Should you overtake the Cyclist? | Safe, Legal, Worth it? 

We should all do like Jon. Have a dash cam and think "I want to make good and educational material of driving that I can send to Ashley".

I think drivers see bikes, milk floats etc and auto think ‘slow moving’ without assessing real speed.

I'm a cyclist and I always stop at red lights. It really annoys me when I see cyclists jumping them because they're giving the rest of us a bad rep, and we really don't need any more of that! Yesterday I spent about 30 seconds sat on my own at red lights at a pelican crossing (not a junction) with no pedestrians anywhere near, mostly just to show onlookers that I respect the rules of the road, but I'm wondering if that comes across as malicious compliance and in fact I'd almost be EXPECTED to skip the red in that situation? Slightly off topic, but one of my biggest pet peeves is traffic lights that only turn green if a sensor detects that a car is there. They don't detect cyclists, so unless a car happens to be next to me, there is a huge temptation to skip the red light, though instead I usually end up taking a 1-2 minute detour around a set of pedestrian crossings.

John did a great job. Can't say the same about the cyclist's call at those lights esp. as it was dark.

I think the cyclist was making decent progress throughout the video. If he wasn't there, I don't think Jon would go much faster and make any more progress. This video also showed me how traffic lights act as an equaliser. By that I mean vehicles that go 25 and 30 mph may make the exact same progress.

Your approach is very evenly balanced. Some vids take sides pro car or pro bike. Entitlement thinking is bad as you often point out we would do better if we thought about what actions we could take to help the situation. A lot of the time just easing back sorts it. Often only a question of a second or two.

Great driving at the start - and you've hit the nail on the head with safe, legal and worth it. So many drivers forget the last part, and treat cyclists like traffic cones rather than moving objects! Cyclist filtering at the first lights - I wouldn't have bothered. As you say, not worth it. If it was a longer queue then I probably would, but not for a couple of cars. Glad to see they didn't attempt it with the lorry. Poor cycling through the red. There are limited situations where I would consider breaking a red, this is definitely not one of them. Most of the time if I want to beat the lights I'll dismount and walk the bike through the junction.

Nice to see good driving in Epsom! Thanks for keeping my roads safe John :)

John is basically a driving highway code. Lots learned from him and you both. I watched some of your videos to revise manoeuvres and passed my test this morning. Keep up the great work!

It's always best to hang back behind a cyclist, I try to do that. But last summer I was behind a young guy on his mountain bike, I left a good distance but then the road went up a hill and the cyclist quickly lost all speed. I found myself too close and had to brake quite severely. I was able to pass him a bit later, he even smiled and gave me a wave. I do quite a bit of cycling and I've cycled on roads that I'd previously driven on and didn't even realise it wasn't flat. There are lots of things that can cause a bicycle to slow down quickly, not just hills, but potholes, even turning into the wind.

The more I watch these the more I have Ashley in my head when driving, a good thing as it is making me a better driver I think, and certainly more patient.

Great video from Ashley Neal... There were many points to this video that comes with experience,.Look at the detail....Ashley Neal videos are so informative making him the best driving instructor on the road 😃 x

THANK YOU for this video! I'm getting more and more nervous about driving in the U.K.!

Thanks for sharing this, I do cycle and a newly qualified driver. It is always good to observe how I can do better within myself when using either mode of transport.

Great job John 👍

Your analysis is truly excellent in the videos I've seen. I passed my driving test in 1991 and I think you are providing a truly valuable education to people like me. I hope I would have driven like John in this video, but at times I can feel pressured by the queue forming behind me. I will think about this video next time I am in this situation.

Excellent video, thanks.

Great drive from John. It's simple, rules of the road are for everyone, and why would anyone intentionally put themselves in harms way. Too many road users display their lack of skill by regarding the rules as just advisory. It's fantastic to see excellent drivers like John.

Very instructive, thank you.

Great video you should always keep a eye on things specially bikes of any kind

John is a good example, and that average speed is good. Why overtake, that speed is good to drive in that area and keep focus wirhout stress . Good Mr. Neal I will keep in my mind "Safe, Legal, Worth it"

Good points on the red light running, especially as cyclists usually take longer to clear the junction.

Good driving, so many professional drivers don't ask themselves whether it's worth it and just barrel past, saving themselves precisely zero time as in an urban environment they are going to be sitting at the lights anyway.

Another great video; Is it worth it is the one element of decision making on the roads that seems most most lacking; even amongst motorists and road users who are otherwise safe and legal.

Good video, good driving. Dubious cycling, even before going through the red light.

Superb calm advice...thank you

I do stop when cycling in that situation but there's no guarantee the motorist behind will. Only yesterday I stopped at two lights to find the car behind continue through the red from behind me.

If this doesn't wake a few people up - nothing will. Class driving from Jon and a top draw analysis by Ashley 👍

Re filtering to the lights, in this situation I would not have done as the cyclist did since it gained nothing. However, in other situations where I deem it is important to be visible at the front, such as at a junction I may decide to filter. a fair guide to this is whether there is an ASL (bike box) to use.

Good driving as ever by John. As a cyclist I wouldn't have filtered at the first set of lights, I would have pulled up in primary position behind the queuing cars. I would also not have jumped the lights, however I agree with Matt C, this for a cyclist is a horrible place to be as we have no brake lights to warn the cars behind we are stopping. I have been involved in three rtc's while cycling, in all instances I have been hit from behind by a motor vehicle whilst stopping for traffic lights.

That cyclist was going some! Most cyclists won't exceed 15mph on the flat!

Great video. In terms of the cyclists actions- first set of light I'd never have filtered. My favourite position at lights on a bike is 3-4 cars back in the queue in primary (primary is generally recommended through junctions). It gives me a safe space around me and the cars 3-4 cars back accelerate slightly more slowly than the first car so I can normally keep up through the junction and then move back to the left if safe to do so when I've cleared the junction. It's also not generally worth filtering as 3-4 cars back you'll nearly always get through on that green rather than waiting. For a longer queue I might filter if the traffic is stationary (with a red light) and I can see a safe space to go into. The red light jump definitely not legal and I would have stopped, especially with the knowledge there was a good driver behind me. In the cyclists defense though a light changing at that point is one of the things that scares me most cycling on the road. Cyclists get a lot of flak for jumping red lights but motorists are just as bad. In my experience it's 50/50 in that situation if the vehicle behind me stops or puts their foot down to try to beat the red, and there's nothing I can do to mitigate that risk of a close pass at speed.

Great video!

I would say that even before the rule change in January I would have stayed back too, given the narrow road and many central reservations.

Can't disagree with any of that. Another reason for holding back from the cyclist is so that he doesn't feel harrased. A small point but the psychology of it gives the impression that the driver is impatient and can't wait to overtake. The other point I would make is that a cyclist riding at 20 mph needs exponentially more room to overtake than someone riding at 10 mph because the speed differential is much smaller as a percentage assuming a similar overtaking speed. Just a thought but if not born out theoretically, it definitely feels like it in reality.

If I was a cyclist, I would not have filtered through past those two waiting cars at the first red light. I know there are cases where it totally makes sense to do that (particularly if there is a bike box at the head of the queue, there wasn't one here btw) but I didn't feel this was one of them. Especially as we were approaching a "stale" red light, meaning a red light that had been red for some time as we approached it. Hence, more likely to turn green at any time.

I cycle too, but filtering through the two cars to me was an early indication of them just trying to get ahead in my opinion, this seems true then with the red light maneuver. Match that with the very impressive speed seems like they wouldn't want to stop. Unfortunately with things like Strava cycle routes are split into segments, and it encourages competition. Unfortunately some people take it too far. I clip into my pedals and would look to stop with railings where appropriate though as unclipping and re-clipping takes time from a stationary position and you can feel pressured by vehicles around you.

Great work by Jon as we've come to expect. I agree about the cyclist - should have taken up primary behind the cars and not jumped the red. Could also have done with wearing a reflective jacket! This is probably the most dangerous time of day for vulnerable road users, when it's not quite dark.

Great analysis

Useful video, thanks. Also worth taking the opportunity that the maximum penalty for passing a red light is death or life-changing injuries .... particularly for cyclists.

Great driving, great vid. I think all road users should see it. The cyclist's two-car filtering was a bit pointless (Must Get In Front car-style attitude), should've looked/signalled when taking the right fork and obvs shoulda stopped at the red.

Excellent video.

Your summary of the situation at the lights is what most road users miss. The whole "but what if...", "what about that person". As a cyclist and driver I think it is this lack of thought that causes issues. Your channel is helping me think differently about how my driving or riding impacts others more. Not saying I'm bad but we can all reflect

Epsom! John certainly gets around a lot :P

2:14 I would have just held back - no point passing two stationary cars which are just going to instantly pass you again when the lights change.

When Ashley said the next bit was less than brilliant I thought we were going to see the ever illusive John mistake. but not today!

The high way code. Need to make cycles wear hi Vis. Good driving by John.

Good video. If I were the cyclist I wouldn't filter at the lights, but position myself behind the back of the last car, commanding the lane, so when I set off I'd be in a good position, then once moving and safe move back into secondary position.

Very well done John, as a qualified cycle leader for British Cycling, I wish more drivers were like you. I liked the cyclists speed and road positioning up until the right turn, poor anticipation of lights changing where he filtered and as for running the red light.

Regarding the filtering, my personal rule is 'did I see the lights go red myself?', if the answer is yes, then I know I will reach the bike box whilst the lights remain red and not come into conflict with vehicles which are starting to move. Filtering, like anything, is a game of constant assessment. I also don't filter unless I know there is a bike box, or if traffic is genuinely at a standstill, including beyond that set of lights. Curiously, I've been beeped at for filtering gridlocked traffic (which affects nobody) at a slow speed (pedestrian aware), and even had people move over to block me.

Great video, and great driving! Yes, even I who admitted to cut some reds as a cycling courier wouldn't do maneuver such as this, 1. forcing drivers to adjust their driving, while they're in the right, is veeery bad, 2. as said in video putting himself in danger and giving the driver potential PTSD. I only cut red if not interfering with traffic flow, in that clip for ex. if carrying to the left, considering there is no green for pedestrains. when it comes to overtaking traffic before the lights, in many cases there is 'cyclist box' for cyclist to position themselves in front of the cars, so not sure if there's fault in that, depends on the road, sometimes as said in the clip it's better to stay behind two or three cars. This guy was clearly a 'roadie' what basically means riding on road bike which allows to travel at higher speeds, so many times drivers just see 'oh fuc*s sake, cyclist!' and feel urge to overtake, while the cyclist is clearly moving close to speed limit, it is ridiculous, and happens all the time, same goes for me riding a hybrid electric bike, which takes off from the lights much faster than regular cyclist, what ends up with furious overtakes, way above speed limit. Other than that I'd like to point out something terribly dangerous that happens more and more often when there's a car turning right ( waiting for oncoming traffic to pass), and the road is somewhat wide enough so the car going straight can overtake on the left, huge amount of drivers do this without checking mirrors and put cyclist in danger, what's worse, that it usually happens where there's designated cycling lane on the side of the road (what makes line wide enough to squeeze on the left side) and cyclist are allowed to travel at speed they like. Drivers please check your mirrors! Ps. Dear drivers, consider that if cyclist cuts red, (in safe manner) it is possible that you wont need to overtake them! How cool is that! because he will be long gone when the light turns green :D Ps 2. Cyclists cut some reds, because it costs huge amount of energy to come to the full stop and start, completely different than in cars, in Amsterdam there are timers so cyclists can see when the light will change, what allows them to adjust the speed, and don't come to full stop.

When cycling I only filter past waiting traffic at lights if I have just seen them go red on my approach and I know that the road beyond the lights is wide enough for them to overtake me when we get going, otherwise I hold my place in the queue so as not to have even more traffic behind me.

With the amount of clips John sends into you, he should be entitled to some of your you tube earnings 🙂

On my bike I always stop at red lights. However, I have on occasion then gone through after waiting for several minutes with them staying on red when there's no traffic around. Lights that use induction loops don't always pick up bicycles, especially it seems carbon fibre ones. I try to ride over them in the hope they'll realise I'm there, but sometimes it just doesn't work. Sometimes I can end up waiting for 5 or more minutes until a car arrives behind me to trigger the light sequence.

Just sent one of my kind of funny clips to your email, hope it makes it onto the channel,🤣👍

For me given the conditions it's a no-brainer not to overtake the cyclist. Would have been more interesting to see what happened with a cyclist going really slowly. Regarding the cyclist filtering down the inside of cars at the lights, it's the kind of thing I used to do as a young man but latterly I would have taken up position behind the car waiting at the lights and queued as if I were a car.

I would've done the same as John. Always look out for other road users

John did brilliantly. No point rushing and putting the cyclist in danger. (He was obviously perfectly capable of doing that for himself)

Nice driving in Epsom👍

Great driving from Jon. The worth it question should really be used more (by EVERYONE) Personally only really filter if I know there is space for overtaking past the lights (bike lane + wide main lane) or if I would miss the phase, may be wrongly correlating things but after filtering people seem more willing to close pass to get back in front. Don't know how anyone can argue against the red jump no excuse for that. Also good one talking about the following distance too. Reminds me of a time when I was a passenger with my dad, he was trying to be cycle friendly and not overtake a bike to then turn left, only he was sitting less than 3ft behind this older guy going up a steep hill, could see the guy was really starting to... feel it, but never occurred to my dad that he was driving this guy up the hill due to how close he was. Did make make the point to him, went down moderately...

I do find it very awkward when sudden a cycle lane to a lights bike box allows me to slowly undertake queued traffic on red lights *precisely* because it's putting everyone in a position to have to overtake me all over again once the lights go green and the cycle lane has disappeared. I wonder what other drivers' opinions are on this. PS. Never jump red lights, how could anyone think that's acceptable for a cyclist to do any more than a car driver.

I had an incident yesterday with a skip lorry driver, I’m going up hill in a 20mph zone in the bus with parked vehicles on his side of the road and he just drove at me! I stopped he was telling me I should have pulled into the side road to my left so he could pass? He had no choice and did the reverse of shame, I looked in my mirror there were cars as far as you could see i had no idea how he expected to pass everything behind me? As I passed hi I told him that’s where he should be waiting until it’s clear it’s what i have to do on my return journey! Just got a load of abuse There’s some really poor drivers out there driving heavy vehicles who are just bullies.

I motorcycle and drive, my brother cycles and drives. MGIF - Must Get In Front attitudes from anyone adds to the potential for accidents. Getting from A to B as quickly as possible rather than as safely as possible adds to the stress and makes using the road more stressful and less enjoyable. John's patience is a great example.

As a regular commuter cyclist, I am in two minds about jumping red lights. On one hand, I want to strictly obey the rules of the road and always stop. On the other hand, I have been nearly knocked off my bike several times by car drivers behind me deciding to blast through, when I had decided to stop. If the light has only just gone red, and I know there are cars behind me, I will often go through, just to be safe. I feel like I can more easily see hazards in front of me than behind. In the situation in this video, I think I might have done the same thing, not knowing if the vehicle behind could or would stop in time.

When are you going to get John to come and do a drive with you in your car 😃

John was driving massive truck, that is also part of the calculation. I'm not saying another road user should or would do anything different but if you are driving a heavy vehicle it's even more important to drive cautiously.

Filtering at the first set of lights was almost certainly not worth it. It didn't affect the cyclist's ability to make progress at all, as there was plenty of time to pass the lights at green even with the cars in front. Personally I'd have taken primary position behind the last car and waited for the lights to change. Jumping the red right at the end is something I've seen some cyclists do and never understood myself - it's not legal, it's not safe and it doesn't really gain me anything beyond maybe a few seconds to the next junction. In other words, the considerations are the exact same as for a car driver running a red. It makes no sense to me in either case - and as a cyclist, my own risk is massively amplified by the lack of a protective metal box. Of course, the patient and safe driving by Jon is exemplary... Probably saved someone's life at some time without ever knowing it.

on the red light jumping cyclist, I do not know if I would have done that on a bike, but remember no mirrors on a bike and no ability at that point for a head turn to check position and nearness of traffic following, only what you can hear. By the position of the dash cam motistist cyclist may have pushed though because within the snap decision to stop or go at the traffic light change the cyclist could have been concerned that to stop would have resulted in being rear ended by following trafic, who either would have been to close to stop in time or even have tried to follow you through and jump the lights. I have in the past while on a bike stopped for a changing traffic light only hear the chirp of the tires /ABS of a car behind Me that was to close, or even was going to attempt to run the red, very unpleasant and not a unusual occurrence for any one who cycles on uk roads!

Cyclist point of view. Regarding the filtering by the cyclist at the lights. For the two or three cars and the traffic density in the clip I would not do it. There are many factors that contribute to my decision to filter or not: Presence of cycle path/track, available space, density and flow of traffic, road position required, my intended direction at the junction (right/left/straight), presence of a protected cycle area at the junction, my safety (if I am infront at the front, for sure the car behind can see me) In short I neither want nor is it in my interest to hold people up, but I also don't want to be waiting several light cycles before I can progress.

Thanks Ashley, how about inviting John for a cameo appearance in your next video? This video also shows how the poor visibility of the cyclist . It maybe due to the camera but if you're a cyclist, wear something reflective at night, and a couple of lights at the rear hardly costs much these days. BTW I am a prolific cyclist and recently had a delivery driver following me along a country lane, I signalled a couple of times (using my arm) to indicate I had to pull out to avoid parked cars, the driver held back and once clear, I waved him on as the road was clear ahead. Rather nicely, he beeped his horn to say thanks! Stay safe everyone.

what is the point of the acl when cars are always parked at the lights on acl box

We need more Johns. If I were on my bike, at that first light I would have been making a 'lifesaver' then moving into the primary position to stop behind the car. At the second one I'd come to a stop. Being predictable and visible is much more likely to lead to a long life.

I remember a situation where I took ages too overtake a cyclist on a country road and a black van behind did a dangerous overtake behind me and other vehicles because he thought I was holding them and him up. Also there was no beep or flash if headlights behind. And when I finally managed to safely overtake, as everyone in the car told me just go closely past the cyclist, which I didn't I left plenty of space, a few minutes up the road guess who was at a red light... The van who overtook

John has a lot of patience. I wouldn't move up inside the vehicles at the lights, as really I believe it is best to stay as far away from vehicles as you can. With the red lights, I don't know why they did that. Even with wet rim brakes I could have stopped. The cyclists was very close into the gutter. Maybe they should have been a bit further out to increase visibility? I think that would be something that road users couldn't agree on universally.

For a car, there was a few opportunities to get past safely using the second lane. For a van, it seemed possible to overtake using the same opportunities, but given the similar speeds and blindspots, it would be unwise. The left hand cycle queue filter has never made sense to me, you can argue its selfish as you'll only be overtaken seconds later, but even if you wait your part in the queue, you'll still have the cars behind overtake you, so its the same risk regardless. Obviously if there's a dedicated cycle path, then its their lane

In Asia its a rule that scooters and bicycles are expected to filter towards the top of the queue so why cant the uk do the same?

John showing us all how to get stuff done as always :D I'm happy to follow a cyclist, for miles if necessary, as long as they are cycling and not just 'cycle twice and coast for 5 minutes' which unfortunately a LOT do these days... I'd never put one in danger, but I do get frustrated with the latter.. Not to mention the big group of cyclists who ride single file while it is not safe for them, for me to overtake and then spread out 2/3 wide when there is space and time for me to pass..

Being able to hold back is a very important skill sadly, many people just don't hold back

1:20 His satnav says to keep right not left so he could have gone in the right lane and passed

I apply the SLAP consideration to EVERY overtake I do, car, cyclist or otherwise. SLAP standing for Safe, Legal, Appropriate and Perception. The SLA are pretty much covered here by you, but I think the P, Perception, is also relevant. How would this overtake make other drivers feel? Might they feel it is reckless, not enough margin, or could they be confused as to my intentions? If it wouldn't be PERCIEVED as a good overtake, then the overtake isn't on.

Great video - but I'd just like to point out Ashley that you don't mention what the man on his bike is doing well! Like many drivers you see him as a 'problem' to be overcome which isn't fair on him as he's just another road user trying to get home. So let's look at it from a different angle: Firstly he keeps himself very fit and he can therefore pretty much keep up with traffic at these speeds which means he has very little impact on the flow of traffic around him. If you compare him to someone out of shape pottering along on a bike at 10mph they would cause many hundreds of drivers to overtake them on a journey whereas this guy is going so fast that only a few will need to overtake him. So he will cause a lot less stress to drivers because of his swiftness. He also stays WELL left at all times which again means he is doing everything he can to allow traffic to overtake him when there is sufficient room. I think that's generous of him. However, it's been realised that staying hard left while great for over-takers, puts the cyclist at risk of being missed and hit by a vehicle entering their road, so it's to be done with caution and interchanged with a more central position. Finally the filter - it actually effected no-one detrimentally, there were 3 lanes ahead and light traffic so everyone that he filtered passed got round him immediately - so I'd say it was fine and assisted him getting home in a timely manner. The red light jump was out of order and something as a regular cyclist I never do. In fact being perfectly honest I see far more vehicles jump red lights than cyclists on my travels and I commute through a city and drive 12k miles a year. Have a great day everyone, let's respect each other out there.

Johns a great driver, good lad John. Exactly the same mentality.

John is a total legend. That kind of holding back by motorists is becoming rare in my experience . It’s practically a bullying gesture to force you into the left when it may just not be safe to do so. With the filter. This is something I wouldn’t do unless there was a cycle lane. My heart did sink when the lights were jumped though.

Agreed with all that. Shouldn't jump the lights - plenty of time to stop, no pressure from behind to create a fear of being rear-ended. The video quality isn't great, so it's hard to tell, but I would expect to see more rear observation in an environment like that. A lack of vehicles form the rear tells me something, and I want to know what that is; and the changes of position need better obs. (he may have, but I don't see it). Filtering to the lights, my 'is it worth it' test is around 4-5 cars waiting.... but it depends on circumstances. filtering forward can often be safer, to be more visible. In this clip, I would wait in primary behind the 2nd car.

Is it a good habit to indicate left after overtaking the cyclist ?

Ashley Neal, not me! I think the cyclist was a fool to jump the red lights. I don't do it and I won't it and I won't let any vehicle driver force me through a red light either!

@3:18, it may not affect anyone but it’s still illegal, it’s taking time away from anyone clearing the junction and may have lead to the car from the right being slow to clear, a cop will stop someone on their phone, wether it affects anyone or not.

I find myself wondering what sort of headlight the cyclist had. in daytime, I wouldn't fault him much up until he blew through the red light. at night, if he has a weak headlight, he's probably overdriving his visibility, and may well hit debris in the road and be ejected.

Great driving. Personally I wouldn't have squeezed past the 2 cars at the lights gains nothing and also the two cars will provide a punch through the air. The lights at the end a definite no no. Fair enough you might make it. The problem is you can't control the actions of other drivers. If the driver misses seeing you they are not too blame in my books. The problem is I feel too many people are only thinking of themselves and not the collective. Honestly if people learned to cycle in a group and learn how to keep a group safe warn of dangers point out hazards people would actually be safer on the road. When cycling in a pack you are relying on the riders being your eyes. At junctions you don't always steam through if the riders at the back can't make it. It's all about looking after other's.

The most irritating thing is something that happens round here- on our NSL roads, a queue of traffic builds up behind a cyclist. Once this queue has managed to safely overtake, we approach a set of traffic lights in which we've just missed the green as we were held up, only to be undertaken by that cyclist who then decides to ride through the red.

I would be doing more or less the same as John…I say more or less because camera + tv screen can be a little different to real life. My route to work has a town road which widens and then narrows with islands……only enough time for 2 cars to get passed a cyclist in that space. If you can’t do it, you stay behind.

1.5 meters up to 30 mph, 2 meters over 30 mph - do you think these are enough steps?

I don't think I would have done this any differently, well apart from the red light jumping if I was the cyclist.

Great driving John. I'm sure the cyclist appreciated it.

Again, great driving and I 100% support the decisions made by Jon and your comments. Very balanced and fair. May I recommend using the SLAP acronym from the Police for driving decisions? It has the merit of being easy to remember. SAFE - first priority is safety. LEGAL - is it legal and compliant with the Highway Code? ADVANTAGE - does the manoeuvre bring an advantage? In your words, is it worth it? PERCEPTION - how will it affect the perceptions of other road users? For example, will it cause road rage? Or cause people to think poorly of those you represent? To clarify what perception covers... An example would be holding back and showing courtesy to other road users. It might be perfectly safe to assert priority and push on through; it might be perfectly legal to do so; and it might give you an advantage of a few seconds in your journey time. But holding back, spreading a little courtesy and goodwill keeps things better for everybody on the roads.

I suppose the assumption must be that any cyclist passing on the inside of other vehicles also has to ensure 1.5m clearance. How likely is that?

John did. A great job, not fantastic cyclecraft from the cyclist. I would only have filtered down the left if there was an ASL and I needed to position myself assertively for my next move. I’d have sat behind the car at those lights.

Now I'm not criticising at all and it's only because I know this road in Epsom that I know that the car on the right isn't making a late turn, he has a right filter light there, so the cars on the left would have a red light for a bit longer.

Interesting clip - *I am a 5 nights a week + cyclist (travelling 130 miles + per week)* - The motorist was excellent, had I been cycling there with him following me I'd be very please with his consideration. Now my comments about the cyclist (for the benefit of other cyclists). *BE VISIBLE!* On my bike. I have silver reflective "scotch tape" top and bottom on yellow and orange head to toe PPE. I wear a yellow and reflective scotch taped helmet too. I have five lights at the front and 5 lights at the back. I will confess I'd not be able to maintain that level of speed for that distance (normally) on my bike, even though I ride regularly (I am an older man, I am heavier than most, I wear a lot of wind catching PPE and my bike has flat handle bars rather than racers so I don't crouch over them); but the meat of this preamble is that at that speed I would be further out into the road. *Do not ride in the gutter at more than 10 MPH!* Give yourself options to avoid the pedestrian on the phone as well as the bloke coming up, passing, braking heavily and then going left! Wear bright contrasting clothing so that you can BE SEEN. Remember, it's always the cyclist who gets hurt no matter who is at fault *Jumping lights* I have readily confessed that I absolutely do on ocasion "jump the lights" ‡ - but *NEVER* would I have done so there! I never jump red lights where _I have a reasonable expectation that they will change for me within a reasonable period of time._ There were (lots of) other cars around - those lights are there to control the movement of traffic that could kill you. Be wise and don't spring a surprise on others because ultimately as a cyclist, you'll be the one getting hurt. ‡ Yes, I confess: I ride a 25 mile or so circuit for exercise most nights. At the top of a mile long one-in-ten hill there is a set of lights which don't "see me" when I approach them because I simply cannot ride "at" them fast enough to trip them into recognising my presence (it's called being knackered - but is the purpose of the exercise) _they just don't change for me when I am alone._ I really do *HATE* doing it but I normally just creep out across what is usually a generally completely otherwise empty junction and turn right. The lights do work and I absolutely *will* wait if I am or about to be joined by someone in a car / lorry / bus or motorbike (which is why I know it's a speed-at-the-sensors problem). The county council know about it too (as does a couple of councilors but this still hasn't got the "default green" at the junction changed to favour any ascendor of the hill if nothing else). I am sick and tired of asking for them to be fixed! But I do want to state I absolutely do stop and wait at any traffic lights where I have a reasonable expectation that they will change for me within a reasonable timescale. If they are stuck on red though, I will eventually CAUTIOUSLY proceed.

The car driver did good, the speed and lack of overtaking places made him stay back. Even tonight I had hesitant drivers up my arse, there were many gaps and I had even gone into the gutter line to help them pass...as always safety is paramount but being hesitant is dangerous also. Also T junction leading to a busy road, 3 cars and me, one flashes one to go and another flashes another to go, they hesitate, i have anticipated this and slowed down, no one moves, I carry on. All in all most drivers get it, there are always a few rotten apples but you hear them before ya see them so a good heads up.