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Man Claims Cyclists Should Ride Three Or Four Abreast Because It’s Safer

Man Claims Cyclists Should Ride Three Or Four Abreast Because It’s Safer

Jeremy Vine claimed it will calm the traffic behind them and make it harder for 'bad' drivers to attempt dangerous passes.

Stewart Perrie

Stewart Perrie

A man has sparked a large debate on social media for his beliefs on cyclists sharing the road with cars.

Jeremy Vine posted a video of a collection of bike riders zooming down a quiet country road.

They were riding two, three or four abreast and the English presenter, broadcaster and journalist believes that's totally fine.

He wrote on Twitter: "People who cycle in the country should be encouraged to ride 2, 3 and 4 abreast like this.

"For the following reasons: It calms the traffic behind them It makes it less easy for bad drivers to attempt dangerous passes. It is more pleasant and sociable for them."

Unsurprisingly, the tweet caused a lot of opinions and it seemed everyone had a good take on the situation.

Those in the no camp believe it could cause more grief than it's worth and questioned where the line gets drawn on how many riders could fit side-by-side.

One person wrote: "What happens when there are bends in the road? You can't see whats around the corner but if it's a single cyclist you can at least swerve to avoid whereas 2 or 3 abreast someone's gonna die!"

Another added: "I drive a tractor and regularly have groups of cyclists coming down a winding single track road 3/4 abreast when they can't see what's coming around the corners, we have fitted dash cams to all the tractors now due to multiple near misses."

A third said: "Is this some kind of joke? Cyclists should not block the road like this. It's extremely dangerous. This is one of the many things that gives cyclists such a bad name It doesn't calm the traffic, it makes it more dangerous to try and overtake, and i'ts a road not a nice picnic."

There were even some veteran cyclists who were against the broadcaster.

"I've been a cyclist for 50 years. This is idiotic and you're an idiot. Packs of cyclists who have no awareness or respect for other users deserve to be abused by other road users. Car drivers are constantly making allowances for dangerous cyclists," said one Twitter user.

Many people pointed at Highway Code 66 in the UK, which states that cyclists shouldn't be any more than two abreast at any one time.

However, Jeremy isn't referring to how cyclists should behave on the highway and is instead talking about quiet country roads.

To cement his point, Jeremy referred to a tweet from a UK road police unit.

"It's not the responsibility of the road user ahead to facilitate a safe overtake by the user behind," the West Midlands Police Traffic Investigations Unit wrote.

"They will drive/ride to ensure their own safety and use a road position to suit or deter danger. You adapt your driving/riding plan accordingly, they don't change to suit yours."

Featured Image Credit: Jeremy Vine/Twitter

Topics: News