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.

Legal and sensible. I am not a cyclist, but I quite like not killing or injuring people.

Most people seem to pick on specific rules, but there are overarching rules in the highway code that place a responsibility on all road users to help keep traffic moving.

So even though someone may be allowed to do x,y and z, they shouldn't be impeding other traffic. This is why the drivers of slow vehicles often pull over every few miles to let a build up of traffic behind them pass. It is courtesey, but it is also a requirement.

Cyclists should pull over every few miles to let faster moving traffic past if it is impossible to pass them on a road.

Highway Code states you should endeavour to keep up with the flow of traffic and pull over if necessary. They should have let you pass if they knew you were waiting for that long. If I am driving a tractor and I have a queue of cars behind me I am required to pull over.

Can’t stand them on the road or pavement

What a childish attitude. Unlike motorists, cyclists have an absolute right to use the road (motorists need a licence). You’re right, though, they shouldn’t be in the pavement.

But they weren't.

Horns are for warning of immediate danger. They are not a tool for expressing impatience or frustration, nor for intimidating other road users.

You sound like you don't have the temperament to be operating dangerous machinery.

when you feel it is safe to let them do so

You've ignored this bit.

I’d feel differently if they rode closer to the edge of the road but most don’t.

She did want to drive fast... she wanted to overtake a slower moving vehicle and they were purposefully being obstructive.

They’re specifically advised not to. Riding near the gutter means more punctures (that’s where broken glass etc ends up) and encourages close overtaking. When passing parked cars, riding too close to them puts the cyclist in the path of opening doors, which can badly injure or even kill them.

You ought to try it, you’d soon see why cyclists don’t ride close to the edge. The potholes make it very unsafe. Highway Code also advises taking a primary position (out from the edge) to improve safety and visibility. If you’re cycling solo the safest position is to imagine you have an invisible cyclist to your left.

Fair enough. Wish we had more cycle lanes then!

There is a car bumper sticker I saw once that was funny, something along the lines of "Well done, you've achieved your personal best of creating a mile long traffic jam"

It isn't illegal, but yeah it is pretty selfish to ride in such a way that holds up other users. I'm sure cyclists would have something to say if we all walked stretched across the road and held them up. I don't mind cyclists, but not the ones that deliberately hold up traffic.

So would most cyclists, I’m sure. Of course, who objects most strongly to more cycle lanes? Motorists!

Well the equivalent would have been a mob of 20 pedestrians walking en mass down the road blocking all access to any other road user.

In this situation would a group of cyclists behind be entitled to feel the pedestrians were acting inappropriately ?

Road usage is supposed to be about everyone co-operating to the mutual benefit of all. It's not supposed to be adversarial as most people on here seem to think.

"Road usage is supposed to be about everyone co-operating to the mutual benefit of all. It's not supposed to be adversarial as most people on here seem to think."

I think it's quite obvious that many people think that road usage is supposed to be about everyone diving out of the way of drivers on their incredibly important journeys, and never mind the fact that the roads are a shared space.

Urban drivers delay cyclists all the time, we could often get around a lot faster if cars weren't in the way.

Not just Britain, anti-cyclist "culture war" rhetoric is endemic in all English-speaking countries. At least "coal-rolling" hasn't become a thing here.

Not that there aren't problems in France either:
https://www.lemonde.fr/en/police-and-justice/article/2024/10/18/france-charges-suv-driver-with-murder-for-running-over-cyclist_6729796_105.html

In my experience pedestrians get tons of abuse from cyclist if they are in their way.
Equally a friend who was out hedge cutting in a tractor got a lot of abuse for holding up a huge bunch of inconsiderate cyclists a month for two ago. They didn’t see the irony of their complaints at all

Statistically you are more likely to be killed by a falling tree than a cyclist.

No I didn't. If OP was following them for ten minutes on a single track road, I guarantee there would have been passing places, or field entrances where they could have pulled into safely.

I see it all the time where I live, a very rural area popular with MAMILs. No excuse when there's a layby or track entrance to pull into. I'm also a cyclist and I pull over all the time. It's better for everyone, apart from some silly Strava records.

I am a keen cyclist and we move over into single file to allow motorists to overtake where it is safe to do so. It is fair to say some other cyclists do not. This in my view lacks common courtesy. Tractor drivers in my rural area will pull over if they have a trail of traffic behind them, some cyclists will not. In balance though I often see some very poor driving and close passing of cyclists.

I'm part of the sort of club that people seem to hate here.
I don't go often. It is mainly men with a few women. We do cycle two a breast.
We do go down to single file to allow cars to pass. We do pull over if passing is hard. It might hold cars up for a minute or so, certainly not ten.
We are the 'social ride' group i.e not super fast.