Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by discobandito on September 23, 2014 at 5:22am

John, as a daily rider of bike share, I'm sure some might feel I fall in the realm of the mythical "Divv-iot", but I'll bite.  In my experience, Divvy riders are no worse than non-Divvy riders in following the rules of the road.  Sure, I would conjecture that Divvy lends itself to a larger proportion of inexperienced riders sharing the streets/LFP/trails, but I see just as much salmoning/shoaling/sidewalk riding/shenanigans out of the non-bike-share crowd.  Pick your season though.  Summer vs. Fall/Spring combined, I'll bet you a beer that there's a higher instance of unsafe riding, but it would be hard to find a quantitative result proving that it's a Divvy rider.

Permalink Reply by Tricolor on September 23, 2014 at 5:51am

A lot of tourists are hesitant riders and wobble a bit, but they're going so slowly they're easy to spot and work around with extra space.  No different than someone on foot taking in the sights.  I've seen a few timid souls on the sidewalks downtown but they're also quite slow so it's not a huge hazard.

Permalink Reply by Rich S on September 23, 2014 at 5:55am

I work in the building above the Divvy station on Illinois & McClurg which I believe is one of the top 3 busiest stations in the city. It's also the same building with the Bobby's Bike Rentals. I see the exact same behavior from many riders of both. Namely riding on the sidewalk at a slow pedestrian-like speed. Some might be a bit faster but nothing crazy or dangerous. I haven't witnessed any instances of Divvy riders getting into any kind of argument or incident with pedestrians here. 

I see some newbie mistakes from Divvy riders here and there but nothing really dangerous or too stupid. Nothing like the girl who ended up on Lake Shore Drive last summer! I see way more dangerous and reckless riding from some of the regular commuters on my route that aren't Divvy riders. 

Permalink Reply by Mike Schwab on September 23, 2014 at 5:55am

http://bicyclesafe.com/

Permalink Reply by John Greenfield on September 23, 2014 at 6:42am

I agree with you on most points clp -- I'm not arguing that these folks on slow bikes are creating a a major safety problem, at least not for other people. I'm just curious if other people feel they've observed a higher rate of lawbreaking among Divvy riders, and if lawbreaking Divvy riders tend to be newbies to Chicago cycling.

I had an interesting experience myself where I encountered a line of about six adults riding at a moderate pace for several blocks on Jackson in the Loop. When I spoke to them at an intersection, it turned out they were visiting from Sao Paulo, Brazil. When I explained that adults have to ride bikes in the street here, their leader said, "What? It says right here [on the headset] 'Walk bikes on sidewalk.'" It turns out that the Portuguese for "to ride a bike" is "andar de bicicleta" or "to walk by bicycle." No wonder they were confused.

Permalink Reply by Jim Reho on September 23, 2014 at 7:17am

     Overall, based on many bike rides from around 40th and Western to the Daley Center area, I would say that the Divvy riders are slightly better at following the rules than other riders.  The mistakes they make, generally, seem to be out of inexperience or lack of knowledge rather than willfulness.  Also, many of them seem to be experienced urban riders and are actually better than average at riding safely.

     Again based strictly on my own experience, I have been pleased with the way that Divvy riders have integrated with the general bike-riding population.  They just ride their bikes and don't seem concerned with being the fastest or coolest.  I like that.  Overall, I like them just fine.

  

Permalink Reply by discobandito on September 23, 2014 at 7:30am

Hey now... I think my best was between 18-19 with a stiff headwind behind me. Freaked the snot out of a commuter paceline I passed on Halsted one afternoon.  And, may I recollect a young man on a Divvy at the Chi Cross Cup last winter?  Dude carried his bike over obstacles faster than people were riding. :)

clp said:

After all, how fast can you get going on those cast-iron machines while pulling an electrical generator?

Permalink Reply by Tristan Jackson on September 23, 2014 at 7:35am

At night, some of the bike share people seem a little extra goofy because Divvy is one of the best ways to go from bar to bar if you want to save on cab fare. But they aren't much of a danger to anyone around them, because, like others have said, the bikes are too heavy to go very fast. They are mostly a danger to themselves because they don't wear helmets. And, of course, we are all safer if the majority of drunk people are riding Divvys instead of driving cars. 

Permalink Reply by Tristan Jackson on September 23, 2014 at 7:45am

haha someone should put together a Divvy only race

discobandito said:

Hey now... I think my best was between 18-19 with a stiff headwind behind me. Freaked the snot out of a commuter paceline I passed on Halsted one afternoon.  And, may I recollect a young man on a Divvy at the Chi Cross Cup last winter?  Dude carried his bike over obstacles faster than people were riding. :)

clp said:

After all, how fast can you get going on those cast-iron machines while pulling an electrical generator?

Permalink Reply by millenial removing Bernie tattoo on September 23, 2014 at 7:59am

Its the absurdly low top gear that makes Divy slow, not the weight.
 
Tristan Jackson said:

At night, some of the bike share people seem a little extra goofy because Divvy is one of the best ways to go from bar to bar if you want to save on cab fare. But they aren't much of a danger to anyone around them, because, like others have said, the bikes are too heavy to go very fast. They are mostly a danger to themselves because they don't wear helmets. And, of course, we are all safer if the majority of drunk people are riding Divvys instead of driving cars. 

Permalink Reply by Tristan Jackson on September 23, 2014 at 8:08am

low cus it's heavy as shit. what's the ratio? cus i dance like lance, so low gears don't bother me 

envane (69 furlongs) said:

Its the absurdly low top gear that makes Divy slow, not the weight.
 
Tristan Jackson said:

At night, some of the bike share people seem a little extra goofy because Divvy is one of the best ways to go from bar to bar if you want to save on cab fare. But they aren't much of a danger to anyone around them, because, like others have said, the bikes are too heavy to go very fast. They are mostly a danger to themselves because they don't wear helmets. And, of course, we are all safer if the majority of drunk people are riding Divvys instead of driving cars. 

Permalink Reply by Rich S on September 23, 2014 at 8:40am

Oh your discussion title and OP made it sound like you were looking for unsafe rather than illegal. Two different things. 

Any responses you get will be anecdotal. I personally don't think I see higher rates of lawbreaking by Divvy riders. I would even say less relative to people riding their own bikes. But I've never counted or kept track. Since you are researching for an article I suggest picking a busy intersection or stop sign and get some data. Note the number of cyclists you see on Divvy vs. non-Divvy and record instances of laws being broken. Do that at a few places for a few hours each and you'll have some data that will likely be representative of reality. 

Otherwise it's just opinions and hearsay. 

John Greenfield said:

I agree with you on most points clp -- I'm not arguing that these folks on slow bikes are creating a a major safety problem, at least not for other people. I'm just curious if other people feel they've observed a higher rate of lawbreaking among Divvy riders, and if lawbreaking Divvy riders tend to be newbies to Chicago cycling.

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