Short bars... yes or no

One of the reasons you might not want to go through a gap, is that if it's a squeeze, it's very discomfiting for the people in the (temporarily) stationary vehicles - at least for those who are positioned on your outside. Just because someone's in a metal box doesn't mean they're not entitled to a certain amount of personal space on the road. It's not nice when cars try to sqeeze past you (or even between you - it has happened) when riding two abreast, and I try to go about my business in the way I'd like others to when they're in my vicinity.

There's such a myriad of gap/traffic permutations though, I'm not trying to preach a one-size-fits-all solution.

'Being in a fucking hurry', when looked at as an unhealthy (and unconscious) urban psychological condition, pervades many aspects of the city dweller's behaviour. Life isn't a race, especially not a race to the next mundane interaction. I think a lot of people might benefit, both inter and intrapersonally, from stopping and waiting patiently once in a while, instead of oozing frustration and showing total disregard for the personal space of others, be it on the road, in shopping queues, whatever.

But you can't pretend to be a courier otherwise