Cycles of all sorts

John Forester, an advocate of vehicular cycling, states, "Cyclists fare best when they act and are treated as drivers of vehicles". The common definition printed in dictionaries is ("bicycle - a vehicle with ... pedals by which it is propelled ...").

A vehicular cyclist is a cyclist who generally travels within the roadway in accordance with the basic vehicular rules of the road that are shared by all drivers, and the most effective cycling practices. Primarily, this means:

• Traveling on the same side of the road as other traffic traveling in the same direction.
• Staying outside of the door zone; when passing a motor vehicle that is parked parallel to the road, no closer than the length of the door.
• Respecting traffic controls such as yield signs, stop signs and traffic lights.
• Between intersections and other junctions, choosing the appropriate lane or lateral position according to those rules of the road that are shared by all drivers
• While preparing to turn or turning, choosing the appropriate lane or lateral position according to destination positioning.
• Ignoring designated bicycle lane stripes when choosing where to travel on the pavement.
• Changing lanes or lateral (left/right) position in response to, and in anticipation of, factors such as changing traffic conditions.
• Using the full lane unless overtaking traffic is likely to be delayed and the marked traffic lane is wide enough to share.
• When making a turn toward the inside of a road when multiple traffic lanes are marked, merging into the traffic in each lane while using negotiation with other drivers as required.
• Generally feeling and acting like a vehicle driver, albeit the driver of a narrow and relatively low-powered vehicle.

While almost any cyclist is bound to ride "vehicularly" at least some of the time, few cyclists do so consistently. Some non-"VC" actions commonly taken by cyclists include:

• Cycling on the opposite side of the road compared to other traffic traveling in the same direction.
• Cycling in the door zone (many cyclists track their tires just outside of the door zone, apparently not realizing that their elbows or even handlebars are close enough to be struck by a suddenly opening door, possibly forcing the cyclist into traffic with little to no warning).
• Cycling along sidewalks or crosswalks.
• Running red lights.
• Blatantly running stop signs (certain stop signs, particularly those in quiet neighborhoods, are routinely treated cautiously as yield signs by most vehicle drivers, including vehicular cyclists, though technically doing so is against the letter of the law).
• Going straight across at an intersection while positioned laterally for a turn.
• Darting inward across the roadway from the outer edge of the road, instead of merging across one marked lane at a time.
• Moving laterally without looking back and yielding to overtaking traffic that has the right of way.
• Splitting marked lanes instead of taking a more predictable position within a lane.
• While a traffic light is red, moving to the front of the traffic queue instead of taking one's place in line according to the first come, first served principle.
• Passing slow or stopped traffic on the out side.
• Not merging out of a curbside bicycle lane when approaching a junction or intersection when the cyclist is going straight.
• Traveling along the edge of a marked traffic lane that is too narrow to share side-by-side with a wider vehicle, thus encouraging drivers of overtaking wider vehicles to believe that the lane is wide enough to share.