Lombard

I believe most of my close calls/near misses to be motorists who honestly didn't see me. I even had a guy almost hit me, stop short, then lower the window and apologize saying "I honestly didn't see you!". More like he wasn't really paying attention. Hard not to see me in my road construction orange or hi-vis yellow!

livedarklions

I have encountered more than my share of openly belligerent jerks, and there doesn't seem to be any correlation between my position on the road and the likelihood of their deliberate harassment. I figure the same is probably true of homicidal maniacs.

Lombard

I see you're in New England? Where? I'm in Western MA. The number of a-holes on the road is significantly less here than where I used to live.

Chuck Naill

We each decide which person to be when we ride or get behind a wheel.

FBinNY 

This isn't and shouldn't be considered a binary (black/white) consideration.

Roads are a shared resource, so we should be assertive in making sure we have the safe access we are entitled to, while also being considerate that other road users also have places to go.

It's about personal discretion, focusing on situational awareness, and learning how to anticipate potential hazards and being prepared to react.

Since you mention lane position, here's my take. I generally position myself to the right of the center of the right lane, This has me well placed in the area that drivers are scanning, rather than at the periphery of their sight lines. However, as I hear cars approaching and slowing, I'll ease to the right to give them passing opportunities. This maximizes my safety while minimizing the inconvenience to other road users.

So, I don't see this as a question of tights as much as practicalities and getting along as I go along.

BTW - while there's tons of discussion about rights and lane taking here on BF, the reality is that passing accidents are in the minority, and the most dangers happen at intersections. So however you ride, learn how intersection accidents happen and how you can minimize your risks there.

livedarklions

Nashua NH, , so I do a lot of riding in MA. Some of the NH drivers are super hostile.

Lombard

Yeeesh! I had considered NH, but now even more glad I didn't move up there! You're very close to Pepperell, MA. I have relatives whose family is from there. Small world!

TLit

I agree we shouldn't expect too much of drivers; some are inherently defensive and guarded (the elderly, many women), others have way too much power under the hood for suburban and urban driving, always looking to drive as fast as they can as long as they don't get caught. We've had a spate of drivers ignoring rules on school buses in the area with drivers passing school buses wantonly. The school bus driver is supposed to get the tag of the violators which is not easy for them to do. People are saying there will be people maiming accidents before action is taken. There are usually outcries from citizens in neighborhoods before the government does its job. Cops in my town are overpaid and very reluctant to enforce traffic laws against high end vehicles. They should be enforcing all the laws but that is highly political and unpopular.

Paul Barnard

[QUOTE=Lombard;22727670 "I honestly didn't see you!". More like he wasn't really paying attention. [/QUOTE]

This needs to be posted again and again and again and again as necessary to remove "hard to see" from the lexicon of those who discuss bicycle safety. Assuming daylight conditions, no cyclist is "hard to see" when the driver is alert and looking for other roadway users <-------- That's our duty as drivers by the way.

Lombard

A lot of this happens to be a result of selective attention. Motorists who aren't used to seeing cyclists won't be looking for them and therefore won't see them. Watch this video on selective attention:

veganbikes

Agreed. It's not hard to see it chose not to look. As in "The driver of that car chose not to look for the cyclist before they hit them" or I guess you could say "The distracted driver found everything hard to see when they decided to stare at their phone instead of focusing on driving."

Paul Barnard

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That's the problem. Motorists have a duty to expect anything to be in the road. It was raining yesterday as I was driving on a 55MPH highway. I saw an odd shape in the distance near the right tire track of my lane. I lifted off the gas. I saw movement. I braked. It turned out to be a dog trotting down the road. I easily avoided it. Yes selective attention is real, and I do encourage cyclists to do things to increase their conspicuity. No it is not a valid excuse, and frankly I am disappointed in the number of cyclists who excuse it as you are. "Hard to see" needs to be eliminated from our lexicon. We are not hard to see.

JoeyBike

Every situation is different. There is no single answer or solution. For examples:

I commuted in a busy city grid for decades. There were times where being assertive was the right move, and other times where assertiveness might get a pistol waved at me or just get me crushed.

On the other hand:

I have crossed the USA five times while touring. I was on narrow, twisting mountain roads in the Ozarks for a few days "sharing" the road with the occasional log truck or chicken truck. Sight lines were terrible. I could hear the trucks approaching far in advance so I just stopped the bike, got completely off the road on a soft shoulder, took a water break, waved at the drivers as the trucks passed me, then continued on. Assertiveness in that situation wasn't a great idea for me or the truck driver. Even if the truck moved over entirely into the other lane, what happens if a speeding car appears in the opposing lane from around a curve? I can tell you what happens. The driver will avoid a head-on collision and take me out. No amount of neon kit, flashing lights, or helmets would prevent this outcome.

The answer to your question is completely dependent on the circumstances, which can change by the second.

tomato coupe

Assertiveness Training?

I've done a lot of assertiveness training. My feet are now a lot more assertive with my pedals.

livedarklions

I ride through Pepperell a lot. Nashua River Rail Trail goes through it, great ride.