Missed connection

[Tania]

Too many to list all of them this am, but here’s one incident:

Me: headed down the Rosslyn hill on the Custis trying to avoid getting run down or into by pathletes.

You (a cyclist, in front of me): blowing through the red light without even an attempt to slow down and almost getting creamed by a silver Audi sedan who had the right of way.

Nice job.

[mello yello]

During yesterday’s deluge, as I was heading home:

Me: making my way down 15th St N in front of the Jail, having just run into a puddle and soaking my shoes
You (lady in a blue coupe): throwing open the door of your car and charging out like it’s on fire.
Me: Woah! + evasive maneuvers with water sheeting down the street.
I hope you got wet. Missed connection indeed!

Later…
Me: crossing MLK Ave to head up Good Hope
You (dude with dreads): Sup White Man! (at least, I hope it was ‘sup, not something like I’ll f you up, white man)
Me: h-hey (puts on burst of speed)

[TwoWheelsDC]

Riding down East Capitol in the rain last night, there was a guy on a bike a ways in front of me and, as we’re riding, a cab pulled into the bike lane to drop off a passenger…now, I tend toward the vehicular cycling end of the cyclist spectrum, so I don’t really get bothered by this type of thing, but what did make me “WTF?” was that the cyclist in front of me passed the cab on the right in the narrow space between the cab and parked cars. Do not do this.

[scoot]

6:30pm yesterday

Me: riding CaBi southbound on S Joyce passing Pentagon Row, taking right lane
You: beige SUV, VA Gadsden flag plates, approaching from behind, with no one else around
You: honk
Me: continuing to pedal
You: honk
Me: deliberately signaling a move into bike lane, moving into bike lane after passing the last parked car
You: passing me, gesturing wildly while pointing toward the bike lane
Me: mimicking you with a mirror image of your antics (pointing toward the still empty left lane)

I wish I could have refrained from engaging you in this nonsense, but it can tough to resist sometimes.

I also wish the street design didn’t fuel this missed connection by implying that bikes don’t belong in the lane. If I ride in the middle of the bike lane, I’m in the door zone; also my ability to see and react to wayward pedestrians is compromised. If I ride at the left edge of the bike lane, I’m clear of the doors and have a bit better visibility, but I get buzzed too frequently by drivers who don’t adjust their line. Taking the lane prevents unintentional buzzing, and it provides the most space and best visibility, but it leads to interactions like the one above.

[GovernorSilver]

If it ever became legal for cyclist to throw tennis balls at vehicles, SUVs would be a frequent target of mine.

[TwoWheelsDC]

@scoot 142293 wrote:

6:30pm yesterday

Me: mimicking you with a mirror image of your antics (pointing toward the still empty left lane)

I frequently have to ride on Chain Bridge road through McLean, which is two lanes in each direction…the number of drivers who clearly seethe (and occasionally honk) at being “trapped” behind me, while failing to utilize the empty lane immediately to their left to pass me, astounds me.

[scoot]

@TwoWheelsDC 142287 wrote:

Riding down East Capitol in the rain last night, there was a guy on a bike a ways in front of me and, as we’re riding, a cab pulled into the bike lane to drop off a passenger…now, I tend toward the vehicular cycling end of the cyclist spectrum, so I don’t really get bothered by this type of thing, but what did make me “WTF?” was that the cyclist in front of me passed the cab on the right in the narrow space between the cab and parked cars. Do not do this.

I think it’s actually preferable that cabs, delivery trucks, etc. move as far right as they can when stopping, even if they have to block a bike lane to do it. Passing such vehicles on the left is almost always safer than trying to pass them on the right.

[scoot]

@TwoWheelsDC 142297 wrote:

I frequently have to ride on Chain Bridge road through McLean, which is two lanes in each direction…the number of drivers who clearly seethe (and occasionally honk) at being “trapped” behind me, while failing to utilize the empty lane immediately to their left to pass me, astounds me.

Some people seem to treat switching lanes as more of a burden than it really is. Many are probably driving distracted, and thus haven’t allocated enough cognition capacity to attempt any driving maneuver beyond staying in their lane and not hitting the vehicle in front of them.

However, it’s also my perception that drivers are a bit more understanding when there are no bike lanes. Especially so when sharrows are painted, such as on George Mason or Walter Reed Drive. In places like Pentagon Row, I worry that the existence of the door-zone bike lanes emboldens these drivers. Many of them probably have no idea why I would use their lane instead of the bike lane.

[lordofthemark]

@scoot 142302 wrote:

Some people seem to treat switching lanes as more of a burden than it really is. Many are probably driving distracted, and thus haven’t allocated enough cognition capacity to attempt any driving maneuver beyond staying in their lane and not hitting the vehicle in front of them.

However, it’s also my perception that drivers are a bit more understanding when there are no bike lanes. Especially so when sharrows are painted, such as on George Mason or Walter Reed Drive. In places like Pentagon Row, I worry that the existence of the door-zone bike lanes emboldens these drivers. Many of them probably have no idea why I would use their lane instead of the bike lane.

I note that you and KLizotte (IIRC) have both mentioned the Joyce Street Lanes as places where drivers seem to have and express the belief that the presence of a bike lane means that bikes do not have the right to take the lane. Is there something about that location – the geometry (the curve? the median?), the mix of drivers, that makes it a hot spot for such behavior – or do you think it is that this area has more folks who prefer taking the lane (because of parking turnover, or because there are more VCish riders up there, or because the extra lanes means it SHOULD be easier for drivers to pass) or do you think I am simply missing such behavior in other places (because I personally seldom take the lane in preference to a doorzone bike lane)

(aside – I do wonder how dooring incidents break down, compared to ridership, between door zone bike lanes and other locations – I note yesterdays dooring related incident on 19th street – the rider was not actually hit by the door, but was severely harmed when she swerved to avoid a door – happened on a street with no bike lane. I would like to think that a striped bike lane signals to parkers to be aware of bikes, but I have no evidence that actually happens)

[bentbike33]

Speaking of door-zone bike lanes, what do people think of the new lines painted on the (blissfully) repaved sections of Williamsburg Blvd? I was driving there Monday evening to a friend’s house. There is a cross-hatched ~18-inch buffer painted between the bike lane, which while including the door zone is exceptionally wide, and the car lane. Looks like it would be easy to be in the bike lane, largely out of the door zone, and have cars go by obeying the 3-foot rule. Benefits of overbuilt-for-cars infrastructure being put on a road diet I guess.

[Steve O]

@bentbike33 142315 wrote:

Speaking of door-zone bike lanes, what do people think of the new lines painted on the (blissfully) repaved sections of Williamsburg Blvd? I was driving there Monday evening to a friend’s house. There is a cross-hatched ~18-inch buffer painted between the bike lane, which while including the door zone is exceptionally wide, and the car lane. Looks like it would be easy to be in the bike lane, largely out of the door zone, and have cars go by obeying the 3-foot rule. Benefits of overbuilt-for-cars infrastructure being put on a road diet I guess.

Yes, just rode there yesterday. That is a blissful section. Can’t wait for them to get the entire length repaved.
Of course, the lane ends and there are still the sections where we have to mix with cars.

Also, can they do anything about the hills? It still goes up and down and up and down.

[bentbike33]

@Steve O 142317 wrote:

Also, can they do anything about the hills? It still goes up and down and up and down.

I thought that is why we all love it so?

[scorchedearth]

To the nu-hipster on the technicolor fixie on the trail alongside Arlington Mill yesterday around 5:15pm: perhaps you wouldn’t be weaving all over the trail if you weren’t so enraptured by your telephone.

[TwoWheelsDC]

To the guy wearing bibs over a t-shirt last night….I’m perplexed by your choices, but hey, you do you man.

[ian74]

@TwoWheelsDC 142323 wrote:

To the guy wearing bibs over a t-shirt last night….I’m perplexed by your choices, but hey, you do you man.

I have seen this occasionally, and I always want to educate them, but then again I’m not sure they do this because they don’t know not too, or if its a conscious choice.

Applies to the coworker in the locker room this AM who was wearing boxer shorts under his padded cycling shorts. I chafe just seeing that. Not that I was staring.

[Author]

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