Aibu to think it's high time some cyclist haters realised that for every cyclist on the road it means there is one less car.

[rottentomatoes]

On my bike this morning and as is so common a motorist shouted some abuse at me. Why? Because I held the driver up for about 20 secs until they could over take me when the road widened even though I was cycling absolutely legally.

AIBU to think it's high time motorists stopped this and thought about the fact that for every cyclist there is one less car or person squeezed on the overcrowded train system.

Clouds, see my post for ways in which cars are inconvenient to cyclists just by being there.

I have no issue with most cyclists. I do have issues with the the idiots who drive through lights, on pavements or generally disregard rules of safe driving. I have only once had to shout at a cyclist and that is when he cycled straight into my wingmirror in his hurry to get past me when I was stopped at traffic lights.

Basically some people are idiots and the form of transport they use doesn't change that!

A cyclist isn't causing an inconvenience just by being there, either.

Rooney neither do I, I was just trying to play up a different stereotype :) I ride motorbikes by the book (that would this book) and I hope it makes me a better driver and cyclist too.

I really did want an explanation!

I don't think the pollution thing counts, because that is just part of modern living. We need things to be transported by vehicles on roads.

Drivers causing harm to cyclists are actively doing something wrong, unless the cyclist is at fault, so aren't causing an inconvenice just by being there.

Traffic congestion is a fair point, but then we all choose to deal with that when we choose to use the roads. We don't choose to be held up by selfish cyclists that could pull over but instead refuse to let you past.

Ooh I want that book!

Sorry if I sounded uppity. I didn't mean to - it just is so bizarre that so many people seem to want to overtake the entire population just because they have a bike, isn't it?

Is that why people ride them? I prefer to potter at 30mph

VinegarDrinker Fri 12-Jul-13 13:29:50

Whether you love, hate or are indifferent to cars, one less of them means you get where you want to get to faster.

Unless you get stuck behind a cyclist or a horse rider/tractor .... On a twisty road with blind bends, high hedges and blind summits :)

X posted twice! I disagree that cyclists don't cause an inconvenience just by being there. They have inconvenienced me plenty of times just by being there.

Clouds I think you'll find it hard to sustain a solid argument based on your final paragraph.

We obviously live in very different areas Clouds

I have never cycled on a rural road and never caused a tailback so I don't think we have any common ground at all when discussing and making lazy judgements about "cyclists" as a supposedly homogenous group.

Rooney well, pottering at 30mph isn't really on my agenda, but I see an awful lot of very dangerous riding by the summer weekend warrior brigade on sports bikes. My main roadbike is plenty quick enough and I use it for my main commute because if I were to drive I would be inconvenienced by all the other cars (who in turn are no doubt being inconvenienced by pushbikes...)

Riding a motorbike means you are never really inconvenienced by any other road users, although obviously has a few drawbacks.

The judgement about cyclists is no more lazy than the ones made about motorists!

I'm not trying to sustain an argument, I'm just putting across the fact that cyclists piss me off on at least a weekly basis by the fact that they are too selfish to pull over an allow the cars that do build up behind them to pass.

I appreciate that many cyclists don't do this, just as there are many car drivers that don't cause a problem to people riding bikes. But some cyclists do use the road without any consideration for anyone else, so it's been nice to read on this thread that at least some cyclists would pull over.

Yes it is very inconvenienet to feel obliged to pull over, though! If I lived in Amsterdam everyone would be riding and it wouldn't be necessary.

I often wish there were no cars.

But you wouldn't feel obliged to pull over if you weren't holding anyone else up!

I think that's the whole point. The warriors do sometimes use their numbers to prove a point and inconvenience people. Normal cyclists come in for un called for abuse.

I have never needed to pull over because in London the average speed of traffic is usually even slower than my fat, pregnant, toddler-laden efforts. Therefore I do resent being called an inconvenience merely for existing.

CloudsAndTrees I do pull over if I build up a queue behind me and there is no opportunity for people to pass safely - it's a good idea even if only from self interest as frustrated drivers often do dangerous things, such as attempting to pass on blind corners or crests.

I also indicate to a following driver that it is safe to overtake when they cannot see that the road ahead is clear but I can.

This is all part of being a considerate road user, which is something that many car and van drivers, who make up the majority of road users in this country, could also benefit from. Correct observations, use of indicators and vehicle positioning would be a nice start.

"I'd be interested to know how I as a motorist inconvenience cyclists"

I don't think RoooneyMara was meaning you individually, or all cars. I commute on my bike and i get 'inconvenienced' most days. There are various forms this can take - parking in cycle lanes, overtaking then turning left in front of me, not leaving enough room when overtaking, pulling out in front of me etc. Most of these 'inconveniences' are dangerous to the cyclist, which may explain why many of us are pretty bolshy.

An example from coming in this morning: a car overtook me about 50m away from a junction, so they didn't actually get past me before the turning. We were both then turning left, and they turned at the same time as me, roared past me, despite there being a queue 100m away, and pulled back right in front of me. It was satisfying to think that she would be queuing for another 10 minutes as I overtook her and gave a cheery wave.

I cycle in the city where even the best behaved driver can cause me inconvenience. Congestion slows down cyclists as well as cars and I am able to travel a lot faster when there are fewer cars on the road. At some point where there is a reduced number of cars per meter of road the balance will tip to where it's the bikes causing the hold-ups, as they do to you, Clouds, but that is certainly not the case in central/suburban London. I can pretty much guarantee I will beat a car over any journey of less than 10 miles. And I'm not a speedy racing cyclist, I'm an unfit middle aged commuter on a hybrid.

Yes but those cheery waves can come across as quite aggressive. I am not saying you are, but it is the same to me as any other sarcastic/rude gesture.

As a car driver cyclists are fine, reasonably predictable. Bike riders on/off pavements, no lights (and often black or very dark clothes) going across it the wrong way down roads very scary.

As a pedestrian (London) cyclists are terrifying especially when trying to cross a road, where they frequently ignore the red lights at pedestrian crossings.

I also indicate to a following driver that it is safe to overtake when they cannot see that the road ahead is clear but I can.

Although done with good intention as a driver I would rather be 'stuck' behind a vehicle until I could see it was clear. Perhaps that stems from being in an accident where the other driver was told by someone else - overtook and hit us head on.

I try my very best to look out for cyclists, however when I have checked and re-checked my mirror to turn , with my indicator clearly visible, and had a cyclist swerve suddenly into the path where I am turning from behind me, this is ridiculous.

I also object to cyclists speeding over the pedestrian phase of the crossing,usually when my children and I are crossing, often within mm of us.

Oh and the adult, who made us all dive for the hedge yesterday whilst she cycled down the pavement ringing her bell for us to get out of the way, makes my blood boil.

There have also been many incidents where motorists have just not seen the cyclist too, which have horrified me.

Please note that I promote green modes of transport for a living, and support cycling wholeheartedly. There are idiot motorists and cyclists everywhere on the road and pavement.

I get fed up with people regard cycling dangerously as equivalent to someone driving dangerously. We've see it on this thread again:

"there are shit, unsafe and abusive motorists

there are shit, unsafe and abusive cyclists"

The difference being that the unsafe motorists are far far more likely to kill or seriously injure someone else than the unsafe cyclist, who is primarily putting themselves at risk. Cyclists very occasionally do hurt others, but it is incredibly rare. For instance, in 2008 there was 1 pedestrian death involving a cyclist, but it doesn't say who was at fault. Incidentally, the same year, 8 cyclists were killed during collisions with pedestrians.

Sirzy - very true, and absolutely your call. And of course if you are given an indication that the road is clear and act on that without confirming yourself, it doesn't look good in an accident. It's just something I've always done on both bike and horseback and as I'm mainly on quiet rural roads people are ok with it.

I also give a 'hold back' signal if I can see an obstruction that perhaps a car driver getting ready to overtake might not be able to see (e.g. oncoming vehicle round a blind right hand corner). Again, I think most people are grateful for this kind of communication.