We seem to have more than our fair share of cyclist here, what bugs me is when they go two abreast down rods with double lines in the middle, nightmare. But what makes it worse is them not using the perfectly safe cycle route running alongside. Or the ones with no lights, the ones who skip through traffic lights nearly knocking pedestrians over and ones that wobble too much.
A cyclist (lone) can chose if s/he wishes to "take the lane" as described by Carl above. This simply means the cyclist uses the whole of the lane i.e. ride in the centre of the lane. This can be done to stop chancers trying to overtake when really there is no room/not enough space etc...
Cycle paths are all very well and good and I use them when cycling with the family, however they are generally not maintained, are used by dog walkers/pedestrians and are simply not suitable for a "Road Cyclist" travelling at ~20mph+. They are often covered in dog sh*t, algae/moss/slime etc... and a road bike tyre cannot grip in these circumstances...
Bullet point 6 rules out the use of cycle paths for most serious road cyclists...
http://webarchive.nationalarchives....e/2004/ltnwc/annexdcodeofconductnoticefor1688
But like what I said above:
It is about all road user being polite, courteous and staying within the law....