Thursday, 8 November 2012

Bradley Wiggins and the People's Court


Tour de France  winner, Bradley Wiggins was thrown off his bike when a white Vauxhall Astra Envoy is thought to have pulled out of a petrol station and collided with him. His injuries were thought to be very serious at first, but later it appeared he suffered a number of broken ribs and cuts and bruises.

Wiggins' accident has sparked a flurry of comments on Twitter -- some sympathetic, others highlighting the dangers cyclists face on the road, or the risk they pose to other road users if they don't ride responsibly.

I wonder how much blame attaches to the driver in such a case.  On the face of it the driver entering a junction is obviously in the wrong. You just shouldn’t pull out until you can see your way is clear. But can there any extenuating circumstances? Perhaps at subconscious level some drivers just don’t register a bicycle as a fully authentic road user. In other words: if it’s not a car or bus they just don’t ‘see’ it.

Maybe a defence lawyer might argue that that Bradley (world’s fastest man on two wheels) was travelling faster than a motorist might have reasonably expected.  But I don’t really think that defence would stand up.


So, my sympathies lie completely with poor Bradley and Britain’s cyclists. Therefore: GUILTY and 6 points on her licence.....

Next case.......

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