Advocacy & Safety - Right on the Red LIght

I'm a n00b and I follow all laws but I'm confused about what to do when you are on a red light, cars want to go to the right, and you want to go straight.

What is the safest thing to do in a 3 lane, 2 lane and 1 lane road?

TIA

unless they have emergency lights flashing, they can wait 60 seconds

I'm not sure I understand you. Is it because you're hugging the right shoulder, so you end up against the corner the cars are turning around?

I try to take the center of the lane right before I come to an intersection. I think it makes me more visible to the people around me, and it gives enough space for right-turning cars to go around me.

On busier, larger roads, I don't ever have a problem with this. I just stay out of lanes marked with a turn arrow when I want to continue straight.

Is this what other people do?

Often on two-lane roads, and almost always on three-lanes, I will take an entire lane. I do this because most of the lanes are wide enough for a car, but not wide enough for a car to safely pass me with enough clearance. I figure, if a car needs to pass me, they can go into the other lane. Is this greedy/wrong?

Same as you would if driving a motorcycle.

Use the righmost lane marked for your destination.

If the lane serves only one destination and is wide, you may want to use the right side of the lane to facilitate passing. However, I usually use the center of the lane until after I clear the intersection.

If that lane serves multiple destinations, use the portion of the lane that best serves your destination (right for right turn, left for left turn, center for straight).

If the right lane serves both straight and right turning traffic, and you are going straight, don't use the right half of the lane. Use either the center or left half. If the lane is wide enough or the corner radius is wide, you can sometimes allow just enough space for drivers to turn right to your right, but discourage through drivers from passing on your right.

Don't try too hard to allow room for right turns; if the lane is narrow, just take the lane and let them wait. A bonus is that their vehicle may help trip the signal.

I'm a n00b and I follow all laws but I'm confused about what to do when you are on a red light, cars want to go to the right, and you want to go straight.

What is the safest thing to do in a 3 lane, 2 lane and 1 lane road?

TIA

My preference is go to the head of the line to be out front of all the stopped cars (usually way out in front to get a jump start), and far enough left to allow the right-on-red turning cars to pass.

If you're talking about a lane that serves as both a turning and straight lane, I usually just get into the next lane over, but it's pretty situational. If the light is going to change soon, then I'll sit in the right lane and they can wait, just as they would have to if I were in a car.

If there's one lane that serves as both the straight and the right hand turning lane, then they'd have to wait if I were in a car, and it's no big deal.

What you don't want to do is end up letting a few right turners past you, and then somebody going straight sitting next to you... that can make it hazardous when the light turns if motorists are impatient and you're trying to merge back over to the right.

My preference is go to the head of the line to be out front of all the stopped cars (usually way out in front to get a jump start), and far enough left to allow the right-on-red turning cars to pass.

Yep. This is what I do. Although there are occassions where cars that want to turn right won't even though I have left enough room to roll an 18 wheeler thru.

What you don't want to do is end up letting a few right turners past you, and then somebody going straight sitting next to you... that can make it hazardous when the light turns if motorists are impatient and you're trying to merge back over to the right.

My solution to this situation is to check for the cars signal light to get some sort of indication of where they are going. If no signal, or if I'm still a bit nervous about the situation, I jump the light and move back over to the right half way through the intersection.

What works for me may not work for anyone else though.

Sometimes you never know. I hand signaled to indicate I wanted to turn left as I approached a T intersection last night and even though I was in the middle of the lane, the car behind me still passed me on the left and than proceeded to make a right turn, from the far left of the lane.

I was tempted to offer some choice words, but there was a kid in the back seat. It's time to break out the airzounds horn.


If there's one lane that serves as both the straight and the right hand turning lane, then they'd have to wait if I were in a car, and it's no big deal.

What you don't want to do is end up letting a few right turners past you, and then somebody going straight sitting next to you... that can make it hazardous when the light turns if motorists are impatient and you're trying to merge back over to the right.

Until recently I would stay to the left side of the lane when it was a combined straight/right turn lane. After a couple of close calls, I've just learned to stay more to the right. Right on red is a privilege, not a right, the drivers behind me will just have to wait.

Often on two-lane roads, and almost always on three-lanes, I will take an entire lane. I do this because most of the lanes are wide enough for a car, but not wide enough for a car to safely pass me with enough clearance. I figure, if a car needs to pass me, they can go into the other lane. Is this greedy/wrong?

not greedy, not wrong.

If there is no dedicated right turn lane, I move far enough left that a motorist can slowly squeeze by. Leaving too generous a gap between yourself and the curb generates the small-but-real possibility of a through motorist squeezing in and passing you on the right. Fortunately, this has happened to me only twice in 100k mi / 160k km of cycling, so I am probably doing a decent job of lane control.

If there is a through lane and a right only lane, with no bike lane in between, I sometimes lane split and sometimes take the center or right half of the through lane, depending on traffic speeds and volumes and other situations.

Same as you would if driving a motorcycle.

This is what I do.

If you want to pass me at an intersection, you will have to run right over top of me. I take up enough space to keep cars from passing on either side of me. Intersections are dangerous enough without some impatient fool trying to squeeze past you.

When I'm driving and there is a cyclist at the front, I usually just wait - I don't really have a problem with this.

As a cyclist, depending on the situation, I may or may not go to the front. If they have turn signals flashing and they are at the front, I probably won't go try to pass them because they won't be looking for me.

What I do have a problem with is that when cyclists move to the front of the line, many tend to stop their bikes across the crosswalk forcing pedestrians to go around them, usually the traffic side of the crosswalk.

unless they have emergency lights flashing, they can wait 60 seconds
This is the legally correct answer. However, I try to stay far enough to the left to allow cars to turn right if I find it reasonable to do so. This is a case-by-case basis, though, as I won't put myself in danger to accomodate someone else's impatience.