A cert yourself

[Martin Cassini]

In A Pattern of Islands, which we read at school, a canoe capsizes about a mile offshore in the South Seas. The two occupants, treading water, find themselves surrounded by sharks. One panics and is mincemeat. The other keeps his cool and swims towards the ring of sharks. They part and let him go. That literary experience served me when I was out one day walking my border terrier (I was about 12). Suddenly, four barking, snarling Alsatians came running at us through a farm gate. Screaming blue hellfire, I ran at them, and they turned tail. Is there an analogy with being a pedestrian in traffic? I've always been in the habit of crossing the road wherever I choose. Almost invariably, when drivers see you, they let you go. The peds who hold up traffic are the ones who dutifully do the right-angle bit at lights. As a cyclist or driver, you can read intentions and take instant evasive action. The peds who piss you off are the ones who don't keep going but step back, or hesitate, and wait for 'permission' to go. That deference comes from decades of over-regulation that has turned most of us into laboratory mice.

[Ian Perry]

I cycle assertively, a full 1m from the kerb. As long as I keep up with the flow of traffic, cars usually stay back. But how many drivers think roads are exclusively for them? On another day, asserting my right to the lane might have sparked a "road rage" incident. Other drivers have threatened me physically when I’ve given way to a pedestrian while turning left into a side street in a car, as is the rule. Alsatians can be friendlier and smarter than motorists.

[Ian Perry]

I cycle assertively, a full 1m from the kerb. As long as I keep up with the flow of traffic, cars usually stay back. But how many drivers think roads are exclusively for them? On another day, asserting my right to the lane might have sparked a "road rage" incident. Other drivers have threatened me physically when I’ve given way to a pedestrian while turning left into a side street in a car, as is the rule. Alsatians can be friendlier and smarter than motorists.