Being a nicer cyclist

[erikgarrison.livejournal.com]

What are some ways that cyclists can positively engage drivers, gain their respect, and encourage them to use caution when they are sharing the road with cyclists?

Comments

[mderidder.livejournal.com]

Actually, a bicyclist going straight has the right of way vs. a car turning.

[intuition-ist.livejournal.com]

i'm not talking about legalities, i'm talking about physics.

[qwrrty.livejournal.com]

Actually, a bicyclist going straight has the right of way vs. a car turning.

??!??!

What?

No.

A bicyclist going straight does have the right of way over traffic from the other direction trying to make a left turn across the road, just like cars do. But a cyclist definitely does not have the right of way to pass a right-turning car on the right. That's just suicide.

[mderidder.livejournal.com]

check the law

[qwrrty.livejournal.com]

If you mean M.G.L. Chapter 85 Section 11b (http://www.mass.gov/legis/laws/mgl/85-11b.htm), there is a section there which I quoted earlier that says "the bicycle operator may keep to the right when passing a motor vehicle which is moving in the travel lane of the way," but that just means that passing on the right isn't automatically an infraction. It doesn't mean that a bicyclist has carte blanche to pass any vehicle on the right under any circumstances. There are still cases where the other vehicle has the right of way, like an ambulance, or a hearse... or a right-turning automobile.

Certainly I never learned in my League Cycling Instructor classes that Massachusetts law gives a straight-moving vehicle the right of way to pass a vehicle on the side to which it's turning. Which law says this? I would really like to bring it to the attention of MassBike.

[emannths.livejournal.com]

I think that the following three things are stipulated:

- If turning right, you must do so from the right-most part of the roadway
- If you are changing lanes, you are responsible for making sure that it is safe to do you (i.e., the lane-changing car yields)
- Passing vehicles are responsible to ensure there is enough space to pass

Ideally, I think the way that this would (should?) work is that the car making a right turn would "change lanes" into the bike lane, therefore moving to the rightmost part of the road. The car would would yield to bikers while doing this. After moving into this part of the road, there would not be enough room to pass the car safely, so the cyclist must wait behind the right-turning car.

This FAQ (http://www.historic-highstreet.org/bikefaq.html), though not extensively documented, implies that the Newburyport, MA police agree with this interpretation.

Additionally, there is one case where the right-turning car is explicitly instructed to yield: MGL Ch90 Sec 14. "No person operating a vehicle that overtakes and passes a bicyclist proceeding in the same direction shall make a right turn at an intersection or driveway unless the turn can be made at a safe distance from the bicyclist at a speed that is reasonable and proper."