The internet is in a (predictable) lather after a British woman tweeted about hitting a cyclist with her car. The rider survived, but the incident points to the dangers of cycling on British roads—122 riders died in 2012, a five-year high.
“Definitely knocked a cyclist off his bike earlier – I have right of way he doesn’t even pay road tax #bloodycyclists,” she wrote, according to the .
Her comment was retweeted hundreds of times, leading to outrage among cyclists who pointed out that British road maintenance is funded from centralized taxes, meaning motorists and cyclists are both paying for the upkeep of roads.
In an interview with the BBC, Toby Hockley, 29, came forward and said he was knocked off his bike, likely by the mystery tweeter, while taking part in a race with his bike club. “A car came tearing round the blind corner and narrowly missed a cyclist in front of me,” Hockley told the . “She came on to my side of the road, I took the wing mirror off and I went flying off my bike into a hedge.”
Police are attempting to make contact with the woman.
Read our story on the psychology of car-on-cyclist road rage.