Originally Posted by
hagen2456
Oh sure. But the idea that you get closer passes, the closer to the curb you ride, seems to be a (popular) myth, and nothing else:
http://www.bhsi.org/walkerfigs.pdf
The most dangerous drivers, by the way, are those who are distracted one way or the other. Most of us try to navigate a car with caution, and yet make mistakes, and on very rare occasions these mistakes will be dangerous, but I honestly don't think that the majority of accidents are cause by the cautious-but-still-human drivers. It's the distracted asshats that are most likely to hit cyclists, and they're exactly the people who'll never notice you however much you take the lane.
Very interesting and thanks for posting the link -- I had not seen those stats before. I was able to find the study narrative on BHSI,
http://www.helmets.org/walkerstudy.htm which provides some links to related articles including
http://www.helmets.org/walkerchartsrev2b.pdf , in which Dan Guttierez analyses the data and takes minor issue with chart layouts (he feels by truncating the Y axis, small effects are made to appear larger).
He also notes that "The other point to be made is that if Dr. Walker had positioned himself further left still, say 7 feet from the curb (in a 12 foot lane), he would have observed lane change behavior from passing motorists, and the passing distances would have been larger than the numbers he measures at lateral positions closer to the curb." That was my question as I looked at the charts -- how was passing clearance measured when a motorist moved over a complete lane and left the cyclist completely alone in his lane -- was that data point even measured and included?
The reason I even raise the question is I'm trying to reconcile the apparent results against my own personal experience -- when riding further left, it seems that drivers more often change lanes completely. And, I've only been buzzed when I was hugging the curb. Of course, this only anecdotal and not statistically significant.
Finally, I agree with you that distracted drivers are dangerous, but I disagree that they will "never" notice you no matter where you ride. I think the less you blend in on the right, the more likely a distracted driver will wake up and pay attention. This is only my personal opinion -- I don't have scientific studies to back it up.