Yep, I had this very same conversation with a bike plod whilst riding alongside each other.

So long as you only cross the solid line(s) when the traffic is stationary, you can overtake. The lines are to keep people in their lane for safety, not to stop overtaking. It's just that for cagers it comes to the same thing.

If the traffic was stationary and there was little or no oncoming traffic, I'd go for it cautiously but leave a good gap between me and the car on my left and looking ahead for a good place to rejoin. I don't ride a bike to sit in traffic, I may as well be in the car.

I overtake daily on double whites, but do not cross them.
They effectively mean no overtaking for cars as they are too wide to pass without going over them, but not a bike.
You can cross them when passing a slow vehicle with amber rotating beacons lit though, so street sweepers and slow tractors can be passed.

Pass, do not cross lines, do not exceed speed limit which looks like 30, and smile.

At one time when street lights were a certain distance apart that would also dictate the speed limit, does that still apply or am I too old?

Blimey! I remember that!

I've just Googled 'uk street-lamp spacing' and found this:

http://www.speedlimit.org.uk/speed_markings.html

Deeping wrote:At one time when street lights were a certain distance apart that would also dictate the speed limit, does that still apply or am I too old?

If street lights are 200 yards apart it is a 30mph speed limit

bertie wrote:

Deeping wrote:At one time when street lights were a certain distance apart that would also dictate the speed limit, does that still apply or am I too old?

If street lights are 200 yards apart it is a 30mph speed limit

A lot of you are correct, you can overtake slow moving vehicles etc, the solid white lines means you cannot go on the OPPOSITE side of the road.

bertie wrote:

Deeping wrote:At one time when street lights were a certain distance apart that would also dictate the speed limit, does that still apply or am I too old?

If street lights are 200 yards apart it is a 30mph speed limit

My rule of thumb is that if there are any streetlights, then it's thirty unless there are signs to the contrary .