I'm so spoiled now that I live in bike-path-licious Boulder, Colorado. I hardly have to interact with cars anymore when cycling to most points in the city. But just a few weeks ago, before I moved here, I was out there with all the other Colorado cyclists in traffic getting assaulted.
Sure, most assaults are verbal and harmless-ish, but then there are the ones that aren't. This article from today's Los Angeles Times leads with a list of one guy's experience in L.A.:
Scott Sing has had a tire iron hurled at him, a water bottle thrown at his head and been bombarded with racial epithets. And all he was trying to do was ride his bike on Los Angeles city streets.
His cycling and running brethren tell similar tales -- of being peppered with flying objects, cursed or otherwise assaulted -- and those don't even include the stories of near-misses and actual collisions.
A partial rundown of my own misadventures in bicycle-motorist interactions include being run off the road thrice (Loveland, Colo.; Durango, Colo.; and Skokomish Indian Reservation on Hwy 101, Wash.), hit by cars twice (Seattle, Wash., both times), and had the following items tossed at me from moving vehicles:
- pop bottles (five different times -- a favorite of younger kids)
- part-full glass beer bottles (missed both times)
- empty vodka bottle (hit)
- all kinds of trash, including one fast-food bag set aflame
- one full-sized fireplace log
For the well-seasoned cyclist, this is hardly news. This shouldn't even be particularly surprising to the general public: "Newsflash: Assholes Everywhere, Even in Cars." I'm sure fellow Gristmillians have scads of similar stories. (Do tell ... )
But of course it's not just assholes that are the problem. Systematic transportation discrimination also contributes to the whole my-road-not-yours mentality (as well as ignorance of state and local traffic laws). After all, if cyclists were meant to be on the road, they'd have been given wide bike lanes, and, well, a bunch of other things. Like the LAT article said:
Judging from the frequent shouted demands to get off the road, many drivers are unaware that cyclists have as much right to the streets as they do.
Driver education wouldn't stop flying-objects syndrome, nor would it inoculate against assholes, but it's sorely needed anyway. In the meantime, Critical Mass anyone?
EPA affirms California’s right to set tougher automobile emissions standards
Daimler launches first German hybrid car
Comments
View as Flat
justlou Posted 9:32 pm
13 Aug 2007
Thanks to all you cyclists!
Every time a car driver sees a cyclist he should be reminded -- why do I need to be moving 6000 pounds of steel to move my body? We got a serious case of auto obesity going on here and you cyclists get blamed for clogging the arteries! But just another case of how ridiculous can we make this simple thing of living on earth. You bikers represent a liberated life and a lot of people just don't like to be reminded of just how unliberating our way of life has become. Those 6000 pounds represent a lot of chains that the earth is left to drag. And we can't cover those tracks anymore.
Permalink
Jones Posted 4:23 am
14 Aug 2007
Empty vodka bottle thrown from moving car...
Kinda says it all.
Even in bike-saturated Holland, they've found that the safety of cycling is correlated with the number of cyclists using the roads.
I find that whenever I get behind the (steering) wheel, sooner or later my mind goes into autopilot: it seeks out the lowest possible level of concentration presumed necessary to keep me alive, and stays there. (This level of concentration may be somewhat lower than what is necessary to actually keep me alive. Sooner of later, every driver gets into an accident.)
Even though I'm an avid cyclist, I still find that bikes are out-of-sight-out-of-mind when I'm driving. When the presence of a cyclist on the road lulls me out of my complacency, I feel...well, guilty. But for most people the raction to such an inconvenience is probably that most common of progressions: annoyance leading to anger leading to flaming bags of fast food.
All I can say is: get on yer bike and put yourself in sight. Yay to Critical Mass.
Permalink
charlesjustice Posted 5:10 am
14 Aug 2007
cycling in Canadian cities
I've been a full-time cyclist in three Canadian cities. In my childhood in the sixties Vancouver was a great city to cycle in. It's now way more congested with cars but there are now designated bicycle routes throughout the city. Once you are off the main drag it's very pleasant cycling because the streets are lined with huge trees and the view from many parts of town is spectacular. Cycling in Vancouver is much more fun than driving. Plus they have a monthly critical mass bicycle ride which I would love to be a part of if I'm ever back there on the right date.
I cycled in Montreal in the seventies and eighties. Montreal is not a bicycle friendly city. Like Seattle it is surrounded by freeways. There are bike paths but they are mostly in out of the way places. The drivers in Montreal are agressive so I learned to cycle agressively. It could be my imagination but it seemed to me that once I learned to cycle agressively I got more respect from the drivers. I once spent a day on the snow-clogged downtown streets working as a bicycle courier. I loved it! But the pay sucked. Montreal is one of the few places in North America where you can cycle through an intersection against a red light and not get ticketed. I did it all the time.
I now live in a small BC town called Prince Rupert. It has a population of about twelve thousand and because it is hemmed in by the coast mountains it has a small physical size. You can cycle from one end of town to the other in twenty minutes. You'd think there would be more adult cyclists like me but no. Some people walk but most people insist on using their cars. I think the reason is it's hilly and people are not in shape. There are no bicycle paths but traffic is comparatively slow and drivers are pretty courteous.
In Sitka a town of similar population in Alaska but more physically stretched out, there are many more cyclists. The reason I think so is because a large portion of the town is close to sea level so you don't need to climb big hills to get from A to B. People drive a lot faster in Sitka because there are more straitaways and the gravel is sharper so you need really skookum tires.
Permalink
Biodiversivist Posted 3:38 pm
14 Aug 2007
Never been hit by a car
or an object. A guy spit on me once.
A few months ago an obese gentleman rode his car a few inches from my rear wheel while riding his clutch and racing his engine. He thought I had been tailgating him so after he waved me around he extracted his revenge. We insulted each other's mothers for a while. I got some digs in on his sister while I was at it.
In the end, it all comes down to biodiversity. Poison Darts--Protecting the biodiversity of our world
Permalink
IC Awl Posted 3:34 am
15 Aug 2007
Move Thyself: Flying objects edition
Phoenix is a relatively flat and open city. While the main thoroughfares are generally unsafe for bicyclists, many secondary streets are wide and have bike lanes. In addition, several canals traverse the city, generally east to west. One, the Arizona Canal, offers 38 miles of canal bank widely used for walking/hiking/jogging/biking.
Bicyclists need to be alert to the hazards of motorists. A very few motorists are aggressive, but it only takes a few. Some years ago a driver "brushed" a bicyclist on a city street. The cyclist caught the vehicle at a stop light and shot the motorist. I don't believe it was fatal.
I recognize that this is contrary to the GRIST policy against encouraging or advocating criminal or illegal actions.
Permalink
nancyhammond Posted 12:24 pm
16 Aug 2007
Sexual harassment
It's been about 15 years but I'll bet it hasn't changed much--having someone in a car reach out and grab my ass.
Then there was the teenage boy--also on a bike--who rode up to me, grabbed my breast, and told me to get out of his neighborhood. I did.
Permalink