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| Image credit: APA |
The other day I was cautiously making my way out of the NCP multi-storey car park (with its impressively abundant and popular bicycle parking areas) behind London St Pancras International train station, when I was hailed by a man entering the car park on foot.
I stopped.
"You really shouldn't cycle here", he said without preamble.
"Really? It's not prohibited," I responded.
"Cyclists go too fast. We've had so many people have the life scared out of them by cyclists coming through here."
"Well, it wasn't me who startled them. There are people who aren't considerate of others, in all situations. I am always careful, so please don't tar me with that brush."
"You shouldn't cycle here, you really shouldn't", he said again, shaking his head in a scolding fashion. And then he turned and walked away.
That was the end of the conversation, such that it was, so I called "Bye" to his retreating back and pedalled off.
As I did so, I found myself musing....
- Are drivers required to get out of their cars and push their vehicles into and out of the car parking areas?
- Interesting that he said I "shouldn't" cycle there. Not "can't". Not "must not". Not "aren't allowed to".
- Because I am allowed to cycle there. Admittedly the sight lines are not great around the entrance/exit, so I cycle slowly*. If there are a number of people in that area on foot -- often a bit confused as to where they are going as they search for the ticket machine or their hire car -- I often dismount.
- There are no signs of even a cautionary nature relating to cycling in the area. (There are helpful signs directing cyclists entering the car park via Coach Road to the bicycle parking areas.)
- This man was wearing a uniform and ID card on a neck lanyard, but he was not St Pancras staff, NCP staff, Network Rail staff or British Transport Police staff (of which the premises positively swarm). No, he was Eurostar staff.**
- This means he has no say whatsoever in who uses the car park or the manner in which they use it.***
- In any case, why hail me? Does he attempt to lecture everyone he sees on a bike? Or did I look like an easy target, someone who is courteous enough to stop to speak to someone hailing me?
- Likewise, why rail at me for the behaviour of others who use the same form of transport, when he had never witnessed me committing the "sin" he complained of? My only "crime" seemed to be that of being on a bicycle.
- What was the point of giving me some kind of warning or admonition that he obviously wishes he could give to all cyclists?
- Does he think there is some kind of "hive mind" amongst cyclists, that in giving a message to me he can somehow broadcast it to everyone else in London who happens to ride a bike?
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| Photo credit: Richard Wilkinson. Via www.aeon.com. |
Am I over thinking this? It's difficult to be entirely subjective. But it's disconcerting to be accosted while going about a normal, everyday, perfectly ordinary and legal activity, to be taken to task for the actions of others by someone attempting to restrict your legal activities without due authority or objective justification.
* I see cyclists every morning and evening in this area. With perhaps the exception of one young man on a vintage 10-speed, all of them are slow, cautious and considerate of everyone, especially people on foot who may be unsure or distracted and thus potentially easily startled. The 10-speed guy does ride through the area much too fast for my liking but I give him full credit for always being alert and responsive. If he has ever startled a pedestrian, I'd be willing to be bet that the avoidance of actual collision would be down to his attentiveness and evasive action. Cyclists never want to hit anyone and so often when pedestrians yell after us "hey, you nearly hit me!", the truthful response would be "yes, and it's down to me that I actually didn't!" I have in fact said to pedestrians stepping off kerbs with eyes glued to their mobile phone screens "It's okay, I'm looking out for you even if you aren't."
** As an employee of a company who rents/leases office space in the car park, he has a bare licence to pass through the area, whether on foot or, if he chooses, by bicycle or scooter or indeed in a wheelchair. I too hold a bare licence. This means we are permitted to do certain things in the area, provided they are not illegal, that would other constitute trespass. However, licences can be revoked, for example if the land owner decides to expressly prohibit certain activities or to ban an individual who is persistently in breach of the implied terms of the licence, after which the owner may take legal action against transgressors.
*** He is no different from me or any other cyclists using the car park, or motorists using the car park, in fact any member of the public free to use the car park. The exceptions are commercial operators, who must obtain a contractual licence and "check in" on arrival so that NCP or St Pancras staff can lower the barriers that otherwise prevent motorised access to Coach Road.
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Mark Treasure of As Easy As Riding A Bike recently wrote a two-part post titled "Transport Tribalism" that beautifully sets out the key issues surrounding "us versus them" attitudes that result in incidents like this, which are happening every minute, every day, everywhere people came into conflict, regardless of their mode of transport. Part I is here and Part II is here. Both worth your time to read and share.
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Mark Treasure of As Easy As Riding A Bike recently wrote a two-part post titled "Transport Tribalism" that beautifully sets out the key issues surrounding "us versus them" attitudes that result in incidents like this, which are happening every minute, every day, everywhere people came into conflict, regardless of their mode of transport. Part I is here and Part II is here. Both worth your time to read and share.
This is the sort of encounter you just have to politely let pass without comment, because it is not really you the person is addressing.
ReplyDeleteAt some point or other, the gentleman you met *did* have an unfavorable encounter with a cyclist, and it is rather likely that cyclist was indeed behaving recklessly and/or rudely. As bicyclists, this is probably the number one problem associated with the perception of bicycling in general, that some minority of cyclists do behave in ways that cause grief for the rest of us.
Sigh!
I feel you are exactly right, more's the pity.
DeleteI agree with the anonymous poster, Rebecca. There is something about riding a bicycle that can cause others to want to lecture, even if you're doing nothing wrong. Perhaps it was another incident with a reckless person on a bike, or maybe it's some sort of perception that someone rolling on two wheels is inherently endangering the lives of others.
ReplyDeleteI had read an article in the not-to-distant past about the perception of bicyclists breaking the law and the statistics pointed to the reality that most motorists break the laws of the road daily (not completely stopping at signs/signals, not signaling intentions, tailgating, and so on), whereas a person on a bike may do the same, but they are fewer in number (mostly for fear of injury or death, I'd think). I believe if cycling were considered more of a normal mode of transportation (because let's face it, riding a bike is still not considered a "real" choice by most in first world countries), there would be fewer of the sorts of run-ins that you experienced, or that many of us have also endured. It doesn't seem to matter how many times I get yelled at on my bike though - it still bothers me.
The expectation that one cyclist stands in for and somehow represents all cyclists is not surprising given that we are a minority. Members of nearly all minority groups -- whether by virtue of ethnicity/race, religion, or sexual orientation -- bear this burden. Why else do people in the US expect Muslims to denounce acts of terrorism committed by ISIS, yet Christians do not feel compelled to denounce those who shoot up abortion clinics in the name of Christianity? Likewise, peaceful Black Lives Matter protesters are called on to answer for the actions of a couple of individuals who act violently, while white people have nothing to say about rioters following a football game (American football, that is) who set cars on fire.
ReplyDeleteWell, that was a long detour. All I meant to say is that as cyclists we are not part of the normed forces of an automobile-centric society. As a result people who are part of the norm confuse one of us with all of us. It is hard to see individuals as themselves when we are blinded by category memberships.
Thank you G.E. and Kendra for your comments. I had to bite my tongue / stamp on fingers to keep myself from spilling over into sociology-speak, "in vs out group" etc! I hope that my recounting my personal experience might help others, either by helping them empathize when they've never experienced it themselves, or by putting a human face (just one of many) to all the studies and research conclusions.
ReplyDeleteDo you think I should add source materials at the end of this post, pointing to articles on *why* this stuff happens? (My point when writing this was simply to illustrate *how* it happens, and how the "victim" feels about it!)
First, As I re-read my comments, I'm realizing I need to slow down my responses because I have too many typos [apologies now, as I'm sure it will happen again :)].
DeleteBut, more importantly, I think having source materials/links to assist others could be of benefit. I think the challenge is always getting the information to those who need it most. A few weeks ago, Sam and I watched Bikes vs Cars and while I thought it was a good film, it didn't contain much information that was new to me. At the end, I mentioned to Sam that in reality it should be required watching when a person renews his/her driver's license or before registering a vehicle. In other words, I think there is good information available, but it needs to get to those who really should see it and who lack the knowledge that the film provides. With that said, I think anywhere and any way that we can share ways to handle situations like the one you encountered or provide additional information on why/how/etc it can be helpful to others though. You never know when that one person who needs to see the information will do so and make the effort entirely worth while.
I wasn't quite aware of the bare license in UK
ReplyDeleteIt's just a legal term for one party consenting to another party doing something that would otherwise be prohibited, e.g. trespass, without any written or even oral agreement and without anything be "paid" in exchange.
Delete"in giving a message to me he can somehow broadcast it to everyone else in London who happens to ride a bike?"
ReplyDeleteYes, we're reading ;) In fact I've just promoted your blog to my 'watched list' since you changed from 'personal anecdote' to 'advocacy/activist' mode !
Thinking about it, most cycle-parking is in places you can't legally cycle to - most is on the pavement (I mean footway or sidewalk) instead of at road level.
Just adds to the awkwardness. Are 'they' trying to create conflict between cyclists and pedestrians ? Are 'they' trying to prevent us campaigning against pavement parking (by cars, vans and lorries) ? Or just squeezing us out by never giving us our own real provision ? Always a guest in someone else's space - never rightfully 'at home'?
The 'Why single me out?' reminds me of this encounter
http://takethelanes.blogspot.co.uk/2015/03/heres-good-idea-to-save-lives.html
He accosts her when she stops at a red light to tell her a joke in bad taste, then claims
"I was struck by a cyclist mounting the pavement ... all of a sudden I was receiving a torrent of abuse"
Pure fantasy !
You might also like to look up 'gaslighting' (trigger:domestic abuse) or some MI5 mind-tricks ...
http://goo.gl/BK09JF
http://www.slideshare.net/exopolitika/the-art-of-deception-training-for-a-new-generation-of-online-covert-operations-gchq-of-ukusa-joint
I'm not a fan of conspiracy theories, but the UK attitude to cycling is pretty odd.
Thanks Eric, that’s very kind!
DeleteI see what you mean about that Take The Lanes story… what a weird website altogether, to be honest!
Funny you should mention gaslighting – I stumbled across some research on this a few months ago and now feel like I’m seeing this everywhere! Hadn’t considered it in the context of cycling, but hey, if someone’s got that kind of attitude, it will touch people they come in contact with in every aspect of life.
As to the UK attitude to cycling generally, I seem to vacillate between feeling so inured to it I hardly notice, to “WTF, people??!!!”
The “bad news”, Eric, about this blog is…. It will continue to be mostly anecdotal in nature and style. While I have been a cycling advocate involved with various London-based groups and campaigns for several years, I do not have the background or experience to write the kind of authoritative, evidence-based articles you will be accustomed to reading by the likes of David Hembrow, Mark Treasure, Rachel Aldred or Bez of ‘Beyond The Kerb’ (all in my Advocacy blog list in the right sidebar). Not to mention, I am simply not as articulate, eloquent or influential as they are!
But I do hope that the experiences I write about can contribute to the wider debate, if in no other way but by putting a human face to the issues they frequently write about.
So I am afraid my blog will still largely consist of “personal anecdote”! What is changing is, I am no longer deliberately refraining from writing about my experience with advocacy issues. If anything, my personal experience is my niche, what I am of course most qualified to share.
Please do ask questions, point to research and source materials if there’s something you’ve found particularly enlightening or persuasive, and of course call me out on any inconsistencies or factual errors. For example, I am about to post about an exchange I had with a delivery van driver yesterday morning – there are bits where I have taken editorial licence but in doing so it’s possible that some readers may find the story not quite coherent: “sorry, how did that happen?” And that’s where you and other readers can help me refine my ‘storywriting’ skills, which may perhaps lead, in time, to dipping into writing essay-style analysis pieces as my skills develop.
"Take The Lanes story… what a weird website altogether, to be honest!"
ReplyDeleteLOL ! "Take The Lanes" is my own blog (no offense taken) - perhaps 'mirroring' a page from 'rabbit2020.blogspot.co.uk' (so it is still on record even when he deleted it all) is confusing !
I suppose a website exploring the notion of 'cyclist-hatred as an institutionalised hate crime' could be seen as weird by some. I haven't publicised it much - it's mostly for organising my own thoughts, storing useful info and links and communicating with other cyclists.
Like an iceberg, 80% of the info is below the surface - just unpublished notes.
Under 12500 hits - mostly me and random russians! Top search terms 'drink driving solicitors', 'used cars' and 'get rid of gas pains fast' !
I've set up a Google search page limited to about 1000 related websites.
http://takethelanes.blogspot.co.uk/p/serp.html?q=motorism
'Gaslighting' has more awareness in the last 9 months or so due to a very slow-burning plot-line on a farming-themed soap opera on BBC Radio 4 - 'The Archers'
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/11913870/Rob-Titcheners-evil-in-the-Archers-makes-for-uncomfortable-listening.html
My other memories that have surfaced overnight are a couple of 'You shouldn't be cycling here' instances - on public roads !
One was on the (empty) old road from Northampton to Towcester - which has a new parallel dual-carriageway A43 1km away on one side, and the A45 2km away on the other !
A driver stopped to tell me to ride on the footway - I told him that would be illegal. https://goo.gl/maps/xTM2cnVKgmx
The second was in the middle of Datchet - https://goo.gl/maps/zmy7dmcsRaG2
"You should be on a cycle-path!"
"Can anyone see a cycle-path?" - there were lots of people around.
"Is this a motorway ? Go find a motor-way !"
Looking at Google, I had actually missed a well-hidden cycle-path 350m back, but would have been in the road to turn right at that junction anyway !
https://goo.gl/maps/tZwubc4FPvz - spot the cycle-path ! Then try slaloming into it up the kerb, through the barriers at 20mph on a looong wheelbase recumbent ...
Oh I see!! I read a couple of posts in addition to the link you posted, realise now they were rabbit ones - the irony went right over my head! I'll have another browse when I'm back in civilisation. Finding the widely-touted WiFi in West Cork a bit, shall we say, over-rated. Ah well, the live music makes up for it.
Delete