Ok, another ponderance from me. Riding along round matlock and belper, traffic queues for lights for maybe a mile, i filter past quite confidently but sometimes there is the solid white line, sometimes i cross it sort of thinking in the car, id do the same to pass stationary cars, if i could. Is it still against the law? Is it more of take your chances? Do you do the same?
I think crossing a solid white line is definitely a no no as far as the law is concerned but sure someone will correct me if that's wrong.
I know there are exceptions, some slow vehicles, turning right and stationary vehicles. Other than that, id tend to agree
I have pondered this conundrum and just spent a while in the Highway Code. (nothing better to do at the mo) A single solid white centre line is merely a marking that 'advises' drivers to stay in their own lane. There's seems to be no prohibition or penalty for crossing the line. (This differs of course if the lines are double.) A definitive view might appear later from @T.C who would be an authority on road matters.
If Traffic is stationary I will go over the white line to filter, if moving then it depends on the speed but definitely not if it is more than 15mph as I think that is, or was the accepted value for slow moving vehicles. Saying that you can still filter without crossing the line, lots of cars here will leave space for bikes, just watch out for the twat who thinks everyone should be queuing just because they are.
Ah right. In that case you can cross only if a vehicle is stationary or doing less than 10 mph. 129 Double white lines where the line nearest you is solid. This means you MUST NOT cross or straddle it unless it is safe and you need to enter adjoining premises or a side road. You may cross the line if necessary, provided the road is clear, to pass a stationary vehicle, or overtake a pedal cycle, horse or road maintenance vehicle, if they are travelling at 10 mph (16 km/h) or less. Laws RTA 1988 sect 36 & TSRGD regs 10 & 26
The Roadcraft manual however states a nice arguable point - The Safety Position. This may be defined as the safest position for a vehicle to occupy on a road in relation to the actual and potential danger existing at that moment. I think thats verbatim but my memory is a little bit hazy might have been an S on the end of danger?
I am finding this more and more lately, I reckon about 20% will move over to increase the space, 60% are totally oblivious to the fact you are even there and 20% actively try to close the gap to prevent filtering as soon as they see you coming. I filter very carefully, especially when filtering between lanes of queueing traffic.
Ill reply more when im home but i find the same but fewer actively blocking me. Im still really careful filtering, esp between lanes because im just not experienced enough yet. I try to watch other bikes but there are plenty that just sit in the queue and im thinking am i missing soemthing here
Firstly, a solid single or double central white line does not mean "Do not overtake" What the law does state is you must not overtake if it is likely that you are going to cross over or straddle a solid centre white line system except in the circumstances as listed directly from the HC by @nigelrb (thanks for that, saves me having to do it ) Traffic that is stationary and queuing in a line of traffic is also considered to still be moving and so crossing over the while line to go past becomes an immediate endorsable offence. A single solid white line is not advisory, it is obligatory and carries the same rules and penalty as crossing or straddling a double while line system. If someone moves over to allow you past, and you can do so safely without crossing or straddling the solid white line system, then that is perfectly legal and acceptable. Many road users question the placing of solid white line systems, but what they don't know is that whilst some issues might be obvious, many of the public do not know what hazards are on that road which determines the requirement for a solid centre line system to be put down in the first place. It is one aspect of road safety where the risk assessments are taken very seriously and which is why prosecutions are absolute. Have a crash whilst overtaking on a solid white line system, then your degree of contributory negligence could go up to a full 100% (meaning you get nothing and you get prosecuted) Roadcraft does indeed talk about the safety position, but it has nothing to do with going past other traffic on solid white line systems. So in short, overtaking on single or double white line systems is illegal except in the circumstances mentioned. It is also an offence that lends itself to a prosecution for dangerous or careless driving (even more serious) and if I have someone on advanced test whi even clips a solid white line sysytem it is an automatic failure. Hope that helps and answers the question?
In the US, if it is a broken line, cross it. If it is solid, do not. If it is a double solid, the rozzers taze you and beat your balls off.
They put double white lines to suit all types of vehicles, A lorry would not be able to overtake like a cbr but is subject to the same rules. I class all cars etc as parked if going much less than the speed limit
this is pretty much what I thought, from drivng, same with sliproads, the solid line never to be crossed. So it has answered my question, thanks
