In this episode, we’re examining a close pass incident that occurred on Sunday, July 28th, 2024. It involved a grey van on the A58 Rochdale Road in Sowerby Bridge, Halifax.
This video evidence was uploaded to the West Yorkshire Police via their Safer Roads Media Submission Portal on the same day, Sunday, July 28th.
Impressively, West Yorkshire Police responded by email the very next day, Monday, July 29th, confirming that enquiries were actively ongoing to trace the driver so they could be processed for the identified offences.
The initial step in this process is the issuance of a Notice of Intended Prosecution (NIP), which must be done within 14 days of the offence. A NIP serves to inform a potential defendant that they may face prosecution for an offence, ensuring the incident is still fresh in their memory.
Upon receiving a NIP, there’s a 28-day period to provide the name and address of the person driving at the time of the alleged offence. It’s crucial to be truthful; providing false details if you were the driver could constitute ‘perverting the course of justice,’ leading to severe penalties like a prison sentence or a substantial fine. Furthermore, failing to comply with a NIP by not providing the requested information is an offence under Section 172 of the Road Traffic Act 1988.
The results from Operation Snap for July to September 2024 show the driver was dealt with for the offence RT88576: ‘Drive a mechanically propelled vehicle on a road or public place without reasonable consideration.’ This falls under Section 3 of the Road Traffic Act 1988. A driver is considered to have driven without reasonable consideration if their actions inconvenience another person.
This directly contravenes Rule 163 of the Highway Code, which states you should overtake only when it is safe and legal to do so. The code requires drivers to give cyclists at least as much room as they would a car. Specifically for cyclists, the guidance is to leave at least 1.5 metres when overtaking at speeds up to 30mph, and even more space at higher speeds. If it’s unsafe or impossible to meet these clearances, the rules state you should wait and not overtake.
In this instance, the driver was offered an Educational Course. It’s worth noting that a driver can only attend such a course once within a three-year consecutive period. These courses are designed to educate drivers, aiming to change attitudes and prevent re-offending.
The driver has 28 days from the document date to book and pay for the course, and it must be completed within 120 days of the offence date. While the option to accept a Conditional Offer of Fixed Penalty or have the matter heard in court always exists, in this case, the driver accepted the educational course and attended at their own expense.
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Join us next time for more from West Yorkshire Cycling.
