Bikes vs Cars
- Thread starter dosry5
- Start date
Whenever I ride my bike I try to ride on the sidewalk because it is much safer. No one is on the sidewalk, but lots of people on the roads. For the little bit that there isn't even a sidewalk I road on the shoulder because I know I'm incredibly slow.The whole point is be considerate whatever side you are on.
What do you mean by "share the rules"? If you're saying that bikes and cars should all do a better job obeying their respective rules, then of course. If you're arguing that bikes and cars should have the same rules, though, that's preposterous...they are completely different vehicles and having the same rules for each is neither practical nor smart.
Riding on the sidewalk is more dangerous for both you and the pedestrian. Read this thread to learn why.
Not where I am riding it isn't. Maybe in the Iowa City area, but in Urbandale/Johnston people aren't walking on the sidewalk, and if they are I can slow down or stop. Specifically it is Merle Hay by the Hy-Vee in Johnston. I ride the trails to there and then sidewalks to try and get to the trails around the lake.
I don't like when bikes share the roads with cars. I am in the opinion that roads were meant for cars and sidwalks for pedestrians. These leaves bikers with nothing. During the time when oil began to get really expensive, more people began to ride bikes instead of cars. Towns and cities took notice and heard complaints by bikers so decided to do something about it. The solution so far is to take some of the shoulder or some of the cars lanes and redistribute it. Basically redrawing the lines in some areas, or just writing laws saying they need to share. This was a cheap and easy fix to the problem. However, because the roads are shared now, cars have to yield to bikers because they don't go as fast as cars, but also they are more vulnerable when they get it. This is where I think the frustration comes from.
I can't find it now, but I have seen a video where someone came up with a solution for this. Basically, create a bike lane between the road and sidewalk and put a small median between the car lane and the bile lane. They also included street parking in their idea too. They also had a plan for intersections so all cars/bikes/pedestrians could cross safely. I would support something like this, but because it would actually cost to implement, I don't think cities or towns will do it. It is just easier to write a law and say everyone has to share. If we want to allow bikes to be on the roads, we need to make serious infrastructure changes to the roads and sidewalks to allow bikers.
I can't find it now, but I have seen a video where someone came up with a solution for this. Basically, create a bike lane between the road and sidewalk and put a small median between the car lane and the bile lane. They also included street parking in their idea too. They also had a plan for intersections so all cars/bikes/pedestrians could cross safely. I would support something like this, but because it would actually cost to implement, I don't think cities or towns will do it. It is just easier to write a law and say everyone has to share. If we want to allow bikes to be on the roads, we need to make serious infrastructure changes to the roads and sidewalks to allow bikers.
While I'd love more dedicated bike lanes and paths, I don't agree that it's the only fix. Most city streets are more than wide enough to accommodate both cars and bikes, especially if traffic patterns can be reconfigured to encourage cars to use certain roadways and bikes to use others to reduce the incidence of cars riding on busy roads.
If you visit cities outside of the Midwest that were founded long before the advent of the automobile, you'll notice how narrow their streets are in comparison. They've been able to make it work just fine.
I don't understand all the hate for bikes. Is it really impacting your life that much to slow down for a few seconds to pass?
I have seen a ton of road rage on my rides from my house to the high trestle trailhead in Ankeny. It is about 2 miles and all on roads with a 25 mph speed limit. I am going 17-20 mph and I still get honked at and threatened. Jeez people relax a bit. I was in Denver last week, the culture there is so different. Lots of bikes and cars sharing the roads.
I have seen a ton of road rage on my rides from my house to the high trestle trailhead in Ankeny. It is about 2 miles and all on roads with a 25 mph speed limit. I am going 17-20 mph and I still get honked at and threatened. Jeez people relax a bit. I was in Denver last week, the culture there is so different. Lots of bikes and cars sharing the roads.
For me, no, not usually, especially on 25 mph roads. There are plenty of bikers though who don't like to follow basic traffic signals, so that having to slow down and pass them once, on a busy road full of traffic, turns into having to slow down and pass them 3 or 4 times. Mainly because a lot of bikers in my town don't feel that stoplights apply to them. So right after you get past them, you stop at the intersection, to watch the guy slide up, pass everyone that just passed him, then run the light so we all have to do it again. Right or wrong, it's frustrating.
Then there are the ones, who I really hate, who feel stop signs don't apply to them either. There is one intersection, in my neighborhood, on my way home, where I've almost hit probably 8 bikers, because for some reason, they don't feel the stop sign there applies to them. Of course a couple of them, even though I did manage to stop, still felt the need to call me an ******* and flip me off. (I didn't have a stop sign BTW.)
These are really the only times I get ******. I do realize that the millions of bikers out there, these are the few, but the few of them are just like the few of the people who genuinely hate bikes, they are the ones who stand out. Luckily i live in a pretty Bike friendly town. Most of the roads are marked with special bike lanes, so that helps to ease things a lot.
I feel it's 1/2 ignorance 1/2 jealousy.
In the sticks you get the ignorance like "Hey dat guy der is on a 2 hawhell ve-hick-le without a motor on it, he's diffrnt from us and I dernt much like dat around dese parts"
In the city it's jealousy from mostly fat people, people that never had cool bikes, or people that are just "Sooooo bussssyyyyyy"
Share the exact same, no. But generically yes. You're using the same road. If a car is going down the road at 15 mph in a 45, it's not safe and it's having a negative impact on traffic. Why do bikers get a pass on that?
Because sane people recognize the inherent differences between bikes and cars and can adjust accordingly without throwing a ***** fit on a message board about it?
Question for those of you who claim to "get stuck" behind a slow, pokey bike on the road: what's the longest you've ever had to drive behind a bike at one time before you were able to pass? Let's be generous and say that you get stuck behind a bike for a half mile (so unlikely I can't believe I'm assuming it), and further assume that this is a 45mph road (a higher speed limit than most bikers would want to tempt) and the bike is traveling a modest 10mph (they'd likely be faster). This travesty would delay you by just 2 minutes, 20 seconds.
That's probably less time than you spent sitting in the drive-thru at Burger King, so I think you can stop your whining.
That's probably less time than you spent sitting in the drive-thru at Burger King, so I think you can stop your whining.
That just cost me my long fish and my long cheeseburger they ran out 2 cars ahead of me!
It isn't fiscally responsible or practical to expect bike trails to be built to get bicyclists everywhere they want to go .
Some of us commute via bike and like to run errands as well.
Fewer cars on the road adding to congestion, less wear and tear on streets, healthier adults. So many upsides to promoting and supporting bicycling.
