Letter: ‘Cyclists, please break up your large group outings in the New Forest’

AS we now have our school holidays, we will once again be inundated with cyclists, many of them novices to our busy main roads not knowing the highway code, nor caring for that matter.

As usual, it is the motorist who has to “take care” and ignore the transgressions of careless riders as we are always the bad guys and yes, we car drivers can be bad as well, the difference being, we get fined for our misdemeanours.

So what is my beef then? Cyclists who invade our roads like crocodiles. Four, five, sometimes as many as 10 or 15, all trailing one another so close that nobody has a cat in hell’s chance of getting past them.

Either they are unaware of the frustration they cause motorists or just do not ‘get it’ that to overtake, we, the motorist, must allow 1.5m of space.

This invariably means crossing the centre line of the road (particularly around here) so if it is busy with oncoming traffic or too many corners, the manoeuvre is impossible. What happens next? A build-up of traffic leading to frustration, turning to anger, then turning to stupid antics that cause danger to everyone and, of course, let’s not forget lasting animosity between the two groups.

This thoughtless riding is easily overcome, however. Do not ride more than two or three at a time in a line. Allow at least 20 metres between groups, even if it means several groups are stretched over quite a distance. This allows cars to bunnyhop safely past all cyclists and carry on their way at a speed that is somewhat faster than a biker.

I know it’s a pipe dream. As long as the law allows cyclists to get away with just about everything, there will be no progress in this area, or in any area for that matter.

Name and address supplied