The Pedestrian and the Cyclist

[camjuniper]

I was walking home from work yesterday. I take the mixed use recreational trail (also known as the rail trail from its former life as a railroad track, or the bike path).

I came to a semi-busy intersections (the street it crosses feeds directly into a hospital and a high school), look left, right, and left. No traffic. I start crossing. There is a crosswalk--bright stripe-y lines. Suddenly! A cyclist!

I'm not quite halfway across so I sorta slow down. Cyclist doesn't signal, so I think that maybe he's going straight down the street and not turning onto the bike path. He brakes. Sharply. I look at him, he looks at me, scowls, them wings his bike around me (taking a left). He shouts over his shoulder "You had a stop sign!"

My mind takes a second to reboot, so I all I could think of saying was "You shoulda signaled!" But what I meant was, "I'm a f***ing pedestrian! I have the right of way!"

Now, there is a stop sign on either side of the trail where it crosses main roads, but in my state, pedestrians in crosswalks have the right of way. Also the road was clear when I started crossing.

[Jay 2K Winger]

Some cyclists seriously think that "share the road" advisory means that cars/people have to give them the right of way at all times.

Fair enough, it does mean that vehicles have to allow them the space, but it doesn't give cyclists carte blanche to do whatever the fuck they want.

If you're cycling on the roads, you have to obey traffic laws. Last week I saw a cyclist completely breeze through a red light.

[Kaylyn]

It's incredibly frustrating as a trucker, too. I'll give you what I can, but I don't have that much room to give. Work with me, people, and be alert to exactly what kind of traffic is around you!

[crazylegs]

As a 'proper' cyclist, it bugs the snot out of me when I see the idiots on a bike doing dumbarse things. Cyclists need to pay as much, if not more, attention to the road and traffic and for their own damn safety need to follow the rules to the letter.

[Dreamstalker]

Fair enough, it does mean that vehicles have to allow them the space, but it doesn't give cyclists carte blanche to do whatever the fuck they want.

When I was younger I used to carry a big stick around with me for no reason at all. Recent behavior by some cyclists around here has made me wish I could get away with doing it again, if for nothing more than the implied threat of 'if you hit me, you're going to the pavement too'.

The local news used to have a "Declare Your Curiosity" segment where anchors would answer viewer questions; I sent in one that basically asked "are bicycles supposed to obey traffic signs?" The answer: absolutely yes. For a few months afterward, there was a BIG sign in the main intersection to the effect of "Cyclists must obey all traffic laws"...the problem is enforcement. Registration along the lines of motorcycles would solve things, but we know it's never gonna happen.

[Lyse]

I was walking down a sidewalk one morning when a cyclist came whipping around the corner and almost ran me down. Despite the fact that he was on the sidewalk and that the wide streets included completely empty bike lanes, he had the nerve to get upset with me. I want a stick, too!

[gerund]

Despite the fact that he was on the sidewalk and that the wide streets included completely empty bike lanes, he had the nerve to get upset with me. I want a stick, too!

Our local council is insane enough to actually allow (and encourage) cyclists on our footpaths. They have signs and all. This local council is the first place in Queensland I have see that does this, but a quick google search turns up a state wide law that allows them onto "shared paths".

Whoever thought it was a good idea to do this was a brainless moron. And that is the best thing I can say about it.

[MoonCat]

Several times lately I have been passed on the sidewalk by cyclists who gave NO indication that they were coming up behind me. If I had moved to the side (say, to avoid a large puddle or something) I'd have been hit. Pisses me off.

[MadMike]

I almost got mowed down by two idiots on bikes when I was at the beach a couple of years ago. I was in the crosswalk, with the walk signal, and they zipped right across my path. It's idiots like that who give cyclists a bad name.

[raudf]

I had a piece of rebar for a walking stick, and for some reason, cyclists would avoid me. Of course, the other cyclists were kids my age, but still. I think the only time I ever stuck the thing in set of spokes was when one of my youngest friends was having issues with a bully and the bully tried to take off with the kid's bike. I'd stuck it in between the spokes so hard that I pinned it to the ground with the rebar. Took me a good five minutes to work it back loose afterwards. And no, the bully didn't get hurt, because the bike was stopped at the time. He did get his butt chewed and a threat of a good mud-balling if he ever did that again.