Driver Fined After Driving 'Too Closely' To Cyclists

It was ruled to be 'careless driving', with the police warning on Twitter: "The driver of this vehicle decided to pass a group of cyclists at excessive speed and far too closely. Fined £417 in total, licence endorsed with five points.

"If anyone thinks this is an acceptable manner of driving, let this be your warning.”

A spokesman for Sheffield North West Neighbourhood Policing Team also said: "The driver of this vehicle decided to pass a group of cyclists at excessive speed and far too closely.

"The driver was also issued a S59 warning as soon as we were notified of the offence. If he is seen to drive in a careless and antisocial manner in the year since it was issued his vehicle will be seized.

"The driver didn’t just endanger one cyclist, he was also too close to those following. He would have seen a group of bikes in a line, and chose to accelerate to a speed increasing the danger to all of them and swerve over the white lines towards them.

"If he had simply driven to the conditions at a less dangerous speed and stayed on his own side of the road he wouldn’t have been prosecuted.

"If people do choose to endanger vulnerable road users by poor driving, they need to remember that any pedestrian, horse rider, cyclist or vehicle may be recording. We will be happy to make sure that there are consequences to endangering others."

The footage has divided people on social media. The Alliance of British Drivers retweeted the clip with the caption: "If you weren't already convinced that the police are out to get you..."

Another user also wrote: "I'm struggling to see what the motorist had done wrong here, on his side of the road, cyclist very close to the central line, do us pedestrians start walking round now, filming cyclist on pavements?"

On the other hand, one user wrote: "An appropriate conviction. If the driver had slowed down and let the cyclists pass there would have been no issue. The delay to the driver would have been a few seconds."

Another tweeted: "You can say all you like about how the rider might have protected themselves better, but the close pass is 100 percent on the driver, who came onto the wring side of the road. If the driver had stayed on their own side, there'd have been no problem."