedestrianing and cycling there! The rider at 4:50 needs lights, high-viz is no use in the dark. But it's worth noting that even with the old-school orange sodium lights, they are still visible. As visible as a pedestrian in the road would be, but only if you are driving carefully and paying attention.
Clip 9 4:35 Wearing HiViz is useless after dusk. HiViz only works in daylight. For night-time you need something that us Retro-reflective. On my motorcycle I have a 'Casper Jacket' that I wear over my motorcycle jacket. It is 100% reflective.
Cracking video ash, I have no clue why so many people can’t put there phone down but as you say it’s up to us as drivers to deal with it. I’m trying harder to pick up on signs that drivers give as sometimes I’ll miss obvious ones and it’s so frustrating.
Good video as usual Ashley. I found the high vis cyclist one interesting. Just proves that it's lights that are crucial (and legally required) in the dark and clothing is practically irrelevant. Those that bang on about cyclists not wearing high vis need to see that video. I don't wear high vis but my clothing has certified reflective patches and I'm lit up like a Christmas tree. Much more effective than a bright yellow jacket that's almost invisible in the dark.
It's one of the reasons I ride with lights even the day, there's plenty of country roads that have overhanging branches so are dimly lit. A crisp alternatively flashing light (not one that strobes quickly), is much more likely to catch a drivers attention than a yellow vest.
Some entertaining gems in this one, and a couple of reminders of incidents. Clip 13, child with no seat belt. At a set of lights, ahead of me was a Peugeot 106, with four youngsters in it. The female passenger in the rear, right hand side, was very animated, not wearing a seat belt, and actually making the stationary car rock. The driver must have mentioned that there was a learner car behind (AA car at the time, so lots of yellow). The girl turned around, and I just gestured, by stretching out my belt and returning it to snug. She dismissed that with a disdainful wave, as the car moved off. Like a lot of young drivers, the move away was a bit abrupt, which set her back into her seat with a bump. Moments later, as we've travelled only a few car lengths to the back of the next queue, driver, distracted by his passengers, and perhaps by me following, braked late and firmly. Girl shot forward, hitting her right cheek against the front head restraint. Made me go cold, as I thought she might have cracked her neck. She sat up, thankfully, and once again turned to look at me. I stretched my seat belt again, and got another dismissive reply from her. She could have been dead, but still did not see the need to put her belt on. A happier incident, with a pupil on test. Like clip 19, a cyclist appeared from a pathway to the left, swerved to travel along the footpath beside my pupil. She slowed to put him ahead, and kept speed low, as she could not get ahead due to traffic. Cyclist dropped off the pavement without looking, and the only reaction from my pupil was a 'tut', as otherwise it was under control. Then cyclist returned to the pavement, and repeated this 3 more times. Then my pupil said to the examiner, "If he does that again, can I squash him?" The examiner had to bite his lip to prevent laughter, and replied, "I understand the sentiment, but probably best not." She passed her test. There were other 'light' incidents and the examiner said it was the most enjoyable test he'd conducted. I was not sitting in, examiner told me the story.
This is a key one that people always miss. Don't go beyond the line unless you can completely clear [whatever you're clearing]. I'm always seeing people left stranded at junctions, roundabouts etc blocking the road because they were desperate to go without looking ahead
I was behind someone the other day at traffic lights, in the right turn lane of the main road (two lane dual carriageway, 30mph) through town, at rush hour. They wouldn't advance past the stop line because there was on-coming traffic. Guess what? When there was no on-coming traffic, the light was red! I stopped counting the number of light cycles once I got to 4 😶 and went straight on instead.
This has probably been asked before but do you send in the clear road violations to the Police for action? I've used it once when an elderly man in a mobility scooter on a side road, drove out onto the main road without looking. We did an emergency stop and narrowly avoided him as did the car coming the other way. The Police did find out who he was and visited him in his residential home. he was warned to not do that again or face a road ban on him driving mobility scooters.
Regarding the cyclist at dusk. It’s worth knowing that HiViz only works at day time when there is daylight to make the clothing more visible. Once it gets dusk having clothing with reflective patterns works much better. I carry two jackets. A red one for day as that works well in urban and rural. And a jacket with reflective decals for night.
I actually think dark clothing is more visibly in the day Hiviz doesn't actually work at all. because of the sheer number of people and over items in Hiviz it doesn't register in peoples mind. my pink cycle top works the best because it looks unusual`
@@flemit35 Agreed. There’s a study somewhere that makes an observation that due to the plethora of HiViz the brain actually filters out it’s presence. The trick is to wear contrasting colours to your environment. Many motorists need to be actively observing their environment instead of falling into autopilot.
I got pulled over by the cops many years ago. The cops says “ do you know why I pulled you over sir”, I genuinely had no idea. Look behind you he says. My daughter, who was maybe 5 or 6, had taken off her seat belt and was standing up behind me. Lesson learned.
@@MrJohnny3shoes if she was behind him, she may have been out of the field of view, especially if her seat was directly behind the driver's seat. that said, I remember when the slogan was "babies in the back seat cause accidents (because the driver is distracted by monitoring the back seat) and accidents in the back seat cause babies"
That was very common for kids to do that many years ago. The first thing a kid so young would do is squeeze in between the driver and passenger seat, or stand up on the back seat to look out the back window. I cannot understand how a driver could not see the kid.
@@MrJohnny3shoes The clue was in my comment. The Police pulled me over, so yes, I saw the cops in my rear view mirror but not my daughter, because she was directly behind my seat.
Myself I think he should just video those who go right of the keep left sign, let them go on their way and report them to the MET later. By stopping them he inconveniences them but often also inconveniences other innocent road uses. Let the fines or driving courses these drivers receive be the inconvenience
@@BigDavie2000 . If they are not stopped, they will do it again, such drivers are dangerous both to cyclists turning onto that road or pedestrians crossing it.
I’m not sure I would’ve moved at 2:25 noticing how he was holding speed towards the lights. Not really worth the potential of them being distracted and ploughing straight into you. Also the chance someone behind you not paying attention setting off without seeing you stopped that quickly. These are probably the same messages you would give to your pupils.
Interesting to see the same old junctions appear on your films - good evidence for areas that Liverpool Council should redesign to make things safer. 'Sustainable safety' is the name for the Dutch approach to road design. Engineering first.
As a cyclist and a driver, I see a lot of red light jumping, and in my experience it's mostly drivers, not cyclists, who do it. It winds me up no matter who does it!
I'm a cyclist and a driver. I commute 16 miles by cycle to work and back daily in Manchester. Cyclists are far more likely to jump red lights than car drivers. Perhaps some car drivers go thru a second after a light has turned but in my experience 80% of cyclists on the Oxford Road corridor will go through a pedestrian crossing on solid red (if no-one is crossing in front of them) and about half go thru junctions on red if they think there is nothing coming (most often if they pedestrian lights are on green). For Deliveroo cyclists those numbers are as close to 100% as makes no difference. Now a cyclist shooting a light in a 15kg bike is generally putting their own life on the line only, whereas a driver in a 1-2 tonne car is doing something much more dangerous, but to claim that cars are more likely to go through lights on red than cyclists is a pretty ridiculous statement in my experience.
I thought it looked dodgy, pickup parked partially on the pavement where women are walking.. Just edging forwards so it looks like they are pulling away yet staying within a short distance. Maybe she was with him and got out because of his driving?
Some very good points made Ashley! No theory test, no practical test, no registration, and no insurance - no wonder many cyclists feel empowered by the new H C priorities! My pet hate is drivers who park facing the oncoming traffic albeit in a safe refuge.
Not all cyclists are the same. I have gone through a theory test, two practical tests, and one professional observation, and I am independently insured for my bike. I would love for cycling awareness to be part of all driving tests and for anyone wanting to travel using road infrastructure by bike to have to complete a training day.
I've only just come across this channel and coming from a profession where accidents are analysed and reported on so that we canals learn from them I find Ashley's analysis of accidents and near misses very interesting. I just wish there was more accident reporting and analysis available as I have sometimes seen the aftermath of accidents, fortunately only ever having witnessed one, and wondered how on earth they occured.
I saw the aftermath of what must only have been a sleeping driver who had left a completely straight and adequate road (the M1) and had driven through a roadside sign about 10 feet off the side bank. I still can't figure out why anyone would want to drive on the grass rather than the tarmac
clip 5, 2:01, why stop so far back from the lane you want to enter when you turn right?. This may prevent traffic behind getting through the traffic lights behind you. Is to give a path for emergency vehicles coming from you left or right or visibility of oncoming traffic? I think some teaching was required a bit earlier on in clip 15, going for the overtake with a lorry coming from the right. Perhaps at at 11:30 there was a good opportunity and reason for using the horn
The child loose in the car, I had this happen so many times with my grandson, he just would not stop undoing the harness. I have had my son come and pick him up along the way, as I just could not stop him!!!! He is 16 now, so not a problem!!
11:20 with the new rules a driver of a car could easily be fined / prosecuted for dangerous driving due to being so close to the cyclist But shouldnt the cyclist be equally prosecuted for dangerous cycling? Surely cyclist should be accountable for their actions as well
The Spandex clothes provides them superpowers and extra protection from cars also makes them immune to accidents On a serious they don't really comprehend that 1.5tone car hurts when getting hit by one
100kg of exposed human isn’t as dangerous as a tonne of metal. Without due care would be entirely appropriate, and should absolutely stop them getting their hands on a motor vehicle. There are idiots using all forms of transport, but I’d rather they were walking or cycling than driving…
I believe it's referred to as ''wanton & reckless riding?'' I also believe the 'wanton & reckless'' thing was originally associated with horse riders, and came about in mid-Victorian times? As always, the problem is, gathering the right amount of evidence? Plus, folk actually being 'bothered' to go through with it all?
Bicycles are vehicles being used on a public highway. They should be licensed and registered, those operating the vehicle should prove they are fit to perform to a certain agreed standard. But cyclists don't agree and think that sort of behaviour is either a) totally fine or b) "but we're not all like that mate". If I drove my car down the pavement past a red light with no hands on the wheel and not even a touch on the brake? Banned, possibly jailed. If I hit something my insurer would want my kidneys. Cyclists do that every day in life and it's fine. Even a motorbike or petrol scooter being ridden like that would result in criminal proceedings. Once witnessed a collision between cyclist and elderly pedestrian, it wasn't a nice thing to witness.
@@mxbx307 exactly right. People think that bikes are completely above the law and they can do whatever they want. Red light, pavenents, wrong side of the road who cares. The laws are just guidelines, everyone bow before me. Until they have license plates, every complaint to the police will be. It was someone in blue on a orange bike and then ignored by the police.
You talk about risk. As a (now retired) driving instructor, I would always remind my students to keep both hands on the wheel no lower than half-way up, to maintain proper control should potholes try to move the wheel. Of course you should remove one hand for the minimum period needed to perform some action such as changing gear - you certainly shouldn't drive along caressing the gear knob as if it were your best friend.
Re cyclist clip. It is all well and good having a high vis on, or as I saw the other night a Deliveroo high vis. But I stopped and spoke with him off (off duty pc) as he almost got flattened by a Range Rover and had stopped himself and seemed shaken up. Need front and rear lights after sunset. He pointed to his reflectors and thought they counted. He was very nice and said he would buy some. Especially in London on side roads with parked cars everywhere, it can be almost impossible to see them.
Yep. And don't forget that (as any dashcam owner will tell you) the scene would have appeared a lot darker to the naked eye than it appears in the video.
Hi, for clip #20, I find that this situation mostly happens when I drive along the major road. Is the driver better not to turn left from the minor road when someone approaches near the junction on the major road? Thanks.
That switch island junction! Happens to me all the time on my way to work. Lorries are the worst for it but I’ve seen a couple of other cars block it too
Commentary in clip no 10 is well amusing 😆. Additionally the manuver carried out by the Mercedes in the next clip is a pet peave of mine. The sheer ignorance it takes to go up the wrong side of the road to shave, what, 30 seconds off your journey? All while you can't physically see the junction you're turning into. The amount of times I've nearly been run over by people doing this is beyond a joke 🙃
Hi Ashley, I've really enjoyed your videos and use them as a way to take a more critical approach to my own driving. I wonder if you'd consider commenting on Cyclingmikey's actions at Gandalf corner. From your comment in this video it seems you disapprove of his response, and I'm interested to know what your thoughts are. My guess is that while his actions may well result in the catching and reporting of many dangerous drivers, you disapprove of the vigilante way in which he does it? Look forward to more content.
I felt the same way. It is interesting that Ashley seems to be against his actions yet wishes someone would do something about the red light jumpers, which is part of what CyclingMikey does, and I've never heard ashley actually report any of the rlj despite catching them on video and having their number plates in view often. Happy to be corrected though, if he's been reporting them without talking about it
Mikey should just let them through and report them , blocking the road is just making things worse if cars are oncoming. Can see on some of his videos they end up mounting the curb to get through if a stubborn driver is not moving back. Stupid way to prove a point.
@@user-de1ey8hc5o I disagree, as the whole reason he is doing it is due to previous collisions between cyclists turning left around the corner and having head on crashes with cars on the wrong side of the road, where they are not expected to be. If he just let them pass and reported them, the collisions would still happen much more often than if he stopped them. Yes those mounting the curb are dangerous, but they are going the right way so are unlikely to have head on collisions with vulnerable road users
There's 'a cyclist', then there's 'someone on a bike'. I tend to class cyclists as those who are committed to cycling in a safe and decent manner, with lights and a helmet. Everyone else is just on a bike to get somewhere and they almost don't class themselves as road-users, rather, they're just 'using the road'.
What on earth does a helmet have to with anything? Lights are only legally required in the hours of darkness, but they’re very effective in any reduced light situation. Basically all cyclists are “just trying to get somewhere” (though sports cyclists might be getting to where they started).
@@JohnR31415 I know there's debate about the effectiveness of helmets. I choose to wear one because it's likely to protect my head if it comes into contact with something. Basic physics. My comment about wanting to get somewhere is to emphasise that many people on bikes aren't concerned with HOW they ride to where they're going. However, cyclists like myself (I'm also a driver too) ensure I look after myself and others.
@@IWOKEAGIANT not wearing a helmet is not not looking after yourself. Not buying volcano insurance is taking unnecessary risk. I dont drive like the Dakar or cycle like the TT....or lived within 1000 miles of any volcanic eruption. I've nothing against wearing a helmet but im not doing it just so someone else feels better.
Clip 3 0:31 I don't think the problem was lack of ability to steer. I suspect he/she didn't anticipated cars going into his street. He wanted to go right and was already going in that direction. Doesn't make it any better though.
Re the child with no seat-belt , i once saw a child approx 3yrs old unrestrained on the front seat passengers lap , they were waiting at a junction I challenged them about it took the registration number and called the police .
I am trying to stop using the horn, but I definitely would have given the Qashqai @2:26 a blast. Red light jumpers stopping right-turners from clearing the junction are a scourge. Also, I am surprised you didn't advise a warning toot before passing the pavement pickup @9:30. That driver was clearly not focussed on the road, and I would have been concerned they were going to do a sudden U-turn
8:00 Once next to me at the traffic light was a car, in the back seat, two children were jumping around. On the front seat a box of china wrapped in and tugged with a towel or blanket. "Look," I said to my passenger, "Those cups are more valuable than the kids." It was summer, and the windows were down. The driver overheard this and if looks could burst a tire, I had four flats that instant.
High vis does nothing if you're in a dark environment. It can only reflect light that's already there. That is why you need lights on your bike. You can get them very cheap or even for free. I've had multiple bike lights given for free, they will often be offered just for browsing in an independent cycle shop and having a chat with the staff. There was one time where a group of chavs threatened to 'smash my face in' as I was waiting at a red light because the light on my bicycle was hurting their eyes and they demanded I turn it off. I told them I'd rather be better off in a fight with a person than being hit by a car, and refused to turn my lights off.
Hmm? When cars headlights shine on high vis jacket the light reflects. Thats the whole point. Unless you're talking about having a light pointing at yourself but that would be stupid
@@David_Trowbridge In dark conditions high vis does nothing. As we saw in this clip, the car's headlights did not spot the cyclist until they were already pretty close. I am talking about pointing a light outwards, towards the traffic, just how cyclists use lights. Assuming I was talking about pointing a light at myself would be stupid.
Hey Ashley I was wondering you could do another merge in turn in video or look at a familiar merge in turn I encounter on my trips. I always question myself every time I approach it
Clip 20, as a trucker, I note the different heigh marks on the bridge. No all bridges like this are on straight roads, & where I learnt (Lincs) one was on an S bend, in the middle of the S. You May experience a truck in the middle of the road, to fit under the centre of the arch!
On spotting cyclists at night. Was driving over the Belfast hills at night with my GF of the time. She was driving. Coming round a tight bend marked with red reflectors she suddenly slammed the brake pedal down and I got whacked by the seat belt. What she seen only at the last second was one of the red reflectors was moving relative to the others. That was the only indication there was a cyclist there. No lights, dark clothes, black wooly hat, just the reflector that saved him from being rear ended at 40mph. Good save!
Clip 12 and intelligent prediction. I failed a test (quite rightly, I reluctantly agree) one mid afternoon with very low sun… Had been driving toward the sun and was using the sun visor. Approaching a pub shortly after afternoon closing (yes I’m old!!!) with roadworks blocking half the road by the carpark entrance & a junction to the left opposite the carpark entrance, the sun visor blocked my view of the temporary lights, which were unfortunately red. Were the green I would have passed my test, as that was the only mark on the sheet, and nearing the end of the test. However, I wouldn’t have learnt to flip that visor up when I don’t need it, and may then have gone on to have a serious/fatal collision in similar circs! Bad experiences are good learning points
You really do have a red light problem down there. I live up north but I travel down a fair amount for work and the driving standards seem to degrade the further south you get. Guess it's the side affect of a lot of dual carriageway roads with lots of X roads on them and impatient people trying to jump ahead further.
I used to live in East Anglia. My experience was that drivers in Suffolk were just plain bad - slow, all over the road, not signalling properly, abuse Give Way and so on. In the larger towns there were chavs in modded cars who just treated the roads as their own and f--k everyone else. In Essex it was so aggressive, they treated everything like a race and you always had someone up your arse or driving totally not for the conditions. It's raining with 20m visibility? No problem, 80mph overtake it is. The M25 is also just a racetrack for rich chavs with beemers, tuned Mercs and big performance SUVs like Range Rovers. And in Hertfordshire it's more rich chavs, this time in the likes of convertibles.
Re clip 1, I was in a Large truck going over a narrow humpbacked bridge with a blind bend at the opposite end. Signs on both sides’ approach read “ONCOMING VEHICLES IN MIDDLE OF ROAD”, which I was to discourage attempts to pass unsafely! Having waited for visible oncoming traffic to pass, I entered the bridge dominating, and was approx 1/4 across when a red ford came hoofing round the blind bend at the other end (50mph limit at the time, this was 2003), and despite us both hitting the brakes we met, with me still My side of the middle. The other vehicle was a write off, the other driver initially messy scared, until I twice asked if they were hurt, and when they said no, they relaxed when I said, “That’s the main thing, everything else will get sorted by insurance, but it’s great you’re not hurt.” Police were called (not by either of us) but NFAd, I answered questions correctly, (“Why were you in the middle of the road?” “Its a big vehicle, and not enough room to pass.”), and the other driver had obviously suffered by losing their car.
I mostly private hire drive in the Greater Manchester area, but frequently use Merseyside roads and Lancashire roads also. Is their a link/portal where you can report and upload bad driving footage to the police, or is it just about reporting to each borough's police force?
Same thing happend to me the other day as in clip 5. Been learning to drive a larger vehicle and someone sped through the lights after it had been red for at least 2 seconds. Honestly amazes me how people will happily put themselves in danger
Clip 9, I’m guessing that jacket is an oldish dayglow yellow wid/showerproof jacket, no reflective material showing. That only works with UV light about. Hours of darkness / late dusk, that’s what it looks like; invisible
I’d have gone through the junction blocked by the lorry Ashley. It wasn’t a box junction, and the traffic would move in due course. Am I wrong? Your advice is welcome…
Not just behind Learners Ashley; I do the limit and they often sit up my rear then fly past only to get stuck just up the road and I catch them up anyway.
Hi Ash, is it also considered a driving fail when there is a car in a parking stall and all the spaces are filled up on the whole block. So this one car has rear lights on and looks like he will be backing out shortly but he doesn't and just sits there not thinking that somebody wants that parking space. So I drive around the block 2 times and waiting for him to back out. Get this, by the third around there is a car coming from the other direction. Right when I saw this car I knew what was going to happen next. Yep that car got the parking spaces I was waiting on. I had to drive around 2 blocks to get in the opposite direction so I had could parallel park on the Right side of the road.
Cyclists that just drop onto the road without looking are a mystery to me. It's not even about not following the rules, it's basic self preservation. Do they think that somehow they aren't going to come off worse if there's a vehicle there? It's utter mind boggling stupidity.
Was thinking the same thing. As far as I know, there isn't a rule that specifically states that you should try to not get yourself killed.
@@iainamurray You're not meant to disrupt the normal flow of traffic and dying disrupts the normal flow of traffic.
I particularly like the ones who ride into oncoming traffic on the wrong side of the road. Natural selection at its finest
@@bednar23 I saw that very thing just yesterday. To top it off it was night and he didn't even have a light. That really is asking for a Darwin Award.
It's a really weird clip.
1. He drops onto the road carelessly (can't tell whether he shoulder checked or not as too small to see on my tablet), this is dangerous.
2. He then appears to be wary of the cars near him which leads to him taking to the pavement to get away from them/let them past.
3. He then carelessly drops back onto the road alongside them.
It's a complete mess of caution /lack of caution. Cars and traffic are scary for some, which is why good segregated infrastructure is such a boon. Less opportunity for the wary and/or untrained to pull such silly moves.
Despite how calm and placid Ashley is throughout every single video, even he can't resist that following stare you give to a driver who has just committed utter stupidity.
That's because he thinks he's the God of 'correctness'.
@@JohnM... as a driving instructor, he kind of has to be.
Kids not strapped into their seatbelts breaks my heart. Thank you for highlighting this one Ashley. It’s really important that people know how dangerous it actually is. Some time ago I answered a 999 call from a distraught member of the public who had witnessed some kiddies being ejected from a car during a road collision. I’ve taken thousands of 999 calls since but that is one of the few that will stick in my mind forever. I don’t think people realise that even what would be a minor bump can cause serious injuries when seatbelts.
If it had been reported, the kid might not still be free to crush the back of his Dad's skull on his way out of the windscreen.
Its sickening how many people try and get into my private hire taxi and want to have a child on their lap and also overload the taxi with more than 4 passengers when there's only 4 seats for them.
I get abused for looking after their children's safety and refusing to break the law and potentially be responsible for their injuries/death so they can save a few quid.
I used to film car crash testing. We had one test with a dummy in the rear with no seatbelt. In the test they flattened the seat in front, went through the windscreen head first and ended up 20ft in front of the car, wrapped in the windscreen glass like a cloak. Death would have been instant.
As a kid in the 80s when there were cars around without rear seat belts and wearing them if fitted was optional I always wanted to wear one in more modern cars to feel grown up like the people in the front (and the safety thing was kinda obvious too). That's not to say I was adverse to lying on the rear seat when there was no belts...
This also applies to animals on the back seat unsecured. In an accident, they become projectiles!
I'm surprised your local council hasn't set up more red light cameras. With the amount of red light jumpers, they'd make their money back on fines in no time.
Could solve the national debt with red light jumpers in Liverpool!
It will not be done as it would mean a shortage of taxis.
Its Merseyside Police. They dont give a shit. Seen people on Croxteth Hall Lane jump lights right in front of police carsabd they dont act.
The cycnic in me believes red light cameras don't make enough money to justify the installation costs.
They may catch a few of the deliberate and persistant offenders when first installed. But word soon gets around, and then the cameras hardly ever catch anyone. Meanwhile the maintenance and running costs remain, and are simply seen as a drain on the balance sheets.
I thought they were supposed to prevent accidents, not raise revenue?
I like your little dig at 6:00, but you have to bare in mind cycling mikey lost his dad to a drunk driver using his mobile phone, so you can see why he does what he does
@@stuinNorway I was going to say something similar tbh.
Usually I agree with basically everything Ashley says but having watched multiple "gandalf corner" vids I don't think its a fair comparison.
Ashley is safe inside a car and could see the car coming with enough time to hold back and create a safe situation with relative ease. The corner Mikey goes on is a high traffic (vehicles and on foot) blind corner and the people most at risk are the pedestrians who won't be looking that way at the crossing and cyclists and even motorcycles turning the corner correctly who won't expect to come face to face with a car.
Keeping the flow of traffic is all well and good but not at the expense of safety.
You might as well say speeding or running a red is fine if no-one is around because it keeps traffic flowing.
I think its even more clear that the gandalf stop vids that he is only acting due to the inherent danger when when you consider the mobile phone catching vids Mikey also does - they are also very unsafe drivers, surely he would sit in front of the cars till they put the phone down properly if he was only doing it to be facetious? No, he films them and rides on.
Immediately dangerous? = stop it
Generally dangerous and unsafe? Film, report, keep moving
@@stuinNorway would he report a friend. I think not.
Plus many of the drivers he pulls up are 'professional' drivers being paid to drive, even more disgraceful, and why be sanctimonious Ashley ?
He also does his best to antagonise people though, there's no need for some of the scenes he causes so i think thats what ashley is getting at
@@haveabossday I thought he was just holding his ground to make a point. There's far more provocative and antagonistic channels on RUclips. I take your point though.
Dear Ashley, there is a thing called "low cut" sometimes "low cut filter". This thing exists in all types of audio equalizers. If it is not a button or a preset, you can just do it manually with few clicks. Basically you can cut all the sound bellow 100, 200 or even 500 Hz, which will drastically remove a lot of humming and vibrations that your microphone picks up when inside the car. I don't think there is a problem just to throw it for entire project and not only for "in car microphone" moments. I almost never see anyone doing this on youtube, but it is so simple and useful, and these frequencies are absolutely useless outside the music or some movies soundscape.
Anyway =) Just sharing something specific. Keep the good job.
It's called a high pass filter. You won't get the roar of the engine with it on though :P
@@AK-nb6hz high PASS = to pass more highs, low cut = to cut more lows. Basically the same, like half full or half empty ;)
@@LuteciaMark a filter is generally referred to by what it let's past.
High pass
Low pass
Band pass
@@lmaoroflcopter It's both. Though the cut is more appropriate to static filters than adjustable ones.
@@DjDayOnepeople are freakin annoying. I called it right and then added other thing that will help to google it, just in case, to have more context, but they start to argue about the second, ADDITIONAL thing :| I didn't know, but "low cut" in google shows haircuts...yet suggest to specify and add audio, but first link still says "low cut filter", because too many people calling it wrong and everyone just gave up. Not the youtube comments, of course
That justification for being mindful for those types of cyclists is a good one. I think most of those types of cyclists are acting out mainly of fear having had near misses in the past. They feel like they shouldn't be on the pavements (they shouldn't) but they also don't feel welcome on the roads when they get buzzed by motor vehicles or yelled at by less patient folk.
Its a self fulfilling problem. Had the same issue myself 15 years ago getting back in the saddle for the first time since being a kid and it was only after reading through cyclecraft (cycling's version of roadcraft) and forcing myself to taking a more assertive stance on the roads that I finally felt safe doing things like turning right across traffic, etc.
I still have to deal with impatient fknuckles from time to time but coming to terms with the fact that I have every right to be on that road was a big deal, especially when society seems to condition us otherwise.
Fortunately I have no parts of my commute where I need to "turning right across traffic, etc." this scares me because with the way people drive around me, I can imagine getting hit / rear ended.
@@Pattoe You have to think only a psycho actually wants to hit someone and thankfully very few of them are about. They will shout, they will intimidate, they will call you names, you just have to wear a thick skin and ride assertively.
You can be the meekest person on the roads, riding at high risk right in the gutter and never turning right and you will still annoy those idiots. So best just do it as safe as possible and if you need to make that right, signal, pull out like you would in a motorised vehicle and make it. If you have to stop, stop and defend your space so that you don't have cars pushing by you on both sides if you feel it would be dangerous to do so. Its 30 seconds, they'd be waiting there anyway if you were a car so don't worry too much about it.
@@lmaoroflcopter there's surprisingly many of those psychopaths about. The bigger issue though is people who wouldn't deliberately hit you, but don't care if they hit you while trying to pass. They are very common and almost as dangerous
@@georgelane6350 Mate i'm trying to post positive encouraging thoughts to encourage someone who clearly has difficulty reconciling how to ride safe on our roads.
Yes there are arseholes in all walks of life, but putting yourself at risk by riding hesitantly doesn't help, if they'll hit you when you're turning right, they'll hit you when you're in the gutter.
@@lmaoroflcopter sorry if I wasn't very clear. The people who don't care if they do hit you while passing are much more likely to try and pass if you ride in the gutter. Riding centrally protects you from those people
As a cyclist, I can [almost] understand riding on the pavement due to our sadly-lacking cycle infrastructure, but personally I feel safer riding legally on the road rather than cutting in and out of it - which is why I frequently don't use shared cycle/pedestrian paths, as they tend to just peter out at points.
They either peter out or, as is the case with one shared path near me, have you wait at 6 separate pedestrian crossings (must dismount) in order to turn right, and then the path Peters out after 50m anyway. If you ride on the road you need only wait for one change of the lights.
I prefer to stay on the road rather than use shared paths (or even some dedicated cyclepaths that are alongside pedestrians), simply because motorists are more predictable. The one serious crash I've had was due to a dog on an extendable lead running across a cyclepath.
On the other hand cyclists who remain on a road, which narrows onto a corner and then up a steep hill, when a safe cycle path is provided vex me.
@@Thurgosh_OG If you can provide the location I can often give a few reasons why they might not use the cycle path.
Someone was saying something similar the other day about a cycle path near them. I pointed out that to access it involves crossing 4 lanes of traffic and the starting point was down a side turning and that over head branches were down to handle bar height at points and that the path petered down to being only a few inches wide. A dirt strip along a grass verge.
Don't misunderstand me I'm sure this one won't be as bad.
You can predict that alot people will perform terrible overtakes on the road!
@5:50 cracked me up“…I then have a look around to see whether there’s anyone who wants a race….” 😂 Brilliant 👍🏻 Some pretty silly stuff in this one, however for me, the cyclist riding in lane 2 with no hands on the bars was just mental. Someone could hit him and have to deal with the consequences. Not good at all.
Not withstanding all his other appalling riding habits, he may have been foreign and used to being on the right.
@@luvstellauk I can’t even ‘allow’ that either. I’ve spent 36 years driving in U.K. and when I go to Vegas I don’t drive the wrong way up the road, albeit tempting to try 😉 😂 👍🏻
@@luvstellauk or just some bellend in Liverpool. Quite common to see them. Think they own the road and kick off at anyone who takes issue. Normally wearing a balaclava
@@luvstellauk I wouldn't subscribe to the might be foreign theory either. It's pretty obvious which side the traffic drives on when there's a ton of cars about doing just that. I could understand a momentary lapse if there's nothing to reference, but that's just a div being a div.
@@luvstellauk highly doubt it. Like Pedro said, the other cars should be a dead giveaway, but the fact that he's riding with no hands and running the red light shows he's just a prick and doesnt care.
I've been driving for over two years now and learned a lot from your videos. I don't jump lights, use my phone or break speed limits. However, I still make some stupid mistakes sometimes, especially when in unknown areas. So, I would like to thank everyone here who doesn't go ape at someone making a prat of a decision, as it could be me who was driving. I've had to beep my horn once when a car was reversing into my car in a supermarket car park.
I think the main point I'm still trying to improve is being fully aware of what is happening and what could happen. It's a good feeling when something strange happens but I've already prepared and planned for it ahead of time. Thanks :)
We all make mistakes, even if we have been driving a long time.
Don't feel to bad about making a few errors as you're new driver, just be aware of what's going around you as some drivers are completely oblivious to everything.
We all make mistakes, most of the time they're harmless but sometimes we have to have a word with ourselves about what we just did, so there's no need to make things worse for others by 'going ape' - as Ash says, good drivers fix others' mistakes.
@@PedroConejo1939 Ohh, I do have a word with myself. Sometimes I'm beaming red even when I'm alone in the car. A big thanks to everyone who forgives other peoples' errors.
@@paulp458 Unless on a long journey, as I used to travel 250 miles plus to locations to work, I won't even put the radio on. I'm not anti-music I just find I need to concentrate just driving.
I'm not at that level where I can automatically take it all in and multitask. I've not yet hit that level where I can sing along to a bit of Queen and thump the steering wheel in tune with it.
@@martinbobfrank I'm a silent driver too. Sometimes when work is a bit stressful, I have a playlist that allows me to decompress but even that gets switched off at junctions or on the twisties. When I watch some of the crash-bang-wallop channels, it shocks me the kind of stuff people listen to.
The grey pickup truck just casually driving on the pavement around pedestrians was insane! At least sit still until traffic and people clear
Ashley, I honestly don't know how you have the patience to teach new drivers when there is so many bad experienced drivers setting a bad example.
I drive for a living and don't get more than 5 minutes into a shift without seeing something dangerous.
Admittedly, part of the problem is people don't share Ashley's patience. Since I started watching Ashley, I've got myself to be more patient and I've found that my driving's improved, other people's bad driving is much easier to deal with, and the whole experience of driving is substantially less stressful. All this with no notable change to how long it takes to get places
@@goodguykonrad3701 I thought i was the only one. Do you also come to a sanario when driving and when thinking of solutions think of them in Ashley's voice?
Same here John, driving standards have gone down hill massively
I truly believe that a taxi driver is one of those very few professions whereby, the more you do of it, the worse you get!!
I disagree, being one of them myself. Most of us get calmer and safer over time.
The newbies or the ones who rent a car, so only have a set amount of time behind the wheel per day, are the dangerous ones. Owner drivers tend to be a lot safer than your average road user because its their vehicle, their already huge insurance policies and their wear+tear maintenance costs. If they drive mad, they very quickly price themselves off the road.
The ones who drive on someone else's insurance and in someone else's car are the nutters.
@@TheVicar well I stand corrected. Thanks for the useful insights!! As is usually the case, there's more to it than meets the eye.
@@formidable38 No problem. I often have passengers laughing when I say "bloody taxi drivers" when I comment on other taxis doing bad stuff.
Exactly
4:55 (#9) Even a high-viz is no replacement for proper lighting (and reflectors, also in the pedals). Very clear from this video, it seems that the high-viz has lost some of its reflective value if it is a reflective one in the first place. Budget vs. safety, budget always wins.
HiViz Yellow/Orange is for Daylight, If they have reflective they are good at night, don't forget Ashley's dipped headlamps are biased towards the nearside and it is dusk which is the worst kind of light. the cyclist is obviously missing the required lights.
Another fail and I wish I had a rear cam: I was driving along an A road at 60mph and I notice the car behind me had been tailgating me for ages. I couldn't even see his number plate in my mirror. About 10 minutes later, I slow down on an approach to queuing traffic and I hear tires squealing behind me. The idiot tailgater had to perform an emergency stop and swerve into the oncoming lane to avoid hitting me. He was also probably looking at his phone at the moment I slowed. From then on, he stayed about 100 meters behind me. I hope he learned his lesson not to tailgate.
They will have learnt not to tailgate you, the next car- back in the bumper guaranteed.
in those situations it is best to pull in or take a full loop around a roundabout to let them go past.
@@henryginn7490 I actually did that at the next roundabout. He was keeping his distance after the emergency break but I was concerned his lesson would be quickly forgotten.
Wow, I never thought I'd see Ash take a wee pop at CyclingMikey!
The red-light jumpers have always made me more cautious when the lights change now, always a quick left and right check before going through the junction.
Also the mobile phone at the wheel is only getting worse by the day, it's every other car now, and it's not up to their ears anymore it's on the wheel in their hand looking down at it which to me is even more dangerous. It's insane and something needs to be done.
I know it's a technical thing to do e.g. for a test but I am curious about 4:20 - you say to indicate to pull away but you can see in the previous 10 seconds of footage there are no cars coming either way, so who are you indicating to? The DPD van doesn't appear for another few seconds and wouldn't be able to see, let alone be looking for, an indicator. I always check mirrors and indicate if there are people coming, but if the road is empty, I don't bother because I am not indicating to anyone that I am doing anything
ohh - a sneeky reference there to CylingMike ... I think there's room in the world for both approaches of improving driving. One just keeps traffic flowing, while it's flowing, the other actually educates drivers, at a small cost to flow ... (or large cost if the driver is very determined to not learn). The thing is, Mike rarely does it in traffic that's flowing (that's usually the problem and why people are jumping) so I don't see why he shouldn't stand out.
My way of looking at it is, if drivers get away with it, they will just do it again. You can often see on Mikey's videos, how they pull out well before the junction with every intention of passing on the wrong side right from the start.
Ashley says "something needs to be done" with the red light jumper. Andy Cox, UK head of road policing would say that the something is people with dashcams reporting things. I know it a load of time and effort and I don't do it myself, but that's the direction the "strategy" is looking at.
the question is whether it actually improves their behavior, or just makes them more inclined to be confrontational next time.
@@kenbrown2808 I believe most people shamed for their actions through having their illegal/poor driving posted to RUclips by Mikey, would not wish to be shamed again. That and any fines/points on their licences should have an overall positive effect.
@@roaduser6438 you're assuming they have shame. also, there are those for whom "fine" means legal for a fee. they may be affected if their license gets pulled, but some aren't even deterred by that.
and my point is, if they're stubborn enough to drive in the wrong lane to run a red light, they're too stubborn to be deterred by being in a shouting match with a youtuber. just look at other dashcam channels where the cammer comes in and defends their bad driving in the face of the viewers calling them out. even Ashley occasionally has submitters refusing to learn from his lessons.
People's lane discipline is one of the first indicators I have of how bad of a driver they are and likelihood they're going to do something stupid. Even if I hadn't noticed the BMW on his phone the first instance he went over the line... id be staying well away
I know cars are wide these days, but some drivers seem to think they're pushing 3 metres. I often wonder why these people choose big cars, but maybe they feel protected from their poor driving.
11.53
Motorist and cyclist like you, Ashley.
Hopefully I'm not in need of much education but all of us have to be learning all the time (42 years after passing the test).
Irresponsible people (which could be us if we stop concentrating) are the cause of so much hassle, regardless of how many wheels we're using at the time.
Your videos have been an great encouragement in both my driving and cycling road skills.
Why does it have to be a competition? Most cyclists have driving licences and most car drivers can ride a bike.
I've had brilliant and increasing acknowledgement from car drivers while on my bike in the North of Scotland roads I cycle and have been increasingly conscious of bikes since returning to driving after a medical ban which put me firmly on the bike for nine months.
Courtesy and thoughtfulness , are our only weapons!
Lets arm ourselves with these.
Ashley - at some point could you do a video about the correct distance to drive past someone before pulling back in when overtaking on a motorway? My personal bugbear is people who pull in way too soon (I've coined this "headgating"), but I'm worried I might overcompensate and leave it too late sometimes.
I generally wait until I can see the whole of the front of the vehicle I’ve passed in my rear view mirror.
That gives a reasonable distance which should be growing and continuing to grow unless they start playing silly buggers.
If you are driving faster than the car you are overtaking even a millimetre is enough to ensure you don't crash into them. Simple physics. Bearing in mind that the majority of motorway drivers see no need to pull back to the left or DRIVING lane when they have finished overtaking and therefore don't use their mirrors anywhere near as often as they should do and that becomes a bad habit to fall into. If you don't practice these things you will not know how much space you need to pull back in
5:52 Having found someone who looks like they want a race, he presses his quicksave button before starting just in case it goes horribly wrong
I have been driving for many years. I was licenced to drive most vehicles including buses and coaches. One thing I do not do while driving is have the radio on. I like to keep my mind totally on my driving and I like complete silence when I am driving.
Yep, some terrible driving, pedestrianing and cycling there! The rider at 4:50 needs lights, high-viz is no use in the dark. But it's worth noting that even with the old-school orange sodium lights, they are still visible. As visible as a pedestrian in the road would be, but only if you are driving carefully and paying attention.
Clip 9 4:35 Wearing HiViz is useless after dusk. HiViz only works in daylight. For night-time you need something that us Retro-reflective. On my motorcycle I have a 'Casper Jacket' that I wear over my motorcycle jacket. It is 100% reflective.
5:17 do those cats eyes light up for lanes or is it cars headlights reflecting in them?
Those appear to be lights. I have never seen that before.
Cracking video ash, I have no clue why so many people can’t put there phone down but as you say it’s up to us as drivers to deal with it. I’m trying harder to pick up on signs that drivers give as sometimes I’ll miss obvious ones and it’s so frustrating.
I wasn't aware high end German cars came with indicators. Still you learn something new every day.
Good video as usual Ashley. I found the high vis cyclist one interesting. Just proves that it's lights that are crucial (and legally required) in the dark and clothing is practically irrelevant. Those that bang on about cyclists not wearing high vis need to see that video. I don't wear high vis but my clothing has certified reflective patches and I'm lit up like a Christmas tree. Much more effective than a bright yellow jacket that's almost invisible in the dark.
I suspect there are many people both cyclists and pedestrians, that don't realise even on a well lit street, how invisible they are.
where I am, it's not high viz unless it has a required minimum of reflective stripes.
It's one of the reasons I ride with lights even the day, there's plenty of country roads that have overhanging branches so are dimly lit. A crisp alternatively flashing light (not one that strobes quickly), is much more likely to catch a drivers attention than a yellow vest.
Ah, the jab at Cycling Mikey. 😭😂
Better infrastructure for cyclists and pedestrians would be a huge benefit for drivers too - we should all be fighting for it.
Some entertaining gems in this one, and a couple of reminders of incidents.
Clip 13, child with no seat belt. At a set of lights, ahead of me was a Peugeot 106, with four youngsters in it. The female passenger in the rear, right hand side, was very animated, not wearing a seat belt, and actually making the stationary car rock. The driver must have mentioned that there was a learner car behind (AA car at the time, so lots of yellow). The girl turned around, and I just gestured, by stretching out my belt and returning it to snug. She dismissed that with a disdainful wave, as the car moved off. Like a lot of young drivers, the move away was a bit abrupt, which set her back into her seat with a bump. Moments later, as we've travelled only a few car lengths to the back of the next queue, driver, distracted by his passengers, and perhaps by me following, braked late and firmly. Girl shot forward, hitting her right cheek against the front head restraint. Made me go cold, as I thought she might have cracked her neck. She sat up, thankfully, and once again turned to look at me. I stretched my seat belt again, and got another dismissive reply from her. She could have been dead, but still did not see the need to put her belt on.
A happier incident, with a pupil on test. Like clip 19, a cyclist appeared from a pathway to the left, swerved to travel along the footpath beside my pupil. She slowed to put him ahead, and kept speed low, as she could not get ahead due to traffic. Cyclist dropped off the pavement without looking, and the only reaction from my pupil was a 'tut', as otherwise it was under control. Then cyclist returned to the pavement, and repeated this 3 more times. Then my pupil said to the examiner, "If he does that again, can I squash him?" The examiner had to bite his lip to prevent laughter, and replied, "I understand the sentiment, but probably best not."
She passed her test. There were other 'light' incidents and the examiner said it was the most enjoyable test he'd conducted. I was not sitting in, examiner told me the story.
I like the quick compilation clips..nice one Ashley
This is a key one that people always miss. Don't go beyond the line unless you can completely clear [whatever you're clearing]. I'm always seeing people left stranded at junctions, roundabouts etc blocking the road because they were desperate to go without looking ahead
I was behind someone the other day at traffic lights, in the right turn lane of the main road (two lane dual carriageway, 30mph) through town, at rush hour.
They wouldn't advance past the stop line because there was on-coming traffic. Guess what? When there was no on-coming traffic, the light was red!
I stopped counting the number of light cycles once I got to 4 😶 and went straight on instead.
This has probably been asked before but do you send in the clear road violations to the Police for action? I've used it once when an elderly man in a mobility scooter on a side road, drove out onto the main road without looking. We did an emergency stop and narrowly avoided him as did the car coming the other way. The Police did find out who he was and visited him in his residential home. he was warned to not do that again or face a road ban on him driving mobility scooters.
Regarding the cyclist at dusk. It’s worth knowing that HiViz only works at day time when there is daylight to make the clothing more visible. Once it gets dusk having clothing with reflective patterns works much better. I carry two jackets. A red one for day as that works well in urban and rural. And a jacket with reflective decals for night.
I actually think dark clothing is more visibly in the day Hiviz doesn't actually work at all. because of the sheer number of people and over items in Hiviz it doesn't register in peoples mind. my pink cycle top works the best because it looks unusual`
@@flemit35 Agreed. There’s a study somewhere that makes an observation that due to the plethora of HiViz the brain actually filters out it’s presence. The trick is to wear contrasting colours to your environment. Many motorists need to be actively observing their environment instead of falling into autopilot.
I got pulled over by the cops many years ago. The cops says “ do you know why I pulled you over sir”, I genuinely had no idea. Look behind you he says. My daughter, who was maybe 5 or 6, had taken off her seat belt and was standing up behind me. Lesson learned.
Did you not once use your rear view mirror?
There are these incredible new inventions called 'mirrors'. I hear that all the cool kids regularly look in them :D
@@MrJohnny3shoes if she was behind him, she may have been out of the field of view, especially if her seat was directly behind the driver's seat.
that said, I remember when the slogan was "babies in the back seat cause accidents (because the driver is distracted by monitoring the back seat) and accidents in the back seat cause babies"
That was very common for kids to do that many years ago. The first thing a kid so young would do is squeeze in between the driver and passenger seat, or stand up on the back seat to look out the back window. I cannot understand how a driver could not see the kid.
@@MrJohnny3shoes The clue was in my comment. The Police pulled me over, so yes, I saw the cops in my rear view mirror but not my daughter, because she was directly behind my seat.
Imagine getting annoyed being stuck behind a learner and forgetting you were in their shoes once, can you imagine
If they think about it, the thought is "I had to put up with people arseholes when I was learning, so now it's my turn to be an arsehole"
Out of interest, what is your opinion of Cyclingmikey at Gandalf Corner, as you mentioned it?
Myself I think he should just video those who go right of the keep left sign, let them go on their way and report them to the MET later. By stopping them he inconveniences them but often also inconveniences other innocent road uses. Let the fines or driving courses these drivers receive be the inconvenience
@@BigDavie2000 .
If they are not stopped, they will do it again, such drivers are dangerous both to cyclists turning onto that road or pedestrians crossing it.
4:43 Wear all the high-viz you want, I personally don't think it helps, but lights...come on people.
I’m not sure I would’ve moved at 2:25 noticing how he was holding speed towards the lights. Not really worth the potential of them being distracted and ploughing straight into you.
Also the chance someone behind you not paying attention setting off without seeing you stopped that quickly.
These are probably the same messages you would give to your pupils.
Ashley, the 4x4 @ 7:21 (on your offside) made a great job of missing the kerb........Not !!!!
Interesting to see the same old junctions appear on your films - good evidence for areas that Liverpool Council should redesign to make things safer. 'Sustainable safety' is the name for the Dutch approach to road design. Engineering first.
As a cyclist and a driver, I see a lot of red light jumping, and in my experience it's mostly drivers, not cyclists, who do it. It winds me up no matter who does it!
I'm a cyclist and a driver. I commute 16 miles by cycle to work and back daily in Manchester. Cyclists are far more likely to jump red lights than car drivers. Perhaps some car drivers go thru a second after a light has turned but in my experience 80% of cyclists on the Oxford Road corridor will go through a pedestrian crossing on solid red (if no-one is crossing in front of them) and about half go thru junctions on red if they think there is nothing coming (most often if they pedestrian lights are on green). For Deliveroo cyclists those numbers are as close to 100% as makes no difference.
Now a cyclist shooting a light in a 15kg bike is generally putting their own life on the line only, whereas a driver in a 1-2 tonne car is doing something much more dangerous, but to claim that cars are more likely to go through lights on red than cyclists is a pretty ridiculous statement in my experience.
@@andymcnish it's my experience. I don't live in a city. YMMV.
Interesting that so many of the comments are about cyclists despite some of the absolutely woeful driving on show.
Clip 15 (8:58) was the most disturbing for me. That pickup driving along the pavement where pedestrians were walking was potentially lethal.
I thought it looked dodgy, pickup parked partially on the pavement where women are walking.. Just edging forwards so it looks like they are pulling away yet staying within a short distance. Maybe she was with him and got out because of his driving?
Absolutely agree. I don't they knew the car was behind them (or didn't care). The truck did an amazing job not pulling out.
@@WhiteDieselShed Yeah, I thought that was a bit suspicious too.
Some very good points made Ashley!
No theory test, no practical test, no registration, and no insurance - no wonder many cyclists feel empowered by the new H C priorities!
My pet hate is drivers who park facing the oncoming traffic albeit in a safe refuge.
Not all cyclists are the same. I have gone through a theory test, two practical tests, and one professional observation, and I am independently insured for my bike. I would love for cycling awareness to be part of all driving tests and for anyone wanting to travel using road infrastructure by bike to have to complete a training day.
3:19 I hope you have a good explanation of what you just threw out of the window
I've only just come across this channel and coming from a profession where accidents are analysed and reported on so that we canals learn from them I find Ashley's analysis of accidents and near misses very interesting. I just wish there was more accident reporting and analysis available as I have sometimes seen the aftermath of accidents, fortunately only ever having witnessed one, and wondered how on earth they occured.
I saw the aftermath of what must only have been a sleeping driver who had left a completely straight and adequate road (the M1) and had driven through a roadside sign about 10 feet off the side bank. I still can't figure out why anyone would want to drive on the grass rather than the tarmac
07:20 - did you spot the car mounting the kerb?
clip 5, 2:01, why stop so far back from the lane you want to enter when you turn right?. This may prevent traffic behind getting through the traffic lights behind you. Is to give a path for emergency vehicles coming from you left or right or visibility of oncoming traffic? I think some teaching was required a bit earlier on in clip 15, going for the overtake with a lorry coming from the right. Perhaps at at 11:30 there was a good opportunity and reason for using the horn
The child loose in the car, I had this happen so many times with my grandson, he just would not stop undoing the harness. I have had my son come and pick him up along the way, as I just could not stop him!!!! He is 16 now, so not a problem!!
11:20 with the new rules a driver of a car could easily be fined / prosecuted for dangerous driving due to being so close to the cyclist
But shouldnt the cyclist be equally prosecuted for dangerous cycling?
Surely cyclist should be accountable for their actions as well
The Spandex clothes provides them superpowers and extra protection from cars also makes them immune to accidents
On a serious they don't really comprehend that 1.5tone car hurts when getting hit by one
100kg of exposed human isn’t as dangerous as a tonne of metal. Without due care would be entirely appropriate, and should absolutely stop them getting their hands on a motor vehicle. There are idiots using all forms of transport, but I’d rather they were walking or cycling than driving…
I believe it's referred to as ''wanton & reckless riding?'' I also believe the 'wanton & reckless'' thing was originally associated with horse riders, and came about in mid-Victorian times? As always, the problem is, gathering the right amount of evidence? Plus, folk actually being 'bothered' to go through with it all?
Bicycles are vehicles being used on a public highway. They should be licensed and registered, those operating the vehicle should prove they are fit to perform to a certain agreed standard. But cyclists don't agree and think that sort of behaviour is either a) totally fine or b) "but we're not all like that mate".
If I drove my car down the pavement past a red light with no hands on the wheel and not even a touch on the brake? Banned, possibly jailed. If I hit something my insurer would want my kidneys.
Cyclists do that every day in life and it's fine. Even a motorbike or petrol scooter being ridden like that would result in criminal proceedings.
Once witnessed a collision between cyclist and elderly pedestrian, it wasn't a nice thing to witness.
@@mxbx307 exactly right. People think that bikes are completely above the law and they can do whatever they want.
Red light, pavenents, wrong side of the road who cares. The laws are just guidelines, everyone bow before me.
Until they have license plates, every complaint to the police will be. It was someone in blue on a orange bike and then ignored by the police.
You talk about risk. As a (now retired) driving instructor, I would always remind my students to keep both hands on the wheel no lower than half-way up, to maintain proper control should potholes try to move the wheel. Of course you should remove one hand for the minimum period needed to perform some action such as changing gear - you certainly shouldn't drive along caressing the gear knob as if it were your best friend.
Kudos for seeing the red light jumper at 2.26, many of us would have not been watching out for that.
Love the reference to Gandalf corner, what are your thoughts on Mikey Ashley?
Re cyclist clip. It is all well and good having a high vis on, or as I saw the other night a Deliveroo high vis. But I stopped and spoke with him off (off duty pc) as he almost got flattened by a Range Rover and had stopped himself and seemed shaken up. Need front and rear lights after sunset. He pointed to his reflectors and thought they counted. He was very nice and said he would buy some.
Especially in London on side roads with parked cars everywhere, it can be almost impossible to see them.
Yep. And don't forget that (as any dashcam owner will tell you) the scene would have appeared a lot darker to the naked eye than it appears in the video.
2:24 flashing his lights like a police car 🚓🤣
@Tim Oops, I'll have to remember that! Still gave me a chuckle.
Thats just the running lights.
Idk why cameras make them flash like that.....
Hi, for clip #20, I find that this situation mostly happens when I drive along the major road. Is the driver better not to turn left from the minor road when someone approaches near the junction on the major road? Thanks.
Let's give the driver in the fourth clip a break. Poor guy really need to contact his wife's boyfriend about something, or there will be consequences.
@@madisntit6547 TAKE MY WIFE'S NAME OUTTA YOUR F**CKIN MOUTH!
If that were the case why didn't he just stop and make the call? The result there is no points and no fine and Ashley is a happy man
That switch island junction! Happens to me all the time on my way to work. Lorries are the worst for it but I’ve seen a couple of other cars block it too
Commentary in clip no 10 is well amusing 😆. Additionally the manuver carried out by the Mercedes in the next clip is a pet peave of mine. The sheer ignorance it takes to go up the wrong side of the road to shave, what, 30 seconds off your journey? All while you can't physically see the junction you're turning into. The amount of times I've nearly been run over by people doing this is beyond a joke 🙃
I nearly peed when you said 'i look around to see if anyone wants a race'.
@Ashley Neal. Did you win the race at switch island after you'd saved the clip? 😁
7:20 that car pulling out from the right completely misjudged that corner and banged over the kerb 🤣
Hi Ashley, I've really enjoyed your videos and use them as a way to take a more critical approach to my own driving. I wonder if you'd consider commenting on Cyclingmikey's actions at Gandalf corner. From your comment in this video it seems you disapprove of his response, and I'm interested to know what your thoughts are. My guess is that while his actions may well result in the catching and reporting of many dangerous drivers, you disapprove of the vigilante way in which he does it? Look forward to more content.
I noticed the reference too and that’s a good question👍
I felt the same way. It is interesting that Ashley seems to be against his actions yet wishes someone would do something about the red light jumpers, which is part of what CyclingMikey does, and I've never heard ashley actually report any of the rlj despite catching them on video and having their number plates in view often. Happy to be corrected though, if he's been reporting them without talking about it
Mikey should just let them through and report them , blocking the road is just making things worse if cars are oncoming. Can see on some of his videos they end up mounting the curb to get through if a stubborn driver is not moving back. Stupid way to prove a point.
@@user-de1ey8hc5o there is debate as to whether he can legally walk out and stop them as he’s not a police officer
@@user-de1ey8hc5o I disagree, as the whole reason he is doing it is due to previous collisions between cyclists turning left around the corner and having head on crashes with cars on the wrong side of the road, where they are not expected to be. If he just let them pass and reported them, the collisions would still happen much more often than if he stopped them. Yes those mounting the curb are dangerous, but they are going the right way so are unlikely to have head on collisions with vulnerable road users
There's 'a cyclist', then there's 'someone on a bike'. I tend to class cyclists as those who are committed to cycling in a safe and decent manner, with lights and a helmet. Everyone else is just on a bike to get somewhere and they almost don't class themselves as road-users, rather, they're just 'using the road'.
What on earth does a helmet have to with anything? Lights are only legally required in the hours of darkness, but they’re very effective in any reduced light situation.
Basically all cyclists are “just trying to get somewhere” (though sports cyclists might be getting to where they started).
@@JohnR31415 I know there's debate about the effectiveness of helmets. I choose to wear one because it's likely to protect my head if it comes into contact with something. Basic physics. My comment about wanting to get somewhere is to emphasise that many people on bikes aren't concerned with HOW they ride to where they're going. However, cyclists like myself (I'm also a driver too) ensure I look after myself and others.
@@IWOKEAGIANT not wearing a helmet is not not looking after yourself. Not buying volcano insurance is taking unnecessary risk. I dont drive like the Dakar or cycle like the TT....or lived within 1000 miles of any volcanic eruption.
I've nothing against wearing a helmet but im not doing it just so someone else feels better.
@@mikewade777 That's your call, I'm not telling anyone to wear one. I'm also not looking to argue with anyone about it.
You're absolutely correct and I thought there'd be a load of comments about the cyclists in the feed, everyone loves to hate the cyclists these days.
The audi at 0:37 actually had their indicator on. Wonder if their steering made it turn off automatically, and they didn't notice it did?
What’s happening with the lights on the red light jumper in clip 5?
Is it just the camera or are they actually flashing..?
In your opinion are driving standards getting worse or are they just more visible because of the number of drivers with camera's?
Clip 3 0:31 I don't think the problem was lack of ability to steer. I suspect he/she didn't anticipated cars going into his street. He wanted to go right and was already going in that direction. Doesn't make it any better though.
Re the child with no seat-belt , i once saw a child approx 3yrs old unrestrained on the front seat passengers lap , they were waiting at a junction I challenged them about it took the registration number and called the police .
I am trying to stop using the horn, but I definitely would have given the Qashqai @2:26 a blast. Red light jumpers stopping right-turners from clearing the junction are a scourge. Also, I am surprised you didn't advise a warning toot before passing the pavement pickup @9:30. That driver was clearly not focussed on the road, and I would have been concerned they were going to do a sudden U-turn
2:25 wot, no horn for this driver to warn of your presence like you did for the cyclist in a similar clip at this junction? 😉
5:07 the commentary on this one was epic 🤣🤣
8:00 Once next to me at the traffic light was a car, in the back seat, two children were jumping around. On the front seat a box of china wrapped in and tugged with a towel or blanket.
"Look," I said to my passenger, "Those cups are more valuable than the kids."
It was summer, and the windows were down. The driver overheard this and if looks could burst a tire, I had four flats that instant.
High vis does nothing if you're in a dark environment. It can only reflect light that's already there. That is why you need lights on your bike. You can get them very cheap or even for free. I've had multiple bike lights given for free, they will often be offered just for browsing in an independent cycle shop and having a chat with the staff.
There was one time where a group of chavs threatened to 'smash my face in' as I was waiting at a red light because the light on my bicycle was hurting their eyes and they demanded I turn it off.
I told them I'd rather be better off in a fight with a person than being hit by a car, and refused to turn my lights off.
Hmm? When cars headlights shine on high vis jacket the light reflects. Thats the whole point. Unless you're talking about having a light pointing at yourself but that would be stupid
@@David_Trowbridge In dark conditions high vis does nothing.
As we saw in this clip, the car's headlights did not spot the cyclist until they were already pretty close.
I am talking about pointing a light outwards, towards the traffic, just how cyclists use lights.
Assuming I was talking about pointing a light at myself would be stupid.
Clip 10, video and commentary, top draw 👌
Perhaps all new traffic light installations should come with built in cameras to detect jumpers? would pay for the new lights in no time!
Might have been late (school) but I know this fail video is going to be great
That junction by the tescos_ opposite flow of traffic heading towards each other on the same lights is a bit bonkers?
Hey Ashley I was wondering you could do another merge in turn in video or look at a familiar merge in turn I encounter on my trips. I always question myself every time I approach it
12:28 what was really wrong with that she was on her side of the road the entire time?
Clip 20, as a trucker, I note the different heigh marks on the bridge.
No all bridges like this are on straight roads, & where I learnt (Lincs) one was on an S bend, in the middle of the S. You May experience a truck in the middle of the road, to fit under the centre of the arch!
On spotting cyclists at night. Was driving over the Belfast hills at night with my GF of the time. She was driving. Coming round a tight bend marked with red reflectors she suddenly slammed the brake pedal down and I got whacked by the seat belt. What she seen only at the last second was one of the red reflectors was moving relative to the others. That was the only indication there was a cyclist there. No lights, dark clothes, black wooly hat, just the reflector that saved him from being rear ended at 40mph. Good save!
Clip 12 and intelligent prediction.
I failed a test (quite rightly, I reluctantly agree) one mid afternoon with very low sun…
Had been driving toward the sun and was using the sun visor. Approaching a pub shortly after afternoon closing (yes I’m old!!!) with roadworks blocking half the road by the carpark entrance & a junction to the left opposite the carpark entrance, the sun visor blocked my view of the temporary lights, which were unfortunately red. Were the green I would have passed my test, as that was the only mark on the sheet, and nearing the end of the test. However, I wouldn’t have learnt to flip that visor up when I don’t need it, and may then have gone on to have a serious/fatal collision in similar circs!
Bad experiences are good learning points
Clip 15 - sorry what the hell is that pickup playing at?
You really do have a red light problem down there. I live up north but I travel down a fair amount for work and the driving standards seem to degrade the further south you get. Guess it's the side affect of a lot of dual carriageway roads with lots of X roads on them and impatient people trying to jump ahead further.
Try driving anywhere just outside the M25. Absolute pandemonium.
I used to live in East Anglia. My experience was that drivers in Suffolk were just plain bad - slow, all over the road, not signalling properly, abuse Give Way and so on. In the larger towns there were chavs in modded cars who just treated the roads as their own and f--k everyone else.
In Essex it was so aggressive, they treated everything like a race and you always had someone up your arse or driving totally not for the conditions. It's raining with 20m visibility? No problem, 80mph overtake it is.
The M25 is also just a racetrack for rich chavs with beemers, tuned Mercs and big performance SUVs like Range Rovers. And in Hertfordshire it's more rich chavs, this time in the likes of convertibles.
Try driving in other countries. It's not perfect in the UK but it's a lot better than most other countries.
I think the editing may have gone wrong here 1:05 is the x supposed to be on the person?
Re clip 1, I was in a Large truck going over a narrow humpbacked bridge with a blind bend at the opposite end. Signs on both sides’ approach read “ONCOMING VEHICLES IN MIDDLE OF ROAD”, which I was to discourage attempts to pass unsafely!
Having waited for visible oncoming traffic to pass, I entered the bridge dominating, and was approx 1/4 across when a red ford came hoofing round the blind bend at the other end (50mph limit at the time, this was 2003), and despite us both hitting the brakes we met, with me still My side of the middle.
The other vehicle was a write off, the other driver initially messy scared, until I twice asked if they were hurt, and when they said no, they relaxed when I said, “That’s the main thing, everything else will get sorted by insurance, but it’s great you’re not hurt.”
Police were called (not by either of us) but NFAd, I answered questions correctly, (“Why were you in the middle of the road?” “Its a big vehicle, and not enough room to pass.”), and the other driver had obviously suffered by losing their car.
I mostly private hire drive in the Greater Manchester area, but frequently use Merseyside roads and Lancashire roads also. Is their a link/portal where you can report and upload bad driving footage to the police, or is it just about reporting to each borough's police force?
Same thing happend to me the other day as in clip 5. Been learning to drive a larger vehicle and someone sped through the lights after it had been red for at least 2 seconds. Honestly amazes me how people will happily put themselves in danger
Clip 5 is a masterclass in making something potentially massive into a non-event.
Clip5, would this not be a fail on a driving test what you did when the car jumped the red? Would you only go if and when safe to...
Clip 9, I’m guessing that jacket is an oldish dayglow yellow wid/showerproof jacket, no reflective material showing.
That only works with UV light about. Hours of darkness / late dusk, that’s what it looks like; invisible
I’d have gone through the junction blocked by the lorry Ashley. It wasn’t a box junction, and the traffic would move in due course. Am I wrong? Your advice is welcome…
Not just behind Learners Ashley; I do the limit and they often sit up my rear then fly past only to get stuck just up the road and I catch them up anyway.
Hi Ash, is it also considered a driving fail when there is a car in a parking stall and all the spaces are filled up on the whole block. So this one car has rear lights on and looks like he will be backing out shortly but he doesn't and just sits there not thinking that somebody wants that parking space. So I drive around the block 2 times and waiting for him to back out. Get this, by the third around there is a car coming from the other direction. Right when I saw this car I knew what was going to happen next. Yep that car got the parking spaces I was waiting on. I had to drive around 2 blocks to get in the opposite direction so I had could parallel park on the Right side of the road.
its nice to see a good driver who cares for once, kudos!