Now that Fort Wayne has joined the "accommodating bicycles" trend, could ugly disputes be in our future?
New York now has 482 miles of bike lanes, with plans for 1,800 miles to appear by 2030, according to the Journal — all to accommodate a daily ridership that may have doubled since 2005. But the three parties have yet to learn to live together, as Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer recently found. Over a three-day period this fall, Stringer's staff observed 1,700 infractions by cyclists, drivers, and walkers alike:
“We've got seniors who think bike lanes are walkways. We've got police cars using bike lanes as a quick way around town. We've got taxi cabs pulling up so close to the bike lanes that a passenger gets out and actually doors a cyclist,” Mr. Stringer said in a recent interview in his office.
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Guess I have to nuke some of the citation links since no one's apparently watching the moderation queue.
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OK, I know this is a crazy thing to do, but I'm trying to be sensible here, ... So even though it isn't safe to do so because THE ROADS SIMPLY AREN'T WIDE ENOUGH, you would do it anyway just, what, out of spite ? There are lots of old laws on lots of law books that are out-of-date and haven't been changed just because of time and money issues - we all know that. If the road isn't wide enough to accommodate a bike and a vehicle without the vehicle moving to the left across the center line, don't you think that's a tad dangerous and just a little childish of bike riders to insist on "their right" and put everyone in a dangerous situation ?
Larry, you're fighting a losing battle with him. Common sense is not applicable, he is an absolutist. There is no middle ground, until the day he dies (probably on the front grill of a Freightliner) he will ride down the middle of the road endangering everyone.
He is a disciple of http://critical-mass.info/
"If the road isn
Larry and Tim can't get over the fact that the rules of the road are the same for CARS and BICYCLES.
Because a car can cause more damage, that means, from their logic, the bicyclist should defer/take a back seat/cede to the 2,000 pound monolith because hey, cars rule the road. They just can't get it into their outdated minds just because a car is bigger and faster, it doesn't have any legal advantage over a bike, motorcycle, moped or rickshaw.
AJ
That's part of my point - I live 13 miles outside the closest town and there is one way to get there, down a 2 lane county road (one lane in either direction) and there are no shoulders to speak of. In 13 miles, the center line(s) are marked such that there are only 2 places I can legally pass someone. Some of our county roads down here have very wide, paved shoulders and bikes are fine on those roads. Not on the one I use into town, there simply isn't room, I guess I
So if someone lives on that country road you speak of, then they are poop out of luck? Or should you just then drive slowly behind them, grinding your teeth in anger, before one of the two places to legally pass come up, from whence you can pass them.
Sounds like a solution to me.
AJ
Apparently, what I'm hearing from the bikers in the group (if I can use that term very loosely) is exactly that - I'm supposed to FOLLOW them until I get to one of the 2 places where I can pass - assuming no oncoming traffic - and grit my teeth at 5 or 10 miles an hour the whole way, ...
That's what they're telling ya Larry! It's about their rights damnit!! Kinda funny really, with all the "rights" to be concerned about in this is world, this is the one you make your stand with?
Interesting choice.
"THE ROADS SIMPLY AREN
:-)
How many bikes travel at 5 mph? The slower one rides, the more difficult it is to stay up right and the more unsteady the rider becomes. Assuming a bike is traveling only 5 mph, it is traveling at 7.3 feet per second. A runner can run a mile in six minutes or 10 mph.
To be honest with you, I find it difficult to ride as slow as 10 mph even up a hill.
It is not that bikes are slow, but that many bikers have grown up not obeying the traffic laws. Police have allowed them to get away with this. The other day while walking down town I was nearly hit by a bike that turned onto the side walk right in front of me, oblivious to everything. This is a bad biker and gives all bikers a bad rep.
In all the miles I have traveled by bike, I find that most drivers are courteous and share the road. There have been a few who pass when it is unsafe and waiting a few seconds or pulling into the other lane would have been preferable.
We are a republic with democratic principals. Trying to take ones rights away is a difficult proposition. When you buy land, it must have access to public right of ways such as roads, otherwise it is considered land-loc and cannot be sold. This nation was built on the ability of people to travel freely. I would say there are far more bikes in the US than there are cars.
Have a good night.
William, there are aproximately 250 million regsitered motor vehicles on the road.
http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/2010/tables/10s1060.pdf
My guess is there aren't anywhere near that many bikes.
Tim, I really have no idea how many bikes there are in the US. Based on sales, garage sales I have been to and the number of bikes I have seen on properties in Fort Wayne, San Diego, Orlando, Lynchburg, Bremerton, San Fransisco, Seatle and riding around the US, It would be my guess there are over 350 million bikes in the US considering there are 330 citizens. My family of seven have 13 bikes. My brother has five bikes. Garages are full of bikes.
However, maybe another contributor can provide a link to some data on bikes.
Here is a link to bike sales in the US by category.
http://nbda.com/articles/industry-overview-2009-pg34.htm
In 2009 they sold 14.9 million bikes. They sold 20.9 million in 2000. Mountain bikes are the leader and my guess is my type of bike is the leas sold (light weight, expensive and used for road racing).
How many cyclists are killed and injured by year http://www.bikeleague.org/media/facts/#crash
8. Who is involved in bicycle crashes?
"In 2001, the average age of cyclists killed in crashes with motor vehicles was 36.0 years, up from 28.1 years in 1990. Most of those killed in 2001 were male (91 percent) and between the ages of 5 and 44 (65 percent)." http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/pdf/nrd-30/ncsa/tsf2001/2001pedal.pdf
9. What is the economic cost of crashes involving bicyclists?
The Federal Highway Administration estimates that the comprehensive cost of each person killed in a traffic crash to be $2,900,000 (2000 dollars). Multiplying this number by the 728 bicyclists killed in 2000 totals $2.1 billion.
A 1991 study, The Costs of Highway Crashes by the Urban Institute and Federal Highway Administration, calculated the average nonfatal injury cost per person involved in a motor vehicle crash. In 2000 dollars, the average nonfatal injury cost per person involved in a motor vehicle crash is $61,375. Multiplying this number by the 51,000 reported injury crashes in 2000 totals $3.1 billion.
11. How safe do people feel bicycling?
The Omnibus Survey completed for the Bureau of Transportation Statistics in February 2003 asked all respondents how safe they felt using different modes of transport. When asked:
How satisfied are you with how your local community is designed for making bike riding safe?
22.57 % were Very Satisfied
31.32 % were Somewhat Satisfied
17.55 % were Neither Satisfied, nor Dissatisfied
16.84 % were Somewhat Dissatisfied
11.73 % were Very Dissatisfied