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My indoctrination to properly yielding to cyclists, before I was one, was being yelled at. But this wasn't just irate yelling. It was Boulder, CO, where it came

by cmurf 10y ago

My indoctrination to properly yielding to cyclists, before I was one, was being yelled at. But this wasn't just irate yelling. It was Boulder, CO, where it came with a somewhat detailed explanation. The behavior changed due to the explanation, the yelling merely got my attention. Every angry driver I've experienced in this car vs bike debate has not merely been ignorant of the law, they think they know they law but haven't though their version through well enough to realize how totally unworkable it'd be if it were true. So it's a conversation, to increase the number of better informed drivers. This job should be the state's since they license drivers, ostensibly they should know the rules or fail the test. But politics being a factor, you're probably right. In the U.S. maybe cyclists should join the NRA en masse, buy guns, and start using them to shoot out tires when threatened. Oh yes, this is surely illegal self defense, but then, the car also was being used illegally to target a much smaller vehicle and its rider. Tit for tat. But somehow I keep wanting to think the U.S. can be more civilized than regression back to wild west era. Stealing or killing a man's horse would get you shot back then, and the sheriff wouldn't have anything much to say about the matter. My bicycle is kinda like my horse. But I really don't want to carry a gun when I'm biking, if that's what it comes down to, I think I give up riding in the streets. I'd estimate my near misses, bike vs car, are 1 in 1000. It's really small. Smaller than when I'm in a car, and it's car vs car. I've only had one driver intentionally try to drive me off the road while yelling that bikes belong on the sidewalk (illegal in Denver) not in the street (a legal right). I think he might have behaved differently if his world view weren't so totally backwards.

antisthenes 10y ago
Unfortunately, the driver was right (from a physics standpoint), if incorrect from a legal stance. Bicycles are much closer to pedestrians in terms of protection and kinetic energy than cars in every conceivable measure, so ideally they belong on the sidewalks which can accommodate both pedestrians and bicyclists. Or on separate bike lanes. Unfortunately, the US doesn't have any biking infrastructure, so the legislators decided to dump cyclists on the road with the motorists, which is the easy (and stupid) way out.
- cmurf 10y ago
  I don't see how you draw the line. From a physics standpoint the same applies to motorbikes and cars. I feel much, much safer around scooters and motocycles than cars. And while creating dedicated infrastructure for bikes sounds nice, the problem is that it just increases the misunderstanding by many drivers that bikes shouldn't legally be in the road. And it does nothing to arrest this ignorance which is just as important in city neighborhoods, country roads, and state highways, where it is legal to ride a bike, and there is no possible way to have dedicated biking infrastructure.

by cmurf 10y ago

antisthenes 10y ago

Unfortunately, the driver was right (from a physics standpoint), if incorrect from a legal stance. Bicycles are much closer to pedestrians in terms of protection and kinetic energy than cars in every conceivable measure, so ideally they belong on the sidewalks which can accommodate both pedestrians and bicyclists. Or on separate bike lanes. Unfortunately, the US doesn't have any biking infrastructure, so the legislators decided to dump cyclists on the road with the motorists, which is the easy (and stupid) way out.

cmurf 10y ago
I don't see how you draw the line. From a physics standpoint the same applies to motorbikes and cars. I feel much, much safer around scooters and motocycles than cars. And while creating dedicated infrastructure for bikes sounds nice, the problem is that it just increases the misunderstanding by many drivers that bikes shouldn't legally be in the road. And it does nothing to arrest this ignorance which is just as important in city neighborhoods, country roads, and state highways, where it is legal to ride a bike, and there is no possible way to have dedicated biking infrastructure.