I had a relatively uneventful commute in this morning, until I was less than half a mile from my place of work and riding in secondary with no oncoming traffic.
A car passed me quite safely and with ease, but decided to beep their horn as they passed. I followed them into my work's car park - we both work at the same location. We don't know each other, but I challenged the driver who came out with some familiar points:
- There is a cycle lane, you should use it (it's a shared use path on an industrial estate which has HGVs and cement mixers turning frequently and doesn't feel safe)
- You were riding in the middle of the road (I was in secondary, but not in the gutter)
- You slowed me down because I had to pass you (but the driver didn't beep at any of the cars she had to queue behind at the roundabout!)
The driver is adamant that they were right to beep me and I shouldn't be there - it's the law apparently and I was riding my bike illegally.
Can anyone help me to find the wording in the highway code that says a cyclist can (or even should) take a lane if they feel it is safest, and that they don't have to use shared use paths? Also anything about all vehicles (including cycles) having equal right to use the roads. Maybe
@mjr has this to hand?? I'd like to put it in an envelope and put it on the driver's windscreen before the end of our shift today.
As I was getting walking to the changing room I crossed paths with another cyclist who said he saw me challenging the driver in the car park and we both had a good old moan about drivers!
