QUOTE:
A mum from Beeston claims she was verbally abused by drivers and pedestrians while out for a bike ride.

Victoria Waring decided to go cycling with her son on Sunday, September 6, heading out the town towards Attenborough.

The route they had to take meant they were on a main road coming out of Beeston for around a mile.

Victoria decided they should ride alongside each other rather than behind one another, so she could make sure her son, who is not a confident cyclist, was safe..

But, in doing so, she angered some drivers and even a woman walking past - who made clear they thought what she was doing was illegal.

She has issued a plea to all drivers in Beeston - calling for "compassion and care" after the ordeal.

She said: "The first car that overtook us, the driver started shouting at us and honking his horn.

"I think that's the issue - people have a lack of awareness of what the rules are.

"At one point a chap in a Mercedes was behind us, I waved my hand to let him know it was safe to overtake us, but he just pulled alongside us, wound his window down and starting shouting.(IN THAT MUCH OF A HURRY, EH? - SM)

"I didn't engage with him, I just told him to have a nice day."

She added that three or four cars either shouted or honked at her and her son, as well as a pedestrian who shouted at them as they rode past.

She has shared her experience online in the hope of educating others about the rules in place and the fact that cycling abreast is legal in the UK.

"One driver told me he saw us on our ride and waited to safely overtake us," she continued.

"And that it only added five to 10 seconds onto his journey.

"It's just about being tolerant and open minded.

"There should be more and more cyclists with Covid happening.

"We should be trying to find a safe, tolerant way to share the roads with one another."

Rule 66 of the Highway Code advises that two cyclists can ride abreast of each other on roads, as long as they are not narrow or busy, and riders should be single file when going around bends.

Matt Turner, chairman of the Nottingham-based charity Pedals, said: "The environment causes that conflict - if we designed our roads with cycling in mind, it wouldn't exist.

"Anywhere where there is significant traffic is where a cycle path should be built to keep cyclists and drivers out of that conflct.

"But people driving need to understand that cyclists are simply making a journey just like they are and they shouldn't take part in road rage.

"The majority of people are too afraid to cycle on our roads because things like this happen. We can fix it by designing our roads so cycling is safe and enjoyable."

https://www.nottinghampost.com/news/...-abuse-4497660