Near Miss of the Day 440: Skip lorry driver undertakes cyclist

Maybe it would've been better to stay in the left lane as some have commented and the OP admits. But even so, it was a dangerous and ultimately pointless overtake. Other driver seemed able to wait and make a decent overtake, so why couldn't the skip lorry driver? Skip lorries (and tipper trucks) do have an appalling safety record incidentally, amongst the worst of all HGV types. There is a reason for this and it's because a significant percentage of firms running skip lorry (and tipper lorry) fleets feature business practices most people would regard as questionable. 

I agree with the commenters that I'd be better off keeping to the left-turn only lane. This was a one-off experiment to see if I'd be better off using the roads as marked and maybe keeping to the white line was a mistake, though taking primary would likely have been seen as blocking the cars even more (I wasn't intendng to piss off the drivers).

As to my undertaking/filtering later on, I did evaluate overtaking the traffic, but there's some traffic islands along the middle of that road which narrowed the available space on the outside of the traffic. When I filtered past the skip lorry, I'd clocked that the pedestrian lights ahead were on red which is why I thought that would be the best point for an overtake, though I hadn't counted on the crossing pedestrian.

I have a one way street on my commute, cars parked down the left and at the end a traffic light controlled junction where the choice is either right or left. Despite the parked cars it is generally wide enough for a car to safely overtake a cyclist.

As I want to go right at the lights, for a time I took the view that I was better off keeping to the right all the way along, being both in the correct turning lane and at a maximum distance from the parked vehicles.

However, this really confused the car drivers who now had to overtake on my left. After an argument with a driver, I posted the question here and the consensus was to keep left, though outside the door zone, and only move to the right near the junction.

Your road layout is different here in that the lanes are marked for quite some distance, but overall I think I would either keep in the left hand lane until nearer the junction, or if I was feeling more ballsy about keeping with the speed of the traffic, take a more prominent position in the right hand lane. In the vid you seem to be riding on the lane markings, making a perfectly legal overtake by traffic on your left into a close pass.

On roads I know and am confident on, I'll always take the correct lane where I want to go, but unlike the cyclist in the video I'll take primary.  If cars then want to undertake and move into the my lane then they can.  At least then I'm in the right lane and not having to move across into a potentially busy lane at a later stage. 

I see people's point in questioning the road position here, but the infrastructure here is appalling for cycling: an overly-long l/h filter lane and narrow lanes. We have all been guilty of making poorer road-positioning choices from time to time, and poor infrastructure makes those decisions harder for us and more tempting for pathetic driving.

i sont think i could physically cycle in that position for more than ten seconds. I've had enough experiences with drivers shouting at me about the middle of the road to entice them into it. I would stick on the left lane, then do a shoulder check, and move into the straight ahead lane shortly before the lane on the left, goes left. It is blooy annoying and difficult, because you then have to judge a gap in the left lane and the straight ahead one, but usually you can move across. 

Not excusing the skip lorry driver but riding in the middle of two lanes like that is a shocking choice. Stick in the left lane and either time your crossing of the left turn to pass it when no left-turning vehicles were behind or even, if needs be,, turn left and make a rapid U-turn to return to the road. Sorry but that road position is just asking for trouble.

yeah I wouldnt have ridden that road setup like that, either stick to the left lane, but ride more centrally,maybe even 3/4qtrs over if left hooks are that big a concern, and even if the sign didnt say you could go straight in that left lane to use the bus lane, Id have just ridden it like I could anyway, as that looks to feel the safer option, the alternate is ride the straight on lane but take prime, riding on the white line is a bad idea you are neither sticking or twisting, and it leaves you wide open to those types of close passes on both sides, plus you arent being clear what you intention is are you  going left, are you going straight on are you not sure which lane you need to be in, and  the surface on the line is usually the worst as its least swept clean as cars dont drive there.

as for the near collision with the pedestrian, I think youd have been at fault had you hit them, especially dont undertake vehicles where you cant see whats happening on their right side and seemingly stopped for no apparent reason, and it might be downhill but with that traffic there were a couple of moments there which were a bit heart in the mouth.

In road situations like that I stay in the left lane until the juction and then work my way to the lane I want. Looking back and signalling normally creates a break in the traffic. As there is a cycle lane ahead, I wouldn't need to move across, but would be on the look out for motor traffic  turning left into me at the junction and adopt a primary position to deter that. Riding in the 2nd lane like that, might be correct  but encourages motorists to pass on the nearside and as bikeman says,  just looks like your riding down the middle of the road to piss off motorists. (who really need little encouragement)

It is great road design for motor traffic, but poor for anyone else.

BTW I didn't like the next bit in the town. Passing on the nearside is very dangerous and I try to avoid it, because of car doors opening in the laybys, passengers opening car doors  on your offside as you undertake (even when the car is moving). Its also difficult to see what the motorist sees, like traffic turning across in front of him, or a pedestrian that he may allow to cross (as we saw). Also you are in a poor position to be seen by the driver as the left mirror as it is not in a normal line of vision and so increases risk of collision should he turn left.

Also never overtake or undertake at a junction as the motorist may choose to turn. 

I can see it is unsettling for this, being on the receiving end a few times myself, but how is it different from the driver turning left and undertaking? I'd have thought that with the lane markings, this is equivalent to rule 163

Riding along in the centre of two lanes for a full minute - unnecessary. Why? Deliberately trying to annoy drivers? What did you expect?

I would have stayed in the left lane for the entire stretch - taking primary just before the left turn would prevent a left hook. The trajectory you chose was not sensible. 

that was a very nasty pass, but I think your usual course of action, to use the left lane and take primary, is a better alternative.

the signage is very poor, but there's a white sign showing that the left lane can be used by bus lane traffic to go straight on.