US Transportation Secretary and Bikes
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At the risk of having the hamsters set upon me, I find the converse is the problem. There is a heavily used cycle lane sharing paths with pedestrians the cyclist are totally reckless, I've almost been hit several times. Additionally they don't require mudguards, so they flick dirty puddle water at your with impunity, and I live in the UK, so the place is covered in puddles pretty much permanently. Driving next to them is almost as bad. At night, normally they don't have any lights (which is illegal) or they have flashing lights (also illegal) which totally distract you from everything else. For some reason the cyclists don't feel the need to obey the traffic lights and/or will cross half via the pedestrian crossings half via the road, change lanes with no warning and completely block the road at the 5mph they seem to be able to attain. Worse, I don't particularly want to see some lycra clad individual's a*se sticking into my face, with the possible exception of Natalie Portman or similar :-).
Dalek Dave: There are many words that some find offensive, Homosexuality, Alcoholism, Religion, Visual Basic, Manchester United, Butter. Pete o'Hanlon: If it wasn't insulting tools, I'd say you were dumber than a bag of spanners.
Try a couple of miles on bike and see how you feel :) Yes l agree there are some cyclists who have little regard for other users. On the other hand how many bicyle riders have injured / killed people? Personally l'm far more concerned about car drivers than l am about some dirt or how my arse looks in lycra ;P Oh did mention the car/van/lorry/bus drivers that for some reason don't feel the need to obey the traffic lights and/or will cross half via the pedestrian crossings half via the road, change lanes with no warning and completely block the road / cycle lane, open doors without looking, think they can over take me with 2 inches to spare, regardless of the oncoming traffic / weather conditions etc opps did I start ranting :omg: my bad.... must be these inconsiderate people l share the roads with as a car driver, bike rider, pedestrain :-D
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At the risk of having the hamsters set upon me, I find the converse is the problem. There is a heavily used cycle lane sharing paths with pedestrians the cyclist are totally reckless, I've almost been hit several times. Additionally they don't require mudguards, so they flick dirty puddle water at your with impunity, and I live in the UK, so the place is covered in puddles pretty much permanently. Driving next to them is almost as bad. At night, normally they don't have any lights (which is illegal) or they have flashing lights (also illegal) which totally distract you from everything else. For some reason the cyclists don't feel the need to obey the traffic lights and/or will cross half via the pedestrian crossings half via the road, change lanes with no warning and completely block the road at the 5mph they seem to be able to attain. Worse, I don't particularly want to see some lycra clad individual's a*se sticking into my face, with the possible exception of Natalie Portman or similar :-).
Dalek Dave: There are many words that some find offensive, Homosexuality, Alcoholism, Religion, Visual Basic, Manchester United, Butter. Pete o'Hanlon: If it wasn't insulting tools, I'd say you were dumber than a bag of spanners.
It's a vicious circle.. Cars don't treat cyclists legally (as a vehicle, pass in another lane, signal when passing, etc), so cyclists start using footpaths. And those of us that stay on the road like we're legally required to by law, develop a form of insanity from dodging cars. Flashing lights get more attention than a single light, and the whole point of those lights are for out next of kin to prove in a courtcase that the driver could see us. Legal doesn't matter. Bike lanes are full of junk flicked there by cars wheels, so if you're using a road bike, you're going to buckle the rim and take a fairly hard fall onto ashpalt, most likely into the path of an oncoming truck. Then motorcyclists will use it, or a car will slide in to turn off. A few km down the road. No offense to walkers, but people wander, no-one seems to be able to walk in a straight line, so riding on a shared lane really is dodging pedestrians. :P Then it's illegal to ride a bike on the footpath, in Aus at least. Doomed if we use the road, doomed if we use a bike lane, doomed if we use a shared lane, doomed if we use the footpath. 'melts bike down for molotov parts and declares revolution'
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Try a couple of miles on bike and see how you feel :) Yes l agree there are some cyclists who have little regard for other users. On the other hand how many bicyle riders have injured / killed people? Personally l'm far more concerned about car drivers than l am about some dirt or how my arse looks in lycra ;P Oh did mention the car/van/lorry/bus drivers that for some reason don't feel the need to obey the traffic lights and/or will cross half via the pedestrian crossings half via the road, change lanes with no warning and completely block the road / cycle lane, open doors without looking, think they can over take me with 2 inches to spare, regardless of the oncoming traffic / weather conditions etc opps did I start ranting :omg: my bad.... must be these inconsiderate people l share the roads with as a car driver, bike rider, pedestrain :-D
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"According to Dft figures 2007 was a particularly bad year resulting in a total of 3 deaths being caused by cyclists – the annual average in the UK is usually less than one – none of those who died were killed on the pavement. In the same year of over 600 pedestrians killed 54 were killed on the pavement by motor vehicles." (see 3rd article) I agree the pavement is for people, whats needed is proper cycle lanes, to that l refer you to Holland excellent example.
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In some of those cases, the cyclist was definitely at fault. In the first case, it was criminal. Being that he told the girl that he wasn't stopping is enough to show intent. This sounds like a good candidate for a murder trial. The first and second examples show gross negligence on the part of the cyclists. The fourth story also shows negligence that could be remedied in a civil trial (wrongful death). The others cannot say if the cyclist or the pedestrian were wrong. There were no witnesses, only a recording of their deaths. Is it possible that the pedestrians were into their own worlds and oblivious to their surroundings? As far as Sgt Tony Burden said: "There is no such thing as causing death by dangerous or careless cycling. There is only careless or dangerous driving which the Crown Prosecution Service thought because of the seriousness of the offence was too minor”, he needs to be retrained (or awakened). As we can see, yes, death can be caused when a bicycle and a pedestrian collide. Even out here (San Jose, CA), we have a problem with people walking their dogs while riding their bicycles. Even one caused a death when the dog’s leash wrapped around an older lady’s legs on a paved trail, causing her to fall backward and hit her head. She died later that night. If a bicyclist, auto driver or any other driver does not follow the rules, that is against the law and a crime. The perpetrator should (must) be held accountable. If the criminal court cannot do its duty, then a civil trial for compensation should be pursued.
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You just have to learn to see the humor in all things (assuming you survive the experience, of course). SUVs, almost none of which have seen the business end of either Sport or Utility, became massively popular because auto industry execs discovered that, for a family, the minivan is the single most practical mode of transportation out there. Problem is, sexist world that we live in, it's usually the guys who make the buying decisions. And most guys simply don't have a big enough set of enough self confidence to survive being seen in such a vehicle by their macho buddies. The solution? Create something with the utilitarian appeal of a minivan (actually, a minivan kicks an SUV's top heavy butt in pretty much every functional category), but looks manly. And thus, the SUV was born. And so, the next time one of these bozos buzzes you, just remember. They're driving a minivan with a facelift because they have to do what the wife tells them. [Insert the plural of your favorite machismo insulting descriptive epithet here.] :-D And just for the record, when I was a working musician, I drove a minivan, not an SUV. Biology speaks sufficiently to identify my gender. :)
Christopher Duncan
www.PracticalUSA.com
Author of The Career Programmer and Unite the Tribes
Copywriting ServicesInstead of "minivan" try Manly Van.
