Dayvo
just passin' through
- Location
- 59° 50′ 5.55″ N, 10° 47′ 41.89″ E
2 Abreast cycling is simply not safe.
- Thread starter beany_bot
- Start date
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glasgowcyclist
Charming but somewhat feckless
- Location
- Scotland
It *is* safe. I've done it (the overtake) many times and can't understand why it irks you.
GC
You should give a cyclist as much room as a car.
Say that cyclist on the left there was a car. To pass it safetly the passing car would have to be in the ditch. I would not pass that rider. Too close for comfort should he come off.
Beacuse I like to pass cyclists at a safe distance. i.e. treat them as the same size as a car. I CANT do that if they are right of primary.
Mugshot
Cracking a solo.
Ok, well I have, I guess it depends who you're riding with, a strong primary admittedly but not wildly different. I don't see why a safe pass couldnt be acheived in the photo you've posted either, the driver should be passing with as much space left as possible, and if they did so in a controlled manner with the space available in that photo I wouldn't have a problem.
The issue is generally impatient drivers getting wound up by what they perceive to be a hindrance to their journey, which I can understand, but if they just take a moment to think about things sensibly there really isn't vey much difference in overtaking a single cyclist or two abreast safely.
Globalti
Legendary Member
I actually wish car drivers would give me a polite pip on their horn as they approached from behind to let me know they'd like to pass. So often thanks to wind noise in the ears you don't hear them until they are right behind you, by which time they are probably beginning to feel hindered and a blast on the horn comes across as aggressive.
I can't do it with my car because the horn is the central boss of the steering wheel and the action is heavy, meaning it usually produces a longish blast. Also there's a delay between the press and the sound because there's no longer a direct link between horn button and horn; the horn is "ordered" by the car's computer when it senses the push. On my Land Rover, which had 1970s BL controls, the horn was a small button on the end of the indicator stalk with a strongish spring, wired directly to the horn so tapping it would produce the briefest of horn pips, ideal for politely alerting a cyclist to your presence.
I can't do it with my car because the horn is the central boss of the steering wheel and the action is heavy, meaning it usually produces a longish blast. Also there's a delay between the press and the sound because there's no longer a direct link between horn button and horn; the horn is "ordered" by the car's computer when it senses the push. On my Land Rover, which had 1970s BL controls, the horn was a small button on the end of the indicator stalk with a strongish spring, wired directly to the horn so tapping it would produce the briefest of horn pips, ideal for politely alerting a cyclist to your presence.
Ian H
Ancient randonneur
No. In the image a car on the other side of the road is the same distance away as an oncoming car would be which is perfectly safe.
glasgowcyclist
Charming but somewhat feckless
- Location
- Scotland
This. I think the OP is using the 'pass as far away as a car' to make them ride single file. In reality a safe pass is fine if the riders are all in one lane and the car is in the other.
glasgowcyclist
Charming but somewhat feckless
- Location
- Scotland
What measurement are you putting on a safe distance?
I look for a minimum of 1.5m but much depends on road conditions and our respective speeds.
(I appreciate you are concerned about the riders' safety here so please don't think I'm arguing for the sake of it.)
GC
Spinney
Bimbleur extraordinaire
- Location
- Back up north
I get passed much closer than that (by overtaking and oncoming cars) on some of the lanes around here, because there is no more than about 3 feet spare even when the car is as far over as they can get. Almost all cars slow right down (or I pull over to let them go, but that is not pertinent to this discussion). So a pass that would be frightening and possibly dangerous at 30 mph, feels and is probably pretty safe at 5-10 mph.
So space is not the only factor.
So space is not the only factor.
goody
Veteran
- Location
- Carshalton
Do you stop and pull over when you see two riders abreast coming from the opposite direction?
MontyVeda
a short-tempered ill-controlled small-minded troll
- Location
- Lancaster... the little city.
Assuming a car would take up the same width of road as this group of cyclists, would you overtake a car on this road?
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Always. However as it's quite close I'd accelerate to a tonne to do it quickly and look up from my iPad to admire my revs and speedo.
