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

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Cyclopathic

Veteran
Location
Leicester.
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?
 
Nope, just take care like you say:thumbsup:

I've only got 1 or 2 sets of lights out of 20+ that I filter at, those I do are where the road is becoming a bus lane or I wish to turn right. Those I dont are mainly as I prefer to sit in the traffic as its going to move pretty quickly anyway for me.
 

Hawk

Veteran
Very legal, and important to do with care.

There's very rarely any benefit to filtering at speed as the lights will still be red when you get to the front, or they'll turn green and you'll get through anyway. And slower is generally safer also.

HGVs have blindspots all round their sides and crucially, one right in front of the cab. Filtering to right in front of an HGV is therefore suicidal.

Pedestrians have a nasty habit of emerging, particularly from behind buses, where traffic is stopped.
 

CopperBrompton

Bicycle: a means of transport between cake-stops
Location
London
I generally prefer to filter on the outside than the inside, as I consider it safer. I don't usually filter right to the front, just slot into a suitable gap a few cars back from the lights. (Must Get To The Front syndrome is the cyclists' equivalent of Must Overtake Cyclist syndrome, in my view.)
 

Alun

Guru
Location
Liverpool
I generally prefer to filter on the outside than the inside, as I consider it safer. I don't usually filter right to the front, just slot into a suitable gap a few cars back from the lights. (Must Get To The Front syndrome is the cyclists' equivalent of Must Overtake Cyclist syndrome, in my view.)
There is sometimes an advantage in letting a car cross the junction in front of you, in case of any RLJing or right turning cars coming in the opposite direction, as well as discouraging an ill timed overtake as you cross the junction.
 
OP
OP
Cyclopathic

Cyclopathic

Veteran
Location
Leicester.
Good. I always do it fairly slowly and very carefully anyway and only where practical. I just wanted to know that I was within the law for when motorists get shirty about it.
 

Risex4

Dropped by the autobus
Even if there's a cycle lane up the inside.

100 times this.

I'm happy and confident enough to undertake/filter most traffic - given the solid advice above. Keep awares, slow your pace, pop up so you get better visibility (for everyone), dont neccesserily crown the front (unless there is plenty of space or a dedicated cycle stop); sit a car or two back as you can match your acceleration to the traffic flow etc etc.

No worries.

But undertaking or filtering alongside anything bigger than a normal family car is a no-go regardless of the environment; its just not worth it. HGVs, hell even transit vans; leave them be. As a rule of thumb, if I can't sit up and see over it or around it, I'm not going through it.
 

Svendo

Guru
Location
Walsden
As others have said, it is legal. But has risks, and this is also reflected in the civil case law (see here and here), which mostly relates to motorbikes filtering, where the division of liability is often but not always split. These are in the sort of situations where a car is pulling out of a side road, or a car in the queue flashes someone across the queue which then collides with a filterer. The case law is far from solid though, and judgements are varied. Just to repeat, these are civil cases where the financial liability for the accident is being contested, not criminal cases.
 

Maylian

Veteran
Location
Bristol
Like others have said it's fine to do but need to be careful doing it. When I filter to a set of lights I normally stop a few cars back from the lights as this allows me to accelerate and match the pace of cars and because they're normally slower away it gives me a second to clip in without the pressure of cars behind me.
 

jonny jeez

Legendary Member
I generally prefer to filter on the outside than the inside, as I consider it safer. I don't usually filter right to the front, just slot into a suitable gap a few cars back from the lights. (Must Get To The Front syndrome is the cyclists' equivalent of Must Overtake Cyclist syndrome, in my view.)
+1, OTHER THAN BLIND RIGHT TURNS, i GENERALLY FEEL A LOT(oops sorry to shout, I hate caps lock) safer on the outside as it offers more escape space.
 
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