Guerrilla Bike Lanes in San Francisco
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Guerrilla Bike Lanes in San Francisco
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Re: Guerrilla Bike Lanes in San Francisco
#2I wonder if these guerillas could paint a fake curb that looks real enough that cars wouldn't want to cross it?
Re: Guerrilla Bike Lanes in San Francisco
#3I don't think non-cyclists realize how much risk you take on when you ride in the city.
In my town we really only have bike lanes on the two main roads that go up and down the bulk of the city, and they ride dangerously close to lines of parked cars. I was riding downhill once when someone opened their door in front of me without looking -- luckily I managed to get past, but had they opened it a few moments earlier I would've slammed into it and possibly fallen into traffic.
Another time I was riding down a street without a bike lane. There was a row of parked cars on the side so I was rode roughly a door's length away from them, enough to keep me safe but taking on enough of the lane that other drivers wouldn't be able to pass without driving in the opposite lane. I hear a car suddenly rev up behind me and blare their horn as they sped past, sideswiping me and almost knocking me off my bike. I managed to confront the driver at the next intersection, "Hey were you trying to kill me?" "Yeah, I was" (he had two kids in the car too)
Cones are a smart way of tricking people into respecting these boundaries, but I wonder how long it'll be until drivers start violating them when they realize they're not official or the city starts removing them. In the meantime I might get my own cones though...
Re: Guerrilla Bike Lanes in San Francisco
#4I love this! I feel so uncomfortable cycling on main roads, knowing that if the person behind the wheel of the x-ton vehicle beside me does one small mistake, I end up paralyzed or dead. The bicycle is a really great means of transport that deserves more love (and space on the streets).
Re: Guerrilla Bike Lanes in San Francisco
#5Mostly unrelated, but does anyone have (or has seen?) an opinion on self driving cars and how that may impact cyclists on the road? Do you think the shift to autonomous vehicles will make the road safer for people on bikes?
Re: Guerrilla Bike Lanes in San Francisco
#6Orange cones are a novelty. Put them everywhere and behaviour will eventually return to where it was. The same thing happened with high-mounted brakelights on cars - they significantly reduced rear-end collisions for a few years, but eventually the trend returned to where it was beforehand.
Re: Guerrilla Bike Lanes in San Francisco
#7I don't mind giving up the road to cyclists in cities. I just hope that one day they are finally treated like cars. Bikes on city roads should have to be registered with plates. Bikes in many places in Japan are registered and it makes it a lot easier to figure out when someone is riding a bike they aren't supposed to have. The plates would hopefully go along with police actually enforcing the traffic laws on cyclists so they can't simply blow through traffic lights, stop signs, peddle through pedestrians on the sidewalk, drink and peddle, etc. If cyclists want the same respect as cars on the road, they should be expected to follow the laws just as seriously as someone with a car.
Re: Guerrilla Bike Lanes in San Francisco
#8I don't think non-cyclists realize how much risk you take on when you ride in the city. In my town we really only have bike lanes on the two main roads that go up and down the bulk of the city, and they ride dangerously close to lines of parked cars. I was riding downhill once when someone opened their door in front of me without looking -- luckily I managed to get past, but had they opened it a few moments earlier I…
As a driver it's the main reason I refuse to ride a bike, I don't want to die.
Even here in perth that is generally trying to help bike riders I just don't see how it's safe to ride around at 20-30km when the speed limit is 70km and there isn't enough room to overtake without going into the other lane.
I just don't see how you can be safe when people are trying to overtake you in giant utes going twice your speed trying to get home/to work.
Re: Guerrilla Bike Lanes in San Francisco
#9Orange cones are a novelty. Put them everywhere and behaviour will eventually return to where it was. The same thing happened with high-mounted brakelights on cars - they significantly reduced rear-end collisions for a few years, but eventually the trend returned to where it was beforehand.
> Put them everywhere and behaviour will eventually return to where it was.
don't understand this comment - you mean to say vehicle drivers will eventually resume driving on lanes that are separated by traffic cones?
i suppose they can... but i assume most drivers will try to avoid knocking/running these things over
Re: Guerrilla Bike Lanes in San Francisco
#10I don't mind giving up the road to cyclists in cities. I just hope that one day they are finally treated like cars. Bikes on city roads should have to be registered with plates. Bikes in many places in Japan are registered and it makes it a lot easier to figure out when someone is riding a bike they aren't supposed to have. The plates would hopefully go along with police actually enforcing the traffic laws on cyclist…
Yes because a 20 pound bike does exactly the same damage as a 6000 pound car. Both to driver and victim. Excellent thought process.
Also slapping plates on bikes will totally fix the issue of theft. Cars never ever get stolen, because they have plates.
I disagree with your underlying assumptions and your suggestions. What you are suggesting would penalize the sorts of people who rely upon their bicycles to get to work each day.