Mind the doors

"The number of cyclists injured by motorists suddenly opening a car door in their path has soared by a quarter in just two years, shocking new figures show.

Almost 600 cyclists were knocked off their bikes trying to swerve around a car door in 2011, up from around 400 in 2009"

Always be careful when cycling past cars- make sure you look behind you, indicate and move out far enough to leave a car door's width between you and the car. If there is a long row of parked cars with the occasional gap don't move closer to the kerb in the gap- stay in position.

If you are opening a car door always look behind (opening a car door dangerously is an offense) and try to use the opposite hand to open the door (ie your left hand if you are driving) since this causes you to turn your body, making you face backwards to observe the road behind you. It is legal to undertake on a bike, so be careful when opening the passenger door too.

Here's a link to the Daily Mail's article on the subject. Try not to get wound up by the comments!
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2291625/600-cyclists-year-injured-knocked-open-car-doors.html