Cycling in Leeds for the first time - anxious

[Richard Fairhurst]

My second mantra is "Chillax". The bus in front of you will move eventually. Why overtake that lorry when it will just overtake you back far less pleasantly? I always wait for the large vehicles. It might cost me a couple of minutes, but I have a happier and less stressful journey as a result.

^^^^ Can't emphasise this enough. Going up the inside of large vehicles, even if there's a painted cycle lane, is where the nastiest accidents happen. Much safer and less stressful to keep back, even if it means you miss a traffic light phase occasionally.

 

[ColinJ]

^^^^ Can't emphasise this enough. Going up the inside of large vehicles, even if there's a painted cycle lane, is where the nastiest accidents happen. Much safer and less stressful to keep back, even if it means you miss a traffic light phase occasionally.

I was thinking this on a recent ride. I came to some lights which had a cycle lane and an ASL. The lights were on red and traffic backed up, including a couple of large vehicles signalling left. I didn't want to start filtering up towards the ASL in case the lights changed while I was on the way to it. I also worried that the ASL area was potentially too small and therefore a blindspot for HGVs. I stayed back and waited ...

The lights did change quite quickly and the truck at the front started moving at about the time that I would have been drawing alongside it.

 

[MichaelW2]

Part of my commute was along the main route from a port to an industrial estate. The narrow road was full of trucks with delivery deadlines. The pavement had no pedestrians, driveways, junctions or house entrances.
I am not normally a pavement cyclist but there are times when my safety comes above the law. As long as I dont endanger pedestrians I am happy to do this.

 

[mjr]

^^^^ Can't emphasise this enough. Going up the inside of large vehicles, even if there's a painted cycle lane, is where the nastiest accidents happen. Much safer and less stressful to keep back, even if it means you miss a traffic light phase occasionally.

IF you stay back (I usually don't, I overtake on the right, rarely have problems) then please stop with a good three metres in front of you before their back bumper, plus stop just far enough over to the right that you can see the driver in the side mirrors. There are various reasons for this which I hesitate to go into during a discussion started by someone who is anxious anyway because the situations are massively unlikely to happen - maybe once in a decade of daily riding - but it's better to be safe!

 

[postman]

i hope you have managed a couple of rides in by now.Keep safe.