Motorcyclists

By the end of this topic you can

• You can explain why motorcycles are hard to see.
• You can look properly for motorcycles at junctions and before changing lanes.
• You can judge the speed of a single headlight before pulling out.
• You can give riders extra room in poor weather and on bad surfaces.
• You can recognise learner and novice riders.

What you need to know and understand

• Drivers tend to look for large objects and can miss the narrow outline of a motorbike.
• The Rules of the Road tells drivers to watch for motorcyclists at junctions, when changing lanes, opening doors, turning and reversing.
• Check your mirrors for a motorcyclist overtaking you before you turn right.
• A learner motorcyclist must wear a yellow fluorescent tabard showing an L; a novice rider wears one showing N plates.
• Gravel, sand, water, diesel and potholes can unsettle a bike, so riders may change position suddenly.
• Never cut in after overtaking a motorcyclist.

Seeing the bike that is there

At a junction, a motorcycle can be hidden by a roof pillar, a hedge or a parked van. Its single headlight makes speed hard to judge. Take your time.

1. Stop or slow right down so you have time to look.
2. Move your head as you look so the window pillars do not hide a bike.
3. Look right, left and right again, and look a second time for anything narrow.
4. If you see a single headlight, assume it is closing fast until you are sure.

Turning and changing lanes

Riders often filter past slow or stopped traffic. Before turning right, check your right mirror and blind spot for a motorcyclist overtaking you. Before turning left or changing lanes, check for riders coming up on the inside. Before opening a door, look behind for anything approaching along the gap beside your car.

Following and passing riders

A rider may brake or change position suddenly, so leave a full gap behind a motorcycle. Give more room in wet, windy or icy weather, and where the surface is poor, because a rider may need to swerve. When you overtake, give a wide berth and do not move back in until you can see the bike in your mirror.

A rider may choose a position in the middle of the lane to see and be seen or to avoid a bad surface. Treat it as their lane and do not squeeze past.

Common mistakes

• Looking but not seeing: a quick glance that misses a bike behind a pillar.
• Turning right across a motorcyclist because you misjudged their speed.
• Changing lanes in a queue without checking for a filtering rider.
• Following a bike too closely.
• Cutting in after overtaking.

Test yourself: Motorcyclists

Answer each question, then read the explanation. Questions come in a random order each time.