Car as Weapon
Today I saw two instances of people being threatened by drivers. One was a cyclist who had to take the lane to pass a parked truck and some major potholes. The driver tailgated him while laying on the horn. The second was when a woman walking a dog was still in the crosswalk as the signal changed to green for the cross street. The driver accelerated hard across the intersection, stopped just short of the crosswalk, and of course layed on the horn.
We desperately need to have transportation options other than driving, if only because a lot of people don't have either the intelligence or temperament to do it responsibly.
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Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Heather on
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It's terrifying sometimes. About a month ago we were biking down Belden and waited our turn at a four-way stop to cross. But while we were crossing, we weren't fast enough apparently for a BMW driver, who threateningly drove into the intersection and stopped just a few feet from us. We didn't know if he was going to stop or not. And just last night a car in Pilsen turned right in front of us while we were walking across the street (and had the walk sign), barely missing us by inches.
I drive and I get frustrated often, but I've never done this kind of thing. I'm not sure what the answer is.
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Permalink Reply by Michael A on
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A lot of people drive like assholes to other cars too, we just see it more as a threat when we are so exposed as a cyclist or a pedestrian. I have been driving more lately and have notice just how many drivers just are jerks. Cars roll through stop signs, make U turns, Turn from the incorrect lane, pass on the right only to have to merge back into traffic 30 yards later. BE CAREFUL OUT THERE!
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Permalink Reply by El Dorado on
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I just read a article that said that drivers of BMW and owners of blue automobiles tend to be the most aggressive. Just remember that they have a license plate number and we can remain anonymous during a confrontation. I find when I wear my bikeregistry monster chain around my shoulder I tend to get a bit more respect.
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Permalink Reply by Lisa Curcio on
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My husband, who rarely rides his bike, and I had this conversation just the other day. I thought that my perception that drivers are more aggressive now than in the past was because I ride my bike every day. He said it seems the same from inside the car. People just seem to feel entitled to get that one car ahead. He or she is apparently the most important person in the world and all of the rest of us had just better get out of the way. And I don't think BMW drivers seem any worse than old clunker drivers when it comes to this. I don't think it is a matter of education--it is a matter of culture. We have to change our culture!
Michael A said:A lot of people drive like assholes to other cars too, we just see it more as a threat when we are so exposed as a cyclist or a pedestrian. I have been driving more lately and have notice just how many drivers just are jerks. Cars roll through stop signs, make U turns, Turn from the incorrect lane, pass on the right only to have to merge back into traffic 30 yards later. BE CAREFUL OUT THERE!
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I think the underlying issue here is that there are no consequences for drivers driving recklessly. There are very few police officers on the road, and even when they see many of the behaviors listed above they don't bother issuing citations, so the drivers have no reason to stop acting this way.
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Permalink Reply by Steve Courtright on
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I agree with Lisa et al. - its the culture, partly. I also think the car companies have been working on our culture for a long time to ensure that cars are the dominant form of transportation.
The fact that we as a society tolerate the risk for an elective activity (driving motor vehicles) that results in over 33,000 deaths a year is evidence that we have been drinking the cool aid.
If that many people died from airplane accidents or eating popcorn or playing bingo - it would be outlawed.
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Permalink Reply by Adam Herstein on
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Steve Courtright said:The fact that we as a society tolerate the risk for an elective activity (driving motor vehicles) that results in over 33,000 deaths a year is evidence that we have been drinking the cool aid.
If that many people died from airplane accidents or eating popcorn or playing bingo - it would be outlawed.
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Permalink Reply by Skip Montanaro 0mi on
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My wife and I drove through the Lower Ninth Ward of New Orleans ever-so-briefly Saturday morning. Our first thought was, "looks a lot like Gary." While nobody would argue that the response after Katrina in the Lower Ninth was anything approaching what it should have been, it is much part of the country's collective consciousness than Gary. Yet one could argue that the problems in Gary (or a number of other rust belt cities) are just as bad as the Lower Ninth's. Gary's demise occurred over decades, not overnight, so I think it was largely invisible.
The same is likely true for deaths involving cars. They occur over a long period of time, not all at once, so either we slowly get desensitized to the problem or are never aware of it in the first place.
I'm not sure what the appropriate term for this phenonmenon is, though I imagine psychologists have come up with something.
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Permalink Reply by Michelle S on
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I read this article from 2012 in Governing recently and thought it was spot on. We need stronger laws that hold drivers accountable for their actions when they injure or kill bicyclists and pedestrians. The author points out that there are plenty of bike lanes in the Netherlands, but that's not what keeps the bicyclists safe; rather, it's that drivers are held legally accountable for their actions. Changes in our laws would help change the culture of driving.
Without laws protecting bikers and walkers, however, the goal of having truly livable cities in America remains out of reach. Legal lines are more important than physical lines. Creating the right laws to govern the interactions among walkers, cyclists and drivers is more effective than painting new stripes for a bike lane.
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I don't think there are any data showing that tougher laws increase safety. Surely there aren't drivers out there that think that they might as well risk killing pedestrians and bicyclists because they won't face severe penalties.
It would be much more effective to look at the behaviors that caused accidents, and step up education and enforcement of laws that caused these accidents. From what I know the most common reasons for bike/car accidents are doorings and motorists turning in front or pulling out in front of a bicyclist. When was the last time you heard of someone being ticketed for this? How many people do you think would stop this behavior if the authorities increased the penalties for doing it?
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I agree with you both, Skip and Michelle.
But in addition to the slow desensitization regarding the dangers of driving autos, there has been a concerted effort by the car manufacturers in romanticizing car culture. This has resulted in a culture where the auto is dominant. There are several generations of folks who have only romanticized ideas about automobiles. That seems to be changing among the "millennials" many of whom will be making less money than their parents and have reduced expectations regarding stable jobs and single path careers. Cars are now viewed by some as a serious liability in the cities with respect to high cost, serious health consequences and lack of convenience compared to bikes.
(http://www.amazon.com/The-Geography-Nowhere-Americas-Landscape/dp/0...)
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For the majority of Americans, driving a car is the most dangerous thing they do on a daily basis.