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Things people blamed on bicycles

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Re: Things people blamed on bicycles

#461

Post by RWSen »

moffkalast wrote: post #246
DoubleFree wrote: post #194

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The problem of dangerous interactions between drivers and cyclists is much smaller here in the Netherlands, mainly due to two reasons. The first reason is the infrastructure, both visible and invisible. Separated bicycle lanes are commonplace and in the few places where they intersect with car traffic, care is taken to make crossing safe and comfortable. This visible infrastructure is complemented by the concept of "…

> Going out for drinks? Bike. As long as you don't actually drink anything hah. Everyone's a designated driver with bikes.

ANother anecdote from The Netherlands: when we go out to drink we go by bike so everyone can drink! Worst case scenario: you bike there and walk back again. You can't take a car with you when you're walking.

Personally, while drunk, I lose the ability to walk straight before I lose the ability to bike.

Re: Things people blamed on bicycles

#462

Post by acdha »

sokoloff wrote: post #367
glandium wrote: post #225

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Let's be honest: given the opportunity (multiple lanes, etc.), the car would likely overtake a slow car as well, and stop at a red light right after that. I see that all the time (albeit I'm in Japan, not in the US) Edit: point being, for some reason, some drivers really like to reach red light as quickly as they can, and that's not necessarily related to bikes.

I think safely overtaking a slow car before a red light makes sense, if you make the reasonable assumption that 3 minutes in the future they will also be traveling slower than you intend to go.

Very few of the people who do this are thinking that far ahead, though. Most of them are clearly only thinking about the gap between them and the next car – you can tell from how often they make high risk passes only to immediately brake hard for a turn or off-ramp.

Re: Things people blamed on bicycles

#463

Post by Tade0 »

School-Cotton wrote: post #436
Tade0 wrote: post #342

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A popular topic in my father's complaints during family trips was that you have to watch out for cyclists when you turn because some, well, will try to race you to the intersection. I haven't seen many do that, but I still look over my shoulder when I turn.

What made him think they were trying to race him?

I actually saw it a few times because my father would make note of it beforehand.

Guy going in parallel to the road on the sidewalk, looking sideways and gunning it to make it before the car makes a turn.

Or worse: also going in parallel, but making a left turn onto the road without looking.

Re: Things people blamed on bicycles

#464

Post by baxtr »

diarmuidc wrote: post #460
bluGill wrote: post #431

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>I find it interesting that no one in The Netherlands wears a helmet when cycling and yet serious cycling injuries don’t seem to be a common thing Neurosurgeons in the Netherlands disagree with this, and are begging locals to wear helmets. https://www.dutchnews.nl/news/2021/10/neurologists-launch-ca... I don't know how rates of injuries compare between countries, but that is irrelevant.

No it's not irrelevant. If helmet wearing is linked to higher per capita head injuries, mandatory helmet wearing should be discouraged.

Discouraged?

Re: Things people blamed on bicycles

#465

Post by alt227 »

mlang79 wrote: post #336
montebicyclelo wrote: post #114

Cycling is cheap, often faster than driving (in my city), healthy, less noisy, creates vastly less pollution, less dangerous to pedastrians... And I'd guess that about 95% of drivers that I come across are respectful of the danger they present - overtaking with enough space, and not at too high a speed (my city doesn't have great bike lanes). Unfortunately, a typical journey involves passing more than 20 cars, which…

As a blind pedastian, I disagree violently. I typically hurt myself once a week because a careless cyclist put their bicycle in an inappropriate place. In front of a shop, because they are just going in for a minute, for example. Cyclists do the most harm to blind individuals in a city. Cars cant even come close.

I once saw a blind man step out of a bus shelter onto a pavement. A cyclist who was riding on the pavement immediately hit them and knocked them to the floor. The cyclist did not stop, they just shouted 'Sorry' and carried on cycling up the pavement. If cyclists wish to have a good reputation amongst the general public then as a group they need to realise there are some really bad apples spoiling the bunch, and work with everyone else to call them out. I have never ever seen a cyclist call out another cyclist for poor etiquette, and I wish it happened more.

Re: Things people blamed on bicycles

#466

Post by ClumsyPilot »

kuschku wrote: post #399
antihero wrote: post #310

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Just need a way to deal with bike theft. My number one concern is parking my pretty decent bike within view of where I’m sitting or not leaving it unattended for over five minutes. I’m insured, but I have a bond with my wheels! If anyone has recommendations for stealth theft detection/tracking devices I’m all ears.

Honestly (at least from my experiences in Düsseldorf, Hamburg, Essen, and Kiel): As long as your bike isn’t super expensive (e.g., I’ve got this: https://boc24.de/products/bocas-bari-trapez ) and you’ve locked it with a lock that’s resistant to bolt cutters (even something as simple as https://www.kaufland.de/product/313003426/ ), it’s not going to get stolen. Even if you’ve locked it overnight for multiple days at t…

About locks - nobody ever picks locks, only brute force is used.

If the lock is a cable lock, it's worthless. If the lock is solid metal over 5mm, it can only be cut by angle grinder. Once you are in angle grinder territory, whether it's 5mm or 15mm doesn't seem to matter. So i think there is no point spending over $100 on a lock.

Additionaly, you can use a hydrawlick jack to break d-locks, but that doesnt work on chains and is very dependant on how exactly you locked up

Re: Things people blamed on bicycles

#467

Post by SauciestGNU »

soco wrote: post #317
grardb wrote: post #266

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you get too drunk to ride a bicycle every time you go out for drinks?

The good thing is, "too drunk to ride a bike" happens much earlier than "too drunk". And while with a car some push it and still drive drunk (sometimes with horrendous consequences), a bike has this safety mechanism where they simply cannot be ridden when drunk.

I am a practiced cyclist and an accomplished drinker, and I can tell you that I am able to operate a bicycle deeper into intoxication than I can reliably walk.

Re: Things people blamed on bicycles

#468

Post by neutronicus »

DonHopkins wrote: post #299
cinntaile wrote: post #275

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't think I have ever seen this behaviour? This must be a cultural thing?

[flagged]

FWIW, I live in one of the least right-wing cities in the US (Baltimore), and cyclists here report that aggressive driving towards them is common.

A few have reported that pedestrian aggression towards them is common, too.

Re: Things people blamed on bicycles

#469

Post by SketchySeaBeast »

throw0101a wrote: post #374
antihero wrote: post #310

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Just need a way to deal with bike theft. My number one concern is parking my pretty decent bike within view of where I’m sitting or not leaving it unattended for over five minutes. I’m insured, but I have a bond with my wheels! If anyone has recommendations for stealth theft detection/tracking devices I’m all ears.

> Just need a way to deal with bike theft. Vehicle registration works, but takes a bit of effort: * https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=el1Xznv5ge4 Vancouver had a 42% drop in theft after joining this program: * https://project529.com/garage Created by X-box co-founder: * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J_Allard

A few years ago my wife had her registered bicycle stolen after I screwed up and left the garage open. We reported it stolen and only took 3 days for it to make its way back to us. It made its way back to us because the cops stopped someone for looking like they too nice of a bike, so that's a whole other problem, but registration works.

Re: Things people blamed on bicycles

#470

Post by andsoitis »

DoubleFree wrote: post #194
montebicyclelo wrote: post #114

Cycling is cheap, often faster than driving (in my city), healthy, less noisy, creates vastly less pollution, less dangerous to pedastrians... And I'd guess that about 95% of drivers that I come across are respectful of the danger they present - overtaking with enough space, and not at too high a speed (my city doesn't have great bike lanes). Unfortunately, a typical journey involves passing more than 20 cars, which…

The problem of dangerous interactions between drivers and cyclists is much smaller here in the Netherlands, mainly due to two reasons. The first reason is the infrastructure, both visible and invisible. Separated bicycle lanes are commonplace and in the few places where they intersect with car traffic, care is taken to make crossing safe and comfortable. This visible infrastructure is complemented by the concept of "…

My experience in Amsterdam is that the cyclists are exceptionally rude and dangerous to pedestrians.
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