Coexisting With Drivers: 10 Rules for Bicyclists

Edmunds.com

Coexisting With Drivers: 10 Rules for Bicyclists

Since bicyclists share the road with cars, they need to exercise as much caution as drivers do. Here are 10 accident-prevention rules for bicyclists.

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pelleplutt

Some of these advice are good. Especially the "Think of Yourself as Invisible" - something I've always done. And I'm on my bike every day.

It make sense, as the more vulnerable of the two, that bikers need to be extra careful and at tentative - however - in no way does that limit or lower the responsibility of car drivers to treat bikers as equal on the road; to give us the space we rightly deserve and have legal right to. For example, it is the driver who is responsible to ensure that no bike is imminent behind when opening the door - and is responsible for any "dooring."

johnbrooking

Pretty good, for the most part, but I very much disagree with "Think of Yourself as Invisible." The specific advice in that section is all good, but I feel the attitude itself is not very compatible with truly safe and legal riding. I wrote about this last year at http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2011/02/15/ride-like-youre-invisible/

Small quibble with "You have the right to go through that intersection at a reasonable speed" (#9). I'm not sure exactly how to interpret that, but I would NOT interpret it to mean you have a right to split lanes and ride up beside stopped cars in order to keep your momentum. That too is incompatible with safe and legal riding, and I see no basis for that in law. In some states it may be legal to filter up on the right, but here in Maine it is "at the cyclist's own risk", an admission that it's not the safest thing to do. Actually, it's not safe at all. It should only be done with extreme caution and slow speed. I've never had any trouble following "the letter of the law" at intersections, meaning I take my place in line (at least if the light is red) and use the proper lane, even if it means I might to wait for the light to change with the rest of the traffic. Even on a wet road or in heavy traffic, I've never had to slow down beyond my comfortable cruising speed to take an intersection this way. (Nor had to push myself to "keep up with traffic", for that matter, as many assume is required.)

Everything else, fine. Another I would add is communication, communication, communication. The more positive communication, the better. Communicate your intention, your expectation, and your thanks. It's amazing how much more positive your traffic riding experience gets when you just communicate with the other drivers. Strive to make your positive communication outweigh your negative communication. (The occasional yell of annoyance gets the best of all of us sometimes, and sometimes rightly so, but balance it out.)

johnbrooking

Another thing, about riding past parked cars (#5). Five feet is the distance many of us recommend, even if it puts you in the travel lane. If the remaining travel lane not wide enough to share (which it probably won't be), give a "slowing" signal (left arm down) to indicate to motorists to stay behind you until you get past the parked cars and have space to safely move to the right to allow passing. Merely looking inside the parked cars is unreliable. Ride far enough out to avoid the door AND avoid being startled into swerving, and the dooring hazard is 100% removed.

danm437

The phrasing describing "dooring": "a cyclist is pedaling along, doesn't notice a motorist getting out of a parked car, and is thrown, sometimes violently, when he or she hits the opening door", makes it sound like it's the cyclist's fault.

It's usually not. Most of the dooring incidents I'm aware of are a result of the person in the car not looking behind and throwing open the door without any regard for any oncoming traffic (car or bike). In most cases, the cyclist has no time to avoid a collision.

At least in CA (where I live), it's the responsibility of the person opening the door to ensure that it's safe to do so.

waxcomb

I would emphasize #2 and #3. So many bicyclists (here in Santa Monica anyway) ride their bikes on crosswalks; I've had so many close calls because a bicyclist darts across the street on a crosswalk from behind a building or vehicle.

Just as when I ride my bicycle, cyclists should use a bicycle lane or a normal "car" lane and hand signals. If they want to use a cross walk, they should walk their bike like a pedestrian. Bikes shouldn't use crosswalks just as much as cars don't use crosswalks.

stever

Some states, like Idaho, don't require bicyclists to stop for stop signs if it's safe to continue through them. Stopping at red lights is required, but if traffic is clear, the light may then legally be run.

Hopefully more states will adopt progressive laws like this.

Allowing "California stops" for cars or replacing stop signs with yield signs (or removing signs at most neighborhood intersections entirely) would also help traffic move and save gas.

andrewbnt

Many cyclists think they have the 'right of way' which could be true in some cases as bicycles are treated as a vehicle on the road. From my experience, even though cyclists have the 'right of way', it's better to be safe than sorry.

At the end of the day, the cyclist would end up second best in any collision with a vehicle. TheGeekyCyclist wrote an article about how cyclists should be aware of their surroundings, especially in urban areas https://www.thegeekycyclist.com/tips/cyclist-avoid-getting-hit/

sportygirl_1972

What should drivers do when bicyclists are taking up the entire road and won't move over? I understand they are allowed to ride two abreast, but I'm talking about 4-5 abreast and purposefully not moving over. It's not like we can report a license plate number.

kyfdx

sportygirl_1972 said:

What should drivers do when bicyclists are taking up the entire road and won't move over? I understand they are allowed to ride two abreast, but I'm talking about 4-5 abreast and purposefully not moving over. It's not like we can report a license plate number.

If they are in the normal lane of traffic, they aren’t required to move over. Wait until there is a safe place to pass, in the oncoming traffic lane, just as you would a slow moving car.

You don’t need a license plate, because they aren’t doing anything illegal, even though you may find it rude and/or annoying.