“Moral weightlessness” of cyclists?

[Harry Meatmotor]

I think there’s also an underlying view of cycling as a childish activity or something only poor people do (because, if they weren’t poor, they’d be driving a car). Mix in a dose of low-level homophobia (since a lot of us males wear tight fitting clothing while riding) with the moral light-weightedness and you’ve got a perfect storm of ‘Murican scorn.

[PotomacCyclist]

There’s the mistaken notion, still held by many, that drivers pay for all of the costs of road construction and maintenance, so some/many drivers feel entitled to exclusive use of public roads, i.e., the “if you want to use the roads, pay for it” argument. Or more like “get off my road!” even though drivers do not pay for all road costs, and even if they did, the roads are still public infrastructure.

There’s the widespread attitude of aggression among many, whether related to cycling or not, that is part of an exaggerated go-getter mentality, which seems to excuse verbal and sometimes physical threats toward anyone seen as different. You see clear evidence of this in discussions about cycling, on every single bike-related article and discussion. Where else is it acceptable for so many to call for widespread assault and even murder? There have been articles about this, and most of us are familiar with the comments that some post about “seeing cyclists as bowling pins,” or “get out of my way or I’ll run you down.” Not everyone makes these comments, but it’s not rare.

[americancyclo]

@Harry Meatmotor 97435 wrote:

Mix in a dose of low-level homophobia (since a lot of us males wear tight fitting clothing while riding) with the moral light-weightedness and you’ve got a perfect storm of ‘Murican scorn.

I chuckle to myself whenever I hear about this, because most mainstream ‘muricans watch 22 dudes in spandex grabbing all over each other every week on TV during the fall.

[jrenaut]

@americancyclo 97441 wrote:

I chuckle to myself whenever I hear about this, because most mainstream ‘muricans watch 22 dudes in spandex grabbing all over each other every week on TV during the fall.

That’s different, there’s permanent brain injury going on there. It’s tough!

I’ve heard many times about cyclists changing attitudes of angry drivers when the point that the cyclist is a person is clearly demonstrated. You hear studies about the relative passing distance given to people based on how they’re dressed. And for the most part (though not always, thanks Howard homecoming drunkards) I get more space and more “aww, that’s cute” vs “GET OUT OF THE ROAD” when I’m riding with the kids.

Being in a car is dehumanizing. We look at those around us as other cars because we know if we hit them, most of the time it’s just some broken plastic and bent metal and a phone call to the insurance company.

As for the benefits to society – I don’t think people like to be reminded of those. Especially those who currently don’t have any reasonable choice besides driving alone a long way to work in heavy traffic. Who wants to be reminded that the cyclist is not only healthier than you, but is also having a much lighter environmental impact than you? I think that’s an argument that has to be reframed in order to change more driver attitudes.

[baiskeli]

@Harry Meatmotor 97435 wrote:

I think there’s also an underlying view of cycling as a childish activity

Yes, I think that’s a big factor. In the U.S., most people think of a bike as either a child’s toy or at least an adult recreational activity rather than a way of getting around, and therefore not as “serious” as a car.

[AFHokie]

@baiskeli 97444 wrote:

Yes, I think that’s a big factor. In the U.S., most people think of a bike as either a child’s toy or at least an adult recreational activity rather than a way of getting around, and therefore not as “serious” as a car.

This entirely. Most Americans just don’t view bicycles as transportation. Your average American views cycling as a recreational activity/workout. Look at the majority of bikes bought and sold in the US. How many ‘commuter’ bikes vs road/mountain, etc are bought each year?

If bikes were viewed as transportation in the US, I think we’d see more bikes with fenders, a dyno & mounted lights, a rack/trunk system adequate for two bags of groceries/ a backpack, etc and some sort of built in lock system.

Plus as others have mentioned; bike attire. You don’t typically dress in special clothing before hopping in your car for a trip to work or the store. That reenforces the ‘it’s a workout/recreation’ activity mentality.

[peterw_diy]

I would prefer the phrase “social weightlessness” as “moral weightlessness” sounds like “amoral” or even “immoral”.

[OneEighth]

@AFHokie 97450 wrote:

You don’t typically dress in special clothing before hopping in your car for a trip to work or the store.

Wait…I have leather driving gloves in my glovebox.

[Geoff]

If I were able to write anything other than technical discussions and short forum posts, I would write a book titled “The Unbearable Lightness of Cycling.”

[arlrider]

@Harry Meatmotor 97435 wrote:

I think there’s also an underlying view of cycling as a childish activity

Soooo very much agree with this. Which is why, personally, I push back against a lot of cycling “activism” that makes cycling look even more childish. Referring to the street corner sign waving crowd. Sorry to say it, but I don’t view you as helping our cause to be taken seriously.

The flip side of this is that, while a lot of absolutely TERRIBLE behavior riding comes of this, I think that CaBi has made a net positive impact on the perception of cycling in our community. It has taken a huge step towards humanizing cyclists. CaBi riders don’t wear spandex and cleated shoes; you often see people in suits with portfolios, or bags of groceries, etc. This is a big step in changing this existing American mindset towards the way people think about cycling in much of the rest of the world – an extremely pragmatic, functional, and versatile mode of transit that a lot of people utilize in their daily lives.

[Greenbelt]

I pretty much ride everywhere with a pannier on the rack now, even if it’s empty (although I usually throw in an extra shirt and 3 or 4 pounds of snacks, just for emergencies). Drivers are more courteous, I think, when they see a giant roll of toilet paper or a couple eggplant sticking out from my giant Ortlieb.

[oldbikechick]

I think another big issue is that people think of cyclists as crazy, or at least see cyclists doing things that they would consider crazy, such as riding in the dark, or in bad weather, or on a very busy road. So, they may consciously or unconsciously have the attitude that “well, they are doing something crazy, they get what they deserve if they crash, get hit, etc.” I think this problem is only helped by there being more cyclists around doing these things, which would make it seem more normal. It also doesn’t help when cyclists do really crazy things, like speed through red lights and stop signs without a glance, or weaving between cars, etc.

[Alcova cyclist]

I think a large part of the perception divide is that so few drivers cycle at all. Cyclists are absolutely “other.” Many drivers just can’t imagine themselves being cyclists and so don’t spend a lot of energy thinking about how cyclists see things or how drivers’ individual and group actions negatively impact cyclists. Sadly, I think empathy dissolves pretty quickly when someone can’t imagine ever being under the circumstances of the “other.”

I also think jrenaut is spot-on that many drivers actually understand the environmental and personal impact of driving so much in SOVs but don’t have better choices. People get defensive about this sort of thing and are instantly put off by others ostentatiously claiming the moral high ground — terms like the “moral weightlessness of cyclists” reinforce the image of the cyclist as that smug, self-satisfied jerk who reminds you of where you are lacking.

There also seems to be a bizarre (to me anyway) political aspect to cyclist-driver debates. As the left-right divide seems to grow more rancorous each year, even issues that seem non-partisan become polarized through the left-right lens. Since cycling in general, and cycle commuting in particular, is viewed as something people concerned about the environment do, it’s perceived as a “lefty” activity, and therefore fair game for abuse/trolling/invective from the RW fringe.

[dplasters]

@wheels&wings 97433 wrote:

In other words, bikers tend not to be taken as seriously as drivers — their injuries or deaths do not count as much as those of other people on the road.

A niggling point here but,

As a country we don’t really take any injuries or deaths related to road use seriously. We don’t really respond to your grandma getting killed in the crosswalk or little jimmy getting hit on his bike riding to school. We have HUGE amounts of transportation deaths in the US. We ignore basically all of them. The mode of transportation doesn’t really much matter.

I wouldn’t say that a cyclist’s death means less than a driver’s death. Cause we honestly don’t care at all if a driver dies either.

When a Cyclist gets killed there is a snippet in the news, it will say they weren’t wearing a helmet and the comments will say “figures”. When there is a car crash and someone dies we talk about the traffic impact on 495.

[jrenaut]

@Alcova cyclist 97473 wrote:

There also seems to be a bizarre (to me anyway) political aspect to cyclist-driver debates. As the left-right divide seems to grow more rancorous each year, even issues that seem non-partisan become polarized through the left-right lens. Since cycling in general, and cycle commuting in particular, is viewed as something people concerned about the environment do, it’s perceived as a “lefty” activity, and therefore fair game for abuse/trolling/invective from the RW fringe.

There are definitely some things being done to work this angle – getting people in shape reduces health care costs for the whole country, getting people out of cars makes traffic better for those who still drive – but as far as I can tell it hasn’t been very effective. I try to tell people that, while I am a bit smug about my carbon footprint, it’s not why I ride my bike. I ride because it’s an inexpensive and efficient way to get around, it lets me exercise without carving time out of my busy day to go to the gym, and at the end of the day I am happier when I bike than when I drive. The environmental benefits are nice, but they aren’t my motivation.

[Author]

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