Position on the road

Riding safely on the road involves controlling the space around you. An important element is to consider 'where on the road shall I ride?'

Positioning is not an exact science - there's often more than one 'correct' answer but it's important to be definate, don't drift. Ask yourself: wher will I get an easy and unobstructed passage? Where can I see and be seen? What does my position tell others about what I'm planning to do?

Beginners often try to 'keep out of the way' because they don't want to be a nuisance, ad end up riding too close to the parked cars or the edge of the road. This is dangerous because it makes it makes it more likely that other people won't see you. Everyone using the road looks where they are going and almost always where they expect other traffic to be. Be courteous and helpful - by using your bike you're already doing everyone a favour - but take enough space to make sure others notice you.

The first position to consider is the centre of the leftmost lane of moving traffic. Here you are safe from any swinging car doors, you're easy to see and have a better view around obstacles and into side roads. If potentially faster traffic is building up behind and the road ahead is clear you can choose to move to the left to help them overtake, but only if it is safe to do so. There's no point letting traffic squeeze through if there isn't room to pass safely or it it's going to block the road a few meters ahead.

Always take a quick look behind you before you change your position on the road. On a busy road you should have a good idea of what's going on behind, but don't look back for too long or you may miss hazards developing ahead.