Essential Cycling Skills for Families
Cycling as a family is great way to spend time together and explore your surroundings, so we’ve created a series of videos explaining the essential skills you need to cycle confidently.
Here is a series of short films to help families cycle more confidently together. Each film focuses on different stages of a cycling journey and features the four core functions used in Bikeability training:
- Look – make good and frequent observations
- Position – choose and maintain the most suitable riding positions
- Communicate – signal intentions clearly to others
- Prioritise – understand priorities on the road, particularly at junctions.
Each of the films also demonstrates the systematic routines in which these functions are used ie:
- Plan well in advance, anticipate and respond to on-road situations
- Select the most suitable riding positions for different parts of the journey
- Look behind before communicating intentions and changing riding positions
- Know when to give way to others and when to take priority assertively.
Download the Bikeability Parent’s Handbook for more advice on family cycling.
Cycling Journeys
Cycling essential skills for families: linked journeys
This film collects all the cycling journeys shown in the films below.
Play VideoPrepare for cycling and cycle control
Cycling on the road
Starting and stopping on-road journeys
Systematic routine for starting on-road journeys:
1. Look for following and approaching traffic, prioritise who goes first, before placing cycles on road
2. Place cycles on the road, look for following traffic, set off when clear
3. Look for following traffic, select and maintain the most appropriate riding positions, continue journey
Systematic routine for stopping on-road journeys:
1. Look for following traffic before slowing down
2. Look for following traffic before changing riding position
3. Look for following traffic before removing cycles from the road
Starting and stoppingon-road journeys
Play VideoPassing parked vehicles
Systematic routine for passing parked vehicles:
1. Look for following and approaching traffic, prioritise who goes first
2. Look for following and approaching traffic, select the most appropriate riding positions, pass parked vehicle when clear *
3. Look in front of parked vehicle, select the most appropriate riding positions, continue journey
* Riding positions must maintain at least a door’s length away from stationary vehicles
Passing parked vehicles
Play VideoNegotiating junctions
Systematic routine for negotiating junctions:
1. Approaching junctions
a. look for following traffic, prioritise who goes first, communicate intentions if necessary
b. select the most appropriate riding positions for negotiating the junction
2. Using junctions
a. look for approaching traffic, prioritise who goes first *
b. maintain the most appropriate riding positions for negotiating the junction
3. Exiting junctions
a. maintain the most appropriate riding positions for negotiating the junction
b. look for following traffic, select the most appropriate riding positions for continuing journey
* Riding positions must maintain at least a door’s length away from stationary vehicles
Negotiating junctions: Passing side roads
Play Video
Negotiating junctions: Turning left into side roads
Play Video
Negotiating junctions: Turning right out of side roads
Play Video
Negotiating junctions: Turning left out of side roads
Play Video