Asking Instagram 'Why do drivers HATE Cyclists?' 

here in Germany it was illegal to ride next to each other unless your group consists of 25+ cyclists. they got rid of this law during covid, but car drivers dont care about that and constantly harass and threaten cyclists riding next to each other. the amount of times people in their cars tried to actively murder me on the road (and bike lanes, too) is insane. sold my roadbike and exclusively gravel in the woods now. think alot of drivers have anger issues in their metal murderboxes.

I'm a cyclist but hate selfish cyclists who ride 2 and 3 abreast preventing safe overtakes on 50/60 mph roads where they show no consideration for other road users . Even tractors pull in occasionally.

I wonder how many of those who responded were overweight...

I always feel super stressed over taking a cyclist but good to think that it won’t save much time having to wait for a few extra seconds or minutes! Nice video 👏🏼

I've seen plenty of cyclists act like fools on the roads, but 99% of the reasons drivers say the hate cyclist are just excuses for the fact that they really hate cyclists because they have to slow down for a few seconds and figure out how to safely pass. Thats the real reason, but they know they sound like assholes if they say that, so they nitpick about things that dont really affect them, like cyclists running a red light, etc.

When I used to wear a high vis and a helmet I used to get all sorts of abuse and close passes compared to when I didn't wear the combo. Now I just wear the helmet and just trust the lights are enough for drivers to pay attention to see that I am there. No more abuse and huge reduction in close passes.

For me, in Switzerland it's because they pick and choose which traffic laws they want to believe exist and you never know what they're going to do. And as someone who really tries to maximise safety, that makes me super anxious.

@NotJustBikes has some really cool videos related to how cities putting a simple lane in isn't normally enough. Worth checking out!

I mostly ride my E scooter or E-bike on the sidewalk even though it is illegal because car drivers scare me and I also have slow processing speed. Actually my processing seed varies so sometimes I can react normally and sometimes it takes me longer to notice and take action I also go 10miles per hour or less on my scooter. Sometimes faster on downhill with my brakes on the whole time. I don’t know the speed on my bike. Some drivers give me no problem when I ride on the road. Others are a problem. When the cars pass me they drive too close. I was in my mom’s car one time and we saw a driver trying to get a cyclist to get off the road. They kept acting like they were going to hit them. The cyclist was pointing at the street saying it was also a bike lane. The road has a bike spray painted on it to tell Cars to share the road with bikes. I have been yelled at to get off the road several times and I was obeying the laws. I always stop at red lights. If I see a stop sign I will stop. I ride in the middle so cars can’t pass me, because that is scary to me. I have seen car drivers run red lights and speed up at yellow lights when yellow means slow down. I am in the United States. I am mostly more cautious than my mom is. Car drivers get mad when cities want to put in separated bike lanes, and they also get mad when cyclists are on the road. No one has told me not to ride on the sidewalk and I have been doing it for several years. But multiple people have told me to not ride on the roads the few times I do. I wear my helmet 99% of the time. The one percent is when I forget it at home and we are on a trip or have reached our destination for riding. Some people I know refuse to wear a helmet even when I beg them to. There are bad drivers and bad cyclists. I was a pedestrian and almost got hit by a car crossing at a crosswalk during the day. It was still light outside in the afternoon. The driver was turning right on red and wasn’t paying attention to see if anyone was crossing the street. I saw it and had to step backwards to not get hit. The driver kept going not realizing they almost hit someone. If my processing speed was going slower that moment I would have been hit.I will try to be more visible from now on. A lot of my clothes are black or dark blue. In my experience being a cyclist or a pedestrian is more dangerous than driving a car, even though I don’t drive. I have been a passenger in cars my whole life. I have also ridden my bike on the streets with my mom my whole life. I have also gotten stuck in the middle of intersections before because I sometimes ride slower than the red light lasts. Which is a dangerous and scary position to be in. Luckily no one has gotten hurt those few times. Sincerely, Mina Cheetah

i think i’ve found my new favourite youtuber

I was a state championship rider, and where I live (Melbourne, Australia) there is this road called Beach Road, and 9 out of 10 cyclists use the road instead of the perfect bike lane next to the road. I’ve seen cyclists ride not 1 lane wide, not 2 lanes wide but 2.5 lanes wide, which is over to the opposite side of the road into oncoming traffic. When I was driving I had to drive on the opposite side of beach road to overtake them. It was utterly insane. An elderly man was crossing at a pedestrian red light crossing and was bowled over by these same cyclists and died at the seen. Cyclists in Melbourne cannot earn the respect of the public when they continue to behave like this.

All very good points - and well considered. We all need to share.

Drivers hate everyone. Just witness how they treat each other for confirmation. Car drivers are jealous of cyclists because they satisfy a large chunk of their transport needs for free, aren’t impacted by traffic and fuel prices and parking difficulties, and are fitter and healthier by simply going about their ordinary lives. These facts are why I started riding a bicycle everywhere.

Well done ollie for great tips 👏 😊

Lit had an argument with one about roundabouts (I also ride a road bike for fun) Guy trying to claim he was in the correct lane the guy went from left lane to right to middle, basically straight lined it, it’s not safe for anybody and even after I brought up the Highway Code for cars and cyclists that explains how lanes work on a roundabout and how to use them safely he still argued that he was correct 😂😂 dumb as hell that’s how people get hit all the time because cars will not be patient and try overtake and crossing lanes twice to go straight ahead instead of staying left and using signals is just dangerous..

I think the media does not help, papers like the daily main always showing anti cycling articles. Nice video though

It's because us cyclists make way more progress in city situations and highlight that the car driver has clearly made the wrong transport choice.

Its because roads are car shaped and everything is made with drivers in mind, which gives them a sense of entitlement, which one could say is almost not their fault. Massive, absolutely massive lack of critical thinking going on.

Delivery drivers are the worst on there mopeds

I commuted to work for about half a year now (by bike), from time to time I run a red light, only if I'm 100 % certain that no one else has a disadvantage from it. Probably not fair though…

I don't play basket in the highway.... Pos eso kopon....

Sure, you don’t have to use the bike lane, but cars HAVE to use the car lane. So pretty natural for a driver to be annoyed if a cyclist cogs the car lane when bike lane exists on the same road.

Obeying the road laws is not a matter of "it depends on the circumstances." The fuck it does. You obey the same as every other road user. Just last week I watched a cyclist in front of me ignore the red light and when I commented on it, I got such a torrent of abuse. And cyclists wonder why other road users don't like them.

The entitlement. They don’t pay rego or have a number plate to be held accountable for the bad behaviour.

oh the bike lane is clogged. Well with that logic can cars jump into the bike lane when the car lanes are being clogged by cyclists