Video of five-year-old cycling in the middle of the road sparks debate
11 November 2022, 11:22 | Updated: 11 November 2022, 11:32
Footage of a car driving next to a five-year-old cyclist has sparked a heated debate online.
A video showing a five-year-old cycling down the middle of the road and being narrowly missed by a car has gone viral.
The footage sees the child being filmed by his dad as he cycles down the road.
At one stage, the young boy has to veer into the middle of the road to go round some parked cars, but at his moment a car passes by and narrowly misses him.
While the young boy continues to ride down the road without flinching, the video has sparked a big reaction online.
Take a look at this video of a five-year-old cycling to school. He's being recorded by his dad behind.
— Jeremy Vine On 5 (@JeremyVineOn5) November 8, 2022
Look at how close this car approaches the child.
Who is in the wrong?
Is it the five-year old, or is it the driver of the Ford?
Let us know what you think. pic.twitter.com/Q0uMEQVTRI
Appearing on The Jeremy Vine Show, the child’s dad Ashley blamed the driver of the car for getting too close to his son.
He said: "The facts are clear on this one, the driver was wrong, and my son has every right to ride in the road.
"That's clear cut."
He continued: "You can see from the clip they should have stopped way sooner,
"They had plenty of distance to make that decision, we had lights on, reflective clothing.
“The distance [to the pair cycling] just is not safe.
“People will argue 'oh, plenty of room, you could drive a bus through there'... well, I'm sorry, that's not factually correct.
"That's less than a metre gap so legally that's wrong and then morally that's wrong.
“You can debate as much as you want about whether the law is wrong but you know for a fact, everyone knows, that was too close."
According to new Highway Code rules about the hierarchy of the road, priority must be given to those who are most vulnerable.
This starts with pedestrians, then cyclists, horse riders, and motorcyclists, followed by those in cars and vans and then drivers of buses and lorries.
Many people have defended the person driving the car, arguing a child shouldn’t be cycling in the road.
Someone said on Twitter: “Obviously the car driver should have waited. The child may also be too young for the road.”
Another wrote: “Cyclists always have right of way of over cars. That is the law.”
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