http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/bic ... story.html

discuss

I was so miffed by the author's suggestion that drivers hit cyclists, that I canceled my subscription (of 10+ years).

grrrr

I'm a biker, runner, driver and pedestrian and a-holes exist everywhere, but in my opinion, arrogant urban bikers are the worst.

This thread probably belong over in Off-Route. After all, it's not about hiking, climbing, or such.

OK. I moved it.

Why? It is a perfectly legitimate topic for the main forum.

"SummitPost is a collaborative content community focused on climbing, mountaineering, hiking and other outdoor activities."

Urban bicyclists are such a bunch of idiots, they don't even follow the rules of the road. Half the time they demand the same rights as a car, and in a flash they demand the rights of pedestrians while still mounted, e.g., they'll bicycle across a crosswalk and insist that they have the right-of-way of a pedestrian. (Got news for you: if you want the rights of a pedestrian, then get off your fucking bike and walk.)

I agree with having bike lanes. Whatever it takes to keep the bicyclists out of the way is fine with me.

I guess we can't discuss gym climbing.

I don't think there will ever be peace between cyclists and peds/drivers. The problem lies with there being too many dumbass bikers who can't gauge and interact with cars...that is being able to read what/how a driver is going to react from the biker's action. All it takes is a little eye contact and mutual understanding. I am a bike commuter, and yes, I do bike a little recklessly and illegally here and there. I have been biking in urban areas for over 10 years and over that time I feel like I have been able to learn the ways bikes and cars interact. I think most drivers aren't familiar with a biker mentality, get scared or nervous when they drive near them, and what ensues are horns honking, finger gestures exchanged, and sometimes worse. That being said, there are plenty of idiot bikers who just plain have a death wish, or are completely unaware of their surroundings. Both cause problems. From a driver's standpoint, it may seem like bikers make rash and dangerous decisions all the time. News flash; a biker (99% percent of the time anyway) is not going to go kamikaze and all of the sudden steer into traffic. Most people enjoy their life. From a biker's standpoint, you do need to assume every car DOES NOT know you are there. But, if there is no immediate danger (like cars speeding by right there), I see no problem in steering yourself across a road or running stopsigns/lights, etc. Unfortunately not many bikers can do this very well.

I'm not at all saying that any of this is safe or that people should bike like this, I am saying that there are "reckless" bikers out there who CAN bike the way they do and not get in harm's way.

Also, the whole crosswalk thing. What exactly is the reason why driver's get so irked when bikers ride across a crosswalk? Wouldn't you, as a driver, want to wait ~5 seconds for someone to RIDE their bike across the crosswalk than wait ~30 seconds for someone to WALK their bike across the crosswalk?

I walk, bike and drive, but I hate bikers when I'm driving. The problem with many bikers is that they think they are still walking, fast as it might be, and they should be able to go through red lights, cross walks, ride on side walks and zigzag between a line of cars at an intersection. Some years ago, this biker hung onto the back of my SUV. I saw him and leaned on the horn. He finally let go and flipped me off. I stopped to fight him, but he backed off, thankfully because he could have beaten the hell of me. We did exchanged a few choice words. Another time, two teenagers intentionally turned in front of me to make me slam on the breaks. They stopped and laughed at me.

Marcsoltan wrote:Some years ago, this biker hung onto the back of my SUV. I saw him and leaned on the horn. He finally let go and flipped me off. I stopped to fight him, but he backed off, thankfully because he could have beaten the hell of me. We did exchanged a few choice words. Another time, two teenagers intentionally turned in front of me to make me slam on the breaks. They stopped and laughed at me.

You have never had a car drive too close on your tail or one cut you off? There are assholes utilizing every mode of transit. You also don't help the situation by physically confronting people.

Paved roads were made for bicycles. Really. Cobblestones were fine for horses and carts, but in the days of the penny-farthing/ordinary bicycle/high-wheeler (before cars were invented) going over the bars hitting a cobblestone and bashing one's head in was a huge issue. The result was paved road. Cars have taken over roads, but cyclists have just as much right to use them as they did before cars were even around.

I am a cyclist and to a lesser degree a motorist. I have learned while cycling that following traffic laws will get me killed. Abiding by the law is reckless. For example, I was hit by a car last October while riding in the bike lane. Following the rules. A car came from behind and made a right turn into me at a sidestreet. At the last moment I saw the car and yelled and banged on the window. Only the front end of my bike went under the car. If I had not things would have been much worse.

As a cyclist you have to think about what every car around you might do. In a high traffic and low speed area where I can keep up with traffic I take a full lane. As a bike you have to stay to the right by law, but you also have the right to a full lane of traffic because bikes are classified as vehicles (in the US). So I suppose this is not breaking the law but it is not very friendly to cars. Motorists may not like it, but I am not slowing them down usually. Even if I am slightly, the penalty to me of sitting in the bike lane in such a spot is eventually getting hit which is not acceptable to me. The same goes for stop signs and lights. As long as there is not a separate right-turn-only lane, I will take a full lane of traffic. The most common way for a cyclist to get hit is a car making a right into them at an intersection. I know quite a few people who have been hit in this situation. The penalty to a car is a few seconds of time to pass me. The penalty for me is putting my life in danger. As a motorist I realize that cyclists have to make decisions such as this to stay safe. I know how cyclists are analyzing situations and try to be as courteous as possible. To be perfectly honest, as a motorist I see the problem of inconsiderate cyclists to be overblown. Some riders could get over more, but generally I think cyclists do their best to stay safe. Why should they risk their lives so my commute is 15 seconds quicker?

Another example is a six-lane intersection that I ride through on most rides. I have the choice of getting from the bike lane on the right to the left-hand turn lane (through three lanes of 80-kph traffic). If I made it to the left hand turn lane, from there I need to get to the right lane and make a right within 100 meters of the intersection. This is abiding by the law and just plain stupid. I don't plan on getting hit so I take the sidewalk. Yes, it is illegal but I value my own safety over the rule of law. On the sidewalk pedestrians have right of way, so I am careful to give them right of way in the crosswalk.

I don't hear cyclists calling for cars to be taken off the road, even though we get more than our share of abuse dished at us, but I do hear motorists who cannot accept that bikes have a right to be on the road even though the trouble they deal with is very little compared to cyclists. Just a thought...