Panoramic

suppose there is a line of about twenty cars stopped at a red light. Is it right/legal to pass all those cars on the right shoulder and move up to the front?

drroebuck

I think it's legal. I use my best judgment when doing something like that. The main thing is, depending on the width of the right lane and what part of it you occupy, they may have to pass you each time you get in front of them, which could mean squeezing by your or making a lane change, etc.

HereNT

I do it all the time - it's one of the main reasons that commuting in the city is faster on a bike. Remember to look out for cars trying to squeeze into the right shoulder to make a right turn, especially if the light changes while you're passing the cars.

SchreiberBike

The law is unclear, but I find it safe with the following warnings.

Make sure there is enough room and that if cars start up again there will still be enough room
Be prepared for passenger doors to open.
Be prepared for cars to turn right into driveways or to shift in their lane.
Watch for vehicles coming out of driveways.
Watch for pedestrians coming through traffic.
Watch for poor road conditions where you will have to ride.

I do it in some places, but in others I wait in line. It depends on the factors above.

ollo_ollo

No problem at all if you are in a bike lane, otherwise see above warnings.

Chris L

See the above warnings from Schreiberbike, but I do it most of the time. The only real exception being if I find a shady spot on a really hot day. It's just overtaking and it's just traffic. As long as you can overtake in a safe manner for all concerned, it's all fair game.

royalflash

I don't think filtering past stationary cars is illegal. It is somestimes a good idea though if there are just a few cars and they have already overtaken you just to sit behind them and let them go rather than forcing them to overtake again and getting them more annoyed. You have to be careful though. On Tuesday a car unexpectedly started to turn indicate right and at the same time turned in on me. I kicked the car as a sort of instinctive response to get myself away from it and to avoid smashing my knee on the car. Fortunately the car was not dented so no lawyers were required. The guy was OK when he had calmed down a bit and apologised for turning in on me.

HereNT

I think that being in a bike lane probably puts you at more risk - at least here.

We have a lot of one way streets, and often the bike lane is right next to the parking lane. If you're coming up on an intersection with 20+ cars and there are no cars parked within 20-30 feet of the end of the intersection, when the cars start moving, the ones that want to make a turn are going to try to get into the bike/park lane ASAP so they can pass the cars going straight on the right. They almost never look in the right mirror, and usually their turn signal (if on in the first place) is no longer going. I have people merge in in front of me all the time...

I dunno - you just have to learn to read the traffic, really. Sometimes when cars and buses are stacked up at a light, I move to the right of them, pass them all at the center line and trackstand the light then take off taking the lane in front of all of them - often I have the light timed so that I don't even have to slow down at the head of the pack of stopped cars, and I hit the light at 12-17mph, while the cars still need to get moving. I can get about half a block ahead of them crunching it before the cars get close...

kurremkarm

Well if it's really gridlocked and you are faster that is one thing, but if you come to a light and pass the cars and a few seconds later they all pass you again, and you do it over and over it becomes annoying for the cars. Basically, according to the law you are a vehicle like a car or a motorcycle, you should act like a vehicle.

drroebuck

I agree. If there's plenty of room up ahead for them to pass you again it's fine. But if they have to make a lane-change (or even worse, squeeze by you) to get around you once the light turns green, it's really, really rude.

SchreiberBike

This makes sense and that's how I read the law too. But my experience is that the law doesn't apply in this situation. (I know that's a dangerous assumption.)

Why would it be legal for a car to pass a cyclist, but not a cyclist to pass a car. Both of these happen within one lane of traffic, without using turn signals to pass, without either the car or the cyclist changing their lane position.

It seems to me that just because a bicycle is a vehicle doesn't mean that it is or even should be treated identically to a car.

supcom

In Texas, the law specifically permits a cyclist to use a shoulder lane. However, once you get to the head of the line, cutting in front of other cars may not be legal if it puts you ahead of the stop line for the intersection. Technically, you would probably need to wait until the lane was clear before you could merge back in.

Chris L

In which case, you should pass them at the set of lights if there is sufficient room to do so. If you don't believe me, try waiting a little back from the lights (I do this in summer when I can find a shady spot), and see if they wait in line behind you. Rest assured, if you leave any space at all, someone will fill it every time.