Cyclist in middle of road?

[florida girl]

What's up with cyclists riding in the middle of the traffic lane? Aren't the bike paths good enough? This morning the car in front of me tried to past this cyclist, but the guy moved toward the center and wouldn't let him pass!
Hwy 30a coming into Watercolor. Very annoying!

 

[TooFarTampa]

Well, the bike paths aren't really safe for the die-hard cyclists, the guys/gals going 20-30 mph. They're always out on Saturday and Sunday mornings.

As long as they follow the rules of the road, they are fine there, but IMO they should hug the right 1/3 of the roadway for easy passing. Those that don't are asking for trouble.

 

[florida girl]

If there was any kind of paved shoulder on the road, it would be one thing. But there's the line, and it drops off. There is just not enough room for safety in my opinion. Particularly when traffic is coming the opposite direction. I've been surprised my mirrors haven't swiped someone!

 

[frank1971]

The cyclist can be ticketed too...

 

[JustaLocal]

I guess the bike lane on the west end of 30A doesn't continue the entire length?

This is from the Florida Bicycle Association website:

"State Law says you must ride as far to the right as practicable. It does NOT say as far to the right as possible. Practicable means capable of being done within the means and circumstances present.
A cyclist should maintain no less than 2 feet of clearance from the edge of usable pavement to have room to maneuver around obstructions and to be more visible to crossing traffic.
When a lane is too narrow for a bicycle and a car to share safely, the cyclist is entitled to the use of the entire lane. Within this lane, the cyclist usually rides on the right half to facilitate visibility for overtaking motorists, but should ride far enough left to discourage motorists from trying to squeeze past within the lane." http://www.floridabicycle.org/rules/bikelaw.html#ftrexplained

 

[RiverOtter]

I guess the bike lane on the west end of 30A doesn't continue the entire length?

This is from the Florida Bicycle Association website:

"State Law says you must ride as far to the right as practicable. It does NOT say as far to the right as possible. Practicable means capable of being done within the means and circumstances present.
A cyclist should maintain no less than 2 feet of clearance from the edge of usable pavement to have room to maneuver around obstructions and to be more visible to crossing traffic.
When a lane is too narrow for a bicycle and a car to share safely, the cyclist is entitled to the use of the entire lane. Within this lane, the cyclist usually rides on the right half to facilitate visibility for overtaking motorists, but should ride far enough left to discourage motorists from trying to squeeze past within the lane." http://www.floridabicycle.org/rules/bikelaw.html#ftrexplained

It doesn't. The last time I was down there some butt munch blew at me while I was in the bike lane. I asked him to pull over so we could discuss the finer points of the FL State Road codes but he declined

 

[Smiling JOe]

Going into Watercolor, the road narrows greatly, with 4 inch concrete curbing, making it very scary for anyone to attempt to pass a cyclist.

 

[seagrovegirl]

It's insanity for a cyclist to attempt Watercolor, Seaside in the roadway, IMO. If I was nuts and attempted, I'd be cycling in the middle of the lane so no one could pass and hit me with their mirror.

 

[Smiling JOe]

You will find me in the center of the lane as I pass through Seaside and WaterColor. You need to be in the center of the lane while in Seaside just so you can have a better chance of not having people walk out in front of you.

 

[Beach Runner]

D?j? vu. We've hashed this out several times, for example on the thread http://sowal.com/bb/showthread.php?t=12971&highlight=bicyclist .