Dual Carriageways

[i hate hills]

Hi folks a wee question for you. For my commute to work i usually go the back roads. However there is a dual carriageway. Whats the law regarding this ? Are cyclists allowed to cycle on them? I have seen the odd one now and again but not that often. Thanks in advance if someone can point me in the right direction on this . Cheers MIke.

 

[ianrauk]

Yes you are allowed to cycle on them. However how safe you feel on a dual carriage way is a different matter. Some of them are all but motorways in name.

 

[Hill Wimp]

As @ianrauk says but if you value your life stick to the back roads. You are just dropping your life expectancy massively and most drivers will not slow around you.

 

[briantrumpet]

Yes you are allowed to cycle on them. However how safe you feel on a dual carriage way is a different matter. Some of them are all but motorways in name.

... but without a decent hard shoulder. Avoid them if you possibly can.

Having said that, curiously, in Italy, a group of us ended up on a bit of dual-carriageway flyover in Genoa that bikes weren't supposed to go on, and we got the most considerate driving we encountered anywhere on the trip. But I'd still not choose to so anything similar again, as there would have been no escape if it had been a bad road.

If you need any convincing, just consider the tragic fate of the two LEJOGgers killed 40 miles into their ride earlier this year. they were on the A30, entirely legally. Of course, accidents can happen on any sort of road, but the speed difference and the different mindset of drivers on dual carriageways makes them a risk I'll avoid, if at all possible.

 

[Jaco45er]

Mate I got my first road bike last year, went on a dual carriage way for 5 miles In between country roads. God never again, as @ianrauk says, they are just motorways, 70 mph (and that's just the law abiding drivers).

I had a Lithuanian truck driver (plate was LT) pass me at one point, he gave me so much room, you could have got 2 fag papers between us !!!!!!

I wouldn't use one if you have an alternative.

 

[Hip Priest]

They're legal but can be very unpleasant.

I'd certainly never use one if there was an alternative route.

 

[Peteaud]

As others have said avaoid if possible.

I have been on a few, but the local one, the A303 is a definate no no for me.

 

[e-rider]

Hi folks a wee question for you. For my commute to work i usually go the back roads. However there is a dual carriageway. Whats the law regarding this ? Are cyclists allowed to cycle on them? I have seen the odd one now and again but not that often. Thanks in advance if someone can point me in the right direction on this . Cheers MIke.

the law generally allows this, but the law needs updating as it was set when fewer and slower cars were on the roads - cycling on duals is essentially suicidal

 

[Deleted member 20519]

There's some dual carriageways that are like motorways and there's some which have 30/40mph limits, it's up to you whether you want to cycle on them or not.

 

[Sheepy1209]

the law generally allows this, but the law needs updating as it was set when fewer and slower cars were on the roads - cycling on duals is essentially suicidal

I remember as a teenager during the long, boring summer holidays going out on a bike ride and ending up riding along the A1 south of Bawtry (I lived near Gainsborough) - perfectly legal, but even then a bit scary as the traffic had just come off the A1M. And of course nobody had heard of hi-vis and helmets back then. This would have been the late-70s / early-80s.

I wouldn't do it now, and if I'd had the risk awareness I have now I wouldn't have done it then.

Hand in hand with fast dual carriageways you also get fast roundabouts; even if you're on a bisecting route, you can still find yourself mixing with DC traffic. Sorry, but whatever my rights might be, there are several fast roundabouts I avoid. Even cycle paths routing cyclists over the entry and exit slips aren't safe - e.g. the recent fatality in Manchester at a light-controlled crossing.

My guide to the roads I avoid goes along the lines of; think back to when I was 20, and what my driving was like. Would I have wanted to be cycling on the same road as me? I've learned a great deal about risks since then, but there's a new generation of inexperienced drivers, plus the perennially stupid!

 

[DCLane]

I've read through this and thought ... hmmm ... almost all of my commuting is on dual-carriageways; 40/70/40mph into and out of Leeds.

There's no choice really, particularly for the 40mph stretches. And yet there's been very few accidents on any of it, according to the Guardian's accident map they published last year.

However, it may be because there are quite a lot of bikes on the route; not yet a critical mass but enough for drivers to be aware.

 

[ohnovino]

There are a few dual-carrigeways near here that I really enjoy riding on, mostly because cars can pass me without having to worry about oncoming traffic.

 

[ManiaMuse]

It's legal but may not be the best decision depending on the dual carriageway in question. It's a judgment call really, you've got to weigh up:

Average speeds and speed limits - many inner city dual carriageways are safe-ish if they have 30/40mph speed limits or traffic is usually busy and slow moving. However here is a big difference as well between 50, 60 and 70mph limited carriageways. In 70mph zones some vehicles will be doing 80+mph and lorries will buzz you at 56mph which isn't fun.

If there is a tarmac verge or space to ride on - this could sway your decision, although do consider if it is interrupted by road bridges or other obstructions.

Slip roads - on some dual carriageways these are sharp and don't allow traffic to build up too much speed before joining, on others vehicles can build up a lot of speed before joining and won't be expecting to see a cyclist.

Roundabouts - again on some dual carriageways these can be taken at high speeds and drivers won't be expecting to find a cyclist in the middle of them

Underpasses/flyovers - generally best avoided unless in 30/40mph zones and you are familiar with the area.

Also at night I would think very carefully about riding on rural dual carriageways unless well lit.

 

[Wobblers]

As @ianrauk says but if you value your life stick to the back roads. You are just dropping your life expectancy massively and most drivers will not slow around you.

That depends on the dual carriageway. If I avoided dual crriageways I wouldn't be able to get out the house! Urban dual carriageways are a very different proposition to rural ones, which are often motorways in all but name. Urban ones tend to be 30 or 40 mph, and motorists do expect to see vulnerable users such as pedestrians and cyclists - though you'll still get the occasional muppet. You just need to be confident and keep situational awareness. And don't be afraid to take the lane - most especially at junctions, lights and roundabouts.

 

[Brandane]

There are some dual carriageways where cycling is NOT legal. The A720 Edinburgh by-pass springs to mind, for starters.
Personally, I would avoid them like the plague.