almost first crash

Hi

I have bought my first real bike (Trek 7.0) and took it out yesterday.
Riding on the inside of some stationary traffic I almost got hit
twice, within a mile of my home. Both times were car drivers getting
bored and opting to turn left without indicating, etc. It made me
think , do I have any rights if I get knocked off my bike and hurt
myself. Particularly if I am overtaking on the inside?

thanks,Shumit

On 31 Oct, 16:34, Shumit wrote:
Hi

I have bought my first real bike (Trek 7.0) and took it out yesterday.
Riding on the inside of some stationary traffic I almost got hit
twice, within a mile of my home. Both times were car drivers getting
bored and opting to turn left without indicating, etc. It made me
think , do I have any rights if I get knocked off my bike and hurt
myself. Particularly if I am overtaking on the inside?

thanks,Shumit

IMHO, if there isn't a cycle lane up the inside of the stationary
vehicles, you are asking for trouble by riding up the inside. With
growing experience, you will learn how to handle passing stationary
vehicles on the outside.

David Lloyd

In article ,
lid says...



Undertaking is permitted if traffic is stopped or slow moving. You'd do
well to avoid considering the legality of it though, better aim to avoid
getting left hook'ed. Expect drivers to turn left at junctions, they
frequently don't look for cyclists on their left.


Or the passenger that decides to jump out of a queued vehicle and flings
the door into your path with gay abandon.

--
Tony

" I would never die for my beliefs because I might be wrong."
Bertrand Russell

Shumit wrote:

do I have any rights if I get knocked off my bike and hurt
myself. Particularly if I am overtaking on the inside?

Undertaking is permitted if traffic is stopped or slow moving. You'd do
well to avoid considering the legality of it though, better aim to avoid
getting left hook'ed. Expect drivers to turn left at junctions, they
frequently don't look for cyclists on their left.

--
Membrane

Shumit said the following on 31/10/2007 16:34:

I have bought my first real bike (Trek 7.0) and took it out yesterday.
Riding on the inside of some stationary traffic I almost got hit
twice, within a mile of my home. Both times were car drivers getting
bored and opting to turn left without indicating, etc. It made me
think , do I have any rights if I get knocked off my bike and hurt
myself. Particularly if I am overtaking on the inside?

I don't know about legal rights, but you quite quickly learn that
sliding down the inside is best not done at all, or at least very slowly
expecting to be hit by a passenger opening a door or a car turning left.
Passengers seem to be even worse than drivers at flinging doors open
randomly without checking - one got quite irate when I slammed the door
back on her once (I was walking on the pavement at the time and needed
to protect parts of my anatomy that are not designed to be walloped into
a door!).

--
Paul Boyd
http://www.paul-boyd.co.uk/

"Shumit" wrote in message
oups.com...
Hi

I have bought my first real bike (Trek 7.0) and took it out yesterday.
Riding on the inside of some stationary traffic I almost got hit
twice, within a mile of my home. Both times were car drivers getting
bored and opting to turn left without indicating, etc. It made me
think , do I have any rights if I get knocked off my bike and hurt
myself. Particularly if I am overtaking on the inside?

Why not just overtake on the right hand side? The only times I find it looks
worrying is when there are two HGVs or buses passing each other, and in that
case, I don't bother. I find it much simpler than passing on the inside,
risking being knocked off every 5 minutes by people turning without
signalling and car doors opening.

Shumit wrote:

Hi

do I have any rights if I get knocked off my bike and hurt
myself. Particularly if I am overtaking on the inside?

I'd suggest very few and that if you're 'overtaking' it should be done
on the outside of traffic, so long as it's safe to do so.

--
Paul - xxx

On 2007-10-31, Shumit wrote:
I have bought my first real bike (Trek 7.0) and took it out yesterday.
Riding on the inside of some stationary traffic I almost got hit
twice, within a mile of my home.

Eeek. Don't do that!

Car drivers simply don't expect to be overtaken on the inside by another
vehicle (you are one!) when there's no actual lane there. Passengers
won't be expecting traffic there, either, and might just decide to hop
out and walk the rest of the way...and you get a door in your face.

If you overtake on the inside where there's no lane to do so, it's only
a matter of weeks before you come to grief.

--
From the sunny Isle of Man.
Yes, the Reply-To email address is valid.

Doki wrote:
"Shumit" wrote in message
oups.com...
Hi

I have bought my first real bike (Trek 7.0) and took it out
yesterday. Riding on the inside of some stationary traffic I almost
got hit twice, within a mile of my home. Both times were car drivers
getting bored and opting to turn left without indicating, etc. It
made me think , do I have any rights if I get knocked off my bike
and hurt myself. Particularly if I am overtaking on the inside?

Regardless of what you were doing, a driver is in the wrong if they turn or
open a door without checking it is safe first. You would have the right to
compensation if yourself or your bike was damaged. Perhaps you would get
less if you were in the wrong too, but overtaking on the inside isn't
necessarily ilegal.

But of course on a practical note you should be careful and assume anyone
could turn at any moment, so allow plenty of room/time, and be prepared to
stop and wait instead.

Why not just overtake on the right hand side?

You can't/shouldn't when there is little room or vehicles are turning right.
You could then just stop and wait. Personally, though, I often overtake on
the left when there is plenty of room there.

You have to assume doors could open on the right hand side as well.

~PB

Dylan Smith wrote:

If you overtake on the inside where there's no lane to do so, it's
only a matter of weeks before you come to grief.
--
From the sunny Isle of Man.

You'd make slow progress in London if you never overtook on the inside.
I've not come to any grief in all the years I've been doing it (slowly,
carefully and selectively).

~PB