bending the law: streetlights en masse = bad
Bikers in Chicago have been able to skirt many of the traffic laws for a long while now, but I've seen evidence of what will eventually bring an end to that. When one biker comes to a red light, looks both ways, and rolls through an empty intersection, there is no harm done. But, on Milwaukee during rush hour, when you see the slough of bikers, all of various abilities skirting lights at various rates, you know things are getting out of hand, and there will have to be a crackdown. Let's avoid that crackdown and realize that when there is heavy bike traffic, we are starting to reach a critical mass of traffic that will have to be governed by laws; let's follow the spirit of the laws before the they are enforced in a letter-of-the-law kind of way.
Views: 72
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by vxla on
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Tommie said:
Nah, it's truly the hipster. Scenesters are too busy walking their tarck bikes up Milwaukee avenue.Hrm.
My point is that it is the scenster that you want to knock over not the hipster.
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Permalink Reply by Jon on
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I will blow the occasional red light, but in my defense, it's usually on clark or montrose at 5am on a weekday, and t'aint much/any traffic at that time. Honestly, riding the city streets early weekday mornings is such a pleasant experience that I only get to share with one or two other cyclists I see out there. And there's always waving, an excellent way to start the day!
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Permalink Reply by evanK on
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To clarify:
I blow lights as often as possible--I hate stopping--but I don't when there are cars coming that I will freak out. (being traffic is already stressful, we all should avoid adding stress to an already stressful experience) So I follow the idea of the stop light but think myself to be smarter than it: sometimes its binary thinking is an easy way to make sense of chaos, but sometimes it's inefficient and frustrating. It's not a moral issue--you're not a bad person if you go through lights--but I think we should be more sensible about how and when to prevent a black-or-white crackdown on every biker that rolls lazily through a nuisance light at 2 in the morning.
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Permalink Reply by Bart on
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How early in the morning is this? I've never gotten friendly waves and I ride around 7am most days. Usually I feel like I just get glares from other cyclists.
Jon said:I will blow the occasional red light, but in my defense, it's usually on clark or montrose at 5am on a weekday, and t'aint much/any traffic at that time. Honestly, riding the city streets early weekday mornings is such a pleasant experience that I only get to share with one or two other cyclists I see out there. And there's always waving, an excellent way to start the day!
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Permalink Reply by 2slowtrek on
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I treat all red lights like stop signs. Slow down or stop and do my track stand. Wait until it is completely clear, than go.
I do not hinder traffic, and hope that traffic does not hinder me.
Am I breaking any laws besides j-walking?
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Permalink Reply by Chris on
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I always prioritize when it comes to others on the road. #1 watch out for pedestrians(cuz we should all know they always have the right of way under any circumstance), #2 watch out for other cyclists cuz theyre the same as me, #3 watch out for cars to the effect of dont let them hurt me: aka i dont give a shit about motorists ive been hit too many times, gottin flicked ciggs at, thrown garbage at, swerved into while being threatened by the motorist telling me they would kill me...etc. So ive bettered myself to the extent that i dont let every asshole get me fired up i just try and keep cool most of the time and just ride on.so with lights i just avoid getting hit at all costs but almost always i dont need to stop
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