As we reflect on the last few years of UpRide.cc, we are so proud of the community of UpRider’s for posting over 10,000 incidents and together, helping to make cycling safer. With many of our users uploading over 20 incidents to UpRide, we’re glad to see the platform performing its desired task as a cycling safety hub and awareness platform.
Let us introduce Rob!
Rob is an avid cyclist from Rotorua in New Zealand, and has uploaded over 30 incidents from his home town.
“UpRide is a brilliant service. It provides a good record of the difficulties that cyclists face on the roads.”
Record your ride. Make it count.
Why do you record your ride?
“I record my ride so that there is video evidence if a serious incident occurs. It is useful to review footage, to see how I can improve my riding to ensure incidents happen less frequently.”
What do you think about UpRide?
“UpRide is a brilliant service. It provides a good record of the difficulties that cyclists face on the roads and it shows where ‘black spots’ of frequent incidents are. I hope the data can be used by third parties to improve driver and rider training and road layouts.”
What do you think are the most important things that can be done to improve safety for cyclists on the road?
“I think the most important thing that can be done to improve safety for cyclists is to educate drivers about sharing the road with more vulnerable road users. Segregated cycleways are ideal, but costly. Nearly all of the close calls I’ve experienced are at junctions. I have spoken to drivers after they fail to give way at roundabouts, and on two occasions they said that they don’t have to give way to a bicycle. I don’t think they were being obtuse; they genuinely believed that this was the rule. There are also some drivers that simply seem to perceive that roads are for cars only.”
You’ve certainly experienced some horrific behaviour while on the road. We’d love to share any follow up and police action that may have occurred since you’ve shared on UpRide.
“I have only reported one driver to the police, although I have wanted to report many more. That is largely because it is time consuming to go into the Police Station to write a formal report. The incident I reported was when a driver in Rotorua did not give way at a roundabout and clipped my front wheel. I did not fall off but the collision would have been clearly audible to the driver. The driver did not stop.”
“When I reported it, I offered the Police the video evidence and the person dealing with the complaint was not sure how to accept the footage. There was no portal or formal process to submit video. The Police dealt with the complaint seriously and followed up with the driver. They went to his house more than once and he provided an explanation to them. The Police then contacted me to tell me how it went. They issued him with a fine. I was pleased to see the Police take it seriously.”
What is your advice for other cyclists?
“My advice for other cyclists is to be assertive and ride boldly. I see many cyclists hug the kerb at junctions so as to stay out of the way. This leads to confusion and close calls. I have found fewer close calls occur by taking the lane entering junctions. There is strength in numbers. If all cyclists ride more assertively, drivers will begin to understand why cyclists do it, and hopefully adjust the way they drive accordingly.”
Want to share your story?
We’d love to hear from you. If you would like to share your stories and experience as a cyclist please reach out to the UpRide team.
