Why do so many idiots persist in thinking that the proper place to ride a bicycle is the sidewalk? If someone wants to ride a bicycle on the sidewalk, that’s obnoxious enough, as it really does get in the way of normal sidewalk usage, but the worst part is the drivers that scream out the window at cyclists that they NEED to get on the sidewalk and off the road.
In most places it’s not even legal to ride on the sidewalk unless you are a child, and it is definitely not safe.
The other day I was driving in a 30 MPH zone with almost no traffic. I came up behind a man on a bicycle. He was riding in the middle of the street riding a slalom pattern with the dashed line in the middle of the road. I thought to myself. That idiot needs to get back on the sidewalk.
You answered your own question - it isn’t safe to ride a bike legally, which would be in the road.
It really is safer than you think. There are people who ride recumbent low-racers, less than two feet of total height, in the lane of traffic, and very few of them, or any other cyclists, get rear-ended while riding in the street. Most cyclists experience problems when they ride toward the edge of the lane or in the garbage lane because drivers just ignore them or fail to notice them. It seems counterintuitive, but the street really is the safest place to ride a bicycle (and always, in the direction of traffic).
If it makes you feel better, cycling is on a long, sustained upswing, and eventually that will translate into more dedicated cycling paths and more tolerance of cyclists on roads.
In the meantime cyclists have to worry about their own safety. Not much good in having followed the law if you’re wrapped around some guy’s truck at the end of your lawful journey.
Huh?
It isn’t safe to ride a bike on the sidewalk. The road is reasonably safe. Since it wouldn’t even be LEGAL to ride a bike on the sidewalk, what is the point of screaming at people to do it, like they are the assholes for not breaking the law?
Now you may believe that the sidewalk is the safer place for the cyclist, and if they are riding at pedestrian speed, perhaps it would be. At normal bike speeds, the sidewalk is dangerous because drivers on cross streets are not prepared for a vehicle traveling at that speed on the sidewalk and are more concerned about the vehicles traveling on the road perpendicular to their own. I’ve seen people get hit this way more times than you might expect.
What is so bad about riding your bike on a sidewalk. I thought that is what you are supposed to do. I fail to see why the OP is so against this practice.
I am no fan of dedicated bike lanes either. They sound good, but as they are typically added to already-existing roads, they create even more dangerous situations, disappearing without warning and forcing a merge, for example, or making cyclists vulnerable to inattentive drivers, opening doors of parked cars, etc.
Yes. I’m in an area where I see a lot of people on bikes - and the only time I’ve come close to an accident with one of them is when a bike came off the sidewalk, crossing in front of me without warning (as I turned into a side street). If he’d been on the road, like he should have been, I’d have seen him coming (I’m expecting to see vehicles at street speeds on the street, not appearing suddenly from the sidewalk).
It’s what you’re supposed to do if you are four, so no need to modify your behavior, at least not until you get those training wheels off!
But on the off-chance that you are not a troll-child, I am against it because I don’t want to get hit by a car.
Holy god, can I get behind this one. I fucking hate those assholes. You know who’s even worse than sidewalk cyclists: fucking skateboarders. Unlike most cyclists, these guys often don’t have enough vehicular operation skills to swerve around pedestrians without falling off their goddamn boards, which you’ll then have to dodge. I have a fantasy of just fucking grabbing one of these boards when it happens, pulling a hammer out of my pocket, and smashing the hell out of it.
ETA: The biggest reason it’s not a great idea to ride your bike on the sidewalks is because unless you walk it across intersections, you’re at major risk of being slammed by a car that couldn’t see you coming in time.
Well, for one thing, it’s illegal in most urban areas. Other than that, go for it, I guess.
Jesus, this again? I thought we’d already established that bicyclists, the inconsiderate assholes that they all are, were worth extra points when you rammed them while they were on the sidewalk.
Hmm, true enough, but I was thinking of dedicated bike paths that are built separate from the car-roadway altogether, like this: Examiner is back - Examiner.com
Some of the more fervent bike nutters (there’s some in every crowd) don’t like when bike paths ghettoize cyclists into parks and away from the main roads. Yeah, but if I can use the path and it adds less than 20% to the length of my journey, I’ll use it. Usually they don’t have stop signs either.
What you’re really railing against is unenforced bike lanes. When a city adds a bike lane and then lets people park in it, pull over in it, or unsafely turn through it, yeah, it helps very little. If people didn’t do those things they’d be almost as good as a separate path. It’ll get better as cops begin ticketing for offenses and drivers’ education begins covering these things. Call me an optimist.
Riding a bicycle on a sidewalk is dangerous and illegal most places. Sidewalks often have uneven segments, drop-offs at the curb, and signposts stuck in them. They’re usually too narrow to accommodate more than a couple cyclists. They aren’t built with visibility or turn radius standards in mind, so often a cyclist could nail someone who’s coming around the corner of a building and not see it coming. They’re full of children, the disabled, and the distracted. If a cyclist hits any of these people at speed it could be just as damaging as a car hitting a cyclist. I think that’s all the major reasons.
Well this is news to me. I seriously didn’t know this and was quite shocked when I just found about about this right now.
I am 15 by the way, AnaMen. I guess it doesn’t really apply to me because I ride my bike on a really long bike trail we have that actually goes into another state.
Generally those are accidents. There have been plenty of stories in here about drivers who dangerously harass bicyclists on the road.
Our bicyclists must be different - they aren’t going pedestrian speed on the sidewalk but they aren’t going any where near bike speed either, so I’ve never had a near miss since I always look for pedestrians. If I didn’t, I’d be sure to hit one (ped) since they get dumber every year. :smack:
- Sidewalk traffic is not on a typical driver’s radar. Unless you’re turning into a driveway or making a turn at an intersection. drivers don’t interact with sidewalk occupants.
- A bike is moving at a much faster speed than pedestrians.
- A bike is often obscured by shrubbery, trees, bus stop benches/shelters, light and sign posts, etc.
You’re just jealous that we’re not going to die from a heart attack stuck in traffic in our Expedition, aren’t you?
Oh, hell no. I’d rather hit a pedestrian on my bike than have a truck hit me. It’s very sensible, from the point of view of a person who wants to live through the day.
In most places, children are expected to ride their bikes on the sidewalk. The cutoff age is usually somewhere around twelve.
After that, get your bike in the road, where it belongs with the other wheeled vehicles.