[Closed] So, what do you use to reduce risk when cycling on the road?

Nothing... I just ride and enjoy it.

Alertness
Ride at least a metre from the side of the road.
Chill and enjoy

From the gadget side of things, the garmin rear radar is very good, really increases awareness of what's going on behind you. Don't like to ride without it these days.

Doesn't matter what you do... The idiots in the metal boxes will find a way not to see you.

route choice is primary reduction method for me.

Cross fingers and close my eyes when vehicles approach at speed from behind. I also use small roads whenever possible.

Common sense.
Assume ever other road use is out to get you.
Riding sensibly and giving way when expected
Wearing a helmet.

I have one of those little mirrors on my road bike bars
flashing lights in daytime
don't currently ride roads at night
I don't commute, so choose pretty quiet roads (and actually would use even quieter roads if I commuted - purely luck that I can do so without a big time penalty though)

Common sense.
Alertness.
Risk aversion.
Route choice.

I seem to attract much less road rage than other people I know. I think I tend to ride sensibly and predictably and don't antagonise other road users.

A mix of all the above depending on situation but:

Alertness.

That above all else for me.

The most danger on the roads comes from people who[i] aren't [/i]looking, and that can't really be mitigated by making yourself more visible, that only helps the people who [i]are [/i]looking to spot you sooner.

The 3 times I've actually been properly knocked off my bike were times when I've been the most visible 🙁

Position, position, position.

Good guide from BC [url= https://www.britishcycling.org.uk/cycletraining/article/ct20110110-cycletraining-Bitesize-Bikeability--Part-4--On-Road-Positioning-0 ]available here[/url].

In short, own the road.

Route selection, lights. Only ride in daylight although when I used to commute between Oxford and Thame a few years ago, at night I found that cars gave much more room when passing.

Main one for me is minimising time on busy Southampton roads, especially at busy times of the day.

Commuting to work at ~0635 the direct main roads are not too bad (but busier than they used to be, sign of the times), but if I'm heading for home, I'll typically use back-roads or cycle paths (like over The Common; the Sustrans boardwalk between Horseshoe and Northam Bridges; the shared pathway over Northam Bridge; up to Bitterne via Quayside and Chessel etc.).

For recreational rides, ordinarily I will try and avoid leaving/returning from the South Downs during the rush hours or at school run time, with a slightly longer "curfew" of ~1500-1800 on a Friday.

I play the assassination game in my head sometimes:

I am a secret agent and the baddies are out to get me. All I know is they've identified that I'm most vulnerable when cycling, and they need to make it look like an accident..

on a slightly more serious note, the assumption that if someone could conceivably do something stupid that can make me dead, then they will. Sometimes they do, but it's okay because I'm expecting it.

On a practical note, front wheels of vehicles in traffic at junctions: notice which way they're pointing and whether they're moving - when someone sets off, the first discernable movement will be the wheels.

Shoulder checks. Lots of them. More than you could possibly need. Now and again you'll need to swerve to avoid someone doing something stupid, and won't have time to shoulder check. If you've just shoulder checked anyway, just because that's how you roll, you can swerve with reasonable confidence that you've got an idea what behind you looks like.

I got sanctimonious on a thread here a while ago (I think it was on here, sorry about that by the way) about people discussing being caught out by vehicles catching them unawares coming up behind. This honestly doesn't happen to me* because I look behind myself A LOT and so I know what's there, where they're going, whether they're coming up fast or hanging back, switching lanes, joining, leaving traffic etc. etc.

Confidence / assertiveness (not aggression). If it's safer (and it often is particularly in urban settings) I'm taking the lane. All of it. You want to pass me, you're not squeezing by in this lane. Use the other one. Or wait. Sometimes morons will shout at me for this, but I'd rather be hearing their ignorant, illogical, completely-not-thought-through bile than being scraped off their tyres. The people who think you should ride in the gutter so they can squeeze their enormous pickup truck or Range Rover by as you go past a constricting pedestrian refuge are people who toss. **** 'em. They can wait.

Did I mention excessively frequent shoulder checks?

Anticipation - looking ahead, thinking ahead, that stuff they teach us when we learn to drive motor vehicles that many seem to forget the instant they get a licence, works for me on a bike too.

Oh, and patience - that thing we criticise motorists for, not hanging back for literally 2 seconds for a safer pass, I see lots of cyclists making the same mistake. I understand why on a bike - it takes hard physical effort to get up to speed, if you have to scrub some or all off and start working back up the gears, it can be painful. Not as painful as going under a left-turning lorry, I'll wager though, so if I have to brake and then put the effort in again straight away, so be it.

And shoulder checks.

*Tempting fate, bound to get squished on the way home by someone I hadn't spotted now.

The fact is, metal boxes hit other metal boxes all the time. SMIDSY. It's a metal box weighing over a ton.

Cyclists are more vulnerable. Same thing whem I'm riding a motorbike.

You can minimise risk but despite being vigilant, alert and aware accidents still happen unfortunately

Route choice - my shortest commuter route is 5.5 miles, my preferred routes are 8 & 9 because they are generally pleasant, have some off-road and bike paths in.

Otherwise - Awareness, patience, attempting to be visible without being a Xmas Tree and generally not being a dick.

Last year i did over 8000 miles of commuting starting in centre of town and ending up on country lanes, i do believe that you ride a lot, especially commuting, you do start to get a bit of a "sixth sense" in that you've seen most situations and you expect the worst from everyone, in that you don't just see a car at the junction ahead, you see a tired looking mum with 3 kids in back, so you know to expect worse... or you are riding on main road, you see the traffic island ahead and know it is an Audi just behind you so expect it to come round and cut in front as it can't wait for me to clear the island.

Plus you start to ride in a defensive way to, i know the route, know it is a blind corner coming up, so i move over right to take up the lane and stop them coming past.

So i think that whilst you can never stop the risk, you can mitigate it

There is a lot you can do but you're still reliant on a driver not being a dick. Had one behind me yesterday try to pass on a blind right hand bend and very nearly have a head on smash with an oncoming car. Once round the corner and onto straight road he passed, stopped, wound down the window and started shouting that I was a "****ing idiot". All quite disturbing.

Having ridden a lot on the roads over the past few years I've seen plenty of examples of staggering levels of impatience and lack of care by those behind the wheel of a car putting all lives involved at risk. Though this year seems to be the worst yet (fuelled by a cycling hating mass media?) and the first time I've been knocked off in about 10 years (side swiped at speed into a ditch on a wide straight road by an overtaking car.) And I also had the tragic experience of witnessing the death of another cyclist for the first time.

I choose quiet routes, avoid busy or higher risk times of day, am very visible and aware, have good road position, I can't really see anything I could have done differently to avoid most incidents other than just not being on the road. With a wife and two young kids at home I'm increasingly questioning the sanity of it all.

Eyes and Ears...

There is a lot you can do but you're still reliant on a driver not being a dick. Had one behind me yesterday try to pass on a blind right hand bend and very nearly have a head on smash with an oncoming car. Once round the corner and onto straight road he passed, stopped, wound down the window and started shouting that I was a "****ing idiot". All quite disturbing.

Yes, he'd probably have shouted at you even more (sounds like he was a bell-end anyway) but you'd be alive and safe and, frankly, this counts for more than anything.

route choice is primary reduction method for me.

Had you positioned yourself in such a way as to force him to overtake you like a car (primary), or were you riding close to the kerb (secondary)? This is a really good case where you, as the cyclist, can and should control the actions of the cars behind by making it abundantly clear that you do not wish to be overtaken on this blind bend, rather than inviting the driver to squeeze past by giving them nearly enough space to do so.

I was fully aware he was behind me and of the situation on the road, I was in the middle of my lane for the corner. He actually pulled out wide into the oncoming side of the road giving me plenty of room, it was just that he did it on a blind bend with a car coming the other way.

Some people when driving and seeing a cyclist ahead of them seem to get fixated on passing and don't seem to see anything beyond the cyclist, losing all ability to plan ahead. When passsing they also often seem to process cyclists as stationary objects, and not ones that may be travelling at some speed.

Had a funny one few weeks back. Had someone overtake me just in front of a roundabout. I ended up stopped at the roundabout in the left hand lane and the driver stopped in the right hand lane blocking oncoming traffic trying to get off the roundabout!

In no particular order:

Ride a tandem
Keep out of the gutter
Choose a good route
Be alert to all of the stupid shit that drivers pull on a regular basis

Watch out for tired lorry drivers with Target Fixation

Alertness, thinking, knowing, understanding and obeying the highway code.

A bit of this:-

you do start to get a bit of a "sixth sense" in that you've seen most situations and you expect the worst from everyone

Some of this

Cross fingers and .... when vehicles approach at speed from behind

...and trying to have a plan B most of the time, even if it's just chucking myself onto the pavement at 20mph.

Behave like a car, take the lane, don't squeeze between lanes of traffic if there's any danger of it moving while you are still amongst it. Don't jump lights, use pavements, cut junctions, anything that doesn't look like car behaviour puts you in a position where car drivers won't be looking, and they'll drive straight into you. You are going to get shouted at, mostly by dicks and it's an opportunity for you to reflect on what you were doing at the time, but not an indication you were doing something wrong. If you get shouted at it usually means they had time to see you, wind down the window and construct a sentence, you can't have been doing anything that dangerous if the driver had that much time to act...

Try not to let your mood affect your riding, if my self esteem/confidence is low that day I find I tend to ride closer to the kerb and generally stay out of the way, which invariably means I get more close calls and dangerous passes.

Don't let anger accumulate, if I get wound up about the action of one driver I invariably end up having more incidents on my commute that day, it's partly because you become hypersensitive to every pass being a bit close and partly because I start riding more aggressively and get more and more wound up.

Try not to react, something I'm really bad at, been chased twice now, it's f##king terrifying, anything more than a slight shake of the head even if they deliberately tried to run you off the road seems to elicit murderous rage in some of the dicks in Birkenhead...

Cross fingers and .... when vehicles approach at speed from behind

Again Garmin rear radar is very good for this. I know something is approaching from behind long before I'd otherwise be aware of it, and it can tell you how far away, how many vehicles, how fast they are approaching. And you can use this information to form your riding plan.

oikeith - Member
Eyes and Ears...

Chips and Mayo

As above though mainly, be visible enough, don't be a dick, say thank you when you can - you'll see most of the same people every day when you're commuting and practice. As Scud says, it becomes second nature, my commute spidey sense has probably saved me a few times, but I've not really noticed because it's all subconscious.

Had a funny one few weeks back. Had someone overtake me just in front of a roundabout. I ended up stopped at the roundabout in the left hand lane and the driver stopped in the right hand lane blocking oncoming traffic trying to get off the roundabout!

I've had similar, but replace 'roundabout' with 'queue of traffic' and now said driver having literally nowhere to go, as couldn't even reverse in behind me as the rest of the queue that were behind him were now occupying that space.

The mind boggles, if he'd looked beyond the end of his bonnet what was about to happen would have been obvious, even if he'd done it a few seconds earlier and got past me he would have been heading for rear-ending the queue.

iPod.

For me its
route selection
Use cycle lanes
Be visible
Don't go careering up the inside of traffic
Be aware of vehicles blind spots and make sure as far as reasonably possible I don't hang about in them
Be cautious when approaching junctions
If I hear a car behind me get over to the left
Just don't be a d1ck (yes, some cyclists do behave like d1cks) and courteous to other road users

Other than that there is little else you can do. The roads are pretty safe at the end of the day so the odds are on your side if you are sensible.

Again Garmin rear radar is very good for this

*[i]only half joking[/i]

If I hear a car behind me get over to the left

Trying not to ride like a self-entitled titled cock. Seems to be working so far.

I used to commute on the bike 35-40 miles a day, 5 days a week in all weathers.

I don't ride on the roads anymore.

I was lit up like a christmas tree (even in daylight), doing everything I should, but when a driver doesn't look properly, and turns right across your path and drives into your front fork, you don't stand a chance.

The fool broke my spine and 4 ribs (unstable spinal fracture). I was in hospital for 6 1/2 weeks flat on my back unable to move (opted for no surgery due to the paralysis risk) and then 4 months in a spinal brace. It was 10 months before I was back at work full time. Almost two years later I'm still in pain.I've also got half my L1 vertebrae missing, so instead of it being a 'square' it's now a cheese wedge shape.

I've got 3 road bikes that I don't use now (one is on the turbo) but now just ride MTB - plenty of off road routes near me. It wasn't a good time and the pressure on my family wasn't good.

There are too many idiots. Whilst commuting I've had my shoulder smashed up (needed surgery, injections etc etc), hand broken, ribs broken (all separate accidents) and finally my spine.

The legal side is still going on, fault admitted but medical reports etc still on going. My reports basically say I won't make normal retirement age due to my back and I'll have to retire early. Whist I'm just managing now (late 40's) god knows how I'll be in 5-10 years - that's what worries me.

I can't get injured like that again - if I crash the MTB, that's my fault. Once the claim is sorted, I'd love to have 'words' with the driver. He wasn't arsed, didn't fill in much of a police report, and got away without so much as a slapped wrist - coppers just said 'your insurance will sort it'.

If I hear a car behind me get over to the left

*[i]Only half joking,again[/i]

Edit{ bad news fossy sorry to read that.I try not to think about things like that happening,because if I did I probably wouldn't bother going on the road,but I have been doing this cycling thing for a long time now and enjoy it too much to bin it.} edit

I agree with most of the advice here.

I learned that when riding up some long uphill roads that are busy with cars I feel much more comfortable when riding on a pavement.

Trying not to ride like a self-entitled titled cock. Seems to be working so far.

So if one was a self-entitled titled cock (whatever that means) then how might one ride?

I think the strategies adopted by many riders (the most vulnerable of road users) to try and mitigate risks and keep themselves safe may well be mistaken for such behaviour. Most road users have no appreciation of what it's like to ride a bike on the roads and as such have no basis for understanding why a cyclist may be riding in the way that they are, which is a big part of the problem.

How does the Garmin thing really help?

Knowing a car is coming towards you is useless unless every time the thing beeps you leap off your bike and hide behind a tree until it's past???????

I haven't given up the bike, but have stopped the road cycling - MTBing is more risky, but it's depends upon how hard you push it.

On the plus side, the compensation will buy me a few new shiney MTB's, before I can no longer ride and my back gives in permanently.

I noticed after being down south for a week that a lot of cyclists have rear and sometimes front lights on in the daytime. Don’t see that up north much but I reckon it’s a good idea as a lot of new cars have DRL’s so I suppose it’s good sense to “match” them so we don’t fade into the background.

not cycling on the road.
*checks to see if this is still a mtb forum*

How does the Garmin thing really help?

Knowing a car is coming towards you is useless unless every time the thing beeps you leap off your bike and hide behind a tree until it's past???????

I did wonder exactly that before I got it. Mostly it's very early awareness and the ability to plan ahead. Know there's a car or two coming up 100m behind you, scanning the road ahead, bends, road surface, pot holes, how close are the cars, how fast are they approaching, are they likely to reach me at a point that's suitable for passing, is there oncoming traffic, should I slow down or speed up, are there junctions coming up, where do I want to be on the road? How can I make this as simple as possible for the driver and low risk for me? And I can do that all a long time before they're right behind me.

It also doubles as a rear light, the pattern of flashing also changes when there are vehicles approaching to further attract attention, and I think it also changes with approach speed.

I expect if a LBS had some to lend out for a trial to the sceptical then not many would be handed back.

Assume every other road use is out to get you.

This..and just because I'm paranoid doesn't mean(some of them) aren't out to get me/you.

Being seen is a good idea, being a clown in hi-viz just makes you better target.

My commuter has a dynamo hub so front and rear lights all the time. My other road bikes get small LED lights according to conditions, usually if it's foggy.

Idiot lights, sorry DRL, are used round here as a substitute for actually turning on the correct lights in fog or at night.

no riding when it's wet or high winds, not that i mind riding in the rain it's just the locals turn into complete speed freak nut jobs which exacerbated by poorer visibility and worse stopping distances. It was kind of confirmed for me when looking at the rta map seemed most of the fatalities happened in adverse weather conditions.

[i]If I hear a car behind me get over to the left[/i]

Funny that - cycling in the low sun this week, if I saw a shadow of a car looming behing me, I moved slightly to the [i]right[/i] until it was safe for them to pass.

I have bought a Sugoi Zap jacket for this winter. Proper reflective.

If I hear a car behind me get over to the left

that statement needs to be seriously heavily qualified I think, there's no way you should be doing that if there's any doubt at all about the dirver behind you being able to make a safe pass, I would practically never do that in an urban environment. If there's no traffic coming the other way then I want them in the other lane, and if there's traffic coming the other way then most roads aren't wide enough to allow them to pass safely...

Trying not to ride like a self-entitled titled cock. Seems to be working so far.

So then it comes down to survival. You do what you need to do to get home to your family safely and in one piece. Motorists often do not understand what their obligations are around cyclists, so you are quite within your rights to control these yourself. If you do not believe that the car behind you can safely overtake on a blind bend without compromising the 1.5m gap that they should be leaving, then stick your bike in such a position on the road that makes it clear to the motorist behind that you are taking charge of the situation. There is nothing wrong with this and, in fact, it is the recommended way to be a safe, assertive cyclist.

If you're driving your car and another car comes up behind you, would you drive in the gutter so they can squeeze past, barely clearing your wing-mirrors? No, of course you don't. So why is there an expectation that cyclists should do the same, particularly when the risks for them are so much higher?

Commuting on the bike is a great way of keeping fit for the fun stuff at weekends. My commute became much more dangerous when our office moved from the suburbs into Manchester.

I'd re-worked a better route after someone clipped my rear sending me crashing down (broken ribs) and was using the 'Fallowfield Loop' for about 4 miles. Unfortunately, my spine breaking accident was just 300 yards short of this traffic free route on a suburban street ! My wife said 'why weren't you using that path' - me "I was just about to get on it".

I was only doing 13mph when the car hit me, the bike only had a small scratch on the forks, but apparently my injury was like the 'old lap seat belt' injuries in that my body must have doubled over and split my vertebrae front to back.

Nothing can protect you from drivers who don't look. The driver came over to me and said 'SMIDSY' - as you can imagine, between the screams of pain, I said 'how could you not see me'. Unfortunately, I couldn't get up and punch his lights out. I'd had two Hope 1's on constant and another mega light on a pulse mode. Bright red bike and a bright red top.

Just because there are more cars does not make them any more (or less) entitled to use the road than any other group of road user

That's an argument you ain't ever gonna win (despite being correct)!

That's an argument you ain't ever gonna win (despite being correct)!

I know that I'm falling into the "self-entitled ****" category, but when you rethink your place on the road, you stop being submissive and start thinking like what you really are - a vehicle on the road.

I know you [i]weren't[/i] arguing it... but if you were to, with any driver!

I know you weren't arguing it... but if you were to, with any driver!

Sadly, the education of so many motorists on our roads is simply appalling 🙁

but when you rethink your place on the road, you stop being submissive and start thinking like what you really are - a vehicle on the road

This makes more sense to me than prescriptively telling cyclists to ride in position x in the road. Being a driver helps with also - reading the signs of drivers intentions and being able to use them yourself while riding (or maybe I'm deluding myself and am just lucky so far).

Definitely say riding fast is a good idea - not talking about smashing it or anything silly, but closer to the speed of urban traffic just gives you more options, cars take fewer liberties IME.

I occasionally take a hire bike across Manchester - heavy and undergeared. The difference is stark - feel very vulnerable bimbling along at 10 mph, no way of moving the bike forcefully. Drivers definitely show less respect.

Sry to hear about your accident fossy and hope your back holds up - I commute daily in Manchester and must say I'm pretty relaxed about it. Sobering reminder that it only takes one dickhead, and there's no shortage of them about.

I said 'how could you not see me'. Unfortunately, I couldn't get up and punch his lights out.

but if it was dark or even dusk then my own view is that

I'd had two Hope 1's on constant and another mega light on a pulse mode

The lights acted as an invisibility cloak?

Good lights, brakes and wide grippy tyres for urban hilly commuting. Observation and road positioing

robz400 - Member
How does the Garmin thing really help?

Knowing a car is coming towards you is useless unless every time the thing beeps you leap off your bike and hide behind a tree until it's past???????

not sure if the Garmin rear radar was designed/intended for use on busy UK roads - living down under on rural roads definitely beneficial to know a vehicle is coming up behind as can check looks like is going to move over, I'll ride wide (at least 1m out so have some space to move into) - drivers are often fatigued/drugged or not just looking on boring country roads with very little traffic - US conditions can be similar - don't have a Garmin but have found a mirror essential and use daytime rear lights - considering one though but have found the newer daytime lights seems to help a lot

- as above route choice (sadly) is the number 1 safety measure for me - spend quite a lot of time looking at googlemaps looking for gravel alternatives and roads that are dead ends for motorised users

DezB wrote:

That's an argument you ain't ever gonna win (despite being correct)!

I know you weren't arguing it... but if you were to, with any driver!

Thing is, it isn't an argument; with most motorists (round me anyway) it already is won. Most motorists are fine, many are extremely considerate. A few get it wrong mostly through lack of understanding I think.

But there are a very small minority who just decide they can see round corners. And another minority that are absolute cockwombles of the finest order and go out of their way to scare, intimidate and bully.

It's not about cyclists vs all motorists. Most are fine. It wouldn't take much of a change in behaviour for the roads to be much safer and more pleasant - trouble is it would need to be the worst offenders that changed or got sanctioned and they're the hardest to reach.

It's not helped by the media stance that it's all of us vs all of them, and that it's a war. And that it's ok like that - that's the thing I can't forgive the likes of Jeremy Clarkson: popularising the cyclists are scum thing.

Most people know it's not true, most drivers do an ok job. We need to change peoples' opinion of "people on bikes", and we're not as far away from where we need to be as the doom-monger would have you believe.

I'll certainly not stop riding on the road, I'll still take the lane where that's the safest thing for me. The small minority of drivers can just suck it up and wait IMO.

Sadly it seems the first people whose opinion we need to change is Cambridgeshire police. Their conclusions have given my sunny and optimist outlook that things might not be terrible a good shoeing TBF.

Trying not to ride like a self-entitled titled cock. Seems to be working so far.

I need to remind myself of this at times. Generally I'm a safe and considerate rider but bad driving does tend to bring out the bad cyclist in me which can't be a good thing!