Birmingham by Bike - Yet another cyclist killed

[@susannestait3437]

Stuart was a friend of ours. A life senselessly lost and a beautiful family left devastated. I can't even express how sad, heartbroken and angry we are. Thank you for bringing it to the point in this video, John.

[@johnjmunro]

I am so very sorry. I am so sad that this has happened again in our city, and so angry at the comfort level so many people in positions of power seem to have with such a terrible result of their policy decisions. My very sincere condolences.

[@shahan1465]

No bike lane in birmingham

[@johnjmunro]

@@shahan1465 That pretty much sums it up.

[@lunadrurie6686]

This makes me feel so angry and upset. Thank you so much for highlighting, I don't understand how people continue to accept such horrible infrastructure. Apart from the obvious danger it's such an ugly and noisy place!

[@johnjmunro]

Thank you for saying this. I totally agree, we shouldn't accept this infrastructure or the vandalism of our public space it represents, not least in the middle of a residential neighborhood.

[@philipeddington6282]

This junction is very poor. I don't think I've ridden it. I've driven over it many times but never have I seen a cyclist on it until now. I'm much less keen to ride in the city on my own than I used to be too.

[@andy654shaz]

We need good quality cycle lanes / infrastructure I would like to give a thumbs up to Coventry council with there effort on cycle lanes

[@philipeddington6282]

Birmingham is increasing its cycle infrastructure quite a bit but the driver standards are frankly sickening

[@davidyoung9561]

Birmingham is a horrible place in general.

[@Sonya_Makepeace]

That really is a death race track. I am now a cyclist, after selling my car. Have been using my bike now for six weeks. no accidents yet, but I'm in Cambridge, so plenty of cycling infrastructure here.

[@karenriley3840]

Just sickening. Cyclists/Pedestrians have no chance in Birmingham.

[@johnjmunro]

Sickening it is. So unfair that the powers that be in Birmingham have decided to endanger people who choose the most efficient, green, accessible, and affordable ways to get around.

[@JohnVieto]

@@johnjmunro Yeah but they don't care about that! Cyclists don't generate any money cars and lorries and buses do that. It'll never change as the car will always be King. You either accept it or give up cycling as it will never change in fact the roads will get busier.

[@dtz1000]

​@@JohnVieto This junction is horrific. But in London where I'm from they care too much and have gone the opposite direction. They seem to hate cars over here. I'm surprised Labour are so different in Birmingham.

[@goki22]

@@dtz1000I know I think people in London are different. Birmingham was built with cars in mind so the population generally does not like to give up that privilege. But if people who prefer walking and cycling join up and become a strong voice then opinion can change (like it did in London maybe)

[@holesinthenarrative816]

Agree with you 100% thank you for raising this issue. What about starting a petition? Don't quite understand the Palestine reference though.

[@alexwright4930]

That is a ridiculously dangerous junction. Think I've mostly only been on a bus when I'm in that area and hadn't noticed.

[@johnjmunro]

Thanks for the comment. I know what you mean. I think standards have been so low for so long in terms of provision for people walking, cycling, and using public transport that we've become somewhat used to it. But on the more hopeful side, it feels like more and more people are demanding something better.

[@philipeddington6282]

Great video John. Very sad these events are happening way too often

[@fionakessedjian3817]

Thank you John for recording this to raise awareness and the need for safety. It’s heartbreaking that this man was killed and by someone driving dangerously. I wouldn’t feel safe to cycle in this area - in fact even driving there is very dangerous! 🇵🇸

[@frogandspanner]

My brother is a civil engineer, involved in road safety for a local government where there are more bikes. The problem he has is that even when small changes would improve safety the cost is prohibitive. But as that road is one-way it would be relatively easy to make it bike and pedestrian friendly. It wasn't as bad 20 years ago, but they have decided to worsen it. But as it is I'd need a pint or two in the White Swan before attempting it.

[@johnjmunro]

I was just in Glasgow, and was pretty impressed with the improvements they're making there. Somehow they've managed to muster the political will to make some noteable improvements for people travelling without cars. I've lived in the UK for 5 years, but I've also heard others confirm your sense that it has gotten worse, with more cars and each year's model bigger than the last. Might have to consider your White Swan suggestion.

[@ianclose123]

I think you'll find that the reason the mayor and both Labour and Conservatives sided with motorists is because Birmingham Council is absolutely bankrupt and keeping the dangerous status quo is cheaper than saving lives. It has nothing to do with principles because that would imply they have principles.

[@bonjovi1612]

Was a committed roadie since my teens. Rode everywhere I lived, even in and out of London. There was the occasional k.nob but I let it go. Then about 15 years ago something changed. It was actually other cyclists, younger cyclists that made me aware. I had been busy with my two infants and then my wife bought me a new bike. I went out and within a few miles I met a couple of young cyclists, I was 50. I waved hi and rode on. A few minutes later they rode past me with smirks on their faces sitting bolt upright and made a comment about having faster wheels. I sat up and looked at them. Basically wtf! I just eased up totally and let them go. Not long after I realised that car drivers were getting really really arsey at me, lots of fingers etc. Suddenly it wasn’t fun anymore, I felt like I had a target and found myself being pushed into the hedge a lot. I was gutted. I kept going for a few years but after one particular incident where a big guy half my age intending serious harm in front a cyclist cafe tried to get me while the others all looked the other way I knew I was done. Interestingly about five years ago I had the opportunity to ride in France. Completely different. I just felt safe straight away. I was given plenty of room, lots of waves and pleasantries. It was wonderful. The French love cycling and cyclists. The UK want to murder them. And they do. And they get away with it too.

[@johnjmunro]

Sounds like a series of tough experiences, which I'm really sorry to hear about. And you're certainly right about how different it can be elsewhere. The comparison can be depressing.

[@dtz1000]

It's probably happening because you're riding too slowly. There's lots of hills in London that makes cyclists slow to a crawl and that could be frustrating for drivers.

[@petergibson7287]

Fifteen years ago, something changed? So, about the time Farcebook arrived?

[@sebfox2194]

I used to cycle on the roads in Birmingham and had a number of near misses. Particularly around the roundabouts on Aston Webb Boulevard and Harborne Lane, which require you to get in to the correct lane for a right turn. Personally, I used to cycle pretty fast and generally always kept left allowing drivers plenty of space to pass, so as not to hold anyone up. However, you can't keep left before a right hand turn or you'll get hit by the cars behind you when you try to make the turn. So, you have to hold your space in the lane before you make the turn, or before entering a roundabout. Unfortunately, some drivers can't accept cyclists doing this, and when you do, they try to force you off the road by dangerously tailgating, beeping their horns, and screaming obsenities and abuse, and all because they can't handle being behind a cyclist who holds their lane for a roundabout or a turning.

[@johnjmunro]

This certainly matches my experience. And I think in cities like Birmingham, where the authorities have refused to reallocate significant road space from cars to other modes of mobilty, car owners are strongly encouraged to think of the roads as being just for them, which entrenches the endangering attitudes we have both encountered. Other cities are beginning the work of changing this - even in the UK (Glasgow, for example: kzbin.info/www/bejne/maWnnpVpbtZ-fpo) but sadly not Birmingham so far. Stay safe out there!

[@Teapot-Dave]

Well done for posting this, and huge respect for risking your own safety to bring this report to everyone's attention. R.l.P. Stewart. I didn't know him, but all Cyclists are family, and when something bad happens to one of us, we all feel it.

[@johnlesoudeur3653]

And there are so many car drivers who do not even signal to turn. Where are the police, tik toking, hate crimes and supporting a left wing government.

[@davidyoung9561]

I live 2 miles from my place of work and would love to walk and cycle to and from work but it is not salf to do either. They want people to walk and cycle but the facilities to do so are not there. Too much of a car central society. I personally hate the car and choose not to own one but it seems I am under pressure to own a car. The UK is not a walkable country in terms of its cities compared to other European countries.

[@johnjmunro]

Exactly, and thanks for sharing this. Facilitating movement via the most democratic, green, and affordable means should be a basic principle for planning and governance. The fact that, as you point out, we're so far from that tells us much about the mindset of those who hold power in the UK. Hopefully, though, pressure from people who want to walk and cycle will bring about the positive changes we need.

[@daverich3352]

Great that you stopped to make that video. What's really terrible from a cyclists point of view, shown by the guy on the bike in the video, he ended up cycling on the right hand side of the road, which is really the wrong side of the road even though it's a one way system. It's all so counter intuitive, car drivers expect cyclists to be in the left, so should he be in the middle of the road in that case?. Super confusing.

[@johnjmunro]

Agreed. It's one problem in a long list, but they're only problems if you think people travelling without a car should be able to ride on or cross roads. As we can see, officials in Birmingham would clearly differ on that point!

[@chrisankcorn5713]

The police think the lorry driver was impaired through drink or drugs. I wonder if there will be a spike of accidents on Monday morning following the match. Why aren’t The Authorities highlighting this now?

[@laurencebraithwaite5753]

I trust they confiscated his phone to carry out forensic analysis of his digital footprint. Good point on the impact of drink/drug driving the next day.

[@StuffOffYouStuff]

thanks for posting. I know this junction well, and the one coming up from botanical. They're not ideal for bikes and absolutely horrendous for pedestrians it seems (never walked it myself).

[@anthonyduffy1278]

I’m very sorry to hear about this cyclist. I live not to far from this junction and usually pass through as a motorist. The junction itself is within a conservation area, which 200 years ago, would most probably been a series of cattle tracks. That have subsequently developed into roads. I hear from your accent you might be American? There are very different attitudes to crossing the road in USA and England. In England we are much happier to be comfortable with a jaywalk. So although that junction has never been designed, it’s developed purely organically. Very few people would be motivated to try and cross the road right on the junction itself. Given the complexity of the junction, especially the blindsided nature of that main approach. You would just move slightly down the road to improve the odds of getting across safely and quickly. I agree with you that it is a dangerous junction and believe me pulling straight across from the ‘Give Way’ you do have to take a leap of faith that your fellow motorists are not speeding towards the blind bend. Will anything change to improve the junction? No!

[@derekjolly3680]

Ok so what's the overall picture there from your perspective as an American? That is for riding and safety. There are always going to be trouble spots in a place for cycling. One becomes aware of them and what the dangers are, then he takes steps to protect himself from them. In any case good focus here. I'd be concerned also if that were on my route.

[@johnjmunro]

Thanks for this comment. My main suggestion is that very car dominated cities like Birmingham follow the lead of other places that have begun to deal with this problem by redistributing space away from cars and toward other more affordable, accessible, and green modes of mobility. The Burrard Street Bridge in Vancouver is a good example. The city simply removed a car lane on each side and gave it to cyclists. Car owners were mad, but now everyone is used to it and it's a huge success: kzbin.info/www/bejne/e3XPiHiOlMuEl6M. Even thought the UK is generally way behind on this stuff, some cities are taking initial steps to enabling more people travelling without cars to get around safely and comfortably. Glasgow, for instance: kzbin.info/www/bejne/maWnnpVpbtZ-fpo. Wherever you are, stay safe on your own rides!

[@GrayDogNowIDK]

Saw folk there earlier yesterday filming a segment

[@danielcrafter9349]

The fix for this is really simple, tho - that seems the most ridiculous part, to me

[@RoadBikeCC]

Sad Day ❤️❤️

[@TheCraigy83]

ride the path..slow down when you get to people /blind corners. idgaf about fines i ride paths probably 50% my travels , 25yrs ago you'd get complaints by people walking but nobody cares now .

[@onebicycle3772]

It is the behaviour of the drivers TBH. The government should ammend the rules before issueing a license to drive. Because now adays even abnormal, self priveledge, maniac, drug addicts, psychopath, all kinds of people are driving. So it will makes you think....are the roads still safe? Blood is on the policy makers. Shame on them.

[@johnjmunro]

Thanks for the comment. I've found this video useful for putting that behavior in context: kzbin.info/www/bejne/Y5CXeI2kfNFoa8U

[@paulsengupta971]

Do be fair, there are already rules against drug and drink driving. This is more about road layout, how much and how often we can spend changing the national infrastructure.

[@onebicycle3772]

@@paulsengupta971 just watch the video. If there are rules, why are still loads of drug addicts and drunk people driving on the road?

[@TheCraigy83]

And no offence but thats an easy cross ive seen far worse in my own city .

[@johnjmunro]

None taken. You're right about it being bad elsewhere too. But a cyclist was just killed at this junction, which I think qualifies it as pretty bad by design.

[@TheMirrorGuy]

So sad to hear that Stuart lost his life cycling there. Incidents like this is why I promote the idea of tiaking time to consider your commute route to take in quieter side streets where practicable to do so. I also promote safer cycling attitudes, as I see some very dangerous cycling practices. Not sure how you can blame the infrastructure, as it is only as safe as the people using it. Yes it would be great to have lots of lovely cycle routes, but then that money could be used to save peoples lives in other areas. This goes back to thinking about route choice and ones own cycling attitude. Of course none of us knows what happened to apportion blame, it is just very sad.

[@johnjmunro]

If you visit other places, like Paris at the moment, you'll see that unlike cities like Birmingham, those in power are taking steps to protect people walking and cycling, rather than designing streets only for those who own cars then suggesting that people just need to have the right attitude about it. Here's an example: kzbin.info/www/bejne/m6uzq6KZqtZ-hsU. It's possible to make streets for everyone.

[@TheMirrorGuy]

@johnjmunro Regardless of what you would like to happen, the reality is you have to deal with what you have. Thinking about route choice is a really good way to improve one's own safety. Also improving one's own ability and attitude can improve your own safety. Take a look at the many videos of people cycling in London, who totally ignore cycle infrastructure. Building better infrastructure is good, but not the only answer.

[@vfclists]

@@johnjmunro I understand that because of the death involved, this may come across as inappropriate, but please don't take this twit seriously. He is a permanent presence on commuter biking channels always finding fault with the cyclists. This looks like the kind of intersection where an experienced cyclist will always be on the watchout, which makes it rather unlikely that it was the cyclist's fault.

[@prolarka]

This place is not built for cyclists but for cars. I dont even know why you are even trying to cycle there :D

[@petergibson7287]

Probably to get somewhere, like anyone else.

[@savagegtalks5912]

too many people on one little island... if you don't have 4 British grandparents. Time to leave.

[@ronloc3309]

Time to leave 😂 who tf are you to make em leave

[@savagegtalks5912]

@@ronloc3309 ah I don't worry about my village, we only 1 non native here and he is a Dane... We have sidewalks thanks to my work previously, as that was the third thing I've fixed since I got elected, so biking is safe for everybody, everbody meaning the local natives and maybe a Dane lol But life does get a lot better when the government has money to spend on infrastructure for it's own people and it's own people is the ones that gets to enjoy it. And it isn't taken up by everyone who doesn't belong. I just made sure I got voted inn to rule my village in this municipality. I know everyone and everyone knows me.