Jeremy Vine reveals his ‘first collision of the year’… and it was caused by a cyclist! Presenter posts footage of ‘bicycle going red light’ – but still takes the opportunity to criticize motorists who ‘would have had a fistfight in the same situation’
- BBC presenter Jeremy Vine films how he crashes into another cyclist in London
- He had to swerve for a cyclist who, according to him, was running a red light
Jeremy Vine has shared footage of his ‘first collision of the year’ as he cycled through London.
He says the crash was caused by a woman on a bicycle going through a red light at an intersection, which led to the BBC presenter swerving into another cyclist next to him.
But despite the low speed bump being caused by another motorcyclist, cycling campaigner Mr Vine still jumped at the chance to penalize motorists who ‘would have had a fistfight in the same situation’.
The TV journalist shared a 51-second clip of the incident, which led to a polite altercation between Mr Vine and the man he bumped into as the “law-breaking” rogue rider cycled away.
The 57-year-old posted the video to his 790,000 followers on Twitter, saying: “My first collision of the year, and it was caused by a cyclist going through a red light,” before adding: “If this had been three drivers coming together there would have been a fistfight, an insurance claim and a jam at Marble Arch heading towards Victoria.’
Jeremy Vine says the woman cycled through a red light at a London junction, causing him to crash into another rider next to him as he swerved to avoid her
The footage, viewed approximately 250,000 times, begins with cycling fanatic Mr Vine waiting at a London junction.
When the lights turn green, father of two… wearing his new yellow helmet he bought last month after being beaten for not wearing signaling while riding in the dark, he begins to cycle down the road before another motorcyclist speeds through a red light.
“Yo, oh my god, sorry,” says the shocked BBC presenter as he swerves to the right to avoid the woman and crashes into another cyclist beside him.
“No, that’s her fault,” the man replies, adding, “Are you okay?” It’s not your fault, it’s hers.’
“I know, I know, I’m so sorry,” Vine tells the rider during the polite conversation, before adding, “Have a good night.”
According to the highway code, all road users must stop for a red light, including cyclists.
The maximum fine is £1,000 and six points on your driving licence, but most people will receive a fixed fine of £30 on the spot.
Since posting his video, people have taken to Twitter to inflate the number of rogue cyclists in London flouting motorway laws.
The woman rides on as Mr. Vine (in the yellow hat) and another male rider look on
The slow speed bump between Mr. Vine and the male rider led to a polite exchange between the two, who kept asking each other if they were “okay”
Mr Vine, a father of two, is a well-known cycling lawyer and regularly shares clips of his rides around London on his Twitter account
One Twitter user said, “Cyclists run red lights all the time. I think people get annoyed by this. You have cyclists who use the crosswalk and break the rules on the road. You say it’s small, but what if it was a pedestrian who got hit? Still a danger when running a red light.’
Another concurred, tweeting, “Cyclists should stop running red lights. I see this all the time. A pedestrian who is hit by a cyclist does not end well.’
While a third said they fear for their safety when cycling in the capital – because of other cyclists.
They tweeted: ‘I was a cyclist years ago but now in London I would consider it too dangerous because of other cyclists! I also keep an eye out for cyclists on sidewalks.’
A survey by the Mail on Sunday last summer showed how rogue cyclists were blatantly endangering pedestrians almost every two minutes by jumping a red light in front of Buckingham Palace.
During rush hour alone – between 7 a.m. and 8 a.m. – 26 cyclists ignored traffic lights and plowed on with blatant disregard for people crossing the road. Another 22 of them did the same over the next hour.
The situation even led to a radical proposal in August from former transportation secretary Grant Shapps, who said cyclists should be forced to have license plates and even insurance in order to ride on the road.
The idea was promptly scrapped a few days later, following a wave of backlash over the summer.
Mr Shapps later said there were ‘no plans’ to introduce such measures.
