Road positioning. When riding on the roads, there are two basic road positions you should adopt, depending on the situation.
1) Ride in the centre of your lane, to make yourself as clearly visible as possible, in the following situations
- on quiet roads or streets – if a faster vehicle comes up behind you, move to the left to enable them to overtake, if you can do so safely
- in slower-moving traffic - when the traffic around you starts to flow more freely, move over to the left if you can do so safely so that faster vehicles behind you can overtake
- at the approach to junctions or road narrowings where it would be unsafe for drivers to overtake you
2) When riding on busy roads, with vehicles moving faster than you, allow them to overtake where it is safe to do so whilst keeping at least 0.5 metres away, and further where it is safer, from the kerb edge. Remember that traffic on most dual carriageways moves quickly. Take extra care crossing slip roads.
Advice, not law. This rule is not written in capitals, so breaking it is not an offence in itself — but it can still be used in evidence in court to establish liability. The rules that say MUST or MUST NOT are the ones backed by law.
5 theory test questions on this rule
From the DVSA revision question bank. These are not the questions asked in the real theory test. Each one shows the answer, the explanation, and our own note on why every other option is not it.
Car
- You're driving in traffic at the speed limit for the road. What should you do if the driver behind is trying to overtake? Attitude
- You're travelling on a narrow section of road. What should you do if a horse rider ahead is riding in the centre of the lane? Vulnerable road users
- You're following a slower-moving vehicle. What should you do if there's a junction just ahead on the right? Hazard awareness