Question for cyclists

Carter12

Where I live is popular for cycling, some country lanes and cycling clubs around and I like looking at a mans bum on a bike

Lately in rush hour traffic there are hold-ups due to cyclists riding 2 abreast on the main road into our town (which is only 1 car wide anyway)

Not only is it dangerous for the cyclist, is this not against the law ? I always thought you had to cycle in singke file. Ive seen cyclists give the fingers to anyone trying to over-take them

Thank you

Raam

Hi there.

Chips Lovell

Thread moved from Adverts to main forum.

And no, cycling two abreast is not illegal.

kenmc

if its only one car wide, then there wouldn't be room to SAFELY overtake a single cyclist anyway

Darkglasses

And it is not more dangerous to cycle two abreast, it is common practice for a good reason.

If the main road is only one car wide, there is no space to overtake a cyclist safely anyway, so what does it matter to you whether they are one or two abreast? I'll assume you're not a bad, unsafe driver who would squeeze cyclists in a built-up area!

OP, this line of conversation is covered very, very often. I'm not going to say anything that has not been said before here (so I'm not going into this any further). If you ever do a serious amount of cycling in urban or rural areas, you'll understand why cyclists cycle the way they do. Even if it might seem strange if you're solely/mainly a motorist, especially one who may not have the patience to wait until it is safe to pass.

I genuinely haven't a clue what way you drive, but I assure you there are many out there who regularly put me in danger on the roads due to not waiting literally 3-5 seconds to overtake when the oncoming lane would be clear. It takes a lot less time than you think for the road to clear, people for some strange reason people rapidly become frustrated when they are behind the wheel.

Stay safe, and be aware that it is not at all illegal to cycle two abreast.

CramCycle

Carter12 wrote: »

Ive seen cyclists give the fingers to anyone trying to over-take them

While rude it was most likely because the overtake was not safe and/or the driver passed dangerously close. If you can't safely overtake 2 abreast, then you most likely can't overtake safely if they were in single file.

alexanderomahon

OP I assume by one lane you are referring to one lane going in and one beside it going out. Thus meaning that cars need to wait for a gap in oncoming cars before they can overtake.

If this is so can I just ask whether in rush hour, when you eventually pass the cyclists , is the road clear for miles ahead. Or after a 100 yards do you end up stuck behind the same car you were behind before you came across the cyclists.

I ask this because in rush hour traffic I constantly see drivers taking risks to overtake, tractors, lorries, buses, cyclists etc ...... and all they end up doing is rushing up behind the car they were originally behind. If they had been patient and waited for safe opportunities to pass then they would be in exactly the same spot and nobody would be put in danger.

Carter12

Hello,

I meant the road is one car wide both directions
Thank you for you replies. It was something I was always curious about.

Carter12

Darkglasses wrote: »

And it is not more dangerous to cycle two abreast, it is common practice for a good reason.

If the main road is only one car wide, there is no space to overtake a cyclist safely anyway, so what does it matter to you whether they are one or two abreast? I'll assume you're not a bad, unsafe driver who would squeeze cyclists in a built-up area!

OP, this line of conversation is covered very, very often. I'm not going to say anything that has not been said before here (so I'm not going into this any further). If you ever do a serious amount of cycling in urban or rural areas, you'll understand why cyclists cycle the way they do. Even if it might seem strange if you're solely/mainly a motorist, especially one who may not have the patience to wait until it is safe to pass.

I genuinely haven't a clue what way you drive, but I assure you there are many out there who regularly put me in danger on the roads due to not waiting literally 3-5 seconds to overtake when the oncoming lane would be clear. It takes a lot less time than you think for the road to clear, people for some strange reason people rapidly become frustrated when they are behind the wheel.

Stay safe, and be aware that it is not at all illegal to cycle two abreast.

I didnt mean for anyone to take this personally, which you clearly have. I didnt mean to offend, I remember cycling on roads when I was younger and being told always to cycle in single file. I was wondering if things had changed.

Thank you for your reply

Carter12

alexanderomahon wrote: »

OP I assume by one lane you are referring to one lane going in and one beside it going out. Thus meaning that cars need to wait for a gap in oncoming cars before they can overtake.

If this is so can I just ask whether in rush hour, when you eventually pass the cyclists , is the road clear for miles ahead. Or after a 100 yards do you end up stuck behind the same car you were behind before you came across the cyclists.

I ask this because in rush hour traffic I constantly see drivers taking risks to overtake, tractors, lorries, buses, cyclists etc ...... and all they end up doing is rushing up behind the car they were originally behind. If they had been patient and waited for safe opportunities to pass then they would be in exactly the same spot and nobody would be put in danger.

The road is clear ahead.

This seems to be a very sensitive subject

My question has been answered. Thank you

CramCycle

Hope the answers helped in some way, I think the main point is that if the road is truly clear ahead, its better for a driver to have cyclists two abreast as it halves the distance you have to overtake, as well as stopping those who may not necessarily realise how much space a single bicycle should be given out of safety, as well as consideration, issues.

I am going to lock the thread now, if there are any issues you feel we need to come back to, please PM me and I will reopen the thread or discuss them by PM.