Watch as van veers ‘dangerously close’ to child riding bike on road – but who’s in the wrong?
THIS is the moment a van veers dangerously close to a child sparking a fierce debate about who was the wrong.
The video was posted on Twitter by Francesca Savage and it shows the child on a bike with a flashing red light and hi viz vest.
As the child approaches traffic lights in north London, the van passes on the right hand side causing the youngster to ease off the pedals and move a bit to towards the pavement.
“Completely empty road this morning. I feel this van could have given us slightly more space,” wrote Francesca.
“If we want to get kids to travel more actively we need to make it safe!”
She added that “on the other side of things” the Low Traffic Neighbourhood “parts of our journey were lovely”.
But opinion was divided about whether the driver had put the child at risk.
One Twitter user who said she was a cycling instructor said: “I am very angered by the van driver for failing to give the child enough room. 100 per cent van driver not parent at fault.”
Another said “the van needed to slow down, give more space and take more care”.
But others took a different point of view with one commenting: “As a cyclist I think the space is fine, even if it was my child.
“I appreciate this would be subjective. Great to see him out and riding with confidence though.”
One pointed out that that the van’s nearside wheels were on the centre line and if the driver went any further left they would be in the “opposite lane, where there were also parked cars in play.
The video was a “needless demonisation of another motorist driving with care and attention”, they added.
The Highway Code states that drivers should leave “at least 1.5 metres when overtaking cyclists at speeds of up to 30mph, and give them more space when overtaking at higher speeds”.
And it stresses that drivers should not overtake and instead trail behind a cyclist or horse if they cannot meet the 1.5m distance.
It comes after other videos show cars repeatedly driving “too close” to a cyclist on numerous occasions – but viewers are divided on who is in the right.
The clip shared by an anonymous rider’s helmet camera shows them cruising along both residential and countryside roads.
Other video shows the moment a Toyota driver pulls in front of a cyclist, leaving just inches to spare.
Footage shows the cyclist riding down an Ealing road in London before the silver Prius cuts him off.