A cyclist in Saanich who films his rides with two cameras, one on the front and one on the back, needed neither as a Saanich Police officer witnessed an incident that started on Mann Avenue in Saanich and ended on Wilkinson Road.
(Warning: brief explicit language)
In the video posted to YouTube on Sept. 29, the driver of a green truck speeds up close to the back of the bicycle and then dangerously speeds up and passes quite close to the bike. At the moment the truck passes the cyclist it is going west-bound along Mann Road and a Saanich police SUV can be spotted parked with the lights off on the other side of the road.
RELATED: Victoria wins environmental award for contentious bike lanes
That police SUV then pulls a U-turn, visible in the rear camera footage of the bike video, before catching up and pulling over the green truck. Saanich police Sgt. Steve Eassie then emerges from the SUV and administers a traffic violation to the driver before approaching the cyclist, who waited behind the truck.
“As I was preparing to turn left, a truck [approached] at high speed, tailgate, honked at me and attempt to run me into a parked vehicle. Good Guy Saanich PD was on point,” wrote the person who uploaded the video.
Saanich police Sgt. Julie Fast said that no ticket was issued in this instance.
“It’s a good reminder of the importance of sharing the road with cyclists and being cognizant of what’s around you,” Fast said. “The fine for this is $109 and 3 points.”
Saanich-based BikeMaps.org, a global, interactive user map that tracks cycling incidents and near misses, tweeted that “punishment passes” are a common occurrence.
We've seen many of these scary punishment passes shared on Twitter. But check it out…@SaanichPolice saw it happen. Be sure to report these on https://t.co/IuIwaCddXJ so we have data on how often this is happening. https://t.co/jVyt4NeTim
— BikeMaps.org (@BikeMapsTeam) October 1, 2018
RELATED: City of Victoria receives boost for bike lanes projects
