Cyclists hogging the road

The clash between bike and car often jumps into a higher gear on rural roads where group rides run free.

Residents of East Kelowna complain about groups taking the full vehicle lane and not letting them pass.

The issue has been raised enough that I did the research to find out what’s going on for these rides.

Just as with any large group activity, organizers are responsible for setting the group guidelines. We can’t all be instinctual like a flock of birds and go left or right, up or down with the flick of a wing.

Here’s what they all work to adhere to:

• If there is a bike lane, everyone needs to ride single file and stay within the markings
• When approaching stop signs, the rider ahead will signal if the intersection is clear by saying so before proceeding
• No running stop lights, if part of the group gets caught at a red the rest of the group will wait ahead for them to catch up
• The leaders and tailing bikes will use “car up” and “car back” to let the next rider know that a car is passing to the front or the rear, as the call crosses the group all riders will stretch out to allow the vehicle to pass.

This information came from several local bike shops that run organized afternoon rides and a local cycling group. Usually groups will be eight to 20 riders so it doesn’t get unmanageable.

One thing that most cyclists are not is shy, and in this respect they will police themselves. Letting anyone know when they’re not riding by the rules of the road.

When a driver encounters “a” cyclist it’s pretty easy to deal with, but when you have a group they get more intimidating.

Just remember that they are playing a faster game of “follow the leader” so what the first one does that is where the rest will follow.

It’s not a perfect world. Sometimes you might run into a small group of cyclists who aren’t organized by a shop or an association who takes the time to explain it all.

They might be out to get the mileage in without having a route setup that makes them easier to read. I still hope they’ll be reading this piece so that they can understand now what drivers would expect of them.

If you, as a driver, encounter a group that is behaving badly, note any official cycling jerseys, most of the shops have recognizable jerseys. Call the shop and let them know the location, time and behaviour that you saw. If you’re reasonable letting them know about it, they’ll let their riders know.

Start the dialogue, get to know what your fellow road users are thinking. Be patient, while a cyclist can stop a lot faster than a car, they have to communicate within their group to move around the formation.

If we’re all on the same page then we will all be a lot happier out there.

This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet.