Ducati Sporting Club UK > General > Idle Chat > Undue care and attention for me?

[weeveetwin]

Ains/Philthy:

Here's what I teach my learner drivers. It's a bit simplistic for experienced road users, but it might explain the mind set of the woman driver involved.


1) A normal circular traffic light generally controls only the solid white line behind which you have to wait. When on green, it means you can cross the line and creep forward, but you've to decide for yourself when it's safe to continue. You must give priority to oncoming vehicles.

2) The green filter arrow, on the other hand, is timed to coincide with the oncoming traffic's red light phase. You have priority if you're turning. Oncoming vehicles should not move forward before you have had time to turn - even if your filter light has subsequently turned red behind you, and their light has turned to green. Oncoming vehicles should only move forward when it is safe to do so.

Seen from the woman's point-of-view...
Once she'd crossed the solid white line during the green filter light phase, she'd have expected the oncoming vehicles to be waiting at their red light long enough to have allowed her to turn. At this point she'd probably have forgotten the lights entirely, and switched her attention to looking into the road on her right before turning. (I speak from experience, since my pupils' do this all the time, leaving me to double check for approaching vehicles!) However, if she was slow to turn, and the oncoming vehicles moved off before she was clear of the junction, she probably wouldn't even have been looking their way. Moreover, a motorcycle sharing a lane alongside two cars may not even have been recognised as a hazard.

The timing of the light sequence is critical. Vehicles turning right are given only a finite amount of time to turn. Obviously, if they're slow to move and oncoming drivers' go immediately on their own green light, then problems arise.

Obviously this is conjecture Ains, since I wasn't there. I give the woman's point of view only to play Devil's advocate. If the case reaches court, then I expect her team will be using much the same argument. Here's hoping you can prove it happened otherwise.

Best of luck (...and be sure to get that SPS sorted quickly. Summer's coming!)
Steve