Originally Posted by italianstallion

I've been rear ended in my car three times in the past two years, and each time I was rear ended I was stopped in traffic at a red light and was hit at significantly higher speeds than 5 mph. So I've been going through that whole 'checking the rear view mirror each time I'm at a light' thing, and its especially unnerving now that I'm on a bicycle and I think about how each of those three rear end collisions probably would've killed me if I was on a bike. Absolutely there's no perfectly safe place for us out on the roads, but for me personally I feel much better either directly beside a car or off the edge of the right side of their rear bumper (this way if there is a rear end collision I have better odds of not getting sandwiched between cars). I don't try and beat the car I'm beside through the intersection when the light goes green...I wait for that car to go then I start rolling, so there's no risk of a right hook. I also don't pass every car at the light: I take my place in line, albeit next to a car rather than behind it. This avoids pissing everyone off that I'm passing them on the right, and also limits the risk of getting right hooked.