Commuting through cities in the UK I got into the habit of filtering through to the rear of the lead car or maybe the 2nd or 3rd car if they left enough gap for me to claim. IIRC it was and maybe is illegal to pass the lead vehicle at lights in the UK. Overtaking at a junction...
Doing this also saved my bacon if the lead car is in the wrong lane and turns into your path when the lights change. Seen it happen..
My rule of thumb is to be able to claim space in the queue rather than rely on a drag start when the lights change. I always pay a lot of attention to how drivers behave, if somebody is giving me the evils in their mirror and I see the wheels turn or car move, I stay behind them. Not worth picking a fight with a disgruntled and possibly manic cager. Quite often drivers will actually make space, out of kindness or preserving their mirrors I'm not sure.
So yeah, I'm pretty fluid thinking when it comes to filtering through stationary or slow traffic at lights and junctions. Being courteous and giving cars space to change lanes etc seems to earn bikers brownie point's, too.
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