Here’s an intriguing phenomenon: Respondents in a British survey admitted to feeling “frustrated, angry, and anxious,” when overtaking slow bicycles on the road. But the same folks encountering the same situation with a horse rider felt, “surprised and happy.”

I was inclined to think that bicyclists and drivers just have a feud. And I thought this may in part be fueled by bicyclists being less-than-perfect citizens of the road, in the past. Nearly seventy percent of motorists said bicyclists are “unpredictable,” that they can “appear from nowhere,” and most importantly that they disregard the laws. To be specific, 68% of those surveyed agreed with the statement, “cyclists don’t obey road rules.” But the kicker is that most drivers misunderstand said laws.

Here’s an example. Nearly half of drivers surveyed (48%) felt bicyclists should be paying a “road tax.” But the UK has no such “road tax,” even for motorists.

Another example: survey respondents wrote in that “commuting cyclists… ride in the middle of the road making it hard to pass” and that “cyclists are very rude and ride in the middle of the road so that you can’t overtake.” It is in these comments that one creative respondent dismissed “selfish” bicyclists as “lycra warriors.” But the truth is that bicycles are wheeled vehicles and allowed to use a full lane of the road. In fact, they aren’t allowed to jump off the road and use the sidewalk instead.

In the U.S., at least, bicycles are allowed to use the full travel lane in all but one condition. If a single lane is more than about 14 feet wide, than bicyclists are expected to move three feet to the right of motorized traffic. This law doesn’t apply to motorcycles, only bicycles. And in practice, it usually pertains to extra-wide roads with a designated bicycle lane.

Meanwhile, 26% of folks surveyed said bicyclists, “shouldn’t be on the roads.” Some wrote in that they yell at bicyclists to get off the road. But the truth is that bicyclists can’t always get off the road legaly.

The result of this misunderstanding is between 20% and 30% of drivers admit to honking at bicyclists or revving their engines out of anger–before attempting to pass them. And 40% say they may speed while passing cyclists. Fifteen percent only leave a few feet while passing bicyclists. This isn’t a safe situation for anyone involved.

It’s interesting that a line of slow horses can be just as disruptive than a line of bicycles. Or even more so. But 97% of those surveyed say they’ve never engaged in aggressive behavior towards either these animals or their riders.

The difference is obviously just a change of mindset. In fact, 55% of survey respondents admitted that drivers stressed about something else may take this out on cyclists. The survey organizers even offered mindfulness techniques to adjust how motorists think of all these vulnerable road users.

For bicyclists’ part, they can make certain to not “appear out of nowhere” or break road laws by not jumping between the roadway and a sidewalk or crosswalk–even when they encounter a red light. And for motorists’ part, they can be mindful about what’s really making them angry.

Next, find out whether you must legally give e-bikes the entire lane, or learn more about the traffic laws bicycles must follow in the video below: