Overtaking stationary traffic

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Was I in the right here

. I was overtaking stationary traffic slightly to the right of the white line. Obviously the onus is on me to ensure that it is safe to do so. I do this all the time here and if I see a vehicle coming towards me and I see that space would be too tight, I just slot into space in the traffic on my side and I wait until it is clear to proceed.

However, here I see the Citroen coming and I see that there is ample room for her to move slightly to the left as she approaches me, leaving plenty of room. Instead of doing this she decides that I am blocking her carriage way, stops and starts ranting and raving inside the car. I keep going as I don't have time for one of my discussions (this could have got quite lengthy if the police had got involved :sad:).

Was I wrong? Or would it have been reasonable for me to expect the car to take me into account and to move over a fraction. This is what normally happens....xx(
 

Cab

New Member
Location
Cambridge
magnatom said:
Was I wrong? Or would it have been reasonable for me to expect the car to take me into account and to move over a fraction. This is what normally happens....xx(

Technically, I think if you were forcing her to change the line she was taking on the road, you were probably in the wrong. Doesn't mean that ranting and raving at you was appropriate!

People do this all the time, cars and bikes move over in their lanes when it is safe to do so to make room for oncoming traffic that has to have more space. Its normal road etiquette. I'm unclear how much of that is required as opposed to how much is merely expected though.
 

domtyler

Über Member
I do this type of manoeuvre on a daily basis, I never take any notice of any ranting or raving but I have never heard anything more than a quick toot if that. I probably look a bit more serious than you though so get given more room in general and don't end up in half the scrapes that you do.
 

bonj2

Guest
she was a moron, you were in the right. She didn't put you in danger, as you still had enough space to get through, but she is a moron, whinging that a mere cyclist has encroached onto 'her' side of the road, and that therefore no doubt that her human rights have been infringed.
IIRC, the highway code states that cars should drive with the left side of the car approx. two feet from the kerb, on a normal width road - going by that the line she was taking was wrong anyway?
 
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magnatom

Guest
Cab said:
Technically, I think if you were forcing her to change the line she was taking on the road, you were probably in the wrong. Doesn't mean that ranting and raving at you was appropriate!

People do this all the time, cars and bikes move over in their lanes when it is safe to do so to make room for oncoming traffic that has to have more space. Its normal road etiquette. I'm unclear how much of that is required as opposed to how much is merely expected though.

I think technically you are probably right, but practically speaking it is just so easy to move over a little and there's no problem for anyone.

Spindrift,

I have no idea what she was saying, but she did look rather flustered. Just after the video I couldn't help laughing a little. The poor lady will be in such a grumpy mood after that, but why, I have no idea!
 

spindrift

New Member
Maybe she'd been carjacked, had a gun held to the small of her back and was pleading for help, and you rode off laughing!
 
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magnatom

Guest
domtyler said:
I do this type of manoeuvre on a daily basis, I never take any notice of any ranting or raving but I have never heard anything more than a quick toot if that. I probably look a bit more serious than you though so get given more room in general and don't end up in half the scrapes that you do.


Go on then Dom. Stick a photo up. I'm curious to see how serious you look :sad:.

It certainly didn't bother me, I just thought it was funny how she got so upset about it. Some folk xx(
 
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magnatom

Guest
spindrift said:
Maybe she'd been carjacked, had a gun held to the small of her back and was pleading for help, and you rode off laughing!

I never thought of that xx(. Although she would have been more likely to stop next to the police car than next to me.:sad:
 
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magnatom

Guest
bonj said:
IIRC, the highway code states that cars should drive with the left side of the car approx. two feet from the kerb, on a normal width road - going by that the line she was taking was wrong anyway?

To be fair to her, she had just passed some parked cars. I don't think her road position was bad as such. She could have just moved over a little for me.
 

domtyler

Über Member
magnatom said:
Go on then Dom. Stick a photo up. I'm curious to see how serious you look :sad:.

It certainly didn't bother me, I just thought it was funny how she got so upset about it. Some folk xx(

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magnatom

Guest
I agree that you shouldn't have expected her to move over, and so suppose you were in the wrong as you were on her side of the road. From the video I'd have been cautious about overtaking that truck, as I couldn't see clearly what was directly in front of it, and would also be wary of it suddenly deciding to turn right into that road.

This is the problem with the roads these days though. It's always about rights, and being in someone else's way. If it was turned on it's head by everyone then we'd all come at it from a courteous angle, and situations like this would never happen. There would have been no problem with the woman moving over for you at all.

Because I know the road well, I was happy passing the lorry (I see it quite often and I know where it goes) and I saw that a car was coming the other way so I was happy to go past. I also know that the lights up ahead had a while before they changed.

But yes you are probably right about rights on the road. But, like Dom this a normal maneuver for me and one I would do again. I've never had a problem before, certainly no one has started raving at me!
 

buggi

Bird Saviour
Location
Solihull
if you had been a car she would have moved over for you, coz there was plenty of room after the parked cars, and not thought twice about it. there was no reason why she should have caused all that fuss.
 
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