BBC to air helmet cam documentary

"parachuted into the middle of the battle" Hmmm that doesn't smack of a composed, balanced and well informed representation of what commuting on a bike is like.

Manchester commuter too and I agree, can remember only a handful of occasions of vindictive behaviour, most people are just err.. normal.
Absentmindedness, SMIDYism and lack of appreciation of speed, distances, space etc.. now that's a different issue altogether.

Apols for cut n paste job but this is from Leopard Films's own website...

The War on Britain's Roads premieres Wednesday 5th December, 9pm BBC one

The War on Britain’s Roads combines footage captured by cyclists through helmet-mounted cameras, with interviews from cyclists, drivers and those affected by incidents on our roads. Viewers are parachuted into the middle of the battle that is raging between two-wheeled road users and their four-wheeled counterparts.

As thirty four million vehicles and thirteen million bikes all try to share the same crowded space, The War on Britain’s Roads provides a dramatic and unique insight into the unfolding tension and conflict. From everyday incidents that get out of hand between cyclists and motorists, to stories of near death experiences and fatal collisions, this timely documentary shows that the battle between two wheels and four has never been so intense.

The film presents both sides of the story, retelling dramatic incidents from both the cyclists’ and drivers’ points of view. It follows the cycle-mounted police as they chase down errant road users and record more than 3,000 offences every year from car and bike users alike. We even see a cyclist who is attempting to police the roads himself, handing out his own 'tickets' for anything from texting behind the wheel, to jumping a red light. A mother who lost her cyclist daughter in a fatal collision with a cement mixer tells the extraordinary story of her efforts to improve cycle safety on our roads, while a London black cab driver reveals how his own loss changed his opinion about cyclists forever.

I knew about this a week or so ago.

It looks interesting and some of the footage used comes from some of the better video cyclists around London.

It sounds like the program is going to further the 'us and them' mentality that is a growing threat to safety. Hopefully it will show that a person on a bike is actually a person, probably with a family, and not just some 'twat in lycra'.

I suspect its just going to be sensationalist twaddle rather than a real discussion of the issues.

Frankly, I'm astonished.

I commute daily and rarely a week goes by without some t*sser in a car cutting me up severely then getting bent out of shape if I have the cheek to complain.

Manchester daily commuter here, can probably count on the fingers of one hand such incidents in the past 7 years. What are people getting up to?

Quote:

Personally, I ride everyday, mainly in Bristol, but in cities all over the country as well, and I have hardly ever had a hostile confrontation with someone in a car

Frankly, I'm astonished.

I commute daily and rarely a week goes by without some t*sser in a car cutting me up severely then getting bent out of shape if I have the cheek to complain.

What's the bet they open with footage from an alleycat race (probably from a foreign country).