THIS is the moment a cyclist was sent into road rage after he was knocked off his bike when he crashed into a car.
The dramatic footage sparked an online debate about who was in the wrong in the clash.
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The clip, which was filmed on a dash cam, shows a busy main road in what appears to be London.
A long tailback occupies the right-hand lane, while the inside is mostly clear except for a cyclist and a moped.
That is until a black Toyota hatchback pulled into the inside lane in front of the pedal bike.
Not only did the driver not appear to be indicating, but they narrowly avoided hitting the cyclist as they moved over.
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The rider was visibly irritated by the move and pulled to the inside of the car to make a gesture that indicated to the driver that they should have used their wing mirrors before making the manoeuvre.
However, what tipped him over the edge was that the car had only been delayed in the outside lane by a van turning left up ahead.
Having undertaken the vehicle in front of them, the Toyota then had to brake sharply to avoid crashing into the van as it turned.
This sent the bike crashing into the back of the car, with the rider doing well to keep his balance as he was knocked off.
He appeared to painfully twist his ankle as he stumbled but showed no signs of any significant injury.
Instead, he rushed up to the passenger-side door of the car to give the driver an earful over the collision.
The confrontation prompted a debate between social media commenters after the video was posted to X, with the user asking: “Who’s in the wrong here?”
One viewer responded: “The cyclist, for sure.
“It’s entirely his fault.
“He couldn’t even control his emotions and became aggressive.”
But another hit back: “The driver is wrong.
“You’re supposed to yield so the pedestrian on the bike can go.”
Even the official Specsavers X account weighed in, simply tweeting: “Eyes.”
However, the best explanation, which also appeared to be the majority view, was that both were at fault.
Change of priorities
Under the latest update to the Highway Code, the hierarchy of road users has been adjusted, changing who has priority on the roads.
The new system works on the basis that larger, more protected vehicles are given the least priority – so HGVs at the bottom and pedestrians at the top.
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As it applies to this situation, the car driver has the responsibility not to endanger the cyclist as long as he is proceeding legally along the road.
By cutting him up and then braking sharply, the driver would seem to have failed in that responsibility.
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However, the cyclist didn’t brake when the initial cut-up occurred and chose instead to gesture at the driver.
This meant that he did not leave adequate braking distance between himself and the car, making the crash even less avoidable.
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