What do you do when you are turning left with a cyclist beside you?
Hold back, let the cyclist go past the side road, then turn in behind them. You should not cut across a cyclist going straight ahead, and the Highway Code says not to overtake just before you turn left. If turning would make them stop or swerve, wait.
You know the rule. Can you spot it on the road?
Try it in a free scene
The trap: getting past so you can turn first
The cyclist may be just ahead of you or already level with your car. Either way you are faster, so the obvious move is to pass them and turn. But then you turn across their path as they go straight on, at the point where they reach the side road. Rule 182 says not to overtake just before you turn left, and Rule H3 says not to turn if that would cause someone going straight ahead to stop or swerve.
Keeping your speed and hoping to just clear them has the same problem. Work out where the cyclist will be at the moment you start to turn.
Why you give way here
Cyclists do not have priority over cars in every situation. This one is about direction: you are turning and they are going ahead. Rule H3 compares it to turning across the path of another motor vehicle, which you would not do. It applies whether they are in a cycle lane, on a cycle track or riding on the road, and it says you should give way to them.
The routine, with a cyclist in mind
Rule 182 also warns you to watch for traffic coming up on your left, and says cyclists may be hidden from your view. So the left mirror belongs in the routine even if you think you know where everyone is. In order:
- Check the interior and left mirrors.
- Signal left, well before the turn.
- Keep to the left of your lane.
- Slow down and choose your gear.
- Look into the side road and check the cyclist again.
How we mark each mistake
Practice marks only: on a real test, the examiner decides. How faults work.
You cut across the cyclist Dangerous fault
The cyclist was going straight on and you turned across their path. You should not cut across cyclists going ahead when you turn; wait and turn in behind them.
The routine was out of order Driving fault
Use mirrors, signal, manoeuvre: check your mirrors first, then signal, then position, adjust your speed and take a final look.
What the Highway Code says
- Rule 161:
use them in good time before you signal or change direction or speed
- Rule 182:
Do not overtake just before you turn left and watch out for traffic coming up on your left before you make the turn, especially if driving a large vehicle.
- Rule H3:
Do not turn at a junction if to do so would cause the cyclist, horse rider or horse drawn vehicle going straight ahead to stop or swerve.
MUST and MUST NOT are the law. Should is advice, which can still be used in evidence in court.
Where this fits on the test
Top 10 fail reasons: not using mirrors correctly when changing direction, not making effective observations at junctions. DVSA driving skills: Mirrors.