An Auckland cyclist says his near-miss with a bus proves the need for better training for drivers.
Alec Tang is a cycling advocate who frequently publishes videos of his negative experiences on the roads, captured by a camera mounted on his handlebars.
On Monday evening, he posted footage to Twitter of an incident that had happened in the central Auckland suburb of Newmarket just an hour before.
As Mr Tang cycled home along Broadway, an Inner Link bus merged into his lane and almost hit him, forcing him to the very left of the road. After the driver sounded his horn, Mr Tang confronted him at the next intersection.
"You know you just merged into me without actually looking, without paying any attention to a cyclist?" he asked him.
"You cannot take the whole lane," the driver retorted, which is untrue - road rules say cyclists have every right to ride in the centre of the lane.
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Moments later a second bus did the same thing, merging unsafely into the lane ahead of the cyclist.
Mr Tang told Newshub he was "not particularly impressed" by the driver's actions, nor his apparent ignorance of the road rules.
"To see a bus to do that, I was pretty frustrated," he says.
"He could have almost taken me out. He'd seen me and decided to hit me… he believed I shouldn't be there."
Mr Tang has been cycling around Auckland for about six years, and in that time has experienced between five and 10 run-ins with buses specifically.
In the last month, he's had several unpleasant incidents with fellow road-users on his commute home along Broadway and Manukau Rd, including being hit by a car door.
He says Auckland Transport and bus companies need to take responsibility and provide better training for their drivers around empathising with cyclists, as well as learning the correct road rules.
"They need to be more aware and compassionate. We're only going to see more cyclists and mopeds on the roads in future, so bus drivers need to understand the damage they can cause with 15 tonnes of metal."
Auckland Transport (AT) spokesman James Ireland says they'll work with NZ Bus to investigate Mr Tang's complaint.
"AT takes road safety incredibly seriously, and it's essential that bus drivers share the road with bike riders."
He says NZ Bus operates workshops in which bus drivers practise riding bikes in traffic in order to better appreciate a cyclist's point of view, and create a safer environment on the roads.
Newshub.
