Bicycle Driving Demonstrations

Moving Laterally

Passing, preparing for turns, and avoiding obstacles all require moving laterally on the road. It's essential to LOOK BACK and to the side before any lateral movement in order to yield properly and avoid violating the right of way of other road users. Doing so without swerving requires some practice, but is easy to learn. To practice the LOOK BACK, ride on a straight line or marking in an empty parking lot or deserted road. Try to keep your tires on the line as you turn your head and twist your shoulders around and then straight. Be sure to practice turning in both directions for both leftward and rightward lateral movements. Start with both hands on the handlebars, then try combining the LOOK BACK with hand signals. Remember not to leave your head turned too long, because conditions in front of you can change fast.

Turn your head: Always LOOK BACK  to see other vehicles and judge the space you need to merge when moving laterally. Hand signals can help you communicate your intentions, but don't sacrifice control of your bike.

If a sufficient gap in traffic does not appear readily when you need to merge laterally, make a hand signal and look at the driver operating behind the space you'd like to merge. The driver will often see your signal and let you in. If not, try the next driver behind the first one, and so on. Someone will almost always let you merge. In some situations traffic is just too dense or too fast for this to work right when you want it to. Merging sooner, when a large gap is available, rather than later, when you really need to be in position, can make this easier. Merging very early may puzzle some drivers who aren't used to seeing cyclists operate away from the curb, but it makes you easier to predict and is much safer than trying to merge too late.

Next: Destination Positioning