30kmh limit to protect cyclists and pedestrians

RainyDay said:
I think you need to do a bit of research on fixies.
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An emergency stop on one of those from the speeds these guys do, not all that safe. Braking with the wheels still rotating gives you a lot more control than one wheel locked up I'm afraid. But being couriers, I suppose their all professional bike riders, and have twice the skill of any 'normal' cyclist...:rolleyes:
 
sinbadsailor said:
An emergency stop on one of those from the speeds these guys do, not all that safe. Braking with the wheels still rotating gives you a lot more control than one wheel locked up I'm afraid. But being couriers, I suppose their all professional bike riders, and have twice the skill of any 'normal' cyclist...:rolleyes:
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Oh give us a break, you're clutching at straws with this nitpicking now. Is your critique of the braking system based on personal experience, or are you an armchair expert on this? Maybe you should try surviving on a bike in Dublin for an hour or so and see how your opinion changes.
 
RainyDay said:
Oh give us a break, you're clutching at straws with this nitpicking now. Is your critique of the braking system based on personal experience, or are you an armchair expert on this? Maybe you should try surviving on a bike in Dublin for an hour or so and see how your opinion changes.
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I cycled around Dublin for 12 years and in my opinion cyclists are much more inclined to break the rules than motorists. In my 12 years cycling I was knocked down once by a car turning left with no signal and had my skull fractured by a guy who thought it would be a good idea to open his car door without looking. Those and many other smaller accidents not withstanding I am still of the opinion that most collisions involving a car and a cyclist are the fault of the cyclist.
That said it is more important for a motorist to obey the rules as the potential to cause injury or death is much grater.

I also agree that enforcement of existing laws is more important than making new ones that will not be enforced either.
 
RainyDay said:
Oh give us a break, you're clutching at straws with this nitpicking now. Is your critique of the braking system based on personal experience, or are you an armchair expert on this? Maybe you should try surviving on a bike in Dublin for an hour or so and see how your opinion changes.
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It is a simple fact that a rotating wheel under braking has more control and stopping power than one that is locked. ABS in a car works on the same principle.

It's also not nitpicking when getting into small details, all of which have a bearing on the overall discussion.
 
RainyDay said:
Armchair expert it is then....
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I wouldn't call over 10 years driving and as many years mountain-biking (recreational and competition) as armchair expertise. You just seem unwilling to take criticism on your point? And brakes are hardly what this thread is about now is it.
 
If brakes are hardly what this thread is about, I suppose I'm left wondering why you've spent so many posts trying to recover from exposing your lack of knowledge of how brakes work on fixies.

My main point of course has little to do with brakes. My main point is that pointed broad criticism of cyclists lack of attention to the rules of the road misses the point. The cyclists you criticise for weaving may well have been avoiding other road users, such as double-parked delivery vans or jay-walking pedestrians.
 
I think the point is, regardless of the speed limit the standard or driving AND cycling is abysmal. Certainly if you slow the traffic down to a crawl then accidents are reduced as people as longer to react and force of impact is lower. But the impact on vehicular traffic (the vast majoiry of users) will be massive.

I reckon you'd you have a similar effect by not changing the speed limit but enforcing the ones already in place, and the current rules of the road, (cyclists and motorists) and designing the road layout with a bit of common sense, and safety in mind.
 
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