A deaf woman has issued a plea to other residents in a Scottish city, requesting they are more ‘considerate’ when cycling after she experienced several ‘near-misses’
An Edinburgh woman has appealed to cyclists in the city to be wary of deaf people who may not hear them coming (stock)(Image: Getty Images)
A woman from Scotland has issued a plea to cyclists in her city, asking them to be more ‘considerate’. The Edinburgh resident has said she had encountered a few “near-misses” while walking her dog. The woman in question, who is deaf, took to the capital’s community forum on Reddit to “ask a favour”.
“Just wanted to ask people who are cyclists to maybe be a little more considerate of other individuals when using a shared path,” she began in a post. She elaborated: “I walk to work with my dog through Holyrood Park/Arthur’s Seat and I’ve experienced a few times near-misses with cyclists as they are zooming up behind me. I am deaf and cannot hear anything behind me, especially when it is windy.”
The woman went onto explain that while she does her best to stick to one side of the path to allow bikes to pass by her with ease, she “had at least 3 occasions where a cyclist swooped past me” on one particular morning.
She added: “They may have rang their bell, but I cannot hear that. I had thought about putting some sort of badge on my bag to say I am deaf but then that makes me a bit more vulnerable.
“Just asking please to slow down when you are going to overtake people. That’s all I can ask for. Thank you.”
Sympathising with the woman’s predicament, one Reddit user responded: “Cyclists should be used to non-responsive pedestrians, the way people respond to a bell is painfully diverse and you never know what they will do. I’m sorry you’ve been frightened, it’s not okay to buzz people out of frustration.”
A second person clearly understood the woman’s frustrations, as they added: “The crossroads bit at the bottom of Middle Meadow Walk is hell for this. All directions have ‘give way’ signs for cyclists, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen a cyclist bother to do so.”
While a third was also apologetic, penning: “There’s no excuse, and I’m sorry that’s happened to you. Shared paths should make everyone who uses them more considerate, but that doesn’t always happen. I cycle; I ring my bell to let walkers know I’m there (lots of folks don’t respond to that), and will slow down, unless the path is wide enough for me to pass at a decent distance on the other side of the path.
“There’s idiots on legs as well as any number of wheels, but there’s decent folk there too.”
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After taking in more than 100 replies, the woman returned with a follow-up post, praising others for their understanding.
“Thanks all for the comments and insights, really helpful!” she said. “Not intending to diss cyclists or anything; I know people have opinions of them.
“My post genuinely was just asking for a bit of respect/shared responsibility although some people don’t seem to get that my being deaf, they seem to think it’s somehow my fault for nearly getting spooked by someone coming behind me.”
The City of Edinburgh Council has a page devoted to “paths for everyone”, meanwhile. Its guidance for cyclists is as follows:
Cyclists tips
- Use your bell to let people know you are there well in advance, especially at blind corners
- Give others space
- Don’t pass at speed
- At night – avoid dazzling others with your lights: dip, dim, don’t strobe