"On your left" - What does this mean to you?

[HappyTexasMom]

I shouted out "on your left" when I was about 20 feet back (I was going quite a bit faster than they were, so that should have been just enough time for them to react stupidly and correct) and the guy MOVED LEFT, essentially blocking me from passing without going over the yellow line... WTH?! Now, since there was obviously no oncoming traffic, I did just cross that yellow line and pass on the left.. and I looked back and Mr Stupid had moved over to the right again.

You know, it just occurred to me...often times when I'm riding, all I really hear is "LEFT!". I know what they said/mean, but with the wind blowing in my ears (unless I've specifically turned my head to listen behind me), that's all I hear. If someone is inexperienced and not familiar with standard etiquette, it could be that they think you are telling them to move to the left (as in, a directive towards them: "LEFT!").

[OakLeaf]

You know, it just occurred to me...often times when I'm riding, all I really hear is "LEFT!". I know what they said/mean, but with the wind blowing in my ears (unless I've specifically turned my head to listen behind me), that's all I hear. If someone is inexperienced and not familiar with standard etiquette, it could be that they think you are telling them to move to the left (as in, a directive towards them: "LEFT!").

We use the MUPs to avoid the busy streets in and out of town. There are occasions when an MUP is safer than the street, and when your route in or out of town involves freeway and river crossings, the streets tend to be few, narrow and congested.

Whenever I'm passing a pedestrian (either on the MUP or if they're walking the wrong way on the street) I'll holler "PASSING on your left." There's no way they would've heard "left" and not "passing." Usually, the response is for mom to go left, dad to go right, and the kids to freeze in the middle of the lane.

I do think MUPs are confusing for pedestrians, because they're walking in the wrong lane from their perspective. That's not an excuse for people not paying attention any time they're in a public place, but it is what it is.

Passing a cyclist is completely different from passing a pedestrian (just as when you're in a car, passing a cyclist is completely different from passing another car). Sounds like you just came up on somebody really ignorant.

I've had to pass a group of cyclists taking up the whole path where they ignored my first and second holler, but appeared to respond to my third one by moving right. Then, as I started to pass, they came over on top of me... and yelled at me for "not announcing myself."