I dont like all these wretched scooters whizzing along pavements either, often with two people on them, too. But if they were weaving in and out of cars on the road, shouldnt they have to wear some sort of protection, like helmets, as cyclists do?
A car could easily hit one and send it 10ft in the air, and they have no crash helmet whatsoever.
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Regarding general criticisms against cyclists based on the assumption they donāt pay road tax or have a driving licence etc, donāt forget that many adult cyclists are also motorists.
If a cyclist is being inconsiderate, itās not because they are a cyclist, itās because they are an inconsiderate person. I daresay they would be an inconsiderate driver too.
Iām a motorist, a cyclist and a pedestrian at different times.
My level of consideration for others doesnāt change depending on which mode of transport Iām using, I consider all other road users.
Although it may be that a cyclist or pedestrian who doesnāt drive will not appreciate something from a driverās perspective and vice versa.
I have found that when Iām a pedestrian, walking along a country road where there is no pavement, I try to keep on the grass verge if there is one or right into the side of the road but motorists will generally give me a wide berth when they pass me - but if Iām cycling, many drivers will leave very little space when they overtake, so I find many motorists are less considerate of cyclists than they are of pedestrians, in my personal experience.
Maybe they do not realise how intimidating it feels when a large vehicle whisks past you with only inches of space or how the rush of air tends to cause a bit of bike wobble - maybe if they got out of their large vehicles and got on a bike now and then, theyād see it from a different perspective and maybe be more considerate.
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Itās amazing how tight a gap cyclists can squeeze into between car & kerb when they are overtaking on the insideā¦
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Yes, I think that is fair comment, Boot, and a good post.
I can also understand the feeling when vehicles skim past barely giving you any room.
I have seen the same done to horse riders, and forgive me for saying this, but that must be even harder because they are trying to reassure and control a big powerful animal as well.
Either situation is unacceptable, but unfortunately there will always be pig igorant people in life.
we have so much space down under I am not sure if I could ever re-adjust to lack of it?
One recent change in NSW:
Minimum passing distance - 1 metre rule
When overtaking bicycles, you must allow a distance of at least 1m between you and the rider when the speed limit is 60km/h or less, or 1.5m if itās more than 60km/h.
If other drivers beep their horns to pressure you to pass a bicycle, stay calm. Only pass when youāre sure itās safe.
You can cross single and double white lines to pass bicycles, but only if you have a clear view of approaching traffic and itās safe to do so.
A good move I think
Blimey Bruce, if I was on a bike, I would want a bit more than 1 metre between me and a big lorry whizzing by! 
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When I used to cycle around the small country roads Iād make a point of dismounting if there were horses passing.
Bikes seem to freak some of them outā¦big time!
Iāve no idea why, Iām completely ignorant when it comes to horses.
I use to ride around these country roads which are narrow sometimes with no escape routes such as verges . One Sunday morning the Lyra lot were out in force and one in a bunch of cyclists actually clipped my stirrup he was that close .
The horse was very traffic wise and didnāt mind cyclists but I was unnerved and so would he have been if the horse had leapt sideways on to him .
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You were lucky you had a calm horse, Muddy.
What a pompous idiot that cyclist was.
Humans feel the same when passed by a bike speeding down a shared path or pavement. If only cyclists dismounted where a path is crowded we would all be happy.
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Tell me about it, Iām human and I get more than a little peed off when some muppet nearly clips me or my family while riding on the pavement, once or twice Iāve thought about taking matters into my own hands, probably not a good idea.
Letās not tar all cyclists with the same brushā¦ please!
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Partly because they come up so quickly ( some for me ) and they do make a slight noise more if the road is wet .
Ahā¦ thanks Muddy, Iāve been wondering about this for years, I thought it might be a kind of visual thing that scared them. Once again, I know nothing about horses, to be candid I find them a bit scary, itās obviously a two way street 
As a motorist, cars, lorries, tractors, Cyclist and occassional horse rider I would say that almost anyone can be inconsiderate on the road, including me at times. I think sometimes we are all a bit slow to see the situation we are approaching and we then have to adjust late to suit it. Mostly even then the manoeuver is carried out safely and people say oh that was courteous. if we get it slightly wrong you hear how impatient and inconsiderate was that driver there was probably no danger of an accident but you squeezed through a gap that had you waited a bit longer would have cleared.
Equally as a cyclist I have a tendancy to not want to slow down. My natural reaction is to try and conserve speed it is hard work to get back up to speed. So you wait too long for the other road user to give you space, then you are struggling on say a little lane to pass a vehicle safely if they donāt yield a bit.
On horseback I once made the mistake of riding a girlfriendās warmblood that had been stuck in a field for a week with no exercise and lots of sweet grass and it was being a bit of a so and so to say the least. Fortunately the motorists were very kind and polite as we careered about for a bit until everything settled down.
I suppose my point is we all make mistakes it is better if we endeavour to make sure those mistakes are trifling and not life threatening and that we are polite to all other road users no matter what mode of transport they use.
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So are you saying that it is OK for you to want to maintain your speed, but other road users must slow down for you or postpone their turn to manoeuvre, so you donāt lose your speed and get tired getting back up to speed. Sorry, but IMO that is not on. Talk about king of the road.
Just because you want to maintain your speed, do pedestrians have to get out of your way so you donāt have to slow down for them - or even get off and walk as cyclists are supposed to do when using a footpath used by pedestrians (as in our park which has a footpath/cycle path through it.
I think you missed the point I said a tendancy to try and maintain speed not that I didnāt slow down, I think you would be surprised how courteous I was on a bike to all other road users and I am quite happy taking to the verge or passing place and of course I would get off and walk if I was on a pavement or footpath as indeed I do.
As for your point about postponing a turn or manoeuvre then if I were in any vehicle or walking I would expect people to give way if making a turn it is the normal thing to do. I mean would you turn right when an artic is approaching at 40 mph say 30 yards away or wait for him to go past then turn right.
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Unfortunately people are not always polite Jlastsr.