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Nice of the Guardian to re-affirm its political biases by placing a blame jab to the "right wing media" in the subtitle of the article. Cyclists should be held

Nice of the Guardian to re-affirm its political biases by placing a blame jab to the "right wing media" in the subtitle of the article. Cyclists should be held to the same standard of traffic laws as vehicles are - full stop. Too many times I see cyclists: - Flying up on the right of a car when there's less than reasonable amount of room to squeeze between the car and the curbing. - Deciding to "run" red lights and choosing between the roadways or the sidewalks when it's more convenient for them. - Not wearing a helmet (subject to location but some places it's the law) - Not stopping at 4-way stops, not signaling their intent to turn/stop. - Multitudes of other illegalities/dangerous activity on the roadway. Bikes do not belong on roads. Like it or not society has decided that to get around in first-world countries (america centric here), you use a vehicle. It'll be a slow process to move towards bike-friendly traffic and more central walk-around locations to slowly wean us off using vehicles for everything. I'm not sure having cyclists weaving in and out of traffic made up of multi-ton death machines is a good idea either - I guess "rider beware" applies. The best thing would be to make sure any bikes and their riders that are on public roadways are licensed and train current law enforcement to fine/arrest any unsafe cycling habits. (we do this with cars and trucks already, why are cyclists seemingly exempt?) I don't have too much knowledge about current cyclist laws since I don't ride a bike and mainly drive, but I welcome more local traffic like bikes/walkers and less vehicles in urban centers.

doublerebel 4y ago
> Cyclists should be held to the same standard of traffic laws > I don't have too much knowledge about current cyclist laws Cyclists mostly put themselves in danger. Drivers mostly put others in danger. That's why traffic laws should be, and are, more enforced for drivers vs cyclists or pedestrians. There is plenty of historical precedent for cyclist laws and behavior -- including encouraging 'running' red lights and not stopping at 4-way stops -- if you look into it.
- scohesc 4y ago
  I wonder if it's an enforcement problem. I don't like this "enforce vehicles more than cyclists" when both types of traffic are using the road. Police know they can't get large fines out of people who ride bicycles - unfortunately it seems a lot of cyclists might not be able to afford a riders license, or registration for their bike - maybe that's why enforcement is so low? I don't know all the factors and everywhere in the world is different with their laws and enforcement avenues.

doublerebel 4y ago

> Cyclists should be held to the same standard of traffic laws > I don't have too much knowledge about current cyclist laws Cyclists mostly put themselves in danger. Drivers mostly put others in danger. That's why traffic laws should be, and are, more enforced for drivers vs cyclists or pedestrians. There is plenty of historical precedent for cyclist laws and behavior -- including encouraging 'running' red lights and not stopping at 4-way stops -- if you look into it.

scohesc 4y ago
I wonder if it's an enforcement problem. I don't like this "enforce vehicles more than cyclists" when both types of traffic are using the road. Police know they can't get large fines out of people who ride bicycles - unfortunately it seems a lot of cyclists might not be able to afford a riders license, or registration for their bike - maybe that's why enforcement is so low? I don't know all the factors and everywhere in the world is different with their laws and enforcement avenues.