By Lars Hundley
One of the things I genuinely enjoy about this job is that I still trade texts and emails with John Marsh. If you’ve been a long-time reader, you already know John well — he was the publisher of Road Bike Rider before me, the second in a line that started with the site’s founders. He’s never lost his enthusiasm for cycling, or his willingness to share a strong opinion, which is exactly why I enjoy staying in touch.
A few weeks ago, John sent me a link to an article from Canadian Cycling Magazine: ‘On Your Left’ Is Cycling’s Worst Habit. The piece, by writer Terry McKall, makes the case that shouting “on your left” at pedestrians on shared paths is more likely to startle, confuse, and annoy them than to actually keep anyone safe, and that a good bell is a far better tool for the job.
John disagreed. His take was that “on your left” is a legitimate safety warning that protects both the pedestrian and the cyclist, and that the article was missing that point entirely. As someone who is, in his own words, “very common-sense driven,” John finds the verbal warning completely intuitive. He also noted that in his local riding, he rarely even encounters the problem, since it’s only on longer trips like the Great Allegheny Passage that he’s regularly navigating busy shared paths.
I had to respectfully push back.
My main riding is laps of a 10-mile loop around White Rock Lake here in Dallas. For at least a mile of that loop in two different spots, cyclists, runners, and walkers are all funneled together onto a shared multi-use path, and I ride that stretch multiple times a week. I’ve had a lot of reps watching how pedestrians respond to both approaches.
I ride with an Incredibell on several of my bikes (purchased at full retail, no relationship with the company). And in my experience, a bell ring almost never startles anyone. People hear it, glance back, and naturally drift toward the right edge of the path. Half the time there’s a quick wave or a “good morning” exchanged. It’s genuinely pleasant.
“On your left,” in my experience, is a different story. McKall’s article makes a point I’ve seen play out repeatedly: a meaningful portion of people, when they hear a voice suddenly shouting from behind them, freeze or jump, and sometimes they jump to the left. And too often the warning comes just as the rider is already alongside them, which helps no one. As McKall writes, the closer you have to be for someone to hear a quieter “on your left,” the less useful it is.
I also think John has a great point that would be easy to miss in the article: there’s a difference between the method and how people use it. A single courteous “on your left” with plenty of room to pass is a lot different from a whole peloton taking turns bellowing it while flying past at 22 mph. The same is true of bells. Ringing one aggressively from three feet away isn’t going to win you any friends either.
We landed, more or less, where you’d expect two reasonable people to land: common sense matters more than the method. John summed it up well: “Maybe common sense use of whatever your warning method is makes the most sense.”
Fair enough. But I’m still keeping my bell!
Which brings me to you, RBR readers. What’s your approach when you’re coming up on pedestrians or slower users on a shared path? Bell? Verbal warning? Something else entirely? And does the situation change depending on whether you’re alone or in a group, urban or rural, daytime or dusk?
Tell us in the comments! I have a feeling this one might get some opinions flying.
I don’t own a bell, but pedestrian traffic is normally not heavy on the local rail-trail, and shouting a verbal warning to walkers usually does not startle them. What I shout, however, is simply “Passing,” and most walkers politely move over. I do not shout “On your left” because of my own experience with left-right confusion, For some reason, unless I’m consciously thinking about it, I can confuse left and right. I have no problem with knowing which way I want to turn, but if I am directing someone else I’m liable to say “turn left” when I mean “turn right,” and vice versa. So when a rider is overtaking me and shouts “On your left,” I have to think about which way he wants me to move, and by the time I have it figured out, the rider already beside me. If the rider simply says “Passing,” there’s no confusion on my part.
I occasionally ride a trail in Athens, Ohio, that passes through the campus of Ohio University, and so that portion is heavily used by college students who become so engaged in conversation that others they don’t seem to hear me, no matter what or how loud I shout. But once, after shouting several times toward a group of three walkers who had the path blocked edge-to edge as they moseyed along, I sounded my dog air horn. The three practically leaped off the path and they laughed hilariously when they saw it was only a cyclist and not a semi that was overtaking them.
I second “passing” as the best verbal alert. The whole mention of direction just seems to confuse people. And if you are relatively close to them when you call out, most people can tell acoustically that you are on their left side. But as others have noted, pedestrians are a skittish and unpredictable bunch and you can never be sure they’ve heard you. Proceed cautiously regardless of how you alert them!
I like the idea of using “passing” instead of “on your left.” I’ll plan to make the switch.
I totally agree with Kerry’s last comment, too. It reminds me of how I taught my sons to drive in Atlanta traffic: expect every other driver to do the stupidest thing possible, and be ready for it. (In this case, it’s anyone you’re passing — whether a pedestrian or otherwise.)
Finally, I appreciate the many commenters who raised the obliviousness issue re: pervasive earbud use. Such is modern life!
My experience around Atlanta. I have used “on your left” for years and tried a bell for a while. The bell was useless because no one knew why it was being used–very few folks around here have bells, My experience with “on your left” is that the majority of people actually moved left. I have switched to saying “I’m coming around you” and that seems to work for two reasons: 1) it is more conversational than a loud announcement, 2) Folks intuitively know what is happening. They seem to apprecite the announcement. If the person is far to the right and I have a lot of room on the left, I pass as far away from them as possible and don’t say anything.
I have a bell on my mountain bike but not my road bike. On the road I usually just yell “Bike” well before I get close to anyone and they move over. I say Thank you as I go by. Rarely a problem unless they have speakers in their ears.
An on your left and a bell are useless when the pedestrian has ear buds in, or simply does not how/where to walk. . I approach all over takings as a possible disaster, slow down and proceed with caution and courtesy.
Sadly, that’s all too common. There’s also the issue of people who are not native English speakers getting confused about your intent.
That said, I refuse to put a bell on any of my bikes. I generally say “On your left” firmly, but not shouting, and only if I need them to move or if they’re wandering around.. If someone is well to the right on the path and I have plenty of room to pass, I don’t say anything, I just ride by. The same is true when passing other cyclists.
My girfriend always says “Passing on your left”, which generally seems to work well, as it explains both intent and direction.
The biggest issue I find on bike paths is people not paying attention to their kids and pets, and/or parking their bikes ON the path. I actually had an encounter with a family that had let one of their kids fly a freakin’ kite across the path, with the string about chest height for a cyclist!
These days, I avoid bike paths as much as possible. The secondary roads around here are generally in good shape and have fairly light traffic. Overall, they seem to be much less dangerous than multi-use paths populated by oblivious users.
Another thing that generally seems to work well is saying “Bike(s) behind you”, but sometimes people will scatter to both sides of the path.
I prefer a bell and use it on our multi use trails. Two dings 25 feet away gives people adequate time to hear, process, and respond. I get frequent “thanks “ as I pass.
Calling on your left gives almost no time to respond.
Agree. The bell can be sounded from farther away without startling anyone. Then again when closer. On your left doesn’t give enough time to react.
My wife and I ride many places each summer. We have found that as we approach a pedestrian if we only say “On your left” as often as not they would move to the left. Since then we always start by saying “Good morning, On your left” No more confusion and often a polite hand wave in the bargain.
I agree–saying “good morning/afternoon” first breaks a train of thought and then they can process the “passing” or “passing on your left.”
I’m a frequent rider on Chattanooga’s multi-use trail, The Riverwalk. I’ve used a bell, a shout of “on your left” and sometimes “behind you”. If they are wearing headphones or earbuds there’s no point to any of these methods. My experience has been, and this is of course anecdotal, that pedestrians respond better to a bell than to a shout. By ‘better’ I mean that they usually slide to the right without appearing to be surprised or hesitant to respond. They also seem to respond far more often with a “thank you” when I pass after ringing the bell.
Half the walkers don’t hear my first overtaking warning, which is usually my bike bell, because they are wearing earbuds or headphones. If bell is heard, most pedestrians will politely move right, some thanking for the unobtrusive warning. First escalation is several bell pings of greater intensity. If there is no response to the multiple bell strikes, I will usually call “On your left” repeatedly with increasing volume until there is movement, or I eventually squeeze by the trail user on their left.
I don’t use a bell either. I say “on your left.” The main problem I have found when on bike paths and trails is that 98% of the runners and walkers all have ear buds in their ears. They don’t hear the bell and they hear you shouting when you are maybe like 3-4 feet away from them.
I can recall maybe once when I said “on your left” and the person actually jumped to their left.
I’ve had people get angry because of a bell and on your left confuses especially the dyslexic. So now i say “Hello” with ample pre-warning time and everyone seems happy
A more important consideration than which warning is more polite is how well pedestrians can hear your warning (shout or bell). You can be the judge by gauging how far back you first warn and when walkers acknowledge hearing you. Walkers consistently hear my bell from farther way, giving them more time to step aside, curb their dog, or rein in kids. Also, some states (New York, New Jersey, Maryland, Georgia, and South Carolina) require bicycles to be equipped with a bell. There you might as well use it.
Gary
Bell all the way (loudest one you can find). On your left may sound polite and intuitive to a cyclist, but rather arrogant to a pedestrian.
How is it in any way “arrogant”? As long as you’re not barking it like a drill sergeant it shouldn’t offend anyone.
I find it doesn’t matter whether I use my bell or say “on the left”: First, the pedestrian(s) turns around in utter disbelief that a bike is overtaking them on the BICYCLE PATH, then they quickly move to block the left side to let me straight through on the right, then when they see I am following basic bike path etiquette and trying to pass on the left, they jump back to the right to block me again as I have switched right to avoid hitting them on the left.
The important advantage a loud bell has over the “on your left” is the fact that a loud bell is louder and more distinguishable than a voice, and can be effective from further away, so that the warning can happen maybe 50-70 feet back…which in my experience startles people much less than a warning (bell or voice) from 10-20 feet behind. (I prefer the Spurcycle bell)
Like “on your left”, you can modulate your callout by ringing once, or twice, or even more as needed. Sometimes I combine the two, but a single ding usually works well for road workers.
I don’t have a problem with my voice not being loud enough to be heard from 50+ feet away.
I ride with my wife in DC along the National Mall quite a bit every year. We both found that people don’t react to a bell but do turn and move over to a politely shouted “on your left, thank you”. Love reading your newsletter!
Saying “Ding-a-Ling” is what my buddy Jeff suggested, and it works great. Sounds friendly, and people know what it means. A bell is just to high pitched for many older men to hear.
I call out “bike passing” which seems to make it clear enough to almost all. But I also slow down if there’s any chance the people won’t recognize what’s happening (often the case on busy local trails). I’m prepared to unclip, slow down even more, maybe act like a scooter as I pass. My experience is that very few walkers know what we mean when we say “on your left” and that many do swerve to the left I use that on the rare occasions when I am actually passing someone on a road bike, but not for pedestrians, runners, children, scooters…
Those pelotons are very willing risk takers. They call out, pass me, and leave me a few centimeters of space. Yet they have no idea how I might react, how experienced or skilled I might be, So I think they are a good example of the reason “on your left” is pretty risky. It’s fine if you’re riding somewhere that only strong, experienced cyclists are likely to be. Not so good on a shared path!
I always use a spoken word of “passing” as including either “right” or “left” often induces people to move in that direction.
I find bells to be the antithesis of successful communication. The bell simply announces “something is here”. It doesn’t even tell you that it is a bike/human (many bells sound like birds). Likewise, it does not communicate either distance or direction to the source (both of which the human voice does) as its sound has no depth or directionality to it. Lastly and perhaps most importantly, it does nothing to communicate intent… sure, something is somewhere, but the recipient does not know what that something is about to do (pass, remain in a bush tweeting out, simply follow you, coming up from in front of you, etc… and yes, I have experienced all of these cases on the local Multi-Use Trail).
The human voice and the simple word “passing” avoids all of these problems. It communicates that a human is present at a discernible direction and distance, and the speaker’s intent (to pass). Additional words can be added as the situation dictates, such as “freeze”, “hold your line”, “on your left” or “on your right”, etc.
And yes, a major issue is that many other MUT users (walkers, runners, bikers, boarders, etc) have ear buds (or full headphone cans) on the ears and can’t hear anyone anyway.
Here on the Front Range I prefer a polite “Good morning!” (at increasing volume if I get no reaction). People look, smile, return the greeting, and move over. I also say “Thank you!” as I pass – cycling needs ambassadors, and I’m happy to be one. 🤷♂️
We have 95+ miles of paved trails where I live (Columbia MD), some of which are 10 ft, most only 6, and some not much more than goat trails, but all of which can be very heavily used by all sorts of people. As I teach cycling students, the point is to communicate with other users of whatever facility I happen to be on, whether the road or a trail. Communication is (at least) a two way effort regardless of venue. On a trail, I want to tell slower users, whether powered by foot, pedal or otherwise, that (1) I am behind and maybe overtaking, and (2) that those other users should pay attention and take care. Most bells are little dingy thingies that do not penetrate headphones. I SHOUT, “BIKE!” well in advance and then look for a reaction. Repeat if needed, i.e., if there is no reaction. A voice is human. It communicates on a human level.
I use a bell on my urban bike and also say hello and on other non-belled bikes I say a loud but friendly Hello when I am coming up behind someone who is going with the flow of bicycle traffic.
But if they are walking/running towards me on my side of the bike path against the flow of bike traffic? Then I stop in front of them and say “Run right, pass left. For safety. Thanks!”
A simple “Good morning” or “hello” works fine. To me, “on your left” feels like other-ing the person.
Consider that the French use Bonjour everywhere to first state that you recognize the person you are talking to as an equal (skip that greeting and be met by a less-than-polite response). In the same manner the good morning or hello says something similar — “I see you on the trail. You, too, have rights. But I’m coming by.”
Very rarely has my good morning failed to get someone (headphones excluded) from an acknowledgement.
I use a bell and say “on your left,” but I think saying “Bike!” would be better, As a cyclist and a walker, it ticks me off when a cyclist passes without any warning, usually going over the posted speed limit on the multi-use path. I’ve lived in Denver for nearly ten years now and it’s dangerous to cycle on the streets.
As you can see from the previous comments there is one way to alert people especially children or dogs on long leashes. IMO common sense and politeness go a long way. Yes it can be irritating at times but try and be a courteous as you can and move on. It’s not worth getting upset about. Just do what works best for you in your particular situation. Ride On and enjoy the ride. You learn these things as you get older and wiser.
I think at least two feet of clearance and slowing down matters a lot more than any announcement.
I suspect the use of bells vs. warnings is somewhat regional. Here in Minnesota I rarely see or hear cyclists with bells on our extensive bike paths, but find that a loud enough to be heard ‘on your left’ is almost always understood, and often produces a friendly wave. Wave or not I always say ‘thanks’ as I pass. The only annoyed comments I receive are when I forget to say ‘on your left’.
I generally say “Bicycle passing, on your left.” And I move as far over as I can if they show no sign of hearing. I find most pedestrians and dog walkers respond appropriately, and greet them as I pass. I cannot recall anyone jumping the wrong way. I am appalled by how many cyclists on multiuse greenways and trails fly by at speed without any warning. Far fewer than half of the cyclists who pass me walking give any kind of warning at all, other than the noise of their drive gear and tires. This includes recreational cyclists, serious road bikers, and those who ride mountain bikes on paved trails. I wouldn’t dream of walking or running on such a trail wearing ear buds or head sets for this reason. There sometimes seems to be a lack of imagination around.
I’ve never used a bell. I use a verbal “bicycle approaching”. But to me, the important point is to say it early enough for the person to react and I have time to make my adjustment to that initial reaction. This also reduces the chances of startling the person. I try to never shout or show annoyance in my voice. Also slow down when actually passing so they can hear my Thank You and I can also hear a Thank You response.
When I am with a small group of riders, our first rider also lets the walker know how many bikes are in our little group.
My wife wrote an article for RBR years ago explaining that older folks hear bells more clearly than a male “on your left”. She cited some research studies too.
I’m a bell guy for walkers and runners. I use “passing” for cyclists
Courtesy and common sense always.
I have to vote for the bell. Words [polite volume or shouting] often seem to confuse people. With omnipresent earbuds, people often don’t hear you until you are so close that they tend to be startled. I have used Incredibell for years with success. Recently, I have switched to Crane, which has an old-fashioned “ring-ring” that people seem to intuitively associate with a bike. It’s louder [a plus] but bigger [a negative].
I put a bell on each of my bikes, very useful on the Minuteman bike trail near Boston, easier than yelling.
The State of Ohio requires all Bikes to have a bell mounted on the handle bar!!
Rider who was hit by a left turning car had his payment reduced by 1/2 because he did not have a bell on the bike.
I find that I will always come. across someone who is dissatisfied with which method I choose, so I use a squeaky chicken. I gets the most smiles.
Usually both — bell at a distance and “on your left” while passing. I’ve noticed riding in many different parts of the country that each has its advantage and detractors. Bells seem well accepted in more urban trail settings, but seen as bougie in the countryside. We just try to be as considerate and kind as possible, and would agree that a loud anything (passing, bike, on the left) comes off aggressive.
Sometimes people confuse “on your left” with “(please) move to your left”, which they happen to do on occasion. “Bike passing” is good if they’re already mostly to one side or another, but a bit nebulous if they happen to be in the middle of the path (or a group taking up the whole path).
Sometimes people confuse “on your left”, but like when driving, you figure things out pretty fast. Let’s not start driving on the left just because our relatives are visiting from Europe.
I guess I go overboard by ringing 2 different bells and then calmly saying I am passing you on your left. I’ve had people tell me after I said my passing phrase that they finally understand what on your left means.
I say bicycle passing and sometimes say bicycling passing on the left if they are to the far right of the path. I feel this gives them additional information to know what is about to happen. If spoken in a friendly voice I often get a thanks and I always thank them for allowing me to pass. Of course all of this only works if they can hear you.
Regular cyclist and pedestrian on Chicago area multi-use paths. When passed by cyclists (10-15 mph) when a pedestrian is quite a startling experience. I challenge every cyclist who rides a multi use path to also walk it to experience what it’s like. As a pedestrian I much prefer a bell than someone yelling at me. A bell is a simple warning everyone understands. I have a bell. There are good reasons many municipalities require a bell on a bike.
If I’m riding my bike that has a bell, I use it. When riding one of my other bikes, I say “bikes back” early enough that the person (walker, runner, rider) can move over to the right or left. Sometimes, if there’s a group, people are unpredictable and scatter across the trail. My preference is to use a bell, especially when biking in areas where people on the path don’t understand English.
What is desperately needed is SIGNAGE on all bike trails to alert “walkers” that they are welcome but in a Bike Trail. Not a sidewalk!
And, they must obay Bike Trail rules and guidelines. Like:
1. Keep right
2. Don’t walk 3 abreast.
3. No headphones ( you can’t hear warnings).
4. No cellphone texting or viewing.
5. Dogs in 6 foot or less leashes.
I’ve combined the approaches. On my local rail trail. I ring my bell several times from about 10-20 yards behind pedestrians or other slow movers and as I get closer. If no acknowledgement I say loudly, “passing on your left” or right when they’re walking on the left side of the trail.
My biggest challenge with passing is the frequent lack of acknowledgment. It makes passing feel more risky.
I always thank whomever I’m passing. Occasionally a bit sarcastically if they’ve not acknowledged my alert.
The question is “bell” or “on your left”. The mission is to alert people (cyclists, runners, walkers, you name it) that they are being overtaken and passed. I would posit that the most optimal way to accomplish that will vary with geography and local custom. The best we can do is provide an alert as early as possible and hopefully in a manner that does not startle. That said, once the alert is transmitted, as a cyclist, I think we have a responsibility to note whether our presence has been acknowledged. If we don’t receive positive feedback, we should assume we have not been heard (similar to eye contact with a vehicle driver at an intersection to confirm an acknowledge of our presence). In my observation, cyclist most often understand “On your left”, pedestrians less so. As the overtaking party, it is our responsibility to make our presence known in the manner the present situation dictates. I prefer to never taking a hand off my bars, especially when in traffic.
I’ve noticed that pedestrians respond to where they hear my voice coming from. If I say “passing on your left” from behind them, they jump to the left. If I move to the left before saying anything, they move away from my voice to the right.
I find that if I ring my bell, the response is “don’t ring your expletive-deleted bell at me, you expletive-deleted”
And if instead I call out “cyclist behind you”, the response is “why don’t you have an expletive-deleted bell, you expletive-deleted”
This may be a UK thing