Tailbacks caused by people unable to overtake cyclists

[Basil Hume]

I give cyclists the same room as a car when overtaking - i.e. I try to pass in the outside / oncoming lane.

I used to be a daily driver but am now a daily cyclist. There are clearly some irresponsible people on bikes (as differentiated from cyclists), but the consequences of their behaviour is far less damaging than a careless, indifferent or wilfully harmful attitude from a car driver.

I'm a car lover, but we have to recognise that we share the roads with cyclists in ever-growing numbers. Most cyclists are also drivers and have a car awareness; most drivers have never had the pleasure of cycling in the shadow of a poor driver.

[artov60]

Basil Hume said:

I give cyclists the same room as a car when overtaking - i.e. I try to pass in the outside / oncoming lane.

So that means when driving your Clio you overtake when you can give a gap of about 10 feet between you and the cyclist.

Ridiculous.

[ewenm]

deadslow said:

Why can't they ride on the footpath. They would be no more inconvenient to pedestrians than they are to motorists, and the cyclists could take responsibility for their's and other's safety.

Why do you think people cycle? I'd have said it was to make progress, just like car drivers. Why is the driver's need to make progress more important than the cyclist's? On a pavement a cyclist would have to give way at every side road. On the main road the cyclist (like the cars) can pass the side roads without stopping so making better progress.

deadslow said:

Oh, and if they go through a red light, we should be able to run them down summarily

Agree with you there, as long as you don't complain about the damage to your car

As I said on another cycling thread, it's amusing that drivers feel the need to start a thread on the internet when they observe some bad cycling. Anyone who cycles at rush hour would be able to start multiple threads every day if they wished to complain about each bad driver. Why not just accept that some other road users are idiots - they might be on foot, on a bike, behind a steering wheel and you will come across many of them if you spend much time on the roads.

Not worth getting stressed about.

[Pigeon]

ewenm said:

alock said:

I judge the space a cyclist should get by the amount of room they leave when filtering through traffic, i.e. bugger all.

Interesting that you don't maintain your own standards, but change them depending on others. If someone cuts you up in a car, do you then cut someone else up next time you overtake?

I agree with alock. I go up the inside of a queue at traffic lights, thereby demonstrating to them all that I am happy to fit between a normally-positioned car and the kerb. The lights change, everyone sets off, half the queue comes back past me no problem, but then half of it waits behind while some div in a Micra/Matiz/$notably_narrow_stbox insists on waiting until they can pull right over to the other side of the road to pass me. It's embarrassing and it pisses me off.

[mybrainhurts]

HertsBiker said:

Don't get me wrong,

What..? You mean you know how to spell pedalling....?

[Basil Hume]

artov60 said:

Basil Hume said:

I give cyclists the same room as a car when overtaking - i.e. I try to pass in the outside / oncoming lane.

So that means when driving your Clio you overtake when you can give a gap of about 10 feet between you and the cyclist.

Ridiculous.

In return, I offer you the chance to take part in a gentlemanly experiment.

I suggest we begin by putting you on a bike and cycling up a busy road. I will then proceed to overtake you in my car at a variety of legal speeds, deploying less "ridiculous" alternative attitudes to overtaking a cyclist.

Let's start at 10cm and see how we do? I'll even lend you a bike, since you probably don't ride one very often.

[Parrot of Doom]

artov60 said:

Basil Hume said:

I give cyclists the same room as a car when overtaking - i.e. I try to pass in the outside / oncoming lane.

So that means when driving your Clio you overtake when you can give a gap of about 10 feet between you and the cyclist.

Ridiculous.

Its worrying that there are people on the roads such as yourself.

[amare32]

deadslow said:

Why can't they ride on the footpath. They would be no more inconvenient to pedestrians than they are to motorists, and the cyclists could take responsibility for their's and other's safety.

Oh, and if they go through a red light, we should be able to run them down summarily

Here's hoping next time you run a red light in your car that you get side swiped by a lorry then

[Funk Odyssey]

artov60 said:

Basil Hume said:

I give cyclists the same room as a car when overtaking - i.e. I try to pass in the outside / oncoming lane.

So that means when driving your Clio you overtake when you can give a gap of about 10 feet between you and the cyclist.

Ridiculous.

what gap do you leave when you overtake a car?

[anonymous-user]

amare32 said:

deadslow said:

Why can't they ride on the footpath. They would be no more inconvenient to pedestrians than they are to motorists, and the cyclists could take responsibility for their's and other's safety.

Oh, and if they go through a red light, we should be able to run them down summarily

Here's hoping next time you run a red light in your car that you get side swiped by a lorry then

I think the point is, if he runs a red light, then get's hit by a lorry, it's his own fault, he won't then go and sit on truck driving forums (this is PISTONheads, not Pedalheads after all?) telling all truck drivers they're inconsiderate and all s for driving...


Edit to say, if 10mph is the speed at which a road user can be deemed as causing an obstruction - in other words, you can overtake on double whites if the vehicle/horse/milkfloat causing the hold up is going less than 10), then is there any action, code, etc that says they SHOULD pull over and let the queue past?

Edited by Opulent on Friday 15th May 08:39

[heebeegeetee]

artov60 said:

Basil Hume said:

I give cyclists the same room as a car when overtaking - i.e. I try to pass in the outside / oncoming lane.

So that means when driving your Clio you overtake when you can give a gap of about 10 feet between you and the cyclist.

Ridiculous.

It's not ridiculous, i do exactly the same. I do the same when in the truck, causing minimal delay to anyone else. There's nothing difficult whatsoever in driving courteously.

hora said:

I've driven in today after yesterday mornings shenanigans on my bike. Can't beleive I have to share a road with such idiots.

When i got into cycling (mountain biking) i didn't cycle on the roads much. I cycled to work about twice and gave it up. The average british motorist is just so st imo. He gets the most benign traffic, the most benign weather, the most benign terrain, and possibly as a result of that he can't cope with any sort of challenge. give the average brit motorist any sort of a challenge, *even overtaking a bicycle*, and he's found wanting.

[ph123]

... and in the complete lawlessness of the London (one way) Streets in rush hour, why so many peddle their bikes down the 'offside' I wonder?

[Alfanatic]

Funk Odyssey said:

artov60 said:

Basil Hume said:

I give cyclists the same room as a car when overtaking - i.e. I try to pass in the outside / oncoming lane.

So that means when driving your Clio you overtake when you can give a gap of about 10 feet between you and the cyclist.

Ridiculous.

what gap do you leave when you overtake a car?

Not ten feet I hope. That'd be in the ditch opposite!

[deadslow]

amare32 said:

deadslow said:

Why can't they ride on the footpath. They would be no more inconvenient to pedestrians than they are to motorists, and the cyclists could take responsibility for their's and other's safety.

Oh, and if they go through a red light, we should be able to run them down summarily

Here's hoping next time you run a red light in your car that you get side swiped by a lorry then

Yes, that would be fair-dos. My policy is always to stop at red, so your anticipated outcome is unlikely. A large number of cyclists, however, pursue a very different approach.

If you wont pay to use the roads, nor stick to the highway code, then the only safe place for cyclists is the pavement or indoors. Its for your own good.

[Parrot of Doom]

deadslow said:

If you wont pay to use the roads

Its amazing how many people don't understand how the road system is funded.

Do yourself a favour, learn how the roads are paid for before you spout such commonplace nonsense again.

[deadslow]

Parrot of Doom said:

Do yourself a favour, learn how the roads are paid for before you spout such commonplace nonsense again.

Calm down, pal. You'll burst your lycra

[Parrot of Doom]

It's interesting how many people are obsessed with Lycra.

There are some very homosexually repressed people around here.

Edited by Parrot of Doom on Friday 15th May 18:25

[Alfanatic]

deadslow said:

Parrot of Doom said:

Do yourself a favour, learn how the roads are paid for before you spout such commonplace nonsense again.

Calm down, pal. You'll burst your lycra

I can understand the parrot's apparent frustration though. The road tax argument pops up in every single cycling thread started. In other words, about once a week. Hell, it comes up so often even my dog knows noone pays road tax.

[ewenm]

Sad state of affairs

Edited by ewenm on Sunday 17th May 13:41

[cheadle hulme]

ewenm said:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/tayside_and_central/8054215.stm

Nutters prepared to risk someone getting a blow out, perhaps on a downhill bend, just to make a protest.

And all because some minor roads are shut for a few hours.