Cyclists

[crazylegs]

Here's a rant I've been sat on for a little while now, thinking about how to word.

My argument about how cyclists are treated is not about those cyclists who break the law - they deserve whatever they get. It is not about lycra louts who weave in and out and bob around the traffic and treat the road like it's their own personal playground.

My argument is about trained and qualified cyclists doing what they need to do to ensure their own safety on the road.

I cycle. I cycle professionally as it were - when I'm at work I wear my work uniform and cycle. When I volunteer I cycle and wear that uniform (but because I don't have anywhere at my flat for a bike I can't cycle socially). Because of this I'm qualified to be an advanced cyclist. In theory my qualification means that I'm trained to cycle on fast dual carriageways (but quite frankly that would be suicidal). I cycle very well, how do I know this? Well, I get assessed regularly and my most recent assesor was John Franklin who described me as 'excellent'.

So now we've established that I'm qualified to talk about cycling let me talk about why cyclists do certain things. Please bear in mind this is UKcentric - if you're not in the UK other rules, ideas and training may hold sway.

I cycle away from the kerb. I will be no closer than 50cm to it, and generally a lot further away from it. I do this because I am a vulnerable road user.

I'll say that again.

I cycle in the main traffic stream because I'm a vulnerable road user.

Because I'm vulnerable I need to be constantly seen - and the only way to do that is to ensure that I'm in peoples sight lines. If I'm not in the main traffic stream people will not see me and will therefore not see my signals nor my change of direction. In additon to being seen I need to create space for myself. If I tuck myself into the kerb motor vehicle users will think "I can squeeze through that gap..." This is a receipe for disaster. I do not want an 18 wheeler thinking that (s)he can just "squeeze by" I want them to be able to say desicivly that it will be a Yes or a No and I only want it to be Yes when it is safe for both of us (because if that 18 wheeler ends up taking defensive manouvers it'll be me that's worse off).

I will sometimes cycle outside of a cycle lane. I do this because very often they are too narrow and the big strip of slippery white paint that marks the edge of it is exactly where I want my tyres to be. This gives me two options, I can cycle in the lane and not have enough space to perform emergency manouvers (because I have the kerb to my left and a motor vehicle to my right as there's now space for them to 'just squeeze through') or I c an cycle out of it and be safe. I will also generally avoid cycling on a shared foot/cycle path - generally for the safety of pedestrians but also because when people have their drives to their houses they're not looking for me and won't see me at all.

I will sometimes cycle slap in the middle of a lane. This is done especially at a roundabout. Roundabouts are f*cking dangerous places for a cyclist. Every mouth of a junction that I pass and there's waiting traffic places me at risk, so by cycling in the middle of the lane I will be much more easily seen. I'll also do this where there is a traffic island, again this is providing me with safe space. The island will reduce the amount of road space down to one lane so by moving to the middle I can ensure that no motor vehicle user will try to 'just squeeze by'.

There are times when I think 'this is just too dangerous' and I will get off and push, but that's rare and is generally at very large + complex roundabouts.

Cycling isn't a dirty word, those of us who maintain good observation skills and signal correctly and obey the law (there are as many of those as there are motor vehicle users who do exactly the same) are making ourselves safe, yes we may slow a motor vehicle down by 30 seconds or so, but your running late is not my fault.

Now, before anyone pipes up about the tax issue I have this to say to you. Vehicle excise licence does not pay for the roads. The vast majority of road (with the exception of motorways, which we can't use, and some major A roads) is maintained by the local authority money for which is obtained by council tax; therefore as a council tax payer I pay for the use of the road.

[Andara Bledin]

Now, before anyone pipes up about the tax issue I have this to say to you. Vehicle excise licence does not pay for the roads.

Even if it did, how much wear and tear do bicycles put on the road, anyway? I doubt they have enough weight to do enough damage to make the appropriate level of tax even worth collecting.

^-.-^

[lordlundar]

Even if it did, how much wear and tear do bicycles put on the road, anyway? I doubt they have enough weight to do enough damage to make the appropriate level of tax even worth collecting.

^-.-^

Well, you get enough overweight people looking to lose weight on bicycles..

I really know this feeling crazy:

-Drivers don't want me on the roads
-Pedestrians don't want me on sidewalks
-The only bike paths in my city are recreational and must be shared with pedestrians who don't want me on those either
-Any place apart from the above is trespassing

So overall I have legal priority access to maybe 2% of the legal territory I can be on, none of which does me any good and none of that I'm welcome on. Thank goodness that the police don't enforce the "no riding bicycles on sidewalks" bylaw unless you're being reckless.

[Andara Bledin]

This thread made me think of this comic.

This is BIKELAND

(this comic is SFW, but some of the others aren't, so read at your own discretion. Oh, and I won't take responsibility for anyone getting sucked into reading the archives )

^-.-^

[BlaqueKatt]

Oh, and I won't take responsibility for anyone getting sucked into reading the archives

great I just spent the last hour or so doing just that...and now I have no one to blame.....the beer drinking ghost is adorable.....

[Greenday]

There's an old saying: "When I'm driving, I hate pedestrains. When I'm a pedestrian, I hate drivers. But no matter whether I'm driving or a pedestrian, I hate cyclists."

My problem is the noticeable cyclists. The ones that ride in the middle of traffic causing everyone to slam on their brakes and slow down a lot. The ones that ride in the middle of the sidewalk and expect you to know they are coming up behind you and you are supposed to dive off the sidewalk so they can continue without having to slow down.

There's a lot of those.

[crazylegs]

My problem is the noticeable cyclists. The ones that ride in the middle of traffic causing everyone to slam on their brakes and slow down a lot.

If their in the middle of the lane surely you should have seen them long before it was necessary to slam on your breaks?

[Greenday]

When you are in a dark area and they just randomly cut into the lane? No, you don't see them far in advance.

[Cats]

When you are in a dark area and they just randomly cut into the lane? No, you don't see them far in advance.

Every place I'm aware of has laws saying cyclists needs to have front and rear lights on during non-daylight hours. And yes, they are bright enough to seen by a motorist who is actually paying attention. If a cyclist isn't using them, well, it's their own damn fault. And ANYONE moving in a dark area should be more cautious anyway, since you never know what's going to be there (an animal crossing the road isn't going to have lights and reflectors on it).



I ride my bike too and from work, and I constantly have a problem with motorists who DO NOT SLOW DOWN if they try to pass me when there's is barely enough room for both of us. I ride as far to the right as I safely can, but if there are large cars parked on the side, sometimes there isn't enough room for them to pass me without swerving onto the other side. I can't tell you how often I've nearly been hit because they didn't pat attention. The VAST majority of my riding is on a straight road, and I make sure I am visible at all times, so there is NO excuse to not see me in plenty of time. Thankfully, I have developed a sense where I can actually tell how big a car is and how fast and close they are behind me when they're a few hundred yards away, and I can brake and pull over very quickly if I need to (I've crashed into snow bank and even fallen off before as a result, thankfully with no actual harm done to me so far). I shouldn't have to do this, as I have as much right to the road and safety as everyone else.

In some places I will ride on the sidewalk (where I actually shouldn't be), but many palces in my town have the sidewalks so bad this isn't feasable.

I know most motorists do not deal with cyclists on a daily basis, and thus are unsure how they are supposed to handle it. But simply paying attention and slowing down and actually obeying the rules of the road (you know, sutff that should be done by any motorist [and cyclist, for that matter] when encountering anything out of the ordinary on the road), maybe we can actually share the road in peace.

What I really find funny is that now that I can't use some of the sidewalks on part of my commute due to the snow, I have no choice but to ride in the roads, which are already narrower than usual because of said snow. On the way home, part of it I actually ride IN the traffic (as opposed to just staying as far right as possible so motorists may pass), and I've run into LESS assholes. of course, this could be just because the morning commute doesn't go much faster than I am going anyway in those spots.



One day of the week, I do leave at 5 am, and since there's no one on the roads, I will ride in the middle of the lane (as it's MUCH faster), and I have to admit there is one red light I have to run. That light has a weight sensor, and if there's not a car on it (there's no spot for cyclists to trigger it like some other intersections), it will actually skip that part of the sequence and I will NEVER get the light unless a vehicle is in front of me or next to me to trip it. I learned that the hard way one morning. Of course, I do treat it as a stop sign and make absolutely sure it is safe for me to go before I do.

[Greenday]

Must be nice to live in an area where cyclists follow the rules and the rules are enforced.

[Lace Neil Singer]

Must be nice to live in an area where cyclists follow the rules and the rules are enforced.

Same. Tho I do sometimes come accross cyclists with common sense who obey the rules of the road and do their utmost to protect themselves on it, ie by wearing helmets, the vast majority of cyclists where I live are lycra louts and teenage morons. Sadly for them; I doubt that the car that they will eventually end up being scraped off will suffer.

[Racket_Man]

Every place I'm aware of has laws saying cyclists needs to have front and rear lights on during non-daylight hours. And yes, they are bright enough to seen by a motorist who is actually paying attention. If a cyclist isn't using them, well, it's their own damn fault. And ANYONE moving in a dark area should be more cautious anyway, since you never know what's going to be there (an animal crossing the road isn't going to have lights and reflectors on it).

every place MAY have laws but that does not mean the motorists OR the cyclists obey them.

In my city street lighing is AT BEST weak except at intersections. Now for my job (a delivery driver) I drive all over my area at all times of the day and night. I have to be VERY vigilant in my driving so as not to splat some "I am immortal" youngster

my experience is this

Summer or warmer weather bike riders:
1. reflective clothing or garments OR light colored clothing -- non exisistant
2. reflective or flashing light gear on cycle -- nonexsistant
3. obeying traffic laws -- non exsistant
4. obeying basic safety rules requarding cell phone usage or texting -- non exsistant
5. feeling like you own the road and eveyone should acceed to your royal bikeness-- very prevelant
6. using yoiur eyes and ears to perceive your surroundings -- non exisitant
7. using proper road equitette -- nonexsistant

Winter or colder weather
much the same thing
1. no lights or reflective clothing/gear
2. very dark clothing (hmmmmm yeah wearing light colors after Labor Day is a sin)
3. even the snow does not help me since the street lights are poor



and this experience is not unique to the town I live in now. this spans several towns and large metro areas.

I am in no way excusing motorist either. had too many bad experiences when my primary mode of transit was a bike. got lots of things thrown at me, attempted run downs or push overs, no yielding the right of way, "stalking", etc.

I think cycles should have the same requirements as motorcycles and cars ie. training and licensing. if you want to use the road use it correctly bike or car

[crazylegs]

Every place I'm aware of has laws saying cyclists needs to have front and rear lights on during non-daylight hours. And yes, they are bright enough to seen by a motorist who is actually paying attention. If a cyclist isn't using them, well, it's their own damn fault. And ANYONE moving in a dark area should be more cautious anyway, since you never know what's going to be there (an animal crossing the road isn't going to have lights and reflectors on it).

Absolutely.

People always ask me what a 'safe' speed for any given road is and I will, without fail, give exactly the same answer.

As fast as you can see to stop within the limit for that road.

So if it's dark and you can't see that much further in front, or the weather is crap then slow down. If you can't stop in the distance that you can see in you are going too fast, if there's a sharp bend in the road that stops you from seen round it then slow down until you have a decent seeing/stopping distance.

Observation and anticipation are so incredibly important as drivers. Anticipate that other road users (that's any type) may move into your lane without warning - especially those who are already flouting one rule (so in this instance your cyclist who doesn't wear decent clothing).

However bright clothing doesn't mean you will not be seen - decent positioning, observation and signalling on the cyclists part will ensure that everyone knows what the hell is going on.

[BlaqueKatt]

I recently read something that I find amusing and sadly true(not to mention good advice)

"Don't ride next to cars at intersections, think of the cars as affectionate cats that are going to try to rub themselves against you."

and as far as licensing cyclists, everywhere that has looked into it finds out it costs more than it brings in revenue wise, does nothing for education, and enacts a barrier to poor people that bike commute(hint I bike because a bus pass is $60 a month, and a car is too expensive, both monitarily and environmentally)

in Vancouver bike couriers are actually licensed and they’re the worst cyclists on the road-go figure.

Plus after taking that first driver's test.....do you still follow every rule of the road(never go a few miles over the speed limit, fiddle with the radio, eat/drink)? are you ever retested? I know people that after having their driver's license for years, and driving for years, fail the written test because they've forgotten the rules of the road. Heck me having never driven know them better than most drivers.

[crazylegs]

I recently read something that I find amusing and sadly true(not to mention good advice)

"Don't ride next to cars at intersections, think of the cars as affectionate cats that are going to try to rub themselves against you."

That's superb - I always cycle as if I'm invisible, works wonders.