Anyone who rides a bicycle, please read!

[PCC]

I'll preface this by saying that I'm a cyclist and I really need to get this off my chest.

I've seen cyclists do some really idiotic stuff on their bikes and the other day I almost saw someone get killed due to him being an idiot. Then I thought about why that guy was being so stupid and realized that he considered himself to be a pedestrian while he was riding his bike! If you are reading this and you ride a bicycle then you need to know this little fact: YOU ARE A SLOW MOVING VEHICLE!!! YOU ARE NOT A PEDESTRIAN. You are not a motor vehicle but the same rules of the road apply to you. I've seen too many cyclists ride on the sidewalk (I'm guilty of this but I usually try to get onto the road ASAP when I am in this situation). I've seen too many cyclists ride against traffic. I've seen too many cyclists ignore the fact that they are not in a tin can and getting run over by a tin can can really give them a bad day.

Going back to the idiot that I mentioned earlier, he was riding his bike in a cross-walk against a "do not cross" light while traffic was turning across the cross-walk. I guess he was banking on the California law that gives pedestrians right of way while they are in the cross-walk. A SUV had screached to a halt to avoid running this idiot over but the size of the SUV prevented the driver of a full-size pick up truck from seeing him and he almost nailed him. I later saw the same cyclist riding against traffic a few miles away. Can we say Darwin award?

 

[Darell]

I hear you. And let me add that I see idiots driving cars. I see idiots on foot. It turns out that idiots are everywhere - doesn't matter the form of transportation.

Most of my transportation is accomplished by bicycle. I ride 750-1,000 miles a month. I advocate for bikes. I try to set a good example. I do take issue with some of the laws, and take HUGE issue with the idiots that do the things that you've mentioned above. But please don't blame the fact that a bicycle is involved. It is the person to blame. Just happens to be riding a bike. In my hours on the saddle, I see it all - from every type of person out there piloting every form of transportation.

Another item that comes to mind is that while cyclists should not consider themselves pedestrians... neither should motorists deny "vehicle status" to cyclists. How many times have I heard a motorist yell out that bikes shouldn't be on the road - typically implying that they should be on the sidewalk or foot path. This stupidity is typically "supported" by the belief that the cyclist isn't paying their share of (gasoline) taxes for the road he's using. I've been in car where the driver was fuming about a cyclist who wouldn't get off the road into the dirt/gravel/glass/branches/weeds (zero to the right of the fog line) to let the car pass - though the cyclist was behaving within the law, his rights and his own safety.

So in the end, we just all need to get along. Yes some bike riders do stupid things. But bike riders definitely don't have a corner on that market! My favorite stupid cycling situation (I live in a college town and see this a lot): A wrong-way rider, at night with no lights.

OK, that's probably enough of my ranbling thoughts on this.

 

[LEDAdd1ct]

My brother and I both love to ride our bikes. The last two summers, we rode across America, through parts of California, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Virginia, Tennesee, and North Carolina. The Number One rule we followed was this:

it doesn't matter what the law says with respect to what rights you are guaranteed as to right-of-way, passing, signaling, etc. We always acted as if cars could not see us, and took the umpteenth degree of caution in assuming that motorists would not respect us. As a cyclist, you must always behave as if you are completely vulnerable, because, when it comes to you vs. a truck, you will not be the one walking away. That having been said:

1) I agree with Darell in that there are cyclists who act like morons.
2) I agree with Darell in that there are motorists who act like morons.
3) I agree with Darell in that there are pedestrians who act like morons.

No single mode of transportation has a monopoly on those who do not operate their "vehicle" properly, and safe travel depends on the responsibility of all parties to obey the law and be able to analyze a given situation and act quickly and appropriately.

However, I feel your pain, PCC. Every time I see a fellow cyclist do something incredibly stupid, it brings all of us down by convincing motorists that we do not belong on the road.

In my home state of New York, unless I am mistaken, the law states that we are to ride on the road, as far right as is safe. If there is a cliff to my right, heavy fog, loose gravel, etc. it may not be safe to ride as far to the right as cars might prefer. Safe travel is a balance and a mutual agreement met every time we use the roads, sharing with one another. It is all our responsibilities to respect fellow travelers, regardless of how it is that we choose to get around.

 

[JCD]

If you are reading this and you ride a bicycle then you need to know this little fact: YOU ARE A SLOW MOVING VEHICLE!!! YOU ARE NOT A PEDESTRIAN. You are not a motor vehicle but the same rules of the road apply to you.

That depends on the state in which you're riding. Here in Florida, for example, except where local ordinances dictate otherwise, cyclists have the option of riding on the road and following vehicle laws or riding on the sidewalks and following pedestrian laws. So, sometimes bicycles are vehicles; sometimes cyclists are pedestrians. I know Florida is not the only state with such laws. I also know that not all states allow adult sidewalk riding.

When and where I'm riding dictates my choice. Sometimes it is safer to ride on the street. Sometimes it is safer to ride on the sidewalk. There is no single correct answer.

I know Florida is not the only state with such laws. I also know that not all states allow adult sidewalk riding. Cyclists should familiarize themselves with their applicable laws and then make wise decisions when riding.

 

[Darell]

Well stated, Mr. Addict.

If all users of any resource (roads in this discussion) simply treat others as they would like to be treated, everything works. As soon as it becomes an entitlement issue, or a "what's in it for me" issue, we're all screwed.

 

[Steve K]

I agree with Darell's comment that this is a case of an idiot who happens to be on a bike.

I've been bike commuting for about 14 years now, and have been riding a lot for over 30 years. I cringe when I see someone doing something stupid on a bike, because I know that all cyclists will be paying the price in terms of public ill will.

My guess is that training is the solution. No one would disagree that driver training is essential prior to driving a car or motorcycle, but how many people get training for bike riding in traffic? I haven't seen any formal training in the USA. At best, some bike clubs help run bike rodeos to help give young riders some basic skills. I've helped a friend's scout troop work on their bike merit badge, which does involve some hands-on training and supervision, but this sort of training should be available to everyone.

Steve K.
(nice to see Darell back here at CPF!)

 

[compasillo]

I ride my bicycle as often as I can so the OP called my attention. But I think it's nothing to do with bicycles.
It is well known that common sense is the least common of the senses.
Apply this to every aspect of life and find thousands of situations of stupid people doing stupid things.
The bicycle is pure anecdote here. A great last-century Spanish physician stated that over 40% of the western world population
was on the fringe or within the idiocy, including what he called enlightened fools, that is, stupid people with a college degree.
I think over time this percentage has increased, unfortunately. The sense is a quality rather weak today...

 

[PCC]

I agree on all counts. I just wanted to get the message across that cyclists must follow the rules of the road.

 

[jtr1962]

I could literally write a book on this topic. Part of the problem are laws which are ill-thought out regarding bicycles. For example, New York State law treats bicycles exactly like motor vehicles with regards to traffic laws, except of course with the additional provision that they should keep as far right as practical. As a result, drivers often fume when they see cyclists roll through red lights or stop signs, because, after all, according to the inane laws we're supposed to come to a complete stop at both. Problem is the law fails to realize you lose all mobility and balance coming to a complete stop. Moreover, because of the lower speeds and MUCH greater visibility of bicycles, coming to a full stop at stop signs or red lights to check for cross traffic isn't necessary. Idaho has it right. They allow cyclists to treat red lights or stop signs as yield signs. A cyclist must slow down enough to check if it's safe to pass through, and may do so if it is. This should be the rule in every state. I might have no problems stopping for red lights if there is one every couple of miles. However, try doing it in NYC where the lights are ill-timed for bicycles, so you get caught at almost every single block if you follow the letter of the law. This will wear out even the strongest cyclists. Sometimes even accelerating like a subway train taking off I often fail to make the next light. And not all cyclists can do that. Point of fact, most I've seen gather speed more or less.

Next is the idea that cyclists must keep to the far right at all times. Now I have no problems doing so if I have the room. And thankfully that is usually the case on most of the roads here in NYC. We even have cycling lanes on a growing number of roads. However, if I'm going to compromise my safety by going to the far right, perhaps because there is only a slippery shoulder there full of gravel, then it's not happening. I'm allowed to and will take the traffic lane. I'll also try to let cars pass periodically when I can safely do so, but note the operative word "safely". I'm not compromising my safety to save a motorist 30 seconds. Except for upgrades, I ride reasonably fast and I'm not delaying motorists inordinately if they're behind me for a couple of blocks. Heck, I've sometimes had motorists act like idiots trying to pass me in the traffic lane when I was doing over 30 mph on downhills. This was on city streets where the limit is 30 mph to start with. Don't get me started on the motorists who will dangerously pass me, and then cut me off, only to park or turn right the next block. What did they save, 1 second? At that point, I really think it's an ego thing-"must get ahead of the bike, must get ahead of the bike". Ugh.

Sidewalks? Technically not allowed here but if it gets to the point where I don't feel safe on the road due to traffic, that's exactly where I'm going. I'll give the pedestrians their space, and get off as soon as I can, but nevertheless, as with every other aspect of riding, my safety takes precedence over following the letter of the law.

Yep, I hate salmon ( i.e. wrong-way cyclists ). While I can find good, safety-related reasons for violating the letter of the law regarding red lights, stop-signs, and sidewalk-riding, there is zero justification for going the wrong way on one-way streets, and especially bike lanes. If you're too weak to ride a few extra blocks to avoid going the wrong way, then maybe you shouldn't be on a bike at all. I really had fun once when I was on the 73rd Avenue bike lane, doing about 26 mph, at night, under HPS lights which are good for nothing, and almost collide with some idiot cyclist going the other way. At a closing speed of ~45 mph, all I had time to do upon seeing him was jerk the handlebars to the right and pray ( I'm not even religious but pray I did ). Think of the scene in "The Empire Strikes Back" when Han Solo was flying through the asteroids. That's exactly what it looked like. He had no lights on his bike, either, and was dressed in dark clothing.

Joggers and baby carriages in the bike lane are fun also. We have great sidewalks literally everywhere. Why these people don't use them is beyond me. One time I literally ran almost right up the rear of a woman with a baby carriage in the bike lane. At night. Everything, clothes, carriage, was black. What the heck was she thinking? And another time a pedestrian decides to dart out from a blind spot behind a large truck, crossing in the middle of the street, just as I'm almost on top of her at about 32 mph. Thankfully she reflexively darted forward and I reflexively jerked to the right, or it may have been the end for both of us.

Darell has it right-no shortage of idiots walking, biking, or driving. Constant vigilence is the order of the day. I even look for cross traffic at green lights. This practice has saved my behind more than once. Yep, I just wrote a book here. I could write ten times this much.

 

[Per-Sev]

I was a avid bicyclist for many years my last year of riding I manged to ride 4,000 mile in 3 month's then I suffered a work injury and until a few months ago had never rode again I now ride a trike recumbent or a 3 wheeler and I don't feel safe riding in the road anymore so I ride on the sidewalks most of the time. I will ride on the side streets but when it comes to a main street I take to the sidewalk. I can't ride at the same pace as I used to of course but I still have problems at cross walks where drivers pull up to far and don't allow me to get by, so I have just sit there till the next light and hope they see me before they block the crosswalk again. I am not in a hurry anymore so when I ride up behind a pedestrian walking I politely say excuse me and they usually say I am sorry and ask me about my unusual bike or just give me a weird look. It can still be fun to ride slow at least I can get out of the house now and see the sites.

 

[JCD]

I agree on all counts. I just wanted to get the message across that cyclists must follow the rules of the road.

Agreed, when cyclists are operating on the road. When operating on the sidewalks, they must follow the rules of the sidewalk. The cyclist in your example did neither.

 

[JCD]

Part of the problem are laws which are ill-thought out regarding bicycles.
…

Sidewalks? Technically not allowed here but if it gets to the point where I don't feel safe on the road due to traffic, that's exactly where I'm going. I'll give the pedestrians their space, and get off as soon as I can, but nevertheless, as with every other aspect of riding, my safety takes precedence over following the letter of the law.

It's ironic that my city government has prohibited sidewalk riding in the exact area where street riding is most dangerous to cyclists and most inconvenient for motorists.

The street in that area is two way, one lane in each direction, with parallel parking on both sides of the road. Staying to the right side of the lane isn't safe due to door hazards, so taking a full lane is the only safe legal option. This means that when traffic is heavy (most daylight hours), a cyclists obeying the law in a safe manner will inevitably slow down all of the the motor vehicle traffic in that direction to bicycle speeds.

Not surprisingly, the sidewalks are also widest in that area. As a courtesy to motorists, I ride on the sidewalk, in violation of the law. As a courtesy to the pedestrians, I slow down substantially, to a speed much more similar to walking.

The ordinance is indeed poorly thought out.

 

[HarryN]

While I agree with many of the posts, I do take substantial issue with some aspects of bike laws.

a) DUI - I have heard of people getting a DUI while riding a bike. Honestly, I would much rather have people riding a bike and drunk than driving a car, and I don't consider them the same thing at all. If someone is REALLY drunk and doing something so bad on their bike, cite them for public intoxication or some other minor crime, not DUI.

b) Bike lane sidewalks. - If you are local to these, you know what they are, but my family was not familiar with them at a college we visited and nearly had a collision. Our fault - yes, but I didn't feel that the markings / separation were nearly sufficient for the sharp differences in speed vs the pedestrian area, esp. for children.

c) Riding on sidewalks - I think riding on sidewalks is fine, esp. for low speed use. There is no way I would want my kids riding their bikes on the local streets around here.

 

[Mjolnir]

Part of the problem (maybe not for the guy in the anecdote, but for me at least) is that cyclists often are not given the same rights as cars by motorists, so it is not really fair to hold them to all of the same rules.

Someone can't consider a bike to be the same as a car but also feel that it is fine to veer out into the oncoming lane just to pass a cyclist in the road (which happens all of the time).

In one instance, I was on my bike going 10 MPH over the posted speed limit (this was down a hill with an unnecessarily low speed limit) and cars STILL felt the need to honk at me for riding in the middle of the lane, and still passed me (via the oncoming lane). On top of this, the section of the road I was on had "no passing" signs on it.

Would you pass a car going 35 in a 25 mph zone if there were "no passing" signs? Of course not. However, people seem to thing that they don't need to respect bikes the same as motor vehicles.

If a cyclist is traveling at the same speed as traffic, then they should be allowed to ride in the middle of the road. Several of the roads that I regularly ride on have very small shoulders that have overhanging branches, bushes, and other things that I would rather not ride too close to. Because of this, I will often ride in the center of the road, but only when I am going at about the speed limit. People still feel that, since they are in cars, they can honk at me and pass me, even though I am not going any slower than a motorist.

In fact, I once had someone pass me while I was going 40+ MPH down a hill in an area with a speed limit of 30 or 35. People assume that, because we are on bikes, we are automatically slower.
Of course, riding on the wrong side of the road is never a good idea on a bike.

 

[dudemar]

Sadly the one thing that all these issues have in common is common sense. If everyone just took an extra second and thought about their action before doing it, this world would be a MUCH better place. Yes, I really believe this.

The ones that really make me LOL are:

-riding against traffic

-no safety equipment (a helmet, for example)

-being under the illusion they are immortal

-if you try to correct/tell the rider what he/she did wrong, the single most common response is "WHAT???"

-riding at night with little to no lighting or reflective clothing

 

[get-lit]

While I agree with many of the posts, I do take substantial issue with some aspects of bike laws.

a) DUI - I have heard of people getting a DUI while riding a bike. Honestly, I would much rather have people riding a bike and drunk than driving a car, and I don't consider them the same thing at all. If someone is REALLY drunk and doing something so bad on their bike, cite them for public intoxication or some other minor crime, not DUI.

I never understood this one either. Seriously what are they going to do? take your driver's license away? What does it matter, you don't even need one on a bike! And without a license, you haven't signed a consent for breathalyzer testing, so they can't even test you! Too funny.

A close friend lost his license due to a "real" dui, and now he rides a bike everywhere. Now if he wanted, he could ride his bike while intoxicated, and now he can refuse the test without having to worry about losing his licence because he don't have one anyway. It's such a silly unenforceable law.

Same thing with boating. You can lose your license, but you don't need one on a boat. Everyone should just give up their driver's licenses and stick with bikes and boats, and then no one is ever subject to the breathalyzer ever again.

 

[cheapbastard]

reminds me of this thing that happened here recently, I don't understand why, but cyclist vs pedestrian and a woman ended up dead

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/ne...ies-after-attack/story-e6frewt0-1225870083144

 

[KC2IXE]

A lot of stupid riders, and a lot of stupid drivers out there

BTW folks, DON'T ASSUME that the riders are going slow - I was nearly killed one day 25 years or so back when a woman just HAD to speed up to pass us, then turn into the driveway right in front of us - we were in a paceline, slight downhill, wind at our backs, and were doing 32 in a 30mph zone, on the shoulder - folks - you see a pack of riders - TRY and judge their speed BEFORE assuming they are going slow

When we were training, we used to average around 20mph, up and down hill, so you can guess the kind of speeds we'd reach on the flats/downhills

BTW, in certain areas, to prevent that kind of problem, if we were doing the speed limit(+), we'd actually move OUT into traffic and take the lane - as we would start to slow, back onto the shoulder

 

[Darell]

Part of the problem (maybe not for the guy in the anecdote, but for me at least) is that cyclists often are not given the same rights as cars by motorists, so it is not really fair to hold them to all of the same rules.

We agree completely here. I've said the same thing more times than I can count. Add to this the fact that there are MANY instances where following the "rules of the road" is more dangerous for everybody than doing what is safest. So simply begging cyclists to follow these (automobile) rules of the road misses the point of trying to make everybody safer. What we really need to be saying is "don't be an idiot." I think that pretty much covers all the issues we all have with all drivers of all forms of transportation.

The rules of the road are created for cars. At some point we started trying to fit bicycles in around the cars on the same roads - and pretending that everybody was a "vehicle." Well, cars aren't bikes and bikes aren't cars. They have vastly different performance characteristics, different visibilities, can't fit in the same places and can't be seen with the same facility.

Probably my favorite example about how "following the rules" makes everybody less safe is at an intersection when the bike is legally as far right as is safe. So you have a car in the right lane, and a cyclist to his right, both sitting at the limit line waiting for the green light. The light goes green and the interseciton is clear. The car wants to turn right and the cycle wants to go straight. So the obviously safe thing to do as a cyclist is to take the lane in front of the car. And more times than not - the car driver gets ticked off because in his eyes, I'm not "following the rules of the road" even though now he can turn without worrying about me, and I can go straight without worrying about him. Everybody is safer, yet the driver sees me as taking advantage of being on a bike. :sigh:

 

[Darell]

>> Constant vigilence is the order of the day. I even look for cross traffic at green lights. This practice has saved my behind more than once.

Yes indeed. And here again is an example of how we need to do what's safe... not just blindly follow the rules. We are so accustomed to be told exactly what to do at every intersection, that many people totally forget how to think for themselves. They see a green light and they go...instead of making sure the intersection is clear first... but why bother? The light is green. That means I'm following the rules. When the power is out everybody freaks out because they have no idea how to deal with a controlled intersection that is suddenly not controlled!

This morning I watched a Mom in a minivan taking her daughter to school. She came to a stop at the stop sign (following the rules!) and as she was stopping, a student stepped off the curb to cross in front of her. Well, the minivan driver had done exactly what the sign had told her to do... and now that she'd stopped, she started driving again. Without looking to make sure it was safe to proceed. The kid at the cross walk stopped in amazement to watch the minivan drive right across her path.

No, the mode of transportation does not matter. But hey look! The driver of the car stopped, so it's all good. NOT.