Cycling safety in Traffic advice.

[CopperCyclist]

Watch the YouTube channel SillyCyclists. Learn what not to do!

 

[shouldbeinbed]

assertive is good, signal your intentions clearly, if you are a regular commuter then you can build up a good rapport with your daily drivers with good signalling, a wave of acknowledgement for a piece of courtesy (ignore the doom mongers on here - courteous drivers do exist and are the majority), if e.g. you're on a winding bit of road advise the drivers behind when they need to wait and when it is safe for you to let them pass you.

I like you're sense of humour and you pick up on the bugbears, real and exaggerated we get tarred with, basically as they say on the last leg don't be a dick (on a bike)

enjoy it, riding regularly is the best part of the day for me.

 

[GuyBoden]

Useful guide:

https://www.cyclechat.net/threads/the-essential-guide-for-new-commuters.56622/

This is excellent advice, many thanks to all the members who contributed to this PDF guide.

 

[Aunty Tyke]

As a newbie found Cyclecraft,John Franklin,very useful,on offer at Amazon

 

[MichaelW2]

The basic principles are to be visible, predictable, assertive of your rights and mindful of your responsibilities. You should also obey the law where it does not conflict with your safety.

 

[sidevalve]

Don't get cocky but don't be afraid [and if you haven't read the highway code you shouldn't be on the road] but above all THINK AHEAD and see what is happening around you - it really will keep you safe.

 

[mikeymustard]

@GuyBoden are you new or recently returned to cycling? I came back four years ago after about ten years lay off; traffic terrified me, it's taken three of those four years to feel confident on busy-ish roads.

 

[Apollonius]

Don't be "in traffic". Be traffic.

 

[Karlt]

I heard somewhere (yes, I know, but I did) that in general regular cyclists, when driving, tend to be looking three or four vehicles (or more) ahead as well as directly in front of them. Non-cyclists are far less likely to do this and tend to concentrate on the vehicle in front almost solely. This is why you get the idiots who overtake you closely only to have to jam on the anchors 50 yards further on where there's a queue. They didn't see the queue because until they vehicle in front reached it they weren't looking; they only notice and respond when they see the brake lights of the vehicle in front. It's worth considering how such an instinct arises, and consciously developing it - I call it "reading the road", and I'm convinced a lot of multi-vehicle pileups and stupid manoeuvres would be avoided if people did it. One particular benefit it has for cyclists is that it enables you to predict what's going to happen and often to slow down (or occasionally accelerate) at the opportune moment and avoid having to stop. Stopping is bad because starting is hard work. Especially around here where you might be on an 8% ramp in the middle lane (to avoid the left filter) in heavy traffic with a traffic light near the top.

 

[mickle]

Wobble and weave and occasionally veer. If you ride straight and true they'll think theyve judged you right and will squeeze tightly past. Wobblers are given more room.

 

[ManiaMuse]

I heard somewhere (yes, I know, but I did) that in general regular cyclists, when driving, tend to be looking three or four vehicles (or more) ahead as well as directly in front of them. Non-cyclists are far less likely to do this and tend to concentrate on the vehicle in front almost solely. This is why you get the idiots who overtake you closely only to have to jam on the anchors 50 yards further on where there's a queue. They didn't see the queue because until they vehicle in front reached it they weren't looking; they only notice and respond when they see the brake lights of the vehicle in front. It's worth considering how such an instinct arises, and consciously developing it - I call it "reading the road", and I'm convinced a lot of multi-vehicle pileups and stupid manoeuvres would be avoided if people did it. One particular benefit it has for cyclists is that it enables you to predict what's going to happen and often to slow down (or occasionally accelerate) at the opportune moment and avoid having to stop. Stopping is bad because starting is hard work. Especially around here where you might be on an 8% ramp in the middle lane (to avoid the left filter) in heavy traffic with a traffic light near the top.

Basically sums up a lot of dozy driving I see. So many times a driver will buzz me at 30mph and then immediately have to slam on the brakes for a queue of traffic as I coast past again. Had a driver get agitated and tailgate me this morning because I was in primary (about to overtake a bus which was stopped and I saw in plenty of time) despite the fact that traffic was queuing 50 metres up the road from where the bus was stopped and I was going at the speed of the car in front.

When I learnt to drive my instructor encouraged me to try to avoid stopping when crawling in traffic or coming up to lights etc., even if it meant going at less than 1mph. Good for practising clutch control and more economical as well. It takes a lot more effort and puts more wear on the engine/clutch to move a car from stationary as opposed to moving slightly and the same applies on a bike, the difference being you notice the difference in effort required more.

 

[Profpointy]

I heard somewhere (yes, I know, but I did) that in general regular cyclists, when driving, tend to be looking three or four vehicles (or more) ahead as well as directly in front of them. Non-cyclists are far less likely to do this and tend to concentrate on the vehicle in front almost solely. This is why you get the idiots who overtake you closely only to have to jam on the anchors 50 yards further on where there's a queue. They didn't see the queue because until they vehicle in front reached it they weren't looking; they only notice and respond when they see the brake lights of the vehicle in front. It's worth considering how such an instinct arises, and consciously developing it - I call it "reading the road", and I'm convinced a lot of multi-vehicle pileups and stupid manoeuvres would be avoided if people did it. One particular benefit it has for cyclists is that it enables you to predict what's going to happen and often to slow down (or occasionally accelerate) at the opportune moment and avoid having to stop. Stopping is bad because starting is hard work. Especially around here where you might be on an 8% ramp in the middle lane (to avoid the left filter) in heavy traffic with a traffic light near the top.

bizzarely, on the other place some buffoon, presumably a cyclist, was quite seriously arguing that you should be looking at what's immediately in front not getting distracted by 100 yards ahead. He wasn't even saying do both - he genuinely seemed to think you shouldn't be looking far ahead (driving)

 

[GuyBoden]

I had a terrible time the other day, I was trying to cross a very busy dual carriage way (A556), which had miles of stopped traffic. I was trying to get from a minor road to another minor road directly across the dual carriageway. No drivers would let me across, even though they were stopped and going nowhere in the 30 miles of stopped traffic due to an accident on the M6, some drivers deliberately blocked my way across and shouted abuse, I can understand their frustration of being in a queue, but this sort of behavior is a bit much.

 

[Funkweasel]

Be visible, be deliberate, don't be erratic, signal your intentions and as said don't cycle in the gutter. Expect everyone to drive like a nobber, don't ride on peoples' bumpers - their brakes work better than yours do. Don't look down, don't care about your GPS/bike computer. Look ahead, look for hazards (For there are many). If you're riding up the side of traffic, be careful (I'd right up the right hand side - people tend to check that mirror more than the left), but proceed with caution. Except people to do something stupid, pedestrians, drivers, cyclists... oh, and expect people to do something stupid.

 

[martint235]

Be visible, be deliberate, don't be erratic, signal your intentions and as said don't cycle in the gutter. Expect everyone to drive like a nobber, don't ride on peoples' bumpers - their brakes work better than yours do. Don't look down, don't care about your GPS/bike computer. Look ahead, look for hazards (For there are many). If you're riding up the side of traffic, be careful (I'd right up the right hand side - people tend to check that mirror more than the left), but proceed with caution. Except people to do something stupid, pedestrians, drivers, cyclists... oh, and expect people to do something stupid.

I would add "Think of the most incredibly, incredibly stupid thing that you could conceive of and then expect them to do something worse"