Sir, - My condolences to Mary Mulvihill (An Irishwoman's Diary, August 13th),on her recent bicycle crash.
Here in America, when a motorist passes us and then turns without sufficient distance in front of us, we cyclists call it a "right-hook" collision. In Ireland, she got the left hook. On either shore and on either side of the road, it's bad - and it's unfortunately common.
Experienced cyclists avoid this dangerous situation by merging into the queue of traffic when approaching busy intersections where they do not intend to turn. By "taking the lane", the cyclist enters the intersection in the centre of the traffic flow, behind their leading vehicle and in front of their followers.
When the cyclist reaches the far side of the intersection, he or she moves left and allows faster vehicles to pass.
This manoeuvre usually inconveniences no one, because there is rarely time and space for a vehicle to pass safely leading up to a busy intersection (as Ms Mulvihill observes), and overtaking within an intersection is generally against the law.
The hardest part is determining when to move right, but if Ms Mulvihill has mastered right turns and understands the need to prepare for merging well before any intersection, then she is already familiar with how one may merge to take the lane.
Ms Mulvihill points out that some motorists will assail cyclists with profanities should they venture from the edge of the roadway. However, one learns, over time, that a motorist who howls at a cyclist is a motorist who sees a cyclist. Any further abuse of the cyclist is therefore done with full intent, and constitutes a criminal offence that should be investigated by police.
Cyclists confronted by such bawlers learn not to respond in kind, but instead simply shout back the letters and digits on the offender's number-plate. (That usually does the trick.)
Finally, and though it might not be obvious, being courteous on the roadway still helps. Waiting one's turn at a traffic signal, avoiding moving up on the left of cars that are signalling for a left turn, and offering a "Thank you!" wave to motorists who let a cyclist into the traffic flow or who make efforts to overtake safely go a long way toward making a better day for cyclist and motorist.
After all, our goal as cyclist or motorist is to reach our destinations. Motorists aren't out to get cyclists - they just want to get to their destination.
Making oneself part of the traffic flow when passing through an intersection helps the cyclist stay safe without significantly interfering with the motorist's use of the roadway. - Yours, etc.,
Thomas A. Revay, Massachusetts Bicycle Coalition, Boston, USA.