I tried looking in the Alberta Highway code driving book thing for rules of the road for cyclists but to no avail.....

I nearly took out a cyclist this morning who was cycling towards me at speed going along in the wrong direction on my side of the road, bang in the middle of my lane. I also see cyclists frequently cycling on the "wrong" side of the road round these parts.

Is it allowed or could I have legally mown him down and got away with it?

Don't get me wrong, I used to cycle myself a bit and have a lot of admiration for the cyclists who battle against the traffic, but is there a law that says cyclists can cycle in any direction on what side of the road they like or do they have to cycle on the right like the rest of the "vehicles"???

(I'd just like to know the rules before I beep my horn or shout obscenities in the future!)

He was going in the wrong direction. You should have just opened your passenger door!

http://bikebridge.ca/rulesab.html

Haven't read them as I'm off to bed.

Goodnight.

There does seem to be a quaint belief in Canada that cycling against the flow of traffic is safer because the cyclist can see an oncoming vehicle (as it smashes into them).

I added that last part.

Here in NB it seems acceptable, even encouraged for cyclists to go against the flow of traffic.
The most dangerous thing I think is that when I (as a motorist) am looking to turn right or filter right, I am mostly concenrating on the traffic on my left to make sure there is a gap for me to filter into. The last thing I need to be concerned about is a cyclist is coming at me from the right.
Downright suicidal in my book!!!

In practice, their aren't any...at least that many drivers/cyclists pay heed too.........As a cyclist, .one needs to be VERY careful and a little afraid...

Same thing here in NL. I find it terrifying as a motorist but since when I am cycling I ride on the same side of the road as cars, I'm probably equally as terrifying in my own way!

There are drivers who think it's fun to "buzz' cyclists. A couple of years ago I was hit on my left calf by the corner a car's front bumper. It ricocheted me into the ditch I ended up in the emergency dept at the local hospital. I needed several stitches and I was lucky. I follow the rules of the road, even down to having a bell on my bike !!! (The law here actually says that you have to have one). It's not always the cyclist that is at fault.

My problem, and it is a serious one, is that I cannot follow the law wrt wearing a helmet. I have a large bonce and haven't been able to find a helmet that has any chance of fitting. (I buy baseball caps from bigheadcaps.com and my skidoo/atv helment is 3XXXL!!)

The cyclist/motorist issue here is what makes me surprised when I see comments about driving standards being better in the UK.

I experience far more courtesy here than I ever got back in England. Drivers wave me out of side streets when I'm waiting for a gap in the traffic. They actually stop, even though I can't yet pull out because of traffic coming the other way. Then someone else stops so I have two lines letting me out.

I don't see anything like the amount of cars going through red lights or parking on footpaths.

I suppose that is more about thoughtfulness rather than driving standards.

I now have visions of AX looking like John Merrick

Or Quark from Star Trek: Deep Space 9.

Well jeez, thank you for those kind thoughts. Fortunately, my oversized bonce isn't immediately obvious to the casual observer as I am a reasonably sized guy*. So I am not quite the freak you imagine me to be.

* So now someone's gonna call me fat I know. I can't win. <sigh>

No AX, NOT fat. Just Well Built, ok maybe Big Boned.

We're not freaks, we're legal aliens. Sting - Englishman In New York