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Your road position

Make sure you drive your vehicle far enough to the left to allow traffic to safely pass or overtake on the right but not so far to the left that you are driving on a cycle lane or blocking or endangering cyclists or pedestrians.

Picture shows 2 cars driving opposite sides of road. Both cars are in correct position (left of centre)

What to do if you need to change your position

Taking care with buses and pedestrians

You should allow signalling buses back into the stream of traffic after they let passengers on and off. Be especially careful of pedestrians getting on and off buses and of children near schools, and when near schools always be prepared to stop.

Pic shows car pulling up at red traffic light. Car has stopped short of the cycle lane which moves into the road area to permit cyclists to wait aheard of cars

Taking care with cyclists

If you are at a junction where there is an advanced stop line for cyclists, you should allow cyclists to move off ahead of you.

When turning left, all drivers, especially drivers of heavy goods vehicles, must watch out for cyclists and motorcyclists going ahead or turning.

On left turns, watch out for cyclists and mopeds close to the kerb in front of you or coming up on your left. Do not overtake a cyclist as you approach a junction if you are turning left; the cyclist might be continuing straight ahead.

You should give extra space when overtaking a cyclist, as they may need to avoid uneven road surfaces and obstacles. This is particularly important on wet or windy days.

Pic shows a car moving further to the right, to give appropriate space to a cyclist. Cars right tyre is on centre line

Watch related video

Cornering