581–590 of 612 posts
Earlier quoted context omitted.
>official provider of traffic signs They used to be, but it's all tendered now; they lost the national contract, but still provide to most provinces and municipalities.
Ah, thanks for that update, totally missed that. http://vorige.nrc.nl/economie/article1594978.ece and more here: https://www.wegenwiki.nl/Nationale_Bewegwijzeringsdienst (Dutch)
Interestingly, the bike lane shown in the first picture of the article rather marks the region that by German law cyclists are required to avoid. Cyclists are required to keep about a meter distance from parked cars to prevent dooming. That of course does not stop local authorities from creating bike lines exactly as shown in the article :(.
Do you have a citation for that law? It's the first time I hear about it.
We don't let people do drugs, so why do we let them ride bikes on roads? It's the exact same kind of self-harm, brought on by poor life choices. All the problems in the article can be solved simply by having everyone be in a large sturdy steel frame, i.e. a car. Cars are cheap safe convenient and easy to use, so why is everyone getting on these two wheeled death traps?
Can't tell if serious or not. Assuming you are serious: Bikes are actually wonderful transportation devices that fill a useful personal transportation middle ground between walking and driving. They're much faster than walking, but still quite cheap and healthy. By comparison, cars are extremely expensive and make you fat when you rely on them too much. Walking would be quite dangerous too if we didn't have protected…
Or, as a bike rider one can simply look into a cars cabin and see if a person is inside. I assume everyone is a terrible driver, have no idea I'm on the road. I am a regular bike commuter on traffic heavy Los Angeles. I'll never understand the mentality of bicyclists who are more concerned with asserting their rights as opposed to exercising caution and restraint. Graveyards are full of people who had the right of wa…
Cyclists are already second class citizens on the roads. People who ride bikes are upset about this and would prefer not to become third or fourth class. It's also very frustrating to have to assume everyone is so ignorant that they wouldn't mind accidentally killing you for the sake of saving a second or two. I completely agree that being aggressively paranoid is the way to stay alive. But agreeing that it is the sm…
Even if the laws change, even if self-driving cars became the norm tomorrow, you should assume you're cycling through a real-life GTA. You probably weigh about 200lbs including the bike and are travelling at ~20mph. The car weighs 10x as much as you and the slowest it's going is 25mph.
It is very frustrating to have to assume everyone is out to kill you, but that goes with the territory when you're riding on the same streets as 1 ton rolling missiles. It would not be smart to relax one bit since even if the law changed, cars blow their tires, brakes give out, old people still drive, etc.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Don't you still have to pedal forward in order for the chainset to actuate the gear change?
You just push off with your foot from the ground, giving you enough forward motion to down shift. It's easier if you downshift before stopping, but the only time it's a problem is if climbing a hill, in which case you probably downshifted anyway
Or, as a bike rider one can simply look into a cars cabin and see if a person is inside. I assume everyone is a terrible driver, have no idea I'm on the road. I am a regular bike commuter on traffic heavy Los Angeles. I'll never understand the mentality of bicyclists who are more concerned with asserting their rights as opposed to exercising caution and restraint. Graveyards are full of people who had the right of wa…
I have little confidence in my ability as a biker to recognize which of the dozens of cars I bike past might h person in them. The car could appear empty because the driver is bent over picking something off the floor. Or their head might be blocked by the headrest. Or I might just not notice them. More to the point, what am I supposed to do if I see a car with someone in it? Slam on my brakes, assuming they will doo…
I don't see it as a burden. I see it as a duty to keep myself safe. Even if a law is passed, people make mistakes, people are drunk or high, people are old and have slow reaction times, and some people are just klutzes.
Most importantly, they are always going to be more vigilant because there is no omnipresent danger guiding their behavior. The threat of any ticket is not severe enough to equate with possible brain damage.
It would be great if everyone were more conscientious. Even then, I would still be as vigilant. At the end of the day, you're still a 200lb vehicle moving probably around 20 mph with weak brakes (when compared to a car) and no real evasive ability riding amongst a herd of 2-ton armored vehicles.
In California at least, bikes don't have to stay in the bike lane. They can use regular lanes as they see fit. If the car lane is empty as I'm riding past parked cars, I will simply change to that lane. If not, I slow down. And I accept that that isn't likely to change because I live in Los Angeles
Or, as a bike rider one can simply look into a cars cabin and see if a person is inside. I assume everyone is a terrible driver, have no idea I'm on the road. I am a regular bike commuter on traffic heavy Los Angeles. I'll never understand the mentality of bicyclists who are more concerned with asserting their rights as opposed to exercising caution and restraint. Graveyards are full of people who had the right of wa…
Checking all the cars as you ride is rather distracting, and a lot of cars have tinted windows. Practically speaking, you can't reliably look into all the cars and pay attention to everything else going on. Personally, I try to stay as far to the outside of the door zone as traffic allows.
I can and I do. Keep your head on a swivel. Get used to looking directly behind you while keeping your bike straight. Pay attention at least a block ahead and to the patterns of traffic. And if you find it difficult to pay attention/there is too much stimulus, slow down or ride on the sidewalk. Unfortunately, there aren't many places in America like the Netherlands where you can bike while being somewhat carefree.
As you cyclist, I've picked up on certain patterns. Here's a few things I picked up, but they may be local:
-Minivan drivers are the worst, so give them a wide berth. -If you are passing driveways/alleys, slow down. Drivers can't see until their windows are unobstructed, yet the front of their car may stick out 6ft or so. -If you see someone swerving slightly, leaving one or more car lengths ahead of them at a stop light, or constant accelerating and braking, the person is on their phone. -Getting into a yelling match with someone in a car is always a bad idea, even if they are assholes and disregarding the law. They have a 2-ton death machine. Even if you rammed a car at full speed, the damage you would do is likely to be less than the deductible. It's always a bad idea even if you are in a car. Road rage incidents have no winners, only losers. Plus, you never know what the enraged person is going through. They may have been fired, left by their spouse, etc. People get really nasty behind the wheel because it's easy to dehumanize others. -If someone is driving a Buick, Oldsmobile, Mercury, Lincoln, etc. you can almost be certain they are old. Give them a wide berth. -If you can, ride alongside a bus. They will shield you from any danger and bus drivers generally are very conscientious drivers since they are responsible for the safety of so many people.. -If you see tinted windows, assume there is someone in the vehicle who will open the door right in your face.
Then again, every once in a while, I like to skitch a ride from cars (when at a stop, hold on to a car's door handle and let them accelerate you to 30mph or so). Never do that :) I'm an adrenaline addict.
Or, as a bike rider one can simply look into a cars cabin and see if a person is inside. I assume everyone is a terrible driver, have no idea I'm on the road. I am a regular bike commuter on traffic heavy Los Angeles. I'll never understand the mentality of bicyclists who are more concerned with asserting their rights as opposed to exercising caution and restraint. Graveyards are full of people who had the right of wa…
This is a reasonable approach when the world is full of hostile cars, but it doesn't have to be that way if drivers are more careful. Some parts of town here riding a bike seems like attempting a trench run on the Death Star, there's innumerable hazards and if you're not hyper-aware of everything you will get smacked hard by one of them. This is completely unacceptable. Nobody should have to maintain absolute situati…
You mention walking should be fairly effortless. However, I've seen so many near misses because people walking are so buried in their phones that they almost get hit. Also I find that people put too much trust in traffic lights instead of simply looking both ways before crossing a street.
Cycling in large American cities built for automotive traffic is, unfortunately, not for everyone, not yet.
You have to reach the point where vigilance doesn't cause anxiety.
Or, as a bike rider one can simply look into a cars cabin and see if a person is inside. I assume everyone is a terrible driver, have no idea I'm on the road. I am a regular bike commuter on traffic heavy Los Angeles. I'll never understand the mentality of bicyclists who are more concerned with asserting their rights as opposed to exercising caution and restraint. Graveyards are full of people who had the right of wa…
I just ride way out in the middle of the lane, at least five feet from the cars. If that doesn't leave enough room for cars to pass me, too bad for them. Maybe some day they will realize how much of the road is being wasted on parking.