Nearly right hooked, took a pic
 

So I was just riding along at about 12MPH up a slight incline when this Comcast van came whipping up behind me and turns right in front of me. Had to grab the brakes and dodge left to miss him. Dude must have been really hungry cause he was heading for a McDonalds drive through. I turned around and took his picture but I can't make out the "Hows my driving" phone number, only the van number 2355.

I need to carry a better camera than just my phone...

Think I can just call Comcast and complain to them?

The proper thing to do here is ride up next to the driver's window and when he rolls it down tell him

"Comcast hates puppies; I ride a bike to save money on my commuting cost to pay my Time Warner bill which saves me enough money to buy puppy food. You almost killed me with your failsauce driving, therefore you would have stopped me from getting puppy food - consequently your company hates puppies."

Not sure if he'd get the joke.

You could also just do the more traditional

"Hey *******, was your nom nom more important than not killing someone in the company vehicle? What's your name dickface so I can call in your perfect driving, oh, and say hi to Marj at unemployment for me, and let her know the anger management class worked well - you're ass is still alive and ready to order."

Hell yeah you can, and hell yeah you should. As long as you did what was appropriate to be visible, at least.

Probably. You could also keep an eye out for (or track down) another Comcast van and get the phone number from it.

2 superflashes in the back usually ensure that im seen. The bright ass yellow helmet cover helps too :)

Thats what im thinking. I should see one on the way home or I could just ride over to the Comcast office/dispatch center. Its about a 1/4 mile off my normal route home.

I second Arcanum's suggestion to find another van and get the phone number. Reporting dangerous drivers directly to a company has had positive response in the past for others on the forum. I recall a couple people saying they got personal call-backs regarding their incedent after making a report call. I'm sure there are just as many who've seen no response, but it couldn't hurt to take the 2 minutes and call the number.

+1. It's never a bad idea to start a track record of dangerous driving for a given individual. Just like the LA doctor case, it may help another rider out down the line.

Yes, contact Comcast with a rational, calm explanation of what happened, the truck number and a description of the driver if possible.

I do this when I can. Here's an example from last week...

My complaint:
This morning, 1/6/10, I was cycling to work northbound on the bike/pedestrian path that follows Alaskan Way at the downtown waterfront. As I was approaching the intersection of S. Jackson Street, a large Cedar Grove truck pulled entirely across the bike/pedestrian pathway on HIS red light (vehicles and bikes/ped had the green/walk right of way). As I approached the truck moved forward slightly and I feared the driver was going to continue on and make the turn oblivious to my approach (with lights on, a bright yellow jacket, white helmet, etc). I yelled at him to stop - a little angrily I'm sorry to say, but he was in a huge truck totally blocking my access to the intersection. The then yelled back at me saying something to the effect of, "I'm stopped what's the problem?" I ended up having to ride around the front of his truck, across the defunct streetcar tracks (a dangerous move on a bicycle) and manouver back onto the path.

The problem is the driver did not stop before the well-marked pedestrian crossing on his red light. He then saw me approaching and could not get out of the way. He then took his foot off the brake, allowing the truck to move slightly forward and then put on his brakes again when he couldn't make the right turn on red due to oncoming traffic (including me). He blocked the right of way off pedestrians and cyclists at a busy intersection (note the ferry dock is right there). I have never had a bad encounter with any of your drivers before. This one had a particularly bad attitude. He does not own the road.

Their response:
First I would like to apologize for your experience this morning with our truck. I can assure you that protecting the safety of our employees, customers, and those of the public is very important to us here at Cedar Grove. I spoke with the driver this morning and explained to him that he needs to be continuously on the look out for other vehicles, pedestrians, and especially cyclists. I stressed the importance of looking out for cyclist because of the fact that they share the roadways with vehicles and a large vehicle like ours can be a little unsettling to cyclists especially if it appears that they are not fully aware of what is going on around them. Once again, on behalf of Cedar Grove I would like to apologize for what took place this morning and I would like to thank you for contacting us, because of people like you it allows us to grow and get better as a company.

Always be careful when near mikidees.... Ronald McDonald may seem like he's always smiling but there is sadness in the eyes.

/b/rother?

I would have just rolled up beside him and taken his food when the server holding it over the counter :) THEN BURN RUBBER on your commuter bike :)

As any seasoned commuter knows, white cargo/service vans are a plague on the roads. Stay away from them at all costs.

Personally I hate them and their cro-magnon drivers with a passion. ******* ********

;)


Cab drivers are a close second!

my experience is that pickup trucks and vans with corporate markings are the worst drivers on the road (unpainted pickups are not far behind, as are the holier-than-thou Prius drivers).

maybe these contractors are in a hurry to their next appointment or something, but I can't believe the # of times they whiz by me with just a foot or two to spare.

Yes, report him! Please do not let this a-hole get away with driving like that. He is going to kill somebody (glad it wasn't you). Epic commercial driving fail!

We don't have many cargo vans around here and no taxis at all, but 16 year old kids are just as dangerous as anything else I've seen. I try to avoid them like the plague. Between the inexperience with driving, the texting, the loud music, the 5 friends crammed in the car, and the "I don't give a **** about you, cyclist, I have a drivers license! HONK HONK!" attitude bad things are never more than a few feet away(or inches in some frightening cases). Fortunately you can almost always here them coming from several blocks away so they are easy enough to avoid.

Then again, I think that fast food driveways are about the worst place for cyclists in general. When faced with the thought of eminent food most drivers lose all courtesy and common sense.

this exact same thing happened to me the other day, and what was sad was that the guy ended up going down the wrong side of a boulevard.

Phone calls are okay, emails may work, but in my experience a letter gets the most action. At my employer, complaints are taken seriously, especially if someone takes the time to document it in a letter. At many places, letters must be responded to, and a copy may end up in the employee's file.

Catgrrl70's advice of a calm, rational description of what happened is excellent. Do not ramble, use obscene language, or preach the benefits of cycling. A brief mention of safety and implications is fine, though. Proper grammar, spelling, and punctuation also help.

Yet another reason why T.V. sucks.(it's called programming for a reason )

Glad your safe.

Very Nice response from Cedar Grove to your call

I called a cab company once when one of their cabs cutme off on my motorcycle. I asked if they had some way of dealing with the problem that was better than having members of the public start shooting at their drivers. After a stunned silence, she said yes they did and I ended up getting a professional looking letter saying he'd been reprimanded for doing that, and that he'd be fired if that happened again.

Yes - it was actually an email to the company however. In writing. And I always save a back up copy in case I don't hear from them. I will contact them persistently and politely until I get a response.

What's wrong with rolling through mickey's lot and getting the number, then calling it as you stop in his line of sight? I like-ee do-ee that!

You got the important thing, which is the van number. I used to be the one receiving these calls at my company, and I can tell you that if the caller didn't have a unit number or (accurate) license plate, there was no way to link it to the driver. Once I hung up the phone, that was the end of it. With the identifying information, it would go to the relevant manager. How managers dealt with it varied (and the reality is that experienced field guys can get away with almost anything that doesn't actually kill someone or get them arrested), but at a minimum the driver would get a talking to. Problem employees that had multiple complaints were the first to go in the recession, and even during the last boom, there were a couple of people laid off over their driving habits.

Not only does comcast cable service suck ass but it seems their employees do too. No surprise here.

I'd just write them a letter with the van number, time and place it happened. Be sure to mention he pulled into the McDonald's right after (maybe it was a time he was supposed to be working not getting food). I don't think you should try to imply that it was deliberate and it may not have been. There LAB used to have a nice video, Bicycles and Trucks Sharing the Road but unfortunately it doesn't seem to still be available. Maybe there is something else like it out there you could share with Comcast and suggest they include it in their driver training. Sure, you want this guy held accountable, but why not use this as an opportunity to try to get Comcast to get the message out to all their drivers?