People for Bikes hops on the "blame the cyclists" bandwagon

Should be well-received, since most cyclists these days seem to think that other cyclists are their biggest problem.

http://www.peopleforbikes.org/blog/entry/the-gorilla-in-the-room#ke...

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Permalink Reply by Anne on October 3, 2013 at 1:02pm

As an ex-light runner, I am unashamed to yell at cyclists running lights now.

At Linden and Sheridan, just south of Bahai Temple, I lost my sh*t as half a dozen riders during the North Shore stopped, then blew, the light there.

The gorilla in the room is US

Permalink Reply by S on October 3, 2013 at 5:50pm


I didn't realize that violating traffic laws didn't matter as long as no longer gets hurt.  I'm sure you'll give a similar snarky reply the next time someone talks about a close call with a car.


h' 1.0 said:

That's terrible. Do you know how many were injured?

Anne said:

As an ex-light runner, I am unashamed to yell at cyclists running lights now.

At Linden and Sheridan, just south of Bahai Temple, I lost my sh*t as half a dozen riders during the North Shore stopped, then blew, the light there.

The gorilla in the room is US

Permalink Reply by Reboot Oxnard on October 4, 2013 at 2:46am

Should be well-received, since most cyclists these days seem to think that other cyclists are their biggest problem.

Heretics! Blasphemers! Of course, this thread is on the chainlink, where the orthodoxy is that bicyclists are Ophanim and motorists are the spawn of Satan. Sometimes I'm amazed that some of the people on this forum are able to ride, considering their lack of balance and inability to see beyond their front rim.

The article isn't saying that bicyclists are the biggest problem - but is does say that bicyclists are sometimes part of the problem and, more importantly, are in a position to either hurt or help their own cause through their behavior. Sometimes, if you really want things to change, the place to start is within.

From the article:

Bike riders often fail to follow the rules of the road and sometimes ride unpredictably. This is more than a practical challenge to safe interaction with cars; it breeds mistrust and anger.

The most important part of this paragraph is the last five words. Perhaps, were we the angels we aspire to be, we would consider the long-term consequences of our actions before corking an intersection or slapping the window of a car that intrudes in our comfort zone. Never mind blowing a stop sign or a red light or breezing between cars stopped at a light. Or salmoning or shoaling. Or flying down the LFT screaming spittle at the perambulating obstacles. Or chaining a bike to someone's fence. Or some other not particularly heavenly behavior.

Permalink Reply by Duppie on October 4, 2013 at 3:06am

This.

On the Dearborn bikelane, the current crown jewel of Chicago bike infrastructure, I see a lot more bicyclists stopping for red lights than anywhere in the city. Makes me believe that if you design truly complete streets the scofflaw behavior of bicyclists will diminish.



Jeff Schneider said:

I think it's pretty clear we need better education about safe and courteous cycling.  But is that our biggest problem?  I think not.  Urban planning that has created spaces fit for cars and unfit for people is the BIG one.  All the education in the world is worthless if there is no place safe enough to put it into practice.

Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on October 4, 2013 at 3:12am

+1  Giving people good bike facilities provides much more of an incentive to ride within the law.

Duppie 13.5185km said:

This.

On the Dearborn bikelane, the current crown jewel of Chicago bike infrastructure, I see a lot more bicyclists stopping for red lights than anywhere in the city. Makes me believe that if you design truly complete streets the scofflaw behavior of bicyclists will diminish.



Jeff Schneider said:

I think it's pretty clear we need better education about safe and courteous cycling.  But is that our biggest problem?  I think not.  Urban planning that has created spaces fit for cars and unfit for people is the BIG one.  All the education in the world is worthless if there is no place safe enough to put it into practice.

Permalink Reply by Adam Herstein on October 4, 2013 at 3:12am

I always try to ride predictable and safely, but the burden of safety should be on those more capable of inflicting harm (people driving cars).

There's a reason that dangerous things require licenses (e.g. driving, guns, etc.) It's like blaming someone for getting shot, but not placing any of the responsibility on the shooter.

Permalink Reply by Rich S on October 4, 2013 at 4:13am

I'm not of a fan of this quote "Our counterparts in the Netherlands and Denmark ... advise us to work on making bicycling safer, but not talk about it publicly" but I don't think it's controversial. If you don't talk about safety then how do you get feedback from others and solicit their ideas.

Driving, cycling, and walking all have their own inherent dangers in various degrees. People don't shy away from talking about how dangerous driving can be during driver's ed. I remember a wrecked car being brought to my high school to show the aftermath. Why should cycling be any different? I get that it's not good to scare away potential new riders. But new riders should be aware of the dangers that are unique to cycling, such as getting doored, and be prepared to prevent and avoid them. 

I'm sure we've all read articles discussing how younger generations are eschewing cars for other modes of transport such as biking. I agree that there should be some "rider's ed" in schools. This would better prepare teens to share the road safely no matter what form of transport they choose.  


Cameron 7.5 mi said:

Am I the only the one here who honestly doesn't see what's controversial about the article. Beyond the normal platitudes to be nice, the only thing the article really advocated for was safety training for school kids. I really don't see anything wrong with teaching kids how to mitigate some of the dangers that they face going out in the world.

Permalink Reply by Charlie Short 2.9 on October 4, 2013 at 4:16am

I think this is a great article. The factors listed are those that can't simply be changed with more money. Perception is king when it comes to safety. Unsafe, and quite specifically, unpredictable cycling is a major factor in how people (motorists, peds, cyclists) feel about cycling. If people don't think cycling is safe, they won't ride, and if folks aren't riding, then the environment will continue to feel less safe for cyclists, and then even more people won't ride.

For those of us that ride everywhere everyday, we cannot simply wait for others to be safe before we do. Safety is the responsibility of every road user.

Permalink Reply by Mike Zumwalt on October 4, 2013 at 4:22am

It didn't say HOW she died? just a collision with a vehicle.

More often than not my close calls are from right turners and cars approaching me from behind not cross traffic or red light running on my part.

 

A marking for a "bike lane" is like any other line on the road, the people who obey the rules really don't need barriers to make cyclists safer, entitled a-hole drivers will be that way as a rule!

First pic, a typical bike lane in the U.S.

Second pic a bike lane in London.

 

 

Permalink Reply by daWillinChi on October 4, 2013 at 4:38am

I completely agree!

Duppie 13.5185km said:

This.

On the Dearborn bikelane, the current crown jewel of Chicago bike infrastructure, I see a lot more bicyclists stopping for red lights than anywhere in the city. Makes me believe that if you design truly complete streets the scofflaw behavior of bicyclists will diminish.

 

Permalink Reply by Gort 12-mile Pinklegneep on October 4, 2013 at 4:40am

It's worth bearing in mind with all the Oh Goodness The Mixed Colloquialism In The Room Is Lawless Cyclists hand-wringing: cyclists obey the traffic laws more than motorists, and most of the cyclist and pedestrian deaths happened because a motorist broke the law. 

IMO the problem with the article is that it presents the dangerous behaviors of motorists as immutable forces of nature, but then blames the occasional cyclist who ever gets loosy-goosy with "breeding mistrust and anger," and then tries to draw some equivalency between a car hitting a cyclist and a person slapping the hood of a car. 

All of the calls for "personal responsibility" have to land on the shoulders of the cyclists. So you know what, if we're the only ones expected to take any responsibility, we get to be "holier than thou" all we want.

Permalink Reply by globalguy on October 4, 2013 at 4:50am

+1

Duppie 13.5185km said:

This.

On the Dearborn bikelane, the current crown jewel of Chicago bike infrastructure, I see a lot more bicyclists stopping for red lights than anywhere in the city. Makes me believe that if you design truly complete streets the scofflaw behavior of bicyclists will diminish.

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