discussion of filtering
 

Here is reasonable food for thought coming from one of the motorists in the comments.

"Also please explain why I see bicyclists that I finally pass, pass me on the right side of the road when I have to wait at the next stop light, only to have to then attempt to pass then yet again. "

I don't filter only to make people have to pass me again and those that do are discourteous dolts.

Edited to highlight a few key words.

For me, lane position makes all the difference. If I am taking the lane I wait in the lane when other traffic stops. If I am sharing the lane I continue sharing, albeit with extra caution, when other traffic stops.

I agree with you with a whole heart. To be driving an expensive, powerful car and have a cyclist overtake me in traffic, thereby forcing me to overtake them, only for them to go past again is distressing to the point of being traumatic, not to mention the inconvenience of having to constantly overtake them, time and again and again. Don't these cyclists realise what they're putting us poor drivers thro'?

I think the concern is legitimate. Any overtaking is inherently riskier than not overtaking.

If you do this on a regular basis, you're an inconsiderate dolt and you're putting yourself at risk each time. You wouldn't do that in a car, so why would you do it on a bike? Just because you can, I guess. Good luck out there.

As a general rule I don't keep re-passing cars but only because I'd usually prefer queuing up at lights. Unless it's a really long line. But honestly I don't get this. If there's room for a car to pass left, there's room for a bike to pass right and why shouldn't the cyclist pass if he's going faster? The driver has to slow down sometimes, sure, but the alternative is the cyclist slowing down so the driver doesn't have to. Six of one, half a dozen of the other. Assuming it's legal and both have the same right to the road in the given situation, I don't think the driver has any call to be upset at having to pass again.

Unless it is a busy roadway with limited opportunities for the driver to pass you at a safe distance. There are additional dangers the cyclist faces when filtering on the right. In general, for the amount of time it saves, it's not worth the risks.

Controlling, much?

I still don't understand this frequent US drivers' complaint.

I overtake you because traffic is slow and congested and I can ride sfaely thro' gaps. The road frees up a bit and/or the lights turn green and you overtake me and gon on until the traffic turns congested, whereupon I roll up and go past you, etc., ad infinitum.

How does this affect the driver's position? S/he is no further back than they would have been if I'd not been riding along that road. S/he isn't made late for work/shopping/recreational trip destination. The answer seems to be, "Waaaahh! It's unfair!". Each of us overtakes the other and who's to say who makes the first overtake? What if I'm the first to be overtaken and then go past my overtaker turn and turn about? Am I entitled to bleat a complaint?

What it seems to be about is that you, the rider, can slip past me in traffic because you are narrower and more manoeuvrable in traffic and I don't like it!

It seems to be cultural, because I don't recall ever seeing that amongst the many, common, drivers' complaints that I see in paper's on both sides of The Pond

I'm sorry, I don't understand.

If the road ahead is so narrow that the cyclist feels the need to take the lane or otherwise impedes the flow of the cars he just filtered past, then it is inconsiderate for the cyclist to filter. I'll be damned if as a cyclist I am willing to save myself 10 seconds to filter past cars that will ultimately be held up by me. That cyclist that just passed within 3 feet of the doors of the stopped or slowed cars certainly doesn't have any *****ing rights if the cars pass the cyclist at the same close distance once they get up to speed. Can't complain about door openers or right hookers either.

I'm sorry you don't understand, too.

I thought about moving this thread to trollheim because I think that there should be some respect shown when a cyclist is killed, and this didn't show any. However, I left it here for now.

Ok I missed the start.....I am not sure where the motorist commenst are comming from but a couple of points:

a) Bicyclists have a right to the road
b) if a motorist is complaining that they got caught by a bike at a red light and have to re pass...... then there really is no need to pass as the effective speed is the same for both the car and the bike. The motorist is not going any slower actually because the lights are the speed limitation.

I don't get this. The general rule requires me to be as far right as practicable. If I can do that, and it happens that I pass a bunch of cars sitting at a light, what's the complaint?

If cyclists did not filter forward, but rather stopped in the center of the lane and waited their turn, it would slow the overall flow of traffic vs the situation in which motorists and cyclists share the same lane side by side. What I don't understand is why, when I am coasting to a stop at a red light, some motorists feel the need to pass, and then brake hard - my conclusion is that there are many motorists who really like being stopped at red lights.

I prefer to take the lane through all intersections, and normal traffic speed is easily attained through an intersection from a stop.

I only filter past drivers who pass me aggressively when rolling up to a stoppage in traffic. I will even filter past just one one or two cars, pull in between the cars and stop, either not looking at them at all, or give a friendly wave and a smile.

It is all situational really. If there is a stop light and the line is long and it is narrow, I wait behind whatever car I come up to. If it is a long line at a light that has a lot of right shoulder, I will move up to respect that people at the end of the line who would get pissed because they missed the light because of my slow start.

If I am in the city and the traffic sucks from a cars point of view and I can move past them faster, I do. It is called city riding and require more skills then non city riding in my opinion.

it came from the thread about the cyclist killed by the logging truck. As typical, the motorists minor complaint about legal but annoying cyclist behavior was attached to an article about the predictably fatal outcome of a motorist's criminal negligence. Will the last motorist that was killed by a filtering cyclist, please stand up?

Why do motorist race from red light to red light, not saving any time just to get in front of cyclist? Those that do are discourteous dolts

I don't filter. I stay in the lane and 'take the lane'. So motorists have an absolute(instead of vague) idea of my lane position.

There is a big difference when a cyclist passes stopped or slowed cars at less than 3ft and when a driver does the same to a cyclist.

Why can't you complain about door openers and right hookers when you filter?


I think the filtering argument goes both ways. If the driver is passed by the rider, why doesn't the driver just stay behind if they will just be passed again at the next intersection? I try to keep my filtering to areas I know I am overall faster than traffic or will be opening up or turning to a bike lane up ahead or know that the whole line of traffic won't make the light.

I'll filter up on streets having a good bike lane that continues through the intersection, but rarely feel comfortable doing so when I have to share the lane. In those cases, I generally take my place in line, centering in the lane. When traffic starts moving again I'll move over. It's not much of a hold up for me, and why should I compel someone to repass me? It is funny though, during my city commute, that I will pull up to a stop behind the same car over and over again.

-G

Load of krap.

Do I have to keep track of cars that pass me and make sure to stay behind them no matter what? I might not ever get home. We can only go about 15-20 mph and now we're supposed to not use the only advantage we have.

Sorry folk, I'm riding my bike. Screw the cars. They're on their own.

I only filter if I'm in a hurry, there's massive traffic buildup, or if I need to turn right when the vehicles are waiting for a green to go straight instead. Otherwise, I take the lane for safety purposes which accounts for vast majority of the time.

No, it doesn't unless you're slow and stay in the center.

I take the lane as I approach a stop. When traffic commences, I accelerate and uspshift a few gears--this takes only a few seconds then I move to the right. Most motorists accelerate rather slow to a point where it makes neglible to no difference to them.