Group of cyclists not letting cars past- is this legal?

[Serenity674]

Interested in whether this was legal. Was driving to my parents this morning, they live remotely so it was a single track country road, although not narrow, with wide verges on either side.

i came up behind a group of circa 20 cyclists, probably doing about 15-20mph and ended up stuck behind them for about 10 mins. Round the bends was fine and they actually went faster than I would have gone in my car but there were several very long straight stretches of road where I could have got up to 30-40 mph (it’s a NSL road) but they wouldn’t move to let me past, just rode 2 or 3 abreast taking up the whole road. They definitely knew I was there as the ones at the back kept looking behind at me.

i know the law says cyclists can ride 2 abreast and it’s actually safer as it means cars overtake them properly but surely this doesn’t apply regardless of the road? Were they just doing the safe thing or should they have let me past?

I am a horse rider so i am always on the side of passing more vulnerable road users safely but this just seemed like a bit of a dick move- or were they actually doing this for a reason I’m unaware of? If I was riding my horse on a road like this I would ride 2 abreast until the car slows down then move into single file to let them past.

Yes because this happens all the time!

because in some cases even if its single file then its still not the 1.5 metres so then its pointless going single file

Most folk in cars on a Sunday aren’t off to work though, they’re likely also on a journey they didn’t ‘need’ to go on.

It would be helpful if cyclists knew also

If they went single file could you have passed them with 1.5m clearance or would you have been squeezing past? If it’s a single track road I suspect the latter. So they have kept 2 abreast to prevent a close, unsafe pass. Which makes sense.

Now when I cycle on a road like this I will pull in at a gateway if there is one, maybe there wasn’t here. Or maybe they’re not as considerate as me, or maybe there wasn’t space for them to all get to the side.

Because everyone who is ever out in car is absolutely doing so because it's essential. Nobody ever drives to Starbucks, or the cinema, or a mates house for a natter.

Never ever.

You’re very considerate, most cyclists are not

Absolutely would have been from my perspective..but it didn’t happen 😊

No need to make this some sort of political statement. The majority of lone cyclists that I encounter are courteous and considerate of other road users but we do have certain routes locally that are popular with cyclists and this is where we encounter issues. I have no issue with cyclists who ride with consideration and always do my best to share the road safely. but selfish, entitled assholes who happen to also be cyclists and frequently travel in large packs is another thing.

Motorists and their gun lobby rhetoric - no wonder the roads are such a zoo.

This is one of the sections of straight road, there had been 3 or 4 sections such as this that I’d followed them down.

This is looking back at the way I had come and I turned right into the road you can see on the left.

by the looks of that there no way its got the 1.5 metre to pass

I have cycled all my life as has DH but these are those packs of Lycra clad wankers aren’t they that give cyclists a bad name. They tend to be cycling clubs, have encountered a few, almost always older blokes.

It’s perfectly reasonable as the two publications I mentioned consistently publish anti cyclist rhetoric to their angry viewer base and here we are with a thread by an angry impatient and poor driver with low understanding of the HC.

Notice France, Germany, Netherlands etc don’t have the kind of debates; everyone just gets on with it.

Angry Britain; with its angry selfish drivers.

Yes they in their legal right to do ride like that..,however I am a group road cyclist and this does happen to us too. They should have pulled in at a convenient stop to them…there’s usually somewhere they can pull in eg. Entrance to a field or farm when out in the country lanes. I do think that groups larger than 10 cyclists shouldn’t actually be allowed.
British Cycling recommends groups up to only 12 cyclists.
Personally I prefer to ride in groups no larger than 8 cyclists.
If they had been respectful they would have pulled in for you but some cyclists are just arseholes. They would have soon moved if a tractor had come the other way.
I am also a driver so appreciate your pain especially at weekends for the next 6 months whist the weather is warmer.

It really doesn’t matter where you are going, you should allow everyone to make their journey as efficiently and safely as possible. If I wanted to drive below the speed limit, I would pull aside if traffic built up behind me. If I am out walking, I sep to the verge to allow others (including cyclists) to pass). When I ride, I pull into the nearest passing point and allow others to overtake. It really is just basic courtesy and common sense.

This does really annoy me sometimes.

I would never drive unsafely or eg speed past them and I get that these people enjoy a pootle about in rural areas on days off but what they forget is that these roads are essential to villagers and sometimes we need to get from A to B in a reasonable time!

In my experience, horse riders and farm vehicles are much more mindful of local people om the roads, probably because they ARE locals.

I've lost count of the amount of classes, appointments etc I've missed or been late to due to this. I get that people will say I should leave time for it but sometimes you just have to rush your kid to the docs and it's a massive ball ache when you meet a raft of lycra riddled cyclists who refuse to ride single file so you can pass.

Hmmnnnn ,well luckily that didn’t happen and I am a pretty patient driver. Got home today without too many crawlers and not a cyclist in sight !
I just gave my opinion,genuinely don’t think me resigning from my job is the way forward 🤦‍♀️

Like not blocking the road just because you can.
They were moving at 15-20mph, it's right there in the op.

Take a look at op’s recent photo and tell me why a car user shouldn’t be able to pass

Oh, so it doesn't matter what the point of a person's journey is then?

Strange that, given that was exactly the point you were trying to make a post ago.

So that just puts us back at 20 road users being expected to jump out of the way of one road user.

20 bikers in a group isn’t safe. It also isn’t a commute. 20 bikers is an event, and should have appropriate traffic control.

It’s not the same , she doesn’t need 1.5 meters wide to overtake a tractor

I tend to think a lot of the behaviour that seems selfish from cyclists is probably more about self preservation than anything else. If they ride in a way that makes passing impossible then no one can try and pass in a stupidly dangerous manner. They won’t know if a specific driver is going to pass sensibly or to do something stupid. If the latter it’s very unlikely the car driver is the one that will be seriously hurt.
I don’t cycle but I do walk and take public transport a lot and I notice a significant proportion of car drivers are either oblivious to the fact that they share the roads with other users and that the pavements are not actually there for them to park on or they know and just don’t care. The level of aggression and entitlement from many drivers seems like it has increased in recent years. I don’t know if it’s a real change but I don’t think I’m the only one perceiving it as I’ve seen some articles mentioning studies show people reporting feeling more aggressive when driving and perceiving others to be more aggressive post pandemic. Some of the early response on this thread are so aggressive and unpleasant. If I’d encountered people with those kinds of attitudes while quite vulnerable on a bike I think I’d also be super cautious about giving drivers the opportunity to risk my life in order to save themselves 5 minutes on their journey (not suggesting you would do so OP but I think plenty of people seem inclined to be pretty careless when it comes to the safety of more vulnerable road users)

The level of aggression and entitlement from many drivers seems like it has increased in recent years

Yes it has