martinus

... or, do you wait at the end of the line, in the middle of the lane ? ( that way you only get passed by each car once ... instead getting passed by teh same ones again ) Somehow, both seems to upset my local traffic . ( I guess I'm not allowed to hold up car behind me 6ft, they [i]need[i/] to to be bumper to bumper. : o(

All this, just so I can ride to my group ride meeting place ... I refuse to drive there with my bike on the top of my car. its 2 miles "down the road" ... unfotunatey for me, with 3 traffic lights.

I need to get one of those pocket size air horns. : o ) ( that are so popular at football games. )

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10 Wheels

Yes

idcruiserman

Typically not.

Flak

Yes.

akansaskid

I never filter to the front - they hate us enough as it is. If I'm at the front, when the light turns green, I'll pull out and then over and let the stream go by. What I do when I'm not at the front depends on the intersection, road width, speed limit, percent of cars normally turning right there, etc. If I can let cars by, I do. If not, I'll maintain my position until I reach the intersection, and then move over to let the rest by. But never do I move up.

valygrl

good god, where do your hands go?

swak

filter to front, and when crossing traffics light turns yellow, and cars are definitely not running the red, i take a head start.

umd

Yes, filter to the front, but don't block the cars. If you wait in the lane behind the cars then you are just going to block the ones that come after you when the light changes.

dallasmarlow

i filter to the front if i'm riding on the right side of the road (which is 99%), the only time i don't is when i'm in a turning lane or there's no room to.

RideCO

This is what I do, I wait in line in the middle of the lane (usually) and I start off following (sometimes drafting) the car in front of me, when the car starts to pull away I move to the right.

10 Wheels

Curves and hoods works for me.
Also use the drops.

akansaskid

These are good points. I would agree if the intent, once up to the front, is to then move out of the way when the light changes. If on city streets with curbs, not shoulders, to filter to the front, then race ahead and begin blocking/ slowing traffic all the next block only leaves motorists seething.

travkat

Filter to the front so the cars can see me. I don't like being behind a car at a light just waiting for some car not paying attention to come up and pinch me between the cars. For some reason cars don't see cyclists so anything I can do to be seen is good.

urbanknight

I disagree somewhat. Unless it's a very long line, I can go the same speed as traffic until we're already through the intersection, where I can safely pull to the right and let cars go by safely.

It depends on the situation, but I usually don't filter because it just means those cars have to pass me yet again. I've also noticed that I get a lot more respect from drivers when I'm acting like a vehicle.

umd

I guess I don't really ride in places where there isn't enough room to ride by myself without getting in the way. There are a few places where I have to split lanes and in those situations if I'm in the lane I'm in the way. In one particular instance it's between a lane that turns right onto the freeway and another lane that can turn right or go straight. If I split the lane and filter to the front I can get a jump on the cars when the light changes and get out in front and up to about nearly 30 and clear the intersection before the cars are really even moving. If I wait in the lane then I can't get up to speed until the cars start moving and by the time I get to the intersection they are already up to speed and furthermore seem unsure of how to deal with a bike in front of/next to them while they are trying to turn right.

igknighted

I almost always filter, unless i am making a left. If cars can pass me at their convenience, then I can pass them at mine. Fair is fair. As far as taking the lane, do it whenever you feel uncomfortable having a car sharing a lane with you. If you are dead center in the lane, they might be pissed, but they will see you. Too easy to be missed all the way on the shoulder...

TCR

I prefer to percolate rather than filter.

urbanknight

That's true. I forgot Santa Barbara is probably more like Agoura (where I grew up) where the roads are wide and a cyclist is rarely in the way of a car. I filtered there, although the traffic wasn't as heavy so it wasn't needed as often.

I was imagining the streets around here where the roads have parked cars a lot and riding out of the door zone would not leave enough room for a car to get by without creeping into the other lane. Another reason I don't filter in these conditions is because many cars don't use blinkers and if I don't get to the front before it turns green, I have to be ready for a right hook.

So you and I prove a point: It depends on the situation.

yogi13

Most of the time. Even in areas where the lanes are restricted after the intersection I have a bit of room to move to the right through the intersection, which lets the cars I've filtered by pass me before I hit the other side, but tends to make all the drivers more cognizant that I'm there once I clear the intersection. I definitely do it going up a hill.

bigfred 

It all depends on the situation:

In a larger groups: Never filter, own the lane like an auto.

When alone: filter when possible along curb, use delay between yellow and green to get clipped in and stay well to side of lane as drivers make their way past

In mid sized group (2-6): It all depends. If a bike box exists at the front, filter forward to it. If a bike lane, bus lane, parking lane or reasonable shoulder exist, filter forward along it. After that it's back to "it depends", on traffic flow, size of group, how the intersection works, etc. Generally, I feel as though drivers feel less held up if they are passing you in or after the intersection. Too many variables seem to come into play when I sit in line like an auto: the room needed to get clipped in, the gap between cars that may allow the signal to switch back and further hold up cars, etc.

bigfred 

That's pretty much the way I see it. Around here, many of the lights use magnetic triggers that will detect the gap that a cyclist causes in the lane as a lack of traffic and revert to the cross traffic. Thereby, really pissing off any motorists now stuck at the light behind you. We're usually better off filtering forward, jumping the green if no crosstraffic is running the light, and using the extra space/time to get clipped in and as far over as applicable.

MONGO!

If there's room I'll go to the front, if not I'll stay behind but I'm taking the lane.

Ritterview

Filter to the front, and then track stand while waiting for the light to turn green.


Track stand

Look at the left turn signal for the cars in the opposite lane. When they stop turning left, your light is about to turn green. With the anticipation and track stand, you'll be through the intersection before any of the cars.

daxr

No, I don't split the lanes or go to the front, even on a right turn. I just take the intersections as if I were a car usually.

But we don't have a lot of traffic here, or even very many intersections. Waiting in line with a car or two is no big deal. In the big city I might think again, like if I might have to wait through more than one light change..

EatMyA**

^
this