Proposed Ordinance Highlights Tensions between Cylists and Drivers
It may be a good idea to legislate against harassment, but both sides need to learn to co-exist.
Venice is the ideal place to commute by bicycle. In fact, I ride far more often than I drive. Yet too often drivers treat cyclists as if they don’t belong on the road. Some drivers simply don’t give cyclists a wide enough berth. (Pacific Avenue is particularly worrisome.)
But some cyclists don’t do themselves any favors, running red lights, going the wrong way on one way streets like Venice Boulevard and otherwise ignoring the traffic laws. Under the state motor vehicle code cyclists ride vehicles and are subject to the same regulations as drivers.
Cyclists' behavior is the only explanation for some Venetians' objections to the “special status” being given to cyclists under City Councilman Bill Rosendahl's proposed Bicycle Anti-Harassment Ordinance.
I support Rosendahl’s proposed ordinance to protect cyclists from harassment, but I also urge all of us who use our bikes to come to our senses and obey the traffic laws.
The more cyclists in Los Angeles, the cleaner our city will be. On a personal level, cycling is good for you. For bicyclists and drivers alike, this means everyone has to do his or her part to share the road.
rideurbike
1:50 pm on Thursday, July 14, 2011
I have been a bicycle commuter for nearly 5 years now. I follow the law. Cars, on the other hand, are more than likely to slide through stop signs or red lights. So I disagree with the presumption that bikes need to change their behavior first. This legislation addresses this: protect the safety of bicyclists!
Of course, the concept of sharing the road equally is the goal. But to say that only bikes do things like run red lights, stop signs, etc. distorts reality. Not only do cars make bicycling dangerous, they make up 99% of the lights being run, stop signs being run, and are a major problem in and of themself. I bicycle along traffic every day and I witness first hand the effects the "texters" have on the road: They are looking into a tiny toy, they are not driving (we all know the research about they are worse than drunk drivers in terms of safety...). This means they don't see someone or something that just ran out in front of them. They don't notice that the car in front of them is now a half block away- or worse stopped short. Isn't this a bigger concern than the same car owners being upset bikes can "cheat" in ways cars shouldn't? Maybe cars just envy us?
The fact is, cars have been given carte blanche to do as they will. So the first step in addiction is realizing there is a problem. The problem is cars rule and bicyclists hope for scraps. Once this passes I am adding three video cameras to my bike and finding a good attorney to represent me.
Lightnapper
1:36 pm on Thursday, July 21, 2011
Wow! A good attorney, a PI, and a simple discovery subpoena to reveal your identity will then enable any defendant in a lawsuit to eat you for lunch with a last sentence like you just put into the world-- into the world forever I might add. Good luck with all that! You give anti-bikers too much ammo, and make it even more dangerous for commuters such as myself who drive defensively and bike even more so. I always give way to pedestrians, bicyclists, and to all aggressive, distracted, or careless drivers. Why invite trouble?
Paul M. J. Suchecki
5:43 pm on Thursday, July 14, 2011
I'm not saying that cyclists have to change their behavior first. However if you ride north on Speedway on any given day, as just one example, you'll find far more cyclists going the wrong way compared to cars. Yesterday I saw a father with two children obliviously meandering south all over the road without realizing that drivers taking a turn from an alley check for traffic where it is expected, not from the other direction.
Blame the Cyclists
8:47 am on Friday, July 15, 2011
I agree with the first poster. You mention nothing of motorists who disobey the law, instead using this piece to admonish all cyclists for the failings of some. There are speeding motorists rolling through stop signs who pose a far greater hazard with 3000 lbs of steel capable of moving at 60 mph. But yes, let's blame the cyclist. It's easier than trying to get motorists to change their behavior.
This is a terrible article.
venicepower
11:04 am on Thursday, July 21, 2011
The author's correct - and certainly safety-motivated - inclusion of occasional "bad cyclist" behavior, which does scare many drivers, highlights the need to engage in a comprehensive dialog regarding the relative risks and benefits of automotive versus bicycle travel. This dialog should Include, among other topics, the following:
Comparative effects of driving versus bicycling on health and health care costs
Commuting distances and health and health care costs
Retooling the auto manufacturing and repair industries to help drive up (get it?) health and drive down (got it) health care costs
Taxing vehicles, as with cigarettes, according to their environmental and, yes, health and health care cost impacts
Repealing laws enacted to define trucks as passenger "Utility Vehicles," thereby recovering currently lost tax revenue and motivating long-term relief of traffic and parking congestion caused by the proliferation of such vehicles
Aggressive enforcement of laws that currently prohibit residential parking of vehicles whose GVW exceeds 6,000 pounds
Requiring carbon footprint impact labels on all automobiles and bicycles for sale