IMO- this thread isn't about how someone may react to whether someone extends a non-obigatory courtesy, but about whether one does in the first place. I (for one or many) don't get mad at someone who doesn't do me a favor of any kind. That simply maintains the status quo, so there's no reason to get upset. OTOH - I routinely extend non-obligatory courtesies, as you now say you do, and receive the same in return. It just makes life nicer for everybody.

I treat all my fellow road users as I might treat my aunt (my mother's hypothetical sister, who has a big mouth and enjoys showing up my mother -- "I can't believe how rudely YOUR son treated me....".

As I said earlier, when situations like this occur, I'm more often driven by the question "why not?"

So now that you made a point that you're a nice guy, and that you have no obligation to do so, maybe you'll answer the original question. What if someone at a light asked you to move over so he could slide by and make a legal right on red. The OP said he always refuses, what would you do?



BTW- I might point out that this is the commuter thread, and commuting has unique aspects unlike most cycling. One of those is that we tend to share the road with the same people daily, same bus, police, UPS/Fedex drivers, and many of the same motorists on a regular basis. After 5 years riding the same routes at roughly the same times I know the cops, school crossing guards, and many of the regular drivers I see on my route.

That's an important distinction because it mean I can ride surrounded by friends or enemies. If I stop to fix a flat, people will stop, ask if I'm OK and offer a lift. To show how well a bicycle commuter can be known in his area, when I'm walking, some drivers will slow and ask "where's the bike today?" or something to that effect and offer me a lift.