Originally Posted by
Machka
Because it's not the right way to ride ... it's actually illegal.
According to the traffic act in the province where I live, cyclists must ride as far to the right as practicable. Not down the middle of the lane.
Check your laws.
Most "as far to the right as practicable" laws have an exception if the lane is not wide enough to share safely. Regardless of explicit exemptions, if a lane is not wide enough that a car could pass me in the lane with three feet clearance, then as far as practicable becomes the middle of the lane. Otherwise drivers will try to pass me too closely, and that's hardly practicable.
Examples:
Florida: A bicyclist may leave the right-most portion of the road in the following situations: when passing, making a left turn, to avoid road hazards, or when a lane is too narrow for a bicycle and a car to share safely
Ontario: the government even publishes a cycling skills booklet saying
In urban areas where a curb lane is too narrow to share safely with a motorist, it is legal to take the whole lane by riding in the centre of it.
(
http://www.mto.gov.on.ca/english/pub...ction3.0.shtml)