Rules of road question

ciaeim

tonight while driving through town i came to a standstill in traffic and my daughter who was in rear seat passenger side goes to get out of car, she never looked and almost caught a cyclist with the door, my question is do cyclists have the right to pass on the left ? I cycle a lot myself and am unsure as whether u can pass on left or not ,, this is just for information purposes only, no one got hurt thank god and all went on our merryway.. so single lane, stopped in traffic, daughter opens door without looking, cyclist passes on inside . who is wrong in eyes of the law?

longshanks

You're supposed to look before opening a door.

Dermot Illogical

ciaeim wrote: »

my question is do cyclists have the right to pass on the left ?

Yes.

Orion

ciaeim wrote: »

, she never looked and almost caught a cyclist with the door,

There's the relevant part. She never looked. I realise she is probably a child on the school run so not her fault but the lesson is to always check mirrors or look behind before opening a door.

And yes - cyclists can pass on the left. Any experienced cyclist will be aware of the risks of passing a car that's stopped - I always watch out for doors and will usually pass on the right if safe to do so but it's not mandatory.

RobertFoster

Cyclists are permitted to pass on the left with a few exceptions: http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=88740818&postcount=39

crosstownk

longshanks wrote: »

You're supposed to look before opening a door.

^ This.

The driver needs to ensure that it is safe for any passengers to open the door. Probably the best thing to do if you've to let out a passenger on the left is to pull close to the kerb to prevent a cyclist passing on the left (obviously without cutting the cyclist).

A good piece of advice that I read somewhere was to open the left door with your right arm as this rotates the body and makes it easier to look behind. I'm rarely a passenger so I can't testify to it's effectiveness. In any case, there will be inevitable blind spots.

ciaeim

thanks for replies thats good to know, i freely admitted that she didnt look and wasnt trying to lay the blame elsewhere but was just curious if something had happened what would the legal situation be. thankfully it didnt come to that. oh and she was getting out for the cinema and is 17. but hopefully this is a lesson learned for all of us

DirkVoodoo

ciaeim wrote: »

thanks for replies thats good to know, i freely admitted that she didnt look and wasnt trying to lay the blame elsewhere but was just curious if something had happened what would the legal situation be. thankfully it didnt come to that. oh and she was getting out for the cinema and is 17. but hopefully this is a lesson learned for all of us

It's something we've all done. Thankfully no one was hurt and like you say, a lesson learned.

Most cycle lanes tend to be on the left hand side of traffic lanes, it's a good habit to remind your passengers to check before getting out (I do all the time now!).

cjt156

What's this?!

A reasoned and mature discussion ending on a point of clarification and resolution?

Where's the 'all cyclists are lycropaths', 'cage drivers must die', 'cinema is a dying artform consumed by teenage blockbuster-ism' escalation?

Pfft, /unsubscribe.

ciaeim

DirkVoodoo wrote: »

It's something we've all done. Thankfully no one was hurt and like you say, a lesson learned.

Most cycle lanes tend to be on the left hand side of traffic lanes, it's a good habit to remind your passengers to check before getting out (I do all the time now!).

in this instance their is not a cycle lane, was stopped in traffic. at least no one hurt could have been nasty

ciaeim

cjt156 wrote: »

What's this?!

A reasoned and mature discussion ending on a point of clarification and resolution?

Where's the 'all cyclists are lycropaths', 'cage drivers must die', 'cinema is a dying artform consumed by teenage blockbuster-ism' escalation?

Pfft, /unsubscribe.

nice for a change ha ha

gumbo1

You were stopped in traffic, presumably not pulled in to the kerb and not at the top of the line of traffic at a red light. So why wouldn't a cyclist be able to pass you on the left?

gumbo1

You were stopped in traffic, presumably not pulled in to the kerb and not at the top of the line of traffic at a red light. So why wouldn't a cyclist be able to pass you on the left?

Sleeper12

ciaeim wrote:

tonight while driving through town i came to a standstill in traffic and my daughter who was in rear seat passenger side goes to get out of car, she never looked and almost caught a cyclist with the door, my question is do cyclists have the right to pass on the left ? I cycle a lot myself and am unsure as whether u can pass on left or not ,, this is just for information purposes only, no one got hurt thank god and all went on our merryway.. so single lane, stopped in traffic, daughter opens door without looking, cyclist passes on inside . who is wrong in eyes of the law?

Not only can cyclists pass on the left but they travel on your left all the time. It's where they are supposed to cycle.

billie1b

If a driver is signalling to turn left or a passenger is alighting from a stopped vehicle or seems to be letting passengers alight the cyclist is not to pass on the left. Thats the rules of the road, end of story, regardless if the person looked or not.

ciaeim

gumbo1 wrote: »

You were stopped in traffic, presumably not pulled in to the kerb and not at the top of the line of traffic at a red light. So why wouldn't a cyclist be able to pass you on the left?

i suppose i foolishly thought that cyclists of which i am one had to use same rules of road that cars etc have to use. thats why i asked the question

Sleeper12

billie1b wrote:

If a driver is signalling to turn left or a passenger is alighting from a stopped vehicle or seems to be letting passengers alight the cyclist is not to pass on the left. Thats the rules of the road, end of story, regardless if the person looked or not.

Car stopped in traffic with lots of other cars. Can you explain what the cyclist would have seen that would indicate that a passenger was about to open a car door in a dangerous Manor in the middle of the road?
Obviously cyclists need to be vigilant but the law is clear that the driver must ensure that passengers open doors safely

Sleeper12

ciaeim wrote:

i suppose i foolishly thought that cyclists of which i am one had to use same rules of road that cars etc have to use. thats why i asked the question

They do. The rules of the road for the driver & cyclist is that the driver must make sure passengers open the door safely.
Look at cyclists at the edge of the road. Consider that is their lane. Just because your Lane of traffic has stopped that doesn't mean that where the cyclists are has stopped.
If there was 2 lanes of traffic & you are in the right Lane and the right Lane has stopped but the left Lane still had moving cars. It's your fault if your passenger opens a door and a car in the left Lane hits you or worse still, your daughter

ciaeim

Sleeper12 wrote: »

They do. The rules of the road for the driver & cyclist is that the driver must make sure passengers open the door safely.
Look at cyclists at the edge of the road. Consider that is their lane. Just because your Lane of traffic has stopped that doesn't mean that where the cyclists are has stopped.
If there was 2 lanes of traffic & you are in the right Lane and the right Lane has stopped but the left Lane still had moving cars. It's your fault if your passenger opens a door and a car in the left Lane hits you or worse still, your daughter

their was only one lane of traffic and as cars etc cant pass on left and as cyclists use same rules of road i am wondering why cyclists can pass ? can motor bikes also pass on left ?

Sleeper12

ciaeim wrote:

their was only one lane of traffic and as cars etc cant pass on left and as cyclists use same rules of road i am wondering why cyclists can pass ? can motor bikes also pass on left ?

You missed the point. You need to see the side of the road as a separate lane to yours but for cyclists. It's almost identical to two car lanes and you daughter opening the door onto another car.

ciaeim

Sleeper12 wrote: »

You missed the point. You need to see the side of the road as a separate lane to yours but for cyclists. It's almost identical to two car lanes and you daughter opening the door onto another car.

can motorbikes use this separate lane?

brianomc

Cars can pass on the left hand side of slower moving traffic, you were just going so slow that you were stopped. As has been said, if you planned to let someone out you should have pulled closer to the kerb to prevent anyone moving up the left hand side. But even at that, your daughter should have checked before opening the door, it doesn't matter if the car door hit another car, a bike, a pedestrian etc.

I've done it myself, opened the passenger door without looking and almost took down a cyclist on a footpath who luckily avoided the collision. It wouldn't have made a difference that he shouldn't have been there, I would have been at fault. It's a good example to use to teach her to be observant, so many people don't look when making manoeuvres it's crazy. That applies to pedestrians, cyclists, drivers, everybody. A quick glance over the shoulder makes all the difference.

Sleeper12

ciaeim wrote:

can motorbikes use this separate lane?

A motor propelled vehicle? Why would you think that? Can motor bikes use cycle lanes?

Put this another way. Do you indicate every time you pass a cyclist? I don't because they are not in my driving lane

DirkVoodoo

ciaeim wrote: »

in this instance their is not a cycle lane, was stopped in traffic. at least no one hurt could have been nasty

Maybe not, but you can understand that because of how cycle lanes are designed, it teaches people to "ride on the left" past stationary traffic even if there are no painted lines.

The alternative is passing on the outside, the risks there being u-turning vehicles or traffic coming in the opposite direction.

ciaeim

Sleeper12 wrote: »

A motor propelled vehicle? Why would you think that? Can motor bikes use cycle lanes?

Put this another way. Do you indicate every time you pass a cyclist? I don't because they are not in my driving lane

and i indicate every time i pass a cyclist as they are almost always in my driving lane, very few cycle lanes where i live

can motorbikes use cycle lanes ? definitely not.

Sleeper12

ciaeim wrote:

and i indicate every time i pass a cyclist as they are almost always in my driving lane, very few cycle lanes where i am

I'm middle aged and I definitely don't cycle. I drive up to 100 miles per day around Dublin as part of my job. I've no reason to stick up for cyclists but I have to say midweek cyclists are usually ok. It's the weekend warriors in their lycra gear that should be locked up.

Orion

ciaeim wrote: »

and i indicate every time i pass a cyclist as they are almost always in my driving lane, very few cycle lanes where i live

can motorbikes use cycle lanes ? definitely not.

You mean they're in the road traffic lane where they are entitled to be?

You are absolutely right to indicate - as every road user should do when overtaking anything. It allows oncoming traffic to know that you are about to use more of your side of the road to overtake and traffic behind that there is something you are overtaking which they may not be able to see yet. The latter is very important. I always indicate when overtaking also - whether it's pedestrians walking towards me on country roads or cyclists.

DirkVoodoo

Sleeper12 wrote: »

It's the weekend warriors in their lycra gear that should be locked up.

Sigh.

I guess this thread was too good to be true.

Btw, there should be no reason at all to "stick up for cyclists".

Sleeper12

DirkVoodoo wrote:

Btw, there should be no reason at all to "stick up for cyclists".

Sorry. Not sticking up for cyclists. Just showing I'm not a cyclist and I'm not biased. Its basic rules of the road though.

2RockMountain

Sleeper12 wrote: »

I'm middle aged and I definitely don't cycle. I drive up to 100 miles per day around Dublin as part of my job. I've no reason to stick up for cyclists but I have to say midweek cyclists are usually ok. It's the weekend warriors in their lycra gear that should be locked up.

How about the mid-week warriors in Lycra like myself - should I be locked up too?

tomasrojo

Sleeper12 wrote: »

I'm not biased.

"weekend warriors in their lycra gear that should be locked up"

I'm having trouble reconciling.