Traffic!

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Sandstone1

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Rode out today for first time in a while. ( have a youngster who's not broken yet)
On a friend's horse who's good in traffic. Shocked at the amount of traffic that does not slow down. When signalling to some particularly fast drivers got evil looks and then got a mouthful from a lorry driver who was right up horses backside.
I had high viz on too.
Do people just not slow down anymore?
Scary thought as will soon be taking a youngster out on roads.
 
Thankfully I live in the sticks and traffic isn't a huge issue.. but its still an issue!! So many people aren't just rude and ignorant but genuinely don't know how to act around horses on the road. I have been bringing on and breaking youngsters and I took to hi-vizing them up and wearing a hi viz jacket myself with a stick on L plate on it and the word DANGER! painted underneath.. it seems to have the desired effect and I get given more space and respect now (not sure whether that is just the novelty factor of a rider/handler wearing L plates! that wakes them up). I'm always polite and courteous, but I've shouted at a few drivers who have shown no consideration and created a severely dangerous situation by panicking a youngster. I've recently moved to Exmoor and now I'm worried my green horse wont see enough traffic to get used to it! - can't win :)
 
It's a worry!
I don't expect the world to stop for me and my horse but I do think people should be a bit more considerate.
Think I will get L plates for my youngster.
 
I have been riding on the roads for well over 50 years now including about 15 years in Central London
I always wear long sleeved Hi-Viz when riding on the roads as it makes it easier for other road users to see my hand signals.
I do think it is a worthwhile exercise for horse riders to take the BHS road safety course and exam as provides them with some useful techniques for when riding a horse on the roads.
Unfortunately there are many more cars on the road these days many of which are very much more powerful and are driven by people at high speeds who have little understanding of horses. The other issue is that cars are quieter these days so it is much more difficult to hear them approaching from the rear so one needs ones wits about one.
If cars are approaching from the rear of me I always turn my head round and look at the drivers eyes as this normally slows them down.
If I want to slow or stop a car coming towards me I point at them for 5 seconds and then put the palm of my hand up towards them to indicate to them that I want them to stop.
I always thank other road users (including cyclists) for passing wide and slowing down by either nodding my smiling and nodding my head or when possible a thank you wave with my hand.
One other thing - I avoid riding on the roads when the sunlight is bright and the sun low down as this can blind other road users and they are unable to see us.
 
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Thanks for the tips, wish they would make how to pass horses part of the driving test.
I always thank drivers who slow down too.
Might look In to taking the road safety test.
 
Only last night, on a village road, I got passed by an idiot who passed slowly, then revved loudly & sped off! This was after Madam had suffered the trauma of a HUGE tractor & trailer (that driver was fine.)
 
I ride in a town with a large industrial site so a lot of traffic but we are very lucky. The lorries, buses and council vehicles are very considerate. Even the boy racers on their motorbikes are usually well behaved :-) But I do make sure to raise a hand or nod and smile at everyone I can. I get off the road to allow people past me if there is a long queue or a big vehicle. I was told people are more likely to slow down if you make eye contact with them as you then become a person not just an obstacle so I will often turn to catch the eye of someone coming to fast from behind for example and it definately seems to work.
 
Thanks for reply I always thank drivers that slow and get out of the way if possible.
Just seems that a lot of people these days have no idea how to pass a horse. They don't seem to understand the dangers.
 
Mostly I don't have a problem with other road users. My horses are used to traffic, and most people are considerate. However there are times when you think people really are trying to kill you.

Last week I had a novice pair driving back to the yard. I was indicating right, with a queue behind me, foremost of which was one of those really loud 'hog' motorbikes. My o/s pony doesn't like the deep exhaust note so not happy, but we were doing fine - until said bike decided that he would floor the bike and overtake me just as I was preparing the ponies for the right turn.

In addition to bringing two bolting horses under control, I had to manage to bring my whip back forwards (from the indicating position).
Half of me wishes I had kept my arm stuck out taken him off the bike with the whip.
 
I broke my leg after a fall off my mare on a small country road when we had to deal with two scramblers which came out of nowhere behind us. Not road licenced and throught the best way to deal with a horse was to pass as quickly as possible (a road where there was very little room). She was only a baby at the time and coped with the first (despite the shock - for both of us) but the second was too much. I was on the floor, she ended up up the road but thankfully went and hid in a field! The riders did stop and my only regret is that i didnt get names as when they drove off i could hear the speed they were going at (livery yards everywhere and a popular hacking route). I am now far more aware of traffic and also far less tolerant of drivers who speed up behind us (i turna nd flag them), drive toward us assuming that as im on a horse i will be the one reversing or using a lay by etc - she's good with traffic but i dont take chances. I am always very polite though - thank people for slowing, go into lay bys if its easier for me to do so etc. Most drivers are really good but not all and you have to work on the basis they wont be unfortunately.
 
Apart from wearing high viz what's the best way of getting traffic to slow down? Have had some verbal abuse when trying to signal them to slow.
 
Lots of drivers don't seem to understand hand signals.

I always put high viz leg bands on my horse, they are more in the driver's eyeline than just a tabard, althugh I have one of those as well. Mostly, cars slow down for me from back and front, although I keep off main roads as much as possible. In lanes, if I hear a car coming from behind I will make the horse stop, if there is enough room to get into the side, and let the car go past so I am not holding anyone up. Not always 100% possible.
 
Didn't know that, it's a long time since I took my test! To be honest though the way most people behave you would not think they had ever met a horse on the roads.
 
Most people are considerate.....but we do get boy racers flying around wheel spinning etc near the horses as its highly amusing to them !!! One day I had one fly past me so close he clipped my stirrup...thankfully horse didn't panick she just froze....when I got off I checked stirrup and blue paint was all over the iron from his car !! Im starting to get used to their attitude now and avoid the road as much as possible but sometimes when I have to use the roads it does worry me...totally takes the pleasure away from hacking :(
 
Saskiahorsey, surely that is dangerous driving and should be reported to the Police as such?

Fortunately where we are, the vast majority of drivers are considerate, slow down and pass widely without being asked to do so but, there are enough idiots that are not like that at all and have not a clue about how to pass a horse and rider. It takes barely a minute to slow down and save a life and yet this is clearly * too much* for some people. This topic is one of my bugbears it really is.
 
Pippity said:
They do! I took my test last year - had two questions about passing horses on the theory test, and encountered a horse while on the practical so got marked for that, too.
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One of the worst people around here for passing horses on blind bends etc. is a local driving instructor :( With people like that teaching what hope have we!
 
Trouble is, if you wear extreme things like tabards with danger written on them or the caution young horse ones, insurance companies will try to pin blame on you because they try to say its an admission that you knew the horse was a potential problem. You just can't win :/ Really think drivers ought to have better preparation in driving tests etc so they know that they are unpredictable because so many drivers just have no idea that they are causing a dangerous situation.
 
hannahealasaid said:
Trouble is, if you wear extreme things like tabards with danger written on them or the caution young horse ones, insurance companies will try to pin blame on you because they try to say its an admission that you knew the horse was a potential problem. You just can't win :/ Really think drivers ought to have better preparation in driving tests etc so they know that they are unpredictable because so many drivers just have no idea that they are causing a dangerous situation.
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Rule 50 in the highway code under 'help yourself be seen' says riders should wear light coloured and flourescent clothing during the day. How many do? I think anything we can do to let drivers know that ALL horses are potentially unpredictable, or a potential hazard is no bad thing. So many drivers are ignorant to this and hence will drive too fast and too close because they literally don't know any better. I do think drivers should be better educated and there should be more road safety awareness campaigns, but until that happens, I'll be looking out for me and the horses I ride/lead and wearing those flouro warning tabards
 
hannahealasaid said:
Trouble is, if you wear extreme things like tabards with danger written on them or the caution young horse ones, insurance companies will try to pin blame on you because they try to say its an admission that you knew the horse was a potential problem. You just can't win :/ Really think drivers ought to have better preparation in driving tests etc so they know that they are unpredictable because so many drivers just have no idea that they are causing a dangerous situation.
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I think. this has been proved to be untrue, I'm sure I've read that somewhere.
 
Some months ago my friend and I were riding on a country road near us. We were both wearing hi viz and my horse was also wearing leg bands. The road is a 30 limit and is quite narrow. A police car came towards us doing at least 50mph I signalled him to slow down. He completely ignored me. Luckily both horses are bomb proof in traffic but he did not know that.

When I got home I reported him and his sergeant advised me he had been told off and had to go a road safety course.. He had not been going anywhere urgently so had no need to rush

If the police do not know how to approach horses what hope is there for us riders.
 
throughtheforest said:
Saskiahorsey, surely that is dangerous driving and should be reported to the Police as such?

Fortunately where we are, the vast majority of drivers are considerate, slow down and pass widely without being asked to do so but, there are enough idiots that are not like that at all and have not a clue about how to pass a horse and rider. It takes barely a minute to slow down and save a life and yet this is clearly * too much* for some people. This topic is one of my bugbears it really is.
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Its pointless reporting incidents to police here..they don't seem to care, we had problems with off road trail bikes using bridlepaths and speeding round blind bends etc and the police did diddly squat !!
 
OWLIE185 said:
If I want to slow or stop a car coming towards me I point at them for 5 seconds and then put the palm of my hand up towards them to indicate to them that I want them to stop.
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Crikey - i'm a rider,, and very aware of the danger of horses messing about on the road - and it would really annoy me if someone on a horse did that to me. I can only imagine that it would annoy a non horsey person even more!

I only ever ask someone to stop if I can tell the horse is about to do something stupid, and I certainly wouldn't have the time to point at someone for 5 seconds. Other than in an emergency, I don't believe that we, as riders, have any right to 'tell' people that they have to stop - and doing so isn't great PR for horsey folks, particularly when we are already looked upon as snobbish and up ourselves by the majority of non- horsey people.
 
I would stop someone if there was traffic coming that they could not see & would hit if they went wide round us. (I ride on narrow windy country roads).
To slow someone, I use the arm extended & up & down motion.

Luckily there are a lot of horses on the roads in ours & the surrounding villages, so MOST drivers are very horse aware.
 
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An extended up and down motion means you are slowing down or turning to the left.
To stop someone you need to point at them for five seconds and then hold the palm of your hand up towards them.
 
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