Molly coddled bloody modern society! If it shook the kid up enough to take notice of his surroundings, I'd say job done.

If the guy had hit him or beaten him to a pulp, I'd agree that there is a problem.

As it is, the kid did something wrong (walking onto a cycle path without looking), caused a cyclist to crash and got shouted at for his troubles. I'd say he got off lightly.

If that had happened to me as a kid, I'd have got a thick ear from my parents for being such a pratt and told to count myself lucky that the cyclist wasn't asking for repairs to their bike!

That's what I was thinking also.

I'm surprised the cyclist isn't looking for the boy in order to claim damages from him.

Er, he hit a pedestrian, if anyone's got a case it's the boy.

By the sound of it it's more like the pedestrian hit him. He was where he was supposed to be, the pedestrian wasn't.

Jon

This is why it's always better to make sure they're dead. No witnesses, no annoying paperwork or insurance claims, and they won't be getting in anyone's way again.

yes, he hit the boy... because the boy walked into the cycle lane in front of him.

If he had ridden onto the pavement and run the boy down I would agree with you.

If you step off the pavement onto the road without paying attention and I hit you with my car should I then get out and start throttling you?

I see a lot of people just stepping into the road regardless of safety. You know what I always see when someone does this? They look at anything but the traffic. Usually straight down at the ground. It’s a defiance - if I can’t see them then they won’t hit me.

My driving instructor told me that the softer target always wins. I think that’s a fairly general view of the situation, and there will be exceptions. Now, was this a cycle lane on a pavement, or was it a cycle lane on a road? Or was it one of those nebulous lanes that are laid down in pedestrianised areas (anyone who has walked through Watford will know what I mean) and the lane is not that clear or obvious?

Turning this around, my brother was in London and crossing the road (red traffic light, green man on pedestrian crossing), when a cycle courier ran the red light and pelted straight into him. My brother is well built and he stumbled a bit, as the cyclist came to a sudden stop. He picked up the bike and threw it at the nearest lampost and then proceeded to throw the cyclist after his bike, before carrying on across the road.

TBF, cycle couriers are the 'white van man' of cycling.

brill................

Often mothers with push chairs.
More specifically they push the pushchair out into the road, stopping on the pavement themselves, then expect you to stop even though you have right of way.
I'm amazed more babies/toddlers aren't killed by their stupid mothers doing that.

+1, though I've seen any number of d1ckheads here who take corners when the green man's on display...

Yup - I see that a lot.