Article: 9 Things Drivers Need to Stop Saying in the Bikes vs. Cars Debate

[DismalScientist]

As a cyclist, I hate the jaywalking pedestrians just as much as drivers do.

[Orestes Munn]

Especially old ladies, little ones.

[baiskeli]

@mstone 99598 wrote:

Actually they do. The same people who complain about bikes are also likely to say that jaywalking pedestrians are what makes the roads unsafe. There’s a little less hatred as are somewhat more comfortable with the idea of walking, but they’re consistently against anything that they perceive as slowing them down. (And consistently unable to recognize any problems with cars.)

SOME do, some don’t.

[mstone]

@baiskeli 99628 wrote:

SOME do, some don’t.

Hence the clever choice of the word ‘likely’ rather than ‘certain’.

[baiskeli]

@mstone 99633 wrote:

Hence the clever choice of the word ‘likely’ rather than ‘certain’.

Which was ruined by the preceding absolute declarative statement: “Actually, they do.” That’s what I was responding to.

[mstone]

@baiskeli 99639 wrote:

Which was ruined by the preceding absolute declarative statement: “Actually, they do.” That’s what I was responding to.

Go back one more message to “nobody” and you’ll finally have all the context.

[baiskeli]

@mstone 99699 wrote:

Go back one more message to “nobody” and you’ll finally have all the context.

Alright, Ms. Tone, you win this time. But I’ll be watching you, and just when you think you’re safe….

[lordofthemark]

So, I am riding on Saturday in the bike lane down 4th Street SE (heading from the WABA event in NOMA to USDOT where the Dew spent the weekend while my wife and I went to Balltimore). There is a moving truck being unloaded, and sticking the usual few inches into the bike lane. I wouldn’t have said anything, but they also had a black garbage bag of something flopped all the way across the bike lane. I tried to summon my inner dirt, and called “Please be so kind as to remove that from the bike lane” without TOO much snark in my voice, as I passed around it. I heard various grumblings from behing, including someone pointing out to me that I was stopped in the crosswalk (as I patiently waited for the light to change ) and the police would ticket me. So I called back “yeah, yeah” and went on my way.

[mstone]

you stopped in the crosswalk? who are we supposed to be rooting for in this story?

[lordofthemark]

@mstone 99853 wrote:

you stopped in the crosswalk? who are we supposed to be rooting for in this story?

I know I should have stopped behind the white line, but I could see better, and there were no pedestrians around. I will try to get better about that behavior, but I would be very doubtful the folks with the moving truck have never stopped in a crosswalk.

[dkel]

@lordofthemark 99867 wrote:

I know I should have stopped behind the white line, but I could see better, and there were no pedestrians around. I will try to get better about that behavior, but I would be very doubtful the folks with the moving truck have never stopped in a crosswalk.

Riding around in the suburbs as I do, I’ve had plenty of occasions where stopping behind the white line has caused cars not to pull up close enough behind me to trigger the sensor for the light, and there we sit. I tend to pull up across the line at least partway to avoid having this happen; if I’m in the crosswalk a little, so be it (I do try not to block the whole crosswalk) because I see very few pedestrians out here. I’d feel differently about it if I were downtown.

[cyclingfool]

Some safety advocates actually suggest pulling up into the crosswalk and using it as a de facto bike box to increase visibility. I say as long as you’re not impeding the flow of pedestrian traffic through the intersection, it’s all good.

[Author]

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