Is it illegal to ride up the inside of cars at traffic lights...

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Tynan

Veteran
Location
e4
clearly no-one on this thread rides in London traffic

I filter up the inside and outside of anything, cvycle lane or no, buses and trucks don't move sideways, especially if they're stopped

absolutely not at junctions of course or on the approch to a junction

peds are an utter nightmare of course and I'll moderate my speed in bad areas but at the end of the day hitting a ped will kill neither party, I've hit about five or six properly over the years and nothing worse than a suspected fractured skull for the last one,allthe rest get up and walk off,some say sorry, I got a infcted cut to the hip, two nearly dislocated shoulders
 

Hawk

Veteran
clearly no-one on this thread rides in London traffic

I filter up the inside and outside of anything, cvycle lane or no, buses and trucks don't move sideways, especially if they're stopped

absolutely not at junctions of course or on the approch to a junction

peds are an utter nightmare of course and I'll moderate my speed in bad areas but at the end of the day hitting a ped will kill neither party, I've hit about five or six properly over the years and nothing worse than a suspected fractured skull for the last one,allthe rest get up and walk off,some say sorry, I got a infcted cut to the hip, two nearly dislocated shoulders

Are you being serious??
 
...peds are an utter nightmare of course and I'll moderate my speed in bad areas but at the end of the day hitting a ped will kill neither party...
Really? Just a bit of serious injury and disability then?
...I've hit about five or six properly over the years and nothing worse than a suspected fractured skull for the last one...
Phew! Nothing too serious then.
...some say sorry...
What for? Stepping into your path? That's big of them!
...I got a infcted [sic] cut to the hip, two nearly dislocated shoulders
Glad your'e doing alright then.



feckin idjit!
 

Hector

New Member
I have to agree, I think Hawk was refering to the rather flippant attitude towards peds.

They are at the very top of the road user tree, sitting high up there and when they are not up there they freely walk the earth - because it is thier God given right to and they were doing it long before propelled motorised transport of the internal combustion or human kind.

I'll be sure to comment on the next ''cyclist down'' thread with the words ''You're ok mate, no harm done, don't know what you are moaning about'':rolleyes:
 

slowmotion

Quite dreadful
Location
lost somewhere
I had my first "off" filtering up the inside at less than walking pace. It was a car that was stationary at a red light. The passenger opened the door when I was parallel to his seat. I ended up on the pavement with the bike on top of me. The shiny white Prius ended up with a foot long pedal gash ,down to the steel, in the door paintwork.:evil:

Filtering anywhere near a stationary bus is fraught with pedestrian risks. I don't take the "American Football" approach like Tynan ^_^
 
OP
OP
Cyclopathic

Cyclopathic

Veteran
Location
Leicester.
clearly no-one on this thread rides in London traffic

I filter up the inside and outside of anything, cvycle lane or no, buses and trucks don't move sideways, especially if they're stopped

absolutely not at junctions of course or on the approch to a junction

peds are an utter nightmare of course and I'll moderate my speed in bad areas but at the end of the day hitting a ped will kill neither party, I've hit about five or six properly over the years and nothing worse than a suspected fractured skull for the last one,allthe rest get up and walk off,some say sorry, I got a infcted cut to the hip, two nearly dislocated shoulders
Good god man, it's not a competition.:smile:
 
OP
OP
Cyclopathic

Cyclopathic

Veteran
Location
Leicester.
Yes he is and being a London commuter myself I agree with him 100%
Personally I don't think this describes an ideal situation. Rather than the rest of the country taking on such a combative and evidently dangerous way of riding I think London should perhaps look to the rest of the country and try and move more in that direction. As described the London way of dealing with traffic and peds looks to me like a race to the bottom. Whether my fault or a motorists or a pedestrians, it is my personal aim to avoid any collisions. Whose fault it was doesn't matter when it effs your day up and potentially a lot more. I don't really want any accidents. Life is too short anyway and I don't want to make it any shorter or fill the intervening time being in pain, walking because my bike is knackered or sorting out insurance/compensation forms.
 
Location
London
Even if there's a cycle lane up the inside.
Some excellent cautionary advice on this thread.
Must try harder DavidC to not even do it when there's a cycle lane and the big truck seems stationary. Not worth the risk.
I did this near Catford one in a fairly narrow cycle lane and a cyclist undetook me :ohmy: so we were three abreast. The t**t couldn't undertand what my problem was!

Be careful out there.
 

pshore

Well-Known Member
or very slow moving traffic?

I am aware that this can be a dangerous activity and although I do it I take care that I don't do it where there is a left turn that someone may be taking and I don't do it to high sided vehicles who will have no idea I'm there. Usually I do it at big queues at traffic lights where to do so on the outside would be even riskier.
Is it against the law?


Filtering gets a mention in Highway Code rule 88.

The best way to stay safe filtering is to learn the traffic light sequences on your regular commute. On approach if you see the lights go red, you can judge if you can make it to the front of the queue before the lights go green. Getting caught between moving-off traffic is bad.

[lots of caveats, filtering is closer to art than science]
 
OP
OP
Cyclopathic

Cyclopathic

Veteran
Location
Leicester.
Filtering gets a mention in Highway Code rule 88.

The best way to stay safe filtering is to learn the traffic light sequences on your regular commute. On approach if you see the lights go red, you can judge if you can make it to the front of the queue before the lights go green. Getting caught between moving-off traffic is bad.

[lots of caveats, filtering is closer to art than science]
I am a cautious rider anyway and am always looking to remain as safe as possible. I'd agree that filtering is more art than science and I employ all the tactics mentioned in this thread. My main concern was really the legality of it and I am happy to have been assured that it is legal. I would also expect that we cyclists are under the same responsibility as motorists to ride in a responsible way that doesn't put other road users at risk (albeit less risk if surrounded by metal).
I just wanted to know that when I am filtering that drivers can't say it's against the law or that I shouldn't be doing it. I have heard drivers say this and I think it's borne out of the jealousy arising from the fact that I am making faster progress than they are. In, of course, my very humble opinion.
 

CopperBrompton

Bicycle: a means of transport between cake-stops
Location
London
My main concern was really the legality of it and I am happy to have been assured that it is legal.
In law, filtering = overtaking so all the standard laws apply. Undertaking is legal as it is traffic moving in queues. Many cyclists seem to forget the prohibition on overtaking past junctions, however.
 
Filtering is legal for cyclists and motorcyclists on either side in queuing traffic. However as already mentioned I would not make a habit of filtering down the left at junctions and past large vehicles.

Personally I prefer to filter down the middle or right if I am keeping up with or going faster than traffic. Means I can see oncoming traffic, other drivers in front/behind/from side streets are more likely to see me, I can easily drop back into the flow of traffic if it speeds up again and I am less likely to be caught out or squashed at junctions.

Flitering is one of the biggest perks of cycling, if it was illegal then I doubt half as many people would bother cycling.
 
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