Irish TV are broadcasting a well balanced advert showing how cyclists and motorists should behave together. See
http://www.bikebiz.com/news/read/irish-tv-airs-ad-on-how-motorists-should-share-the-road-with-cyclists/014576
One of the problems highlighted is that cars and lorries don’t feel at all unsafe when passing a cyclist giving just a few centimetres clearance, but the cyclist feels extremely vulnerable in the same situation. The recommendation to leave clearance of 1.5m when overtaking a cyclist is the same clearance as mandated in French law (when out of town; when in-town in France the clearance required is reduced to 1m).
It would be nice to hear a similar recommendation from the Department for Transport, it could be included in the next edition of the Highway Code. Or better still how about a law following the French model?
Wonder when we might see similar adverts in the UK?