Queueing to turn right

[Amanda P]

So you're waiting to turn right onto a busy main road at a T junction. You're at the stop line, near the centre line of your joining road, waiting, stationary, for a gap in the traffic on the main road. (Your road is wide enough that you can't occupy all of it while you wait).

Behind you, a car arrives. Initially, the driver takes up position behind you. After a moment or two, he decides you're going to be too slow crossing into the main road, so he reverses a couple of yards, then pulls alongside you to your left.

Clearly, when a gap in the traffic comes along, he's going to race you across the main road - and his path is going to cross yours. Potentially a lethal situation.

What do you do?

 

[HelenD123]

Safety first probably. I'd let him go before me but be pretty peeved about it.

 

[simon_brooke]

Ostentatiously write down his number in a little black book. Or back up and photograph it with your mobile phone.

Note: this is not necessarily a safe thing to do - but may remind the motorist that his license could get endorsed.

 

[Rhys_Po]

If a nice shiny expensive car then edge closer so he can't set off without scraping his paintwork.

If a beaten up wreck driven by a chavvy looking scrote the let him go.

 

[Landslide]

Probably pull forward myself, and slightly to the left across the front of the car. Deploy "The Look".

 

[Dan B]

Don't think it's ever happened to me on a right turn. If there's space to pull across his front bumper without entering the traffic stream on the main road, do that (edit: as Landslide said). Otherwise wait until it's OK to pull out, and cut the corner severely so that I'm still on his rhs when he joins the major road.

Note the question was what I'd do, not what I'd recommend - for which, see Helen's response. All other things being equal - i.e. he's not an engine-revving Saxo/Nova chav - I will probably be faster out of the junction than he is anyway, especially if he has to pass me on the outside.

 

[addictfreak]

Let him go in the interests of self preservation, then just hope you catch up him at the next junction then deliver a few choice phrases!

 

[Origamist]

You can discourage this by getting 3 feet from the centre line, but if a driver wants to pull along side when there's room to do so, there's not a lot you can do. Either make it clear that you are turning first - eye contact and talk/gesture/adjust road position or cycle away and pull a u-turn further down the road. Turning right at the same time could cause major problems as could trying to let the driver go first - but this would depend on his lane position relative to you and the turn off.

 

[HLaB]

Out accelerate him and leave them stuck in the queue. If they seem particularly aggressive, however I edge forward and give them free room to manouvre.

 

[beanzontoast]

Ostentatiously write down his number in a little black book. Or back up and photograph it with your mobile phone.

Note: this is not necessarily a safe thing to do - but may remind the motorist that his license could get endorsed.

+1. My heart says yes, but my head says no. HelenD123's solution - let them go first - is probably what I'd do.

 

[joolsybools]

+1. My heart says yes, but my head says no. HelenD123's solution - let them go first - is probably what I'd do.

+1

 

[HelenD123]

Make eye contact

Yes, forgot to add that they'd get 'The Look'.

 

[summerdays]

I've been in that sort of situation at traffic lights - large junction so lots of space, realised the car was undertaking me on the left whilst in the process of turning right... just had to let it go.

 

[marinyork]

Not a famous junction? Funnily enough I had that happen several times when I lived in York. Really lost it with the driver once as I had little view of the road infront and could have been totalled off by something coming in the opposite direction quite easily. The other times it was fairly harmless, take the necessary line or let them go first.

 

[summerdays]

It was joining the A38 from Muller Road:

http://maps.google.co.uk/?ie=UTF8&ll=51.489509,-2.58501&spn=0.000562,0.001364&t=h&z=20

Although its only one lane to turn right, it could easily accommodate 2 and its 2 cars wide at that point on the A38 - so room enough to do this - but it leaves the cyclist trying to get over towards the left as is slightly uphill after a long uphill.