Road Walkers

I spend a large part of my daily life as a pedestrian, but in weather conditions like those of recent weeks, the pavements are a generally tedious and potentially dangerous walk, and so when one side of the road is clear, I jolly well walk right down it.

If I so much as suspect a vehicle anywhere near, I hop right back onto the pavement, but it pisses drivers off nonetheless. It's as though society is so blinded by road safety, we can't see that a road is only dangerous when there's something driving down it.

I'm forever having verbals with strangers over this.

What are your thoughts on this matter as either a pedestrian or driver?

doffcocker wrote:

What are your thoughts on this matter as either a pedestrian or driver?

As a pedestrian: you are a bellend
As a driver: you are a bellend

Too many motorists are assholes and drive like idiots so you always run the risk of injury if you walk in the road no matter how bad the conditions on the pavement.

xmiles wrote:Too many motorists are assholes and drive like idiots so you always run the risk of injury if you walk in the road no matter how bad the conditions on the pavement.

If someone is hit because they are walking along the road id be more inclined to blame the pedestrian.

A driver doesn't have to be an idiot to assume people won't be strolling around in front of their car.

Especially in snowy weather, the windows are steamed up, the windscreen is half full of snow and the brakes are half as effective, quite possibly the worst conditions for a pedestrian to think it was a good time to walk along the road.

Lofty_Love wrote:

xmiles wrote:Too many motorists are assholes and drive like idiots so you always run the risk of injury if you walk in the road no matter how bad the conditions on the pavement.

If someone is hit because they are walking along the road id be more inclined to blame the pedestrian.

A driver doesn't have to be an idiot to assume people won't be strolling around in front of their car.

Especially in snowy weather, the windows are steamed up, the windscreen is half full of snow and the brakes are half as effective, quite possibly the worst conditions for a pedestrian to think it was a good time to walk along the road.

I agree with this.

During last years snow, I actually broke a lads hand who was walking in the middle of a main road - a Wing mirror packs a punch at 30mph...

he had the audacity to call me a wanker and try to put a claim in against me for dangerous driving, he got fucked off...

Lofty_Love wrote:

xmiles wrote:Too many motorists are assholes and drive like idiots so you always run the risk of injury if you walk in the road no matter how bad the conditions on the pavement.

If someone is hit because they are walking along the road id be more inclined to blame the pedestrian.

A driver doesn't have to be an idiot to assume people won't be strolling around in front of their car.

Especially in snowy weather, the windows are steamed up, the windscreen is half full of snow and the brakes are half as effective, quite possibly the worst conditions for a pedestrian to think it was a good time to walk along the road.

In those conditions you should drive slower rather than run over pedestrians. Might also be an idea to properly clean your windscreen and windows too.

xmiles wrote:

In those conditions you should drive slower rather than run over pedestrians. Might also be an idea to properly clean your windscreen and windows too.

Snow doesn't stop falling because im driving, and im not very good at cleaning my windows whilst driving im afraid.

Obviously everyone drives slower, but since the handling and brakes are so effected by snow/ice and the driver can't possibly know where ice is on the road then surely you must understand that they are pretty dangerous conditions no matter how careful you are.

Why can't pedestrians just walk on the pavement, I do, is the risk of maybe falling or slipping so much thats its better to risk being hit by a car.




Or we could just make the roads a car/pedestrian area and tell all drivers to got at 5mph.

Its not acceptable to walk along the road when its mid summer and great conditions. Why would it be acceptable to do it when the conditions are 10x worse.

A 'road walker' once hit the side of my car as I went past him. So I stopped and got out. The silly bastard went mad claiming I was driving too fast and started squaring up to me. I've ended up launching him into a hedge and driving off. Just another normal day for me really.

If you want to keep death off the roads then drive on the pavement.

Lofty I'm not advising pedestrians to walk in the road. Far from it, but some motorists do drive stupidly. Have you never encountered an asshole tailgating you, overtaking dangerously or wandering across lanes? And some of them aren't even driving vans!

Natasha Whittam wrote:

doffcocker wrote:

What are your thoughts on this matter as either a pedestrian or driver?

As a pedestrian: you are a bellend
As a driver: you are a bellend

don't see the need for walking on the road.

What pisses me right off is joggers who think that it's OK to share the road with cars. There's one guy who jogs up Longsight road in Rammy almost every day- a yard off the pavement. He must think that he's doing the right thing. Then there's some sort of running or training club who do the same thiing- but they run in the road towards you in pairs- two abreast. Sometimes at night as well! Who the hell do they think they are - they've no right to be there but act like they have. Roads are for cars- pavements are for people. One day they'll learn that if a car bumps into them ,it smarts for a while!

xmiles wrote:Lofty I'm not advising pedestrians to walk in the road. Far from it, but some motorists do drive stupidly. Have you never encountered an asshole tailgating you, overtaking dangerously or wandering across lanes? And some of them aren't even driving vans!

Oh yeah I totally agree with you there.

Blackburn road - yellow lines are like a parking sign there!

rammywhite wrote:What pisses me right off is joggers who think that it's OK to share the road with cars. There's one guy who jogs up Longsight road in Rammy almost every day- a yard off the pavement. He must think that he's doing the right thing. Then there's some sort of running or training club who do the same thiing- but they run in the road towards you in pairs- two abreast. Sometimes at night as well! Who the hell do they think they are - they've no right to be there but act like they have. Roads are for cars- pavements are for people. One day they'll learn that if a car bumps into them ,it smarts for a while!

Agree with this.. whilst on the subject.

Councils need to provide a lot more cycle lanes, not lines painted on road but actual cycle lanes, like in Holland.

Ive seen two cyclist dead - covered by a white sheet, admittedly not in bolton, although I did see a bus hit a cyclist outside Ikon - was more the cyclists fault

I don't know how a cyclist can feel safe on the road just becuase they are in a little white boxed area, I don't really blame them, but something must be done

Cyclists are far worse than pedestrians. I fooking hate people on bikes. My pet hate is when you get two cyclists riding together having a chat.

I often try nudging one, I've knocked four of them off their bikes and because they're breaking the law there's nowt they can do.

Riding pedal cycles two abreast should be against the law. It is in some countries. It's especially annoying on country lanes with blind bends when you are stuck behind the buggers who are holding you up while they have a chat and pass the time of day.

There's a lot of tarnishing with one brush in this thread which is partly the point I'm addressing.

There's strolling down the road for belief that you've as much right to do so as a motor and there's plainly taking advantage of free walking space, managing not to hinder drivers in the process.

You can't make direct comparisons between walking on a road and on ice. Does a rush hour walk on Moss Bank Way pose more dangers than its slippery pavement? Sure. How about a street with not a visible car in the distance? The road is unquestionably safer.

Incidentally, a man in Accrington slipped on ice and died when his head hit the floor last week. Anybody that says they walk regularly in these conditions, trouble-free, without temptation to walk on the road for it is the only area with a reasonable level of friction is lying.

If they walk in the road all the time, tax them, and let them take their chances with other road users. Expecting somebody at 30 mph to behave the same as someone travelling at 2 mph is bollocks. Use the empty road by all means, but just because you do it all the time, doesn't make it right, nor does it mean that you have a right to do it whenever you like.

I tore the arse out of a traffic wardens trousers with a broken wing mirror on a low sports car in manchester she had fucking huge kecks and called me a c-nt the c-nt.

You should have reversed and made sure she didn't get your number