Strange driver behaviour yesterday

[Annoying Twit]

Yesterday I experienced some car driver behaviour I thought was strange.

First, at several times while riding on single lane but reasonably wide B roads, I found that some drivers simply wouldn't pass. Several times I actually stopped and pulled off the road after drivers wouldn't pass even after what I considered to be several reasonable opportunities. Typically I then waved past a train of cars.

In the same area as this was happening (hills between Coleshill and Atherstone) I came to an intersection with a lot of cars stacked up, all seemingly trying to wave the others through first. I'm not sure if this is indicative of a local driving culture.

Then, on another busier B road, I noticed that drivers were giving me a considerable amount of space, pulling right over into the other lane leaving me metres (plural) of room. But, they were doing this when there was traffic approaching and from my visual viewpoint they were getting quite close to the approaching traffic during the manoeuvres. Certainly I was concerned about what would happen if they collided with the oncoming traffic, including (but not limited to) whether I could be hit by a vehicle involved in such a collision.

Maybe it's more to do with what I noticed yesterday, than this being unusual. But, I did notice several of each of the above circumstances.

[Si]

Whereas just down the road in small heath i had people driving along the pavement to get past on coming cars, people indicating left then turning right, and people treating red lights as a sign to accelerate.

Wish id been in coleshill

[Phil Fouracre]

I'm afraid it's just people!! 'There's nowt so queer as folk'

[Bonefishblues]

I read that they were being super-careful with the OP, but running some slight risk of bumping into each other.

Were it always that way.

[reohn2]

I've had the OP's and Si's experience on the same ride many a time,I think Phil has it right,theres nowt so queer as folk
The antics of some drivers never fails to amaze me,it's as if all logic and reason is left outside the car when they shut the door behind them .

[Mick F]

What seems to happen here on the narrower roads, is that a car coming towards me will go past nicely and gently and considerately.
However, anyone coming up from my rear just stays back and won't go past. It's quite annoying really having them tailing me.

Why they don't like overtaking me, but are happy to pass by me, I'll never know. I can only think that they think I don't know they're there.

[Phil Fouracre]

They really can be frightening, and totally illogical! I know we have constant discussions on here about the deliberate, or otherwise, threat to our safety, but, I sometimes feel that it isn't at all personal, just unthinking.
Had a stunning example recently, on my local A road - cycling home, perfect conditions, dry, sunshine etc - car overtakes, giving me maximum space, woman driving, kids waving and smiling, guess mother said 'wave at the nice cyclist' - all perfect from my PoV, EXCEPT, for the approaching crest and blind bend!!
In a strange way, I found that more frightening than the more 'usual' interaction - so much so, that I slowed, wondering how likely the potential carnage was going to be!

[crs1953]

Whereas just down the road in small heath i had people driving along the pavement to get past on coming cars, people indicating left then turning right, and people treating red lights as a sign to accelerate.

Wish id been in coleshill

I find that driving standards are generally 'area specific' and, no doubt, I will be soundly castigated for daring to say this but Small Heath is just one area of Birmingham with a very high asian population and in general I find their driving 'skills' range from appalling to suicidal. The examples of driving you have cited are but the tip of the iceberg believe me !!
Before anyone entertains the notion that I am in any way ethnically biased, my wife is of Indian extraction and hails from Trinidad in the West Indies and she would agree entirely with what I am saying. We have driven through this area every Friday for the last five years so my observation is not based on a single or limited number of occurrences.
My advice would be to ''expect the unexpected'' !! Driving through here is bad enough but cycling ( properly ) would be taking ones life in ones hands

[reohn2]

They really can be frightening, and totally illogical! I know we have constant discussions on here about the deliberate, or otherwise, threat to our safety, but, I sometimes feel that it isn't at all personal, just unthinking.
Had a stunning example recently, on my local A road - cycling home, perfect conditions, dry, sunshine etc - car overtakes, giving me maximum space, woman driving, kids waving and smiling, guess mother said 'wave at the nice cyclist' - all perfect from my PoV, EXCEPT, for the approaching crest and blind bend!!
In a strange way, I found that more frightening than the more 'usual' interaction - so much so, that I slowed, wondering how likely the potential carnage was going to be!

I've experienced exactly the same thing many times and like you,find it terrifying for the oblivious occupants,mainly the passengers.

[Si]

I find that driving standards are generally 'area specific' and, no doubt, I will be soundly castigated for daring to say this but Small Heath is just one area of Birmingham with a very high asian population and in general I find their driving 'skills' range from appalling to suicidal. The examples of driving you have cited are but the tip of the iceberg believe me !!
Before anyone entertains the notion that I am in any way ethnically biased, my wife is of Indian extraction and hails from Trinidad in the West Indies and she would agree entirely with what I am saying. We have driven through this area every Friday for the last five years so my observation is not based on a single or limited number of occurrences.
My advice would be to ''expect the unexpected'' !! Driving through here is bad enough but cycling ( properly ) would be taking ones life in ones hands

i know what you mean but think that i disagree slightly. Driving isnt worse in small heath than many areas, rather the way that it manifests itself is different. I often find small heath driving to be comically bad....the drivers tend to be all over the place but they mostly do it fairly slowly and ypu rarely get hostility. Whereas in other areas you might have slightly fewer instances of bad driving but they can be faster, much more unpredictable and ill-tempered.

For instace i took a group of women from the wellbeing centre on their first road ride a while back. To say that their riding was a bit random might be an understatement. Yet there was no frustration or hostility from drivers...they all just patiently waited. Whereas some other areas of the city where ive done similar we've had all sorts of abuse hurled at us despite much more disciplined riding.

[jgurney]

I found that some drivers simply wouldn't pass. ..... I noticed that drivers were giving me a considerable amount of space

I've noticed the same recently: a reluctance to overtake when there is quite sufficient room, or overtaking leaving far more of a gap than is necessary. I presume this is due to a welcome intent to avoid close passes combined with a less welcome lack of ability to judge distance. While well-intending drivers of doubtful skill are much preferable to malicious ones, I'd prefer thoroughly competent drivers to either of the other categories.

I've also noticed drivers responding to cyclists being behind them by slowing down or moving to the right, and drivers apparently trying to encourage cyclists to overtake them on the inside.

I had a odd case earlier today. I had been about fifth from the lights in a queue, and when the lights changed and we moved, the car in front of me moved off unusually slowly, stopped accelerating on reaching about 10mph and shifted over to the far right of the wide lane. I thought this probably meant the driver was about to turn right but kept behind in case they did anything else odd. After about 300m of this 10mph trundle, the car showed it's left indicator and slowed further, approaching a turning on the left. There was no oncoming traffic so I passed it on the right, and it then turned left. I suppose this crawling and moving right meant the driver wanted or expected me to pass on the wrong side before they turned left.

[Annoying Twit]

I believe that there is a different driver culture on different roads. It seems to me that A Roads not only have more cars, but proportionally more bad drivers than smaller roads as well.

I haven't seen the behaviour described just above with cars expecting cyclists to pass them. Yet.

[Pete Owens]

Sounds like operation close pass is starting to pay dividends.

[Grandad]

I've noticed the same recently: a reluctance to overtake when there is quite sufficient room, or overtaking leaving far more of a gap than is necessary. I presume this is due to a welcome intent to avoid close passes combined with a less welcome lack of ability to judge distance.

Oncoming drivers can judge the passing space more easily as it is right beside them.When overtaking they are less confident of their ability to judge the distance to the cyclist.

[Flinders]

I stay behind cyclists longer than most drivers, as I wait to be sure that I can see it is safe to overtake using the whole of the other side of the road, rather than just chancing it. That's because I know riders may have to move out for potholes, etc.

I do stay well back so the cyclist(s) don't feel harassed, as I sometimes do when people being careful about overtaking get very close behind me (I'm sure they don't realise it can make a cyclist anxious).

However, on the flip side, when cycling, if I know the road is not a safe one for overtakes, I will stop in a gateway to let traffic past when it's safe to do so - I don't insist on my right to hold the traffic up.

Too many drivers will overtake in the face of an oncoming car when they can clearly see there is zero traffic behind it, thus forcing the cars to cross right alongside me and squeeze me into the gutter; I'd rather they hung back and waited for a gap big enough to use the other carriageway myself.