Originally Posted by
Cadfael
1. Keep left. If there's a wide, clean, safe cycle path, use it. One thing that always irritates motorists is a cyclist riding in the road when a good cycle path is present.
Has anyone ever seen a good clean cycle path? In hundreds of thousands of kilometres in three countries, I can only ever recall one, and even that only provided access to a very limited portion of the city in which it was located.
Originally Posted by
Cadfael
2. When riding with a friend, ride side by side only when it won't cause traffic to back up or pass dangerously.
That sounds reasonable to me.
Originally Posted by
Cadfael
3. Don't force vehicles to overtake you repeatedly. At a traffic light, stay behind the last car instead of going ahead of drivers who may have just had difficulty overtaking you safely. Next time, they might not be so careful.
Does that apply both ways? Five days a week I commute on roads on which I'm faster than the cars. Good luck getting any of them to wait behind you at a set of lights (unless you position yourself right in the middle of the lane). I'll do what I always do and assess each intersection as I see it. If you can accelerate faster than the cars (and I generally can), it's much safer to be at the front than caught in the chaos of the intersection immediately after light changes. If drivers really have so much "difficulty" in overtaking cyclists, perhaps we should always push to the front and ensure we clear the intersection to make it easier on them.
Originally Posted by
Cadfael
4. Ride predictably. Maintain a straight line. Use hand signals when turning or changing lanes.
That sounds reasonable to me, although I've largely abandoned hand signals on the grounds that most drivers aren't smart enough to understand them. I rely on lane positioning these days.
Originally Posted by
Cadfael
5. Stay off busy roads. Drivers will be uptight enough without your being in their way. Find an alternative route out of the main traffic flow if possible.
Why? It's a well-known fact that the speed of traffic on any given road is inversely proportional to the amount of traffic it carries. Often on the busiest roads, I'm faster than the traffic. It's not uncommon for me to pass thousands of cars on the way to work in the morning. Additionally, what do you do when there isn't an alternative road, but you still need to get to work on time?
Originally Posted by
Cadfael
6. Don't provoke a reaction. Don't circle in front of stopped cars or lean on one while waiting for a light.
Where does this "Provoke a reaction" thing come from? It's a well-known fact that over 95% of decisions people make have already been made in their own mind before they're presented with the facts. If you don't believe me, watch some advertisements and note how very few of them actually present any facts, but rely more on trying to engage a person's long held prejudices or emotions. This sounds like more "blame the victim" crap to me.
Originally Posted by
Cadfael
7. Be gracious. Motion a driver to make his turn in front of you if you'll be slow getting under way. Who knows? That driver might look a bit more kindly on the next cyclist down the road.
I'm yet to be in a situation where a driver accelerating away from a set of lights has actually been faster than I have. This is a red herring.
Originally Posted by
Cadfael
8. Obey all traffic laws. Don't run lights or stop signs, or zip through road works. When cyclists disregard the rules of the road, drivers have a right to be annoyed. To get respect, you must show respect.
Does that mean I have a right to be annoyed when drivers do the same thing? I saw someone driving down a "bike path" earlier this week, do I have the "right" to verbally abuse or physically assault them in response? It's always interesting to watch people change their answer to that question when the roles are reversed. While I believe cyclists should stop at red lights and stop signs, and do so myself, I'm not about to start accepting second-rate behaviour from motorists because of what some imaginary cyclist allegedly did earlier that day.
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That is all.