Adrian wrote:
Colin Rosenstiel ) gurgled happily, sounding much like
they were saying :
However, any vehicle that can't see if it safe to turn left without
injuring someone on its nearside should be banned from the roads.
If it was a railway vehicle it would be as unsafe. Two Cambridge
cyclists have been killed in the last year because of such unsafe
vehicles.

It's quite straightforward. The vehicle isn't to blame. One of the
road users is.

If the bus started to overtake the cyclist then turned left, the bus
driver is to blame.
If the cyclists started to undertake the bus about to turn left, the
cyclists are to blame.

And if the design of the vehicle makes it impossible for the driver to
see which vehicles it is about to collide with the designers of the
vehicle are to blame and all similar vehicles should be banned from the
road until the defect is fixed, as would be the case with railway
vehicles.

Stop trying to pass the buck.
The cyclists died because of their stupid manouvre.

The penalty is appropriate, is it?

I'm sure the mirrors on the bus do allow for the driver to see all the way
down the nearside, and, yes, the driver should very probably have paid more
attention to them - But the fact remains that the cyclist carries the
majority of the fault for being there.

It is up to ALL road users not to hit other road users. If not sure,
the rule is to stop. You are not allowed to kill someone just because
they are somewhere unexpected. If you can't see, you stop and get
someone to guide you. Some drivers seem to think that signalling will
make everyone else get out of their way.

This is a classic case of the difference between what vulnerable road
users are advised to do and what dangerous road users should expect
them to do. E.g. pedestrians are advised to wear something white at
night, but drivers need to see them in time to avoid them even if
they're matt black from top to toe.

There are a lot of ways a cyclist, pedestrian, motorcyclist or animal
could end up on the nearside of a left-turning long vehicle. The
driver is required to ensure that no-one is there. Deciding that
no-one ought to be there is not good enough.

Colin McKenzie