and dads, brothers and sisters, sons and daughters – and they need motorists to give them space

Cyclists don't ride in a perfectly straight line they make small adjustments

in order to stay upright, from side to side all of the time – it's a space known as

the "dynamic envelope" – think of that dynamic envelope as an exclusion zone around the

cyclist, an area that you must not enter. The amount of space you need to give

cyclists is more than you might think. That dynamic envelope often needs

to be stretched for instance when cyclists need to avoid imperfections in

the road surface like this – hazards to the cyclist that the motorist might not even

be able to see.

Giving cyclists plenty of room isn't just common courtesy, it's in the

Highway Code. Here's master driving instructor Blaine Walsh to explain more.

Overtaking is one of the riskiest things you can do as a driver. It is critical to

get it right, for your safety and the safety of other road users. Sadly, you don't have

to

search YouTube very hard to find some incredibly dangerous and close overtaking

of cyclists. Clearly, these drivers are not aware of what the Highway Code says

about the space they are required to give cyclists. Here's

what it says about overtaking vulnerable road users. Rule 163 says "give cyclists at least

as much space as you ...

would a car."

Let's see what this looks like in the real world.

I can see there's a group of cyclists.

I'm not going to overtake them here cos I can't see anything that's ahead.

Now I can see it is safe to pass here so I will indicate. Remember, I have got to give

cyclists

much as I'd give a car that means getting right across to that other carriageway.

There, job done. I'm safe, they're safe.

And what works for overtaking groups, works for overtaking us.