# Sick and tired of bicyclists ignoring traffic law **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [July 13, 2013, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sick-and-tired-of-bicyclists-ignoring-traffic-law/663413 "2013-07-13T18:14:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![leftfield6](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leftfield6/32/18780_2.png) [@leftfield6](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/leftfield6)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2013, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sick-and-tired-of-bicyclists-ignoring-traffic-law/663413/21 "2013-07-13T22:29:10Z")
> [@Troppus](#): > > Just curious, is anyone who starts these tired threads or participates in the pile-ons a bicyclist, runner, or pedestrian? Because it seems there’s a certain type who hates on the non-fossil fuel burning forms of motivation and that type isn’t likely to go outdoors for exercise. I may be one of the “pile on” posters you mentioned, so I’ll bust your stereotype. I’m a runner, I’ve hiked over half the length of the Appalachian Trail, and I occasionally mountain bike. I’m also an almost daily motorcyclist, so I am sensitive to the vulnerability of cyclists, BUT as a motorcyclist I have to obey all traffic laws, and I do. My life depends on it. I suspect, because of the motorcycle thing, that I may be overly sensitive (read, irritated) by scofflaw bicyclists. ---
**Author:** ![KarlGauss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/karlgauss/32/3713_2.png) [@KarlGauss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGauss)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2013, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sick-and-tired-of-bicyclists-ignoring-traffic-law/663413/22 "2013-07-13T22:35:53Z")
> [@Steophan](#): > > Perhaps we could just throw bicyclists in a quarry, and make everybody happy. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![dasmoocher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/dbc845/32.png) [@dasmoocher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dasmoocher)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2013, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sick-and-tired-of-bicyclists-ignoring-traffic-law/663413/23 "2013-07-13T22:47:52Z")
> [@RTFirefly](#): > > It’s a rare ‘bikepath’ that’s actually reserved for bicycles, rather than shared with every sort of nonmotorized traffic that cares to use it - pedestrians, joggers, pedestrians in groups, pedestrians walking dogs, kids on scooters and skateboards, and so forth. > > In the DC area, all of the major bikepaths - C&O, Rock Creek, GW Parkway, W&OD, etc. - are widely used by pretty much all of the above. On weekends (and evenings during the Daylight Savings half of the year), a cyclist can pretty much forget about the prospect of building up any momentum on any of those trails. Yeah, I used to commute by bike on some of these DC area trails from Riverdale to Bethesda–via Sligo, Georgetown, and Rock Creek, mainly. I realize you have to share, but my pet peeve was people who keep all the way to the left of the path. Many a time I’d had to lock up my brakes coming around a blind corner to avoid someone all the way to the left. And having the volume on your earbuds high enough that you don’t hear me yell out I’m coming up on you doesn’t help either. ---
**Author:** ![Troppus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a587f6/32.png) [@Troppus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Troppus)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2013, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sick-and-tired-of-bicyclists-ignoring-traffic-law/663413/24 "2013-07-13T22:52:57Z")
> [@leftfield6](#): > > I may be one of the “pile on” posters you mentioned, so I’ll bust your stereotype. I’m a runner, I’ve hiked over half the length of the Appalachian Trail, and I occasionally mountain bike. > > I’m also an almost daily motorcyclist, so I am sensitive to the vulnerability of cyclists, BUT as a motorcyclist I have to obey all traffic laws, and I do. My life depends on it. I suspect, because of the motorcycle thing, that I may be overly sensitive (read, irritated) by scofflaw bicyclists. You haven’t busted anything. There are as many complaints about motorcyclists failing to obey lane-change, passing, loud exhaust, and traffic light laws as there are cyclist complaints. Just because you are a stickler doesn’t mean that all motorcyclists or hikers are. If a cyclist breaks a law and causes an accident, he/she will be charged, fined, and punished. Don’t worry about it. At least cyclists aren’t contributing to smog, and you are less likely to be maimed or killed if their vehicle collides with yours than you would be an automobile. You think you are safer competing with a texting teen in a Kia or a geriatric sea captain in a 3,500 lb Caddy or Chrysler? Wrong. The distracted teen and foggy-headed senior aren’t even aware you are present and sharing the road and you’ll be in far deeper shit if you trade paint with another petro-powered driver than a 200 pound cyclist+bike. Excepting the occasional DUI cyclist, the bicycle rider’s life depends on quick thinking and a lightning fast reaction time. So they take advantage of a little more room to maneuver. Don’t be jealous, Ignore them and carry on. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2013, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sick-and-tired-of-bicyclists-ignoring-traffic-law/663413/25 "2013-07-13T23:03:36Z")
**Ravenman** , you’re apparently an idiot with near-zero reading comprehension. ---
**Author:** ![3trew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/3/13edae/32.png) [@3trew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/3trew)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2013, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sick-and-tired-of-bicyclists-ignoring-traffic-law/663413/26 "2013-07-13T23:05:32Z")
I use a simple formula. When cycling I assume all drivers are drunk sociopaths with visual impairments. When driving I assume all cyclists are cracked out and suicidal and have had their ability to judge risk ruined by a head injury. So far it’s been pretty effective. ---
**Author:** ![leftfield6](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leftfield6/32/18780_2.png) [@leftfield6](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/leftfield6)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2013, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sick-and-tired-of-bicyclists-ignoring-traffic-law/663413/27 "2013-07-13T23:51:56Z")
Eh, we’ve beat this topic to death before. No win for either side. **3trew** probably has the right idea. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2013, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sick-and-tired-of-bicyclists-ignoring-traffic-law/663413/28 "2013-07-13T23:59:57Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > **Ravenman** , you’re apparently an idiot with near-zero reading comprehension. Oh yeah? You wouldn’t know a joke if it wheedled its way into your empty skull. ---
**Author:** ![panaccione](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/94ad74/32.png) [@panaccione](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panaccione)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2013, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sick-and-tired-of-bicyclists-ignoring-traffic-law/663413/29 "2013-07-14T00:46:48Z")
> [@Anise](#): > > Do these bicyclists have a death wish? Sometimes I wonder… I obey traffic laws for the most part. I can’t imagine doing otherwise. I sure as hell wouldn’t want to get hit. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2013, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sick-and-tired-of-bicyclists-ignoring-traffic-law/663413/30 "2013-07-14T00:54:39Z")
I’m sure that there are plenty of cyclists on the road who follow the law. But I have to say, when I’m crossing at an intersection and notice cyclists - I tend to notice the ones blowing through the light or a stop sign much more often then I notice the ones who have stopped. The ratio is at _least_ 2:1. ---
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2013, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sick-and-tired-of-bicyclists-ignoring-traffic-law/663413/31 "2013-07-14T00:56:18Z")
I came around a corner in my car, on a public street, to find a bicyclist, a male about 45, weaving between the broken line in the middle of the street like he was on a slalom course. He actually got upset at me for honking at him. I probably interrupted his count or something by honking. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2013, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sick-and-tired-of-bicyclists-ignoring-traffic-law/663413/32 "2013-07-14T01:59:19Z")
> [@Ravenman](#): > > Oh yeah? You wouldn’t know a joke if it wheedled its way into your empty skull. Yeah. Your joke-creation ability is non-existent. Your attempt at irony was pathetically bad. Don’t quit your day job (if you have one). ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2013, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sick-and-tired-of-bicyclists-ignoring-traffic-law/663413/33 "2013-07-14T03:57:12Z")
> [@Troppus](#): > > Excepting the occasional DUI cyclist… Um, a DUI or two is often why they are bicyclists. > [@](#): > > … the bicycle rider’s life depends on quick thinking and a lightning fast reaction time. So they take advantage of a little more room to maneuver. Don’t be jealous, Ignore them and carry on. I was going to stay out of this thread, having said my piece before, but how the fuck did you twist people’s complaints about dangerous and seemingly-self-destructive bicyclists into “jealousy?” I have some clues that will fit some of the missing pieces of your brain: Drivers are not jealous of bicyclists’ “quick thinking and a lightning fast reaction time.” To a great extent, those qualities exist more in the riders’ heads than in their actions. What drivers want to do, and this goes against the self-congratulatory ego masturbation of many riders, is to not kill you; it scratches our cars’ paint, makes us late for work, and gives us nightmares the rest of our lives. And we can’t “ignore them and carry on” because they are already ignoring us. Many riders are alive today because of drivers’ “quick thinking and a lightning fast reaction time.” We have to, because the driver is usually seen as the bad guy in car-bicycle encounters, no matter how careless and fancy free the rider behaved. Bicyclists can make some slight efforts, too, to help themselves stay alive. Lights and reflectors, for starters. I’m not allowed to drive at night with my lights off and you aren’t, either (local laws may vary as to just how bright you need to be). Black clothes may make you look cool at the club, but they make you invisible at night. Those lightweight, reflective vests fold small enough to fit in your murse so nobody at the club needs to know. And in a note to hipsters, fixies are the ultimate in stupid city bikes. Chicago is bike-friendly and is a fine single-gear town, but just how the fuck many grams does a freewheeler add? Order a smaller cup of coffee and you’ll save enough weight to handle a rear brake, too. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2013, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sick-and-tired-of-bicyclists-ignoring-traffic-law/663413/34 "2013-07-14T04:28:34Z")
I’m a cyclist exclusively, and I complain about cars just as much. Most drivers treat the law as a suggestion. That being said, the OP is right, we should obey stop signs and traffic lights and we’re wrong when we don’t. And responsible for whatever bad things happen. I used to be a scofflaw that way, until my poor judgment led to me hearing a very loud horn and narrowly getting hit. I knew it was my fault and realized that the law applied to me for a reason. Now, that being said, I’m going to vent a little. if you pass a bike, do not turn right in front of him or her! ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2013, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sick-and-tired-of-bicyclists-ignoring-traffic-law/663413/35 "2013-07-14T13:25:20Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Most drivers treat the law as a suggestion. Oh God, yes! > [@](#): > > Now, that being said, I’m going to vent a little. if you pass a bike, do not turn right in front of him or her! That goes for drivers vs drivers, too. ---
**Author:** ![Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/bc8723/32.png) [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unauthorized_Cinnamon)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2013, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sick-and-tired-of-bicyclists-ignoring-traffic-law/663413/36 "2013-07-14T13:47:13Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > . . . if you pass a bike, do not turn right in front of him or her! I’ve seen warnings about this before, and I have to say, if a bike is a vehicle, what the hell are they doing passing people on the right on a one-lane (each way) road? For what it’s worth, bicyclists don’t appear to have a right to do this in NC. Not that I don’t try to watch out - I would hate to hurt someone even if they are doing something that’s both unwise and illegal. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2013, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sick-and-tired-of-bicyclists-ignoring-traffic-law/663413/37 "2013-07-14T14:43:22Z")
> [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](#): > > I’ve seen warnings about this before, and I have to say, if a bike is a vehicle, what the hell are they doing passing people on the right on a one-lane (each way) road? For what it’s worth, bicyclists don’t appear to have a right to do this in NC. Not that I don’t try to watch out - I would hate to hurt someone even if they are doing something that’s both unwise and illegal. That’s the car passing the cyclist and then turning right, often into the cyclist as the car wasn’t even clear yet. There are bike lanes and the bike is allowed to the front at a stop. ---
**Author:** ![epbrown01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7ba0ec/32.png) [@epbrown01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/epbrown01)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2013, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sick-and-tired-of-bicyclists-ignoring-traffic-law/663413/38 "2013-07-14T15:19:44Z")
> [@Troppus](#): > > You haven’t busted anything. There are as many complaints about motorcyclists failing to obey lane-change, passing, loud exhaust, and traffic light laws as there are cyclist complaints. Just because you are a stickler doesn’t mean that all motorcyclists or hikers are. No. Just… no. These aren’t remotely comparable. I’ve been a motorcyclist for **decades** and I’ve seen none of those behaviors on a scale _remotely_ like that of bicycle scoff-laws; in fact, I’d say we break traffic laws about as much as the typical motorist, if that. Aside from complaints about loud exhausts (applicable to kids with Japanese imports in just as many cases, and imo, equally valid), I’ve never heard motorists complain about motorcycle riders breaking/ignoring traffic laws or seen it mentioned, and I’m a participant of about 20 different car forums (most of which regularly have recurring threads complaining about bicyclists). Hell, I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve seen another rider lane split (twice) here in Chicago, and if there’s a law begging to be scoffed at it’s that one. Now, motorcycle riders themselves do regularly grouse about squids - young riders with new sport bikes who speed, pop wheelies and other stunts on the street, but that’s actually a small (highly visible) segment of the riding community. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Miskatonic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr.miskatonic/32/310_2.png) [@Mr.Miskatonic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Miskatonic)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2013, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sick-and-tired-of-bicyclists-ignoring-traffic-law/663413/39 "2013-07-14T16:24:49Z")
> [@Anise](#): > > Bicyclists are required to OBEY TRAFFIC LAW, just like cars. Yes. Yes they are. > [@](#): > > They are legally required to stop at stop signs and red lights. But they do NOT do it here. Literally 90% of them (and I have been keeping track) sail through stop signs and zoom through red lights, totally ignoring cars. I have doubts about your figures and your observations. I have noted that some cyclists (including me, I admit) do not come to a full and complete stop if there is no opposing traffic. But then again, most drivers do the same thing. While I wait properly at stoplights, I do see some of my fellow riders run red lights. Except the occasional crazy light blower most wait until there is little traffic to go. While certainly illegal I cannot find myself getting horribly worked up over that. > [@](#): > > I am one of the FEW drivers who ALWAYS pays attention to what bicycles are doing. While I am not taking you to task, you do realize the problem with that statement? > [@](#): > > I’ll stop at two-way signs when I am NOT required to and the other direction should be stopping, and it’s 100% because I know that a bicyclist will NOT stop. I’m not sure what this means: Are you stopping when there is no stop sign? > [@](#): > > Then the driver behind me is in danger of causing an accident, because neither one of us was supposed to need to stop! I am going to be harsh then: STOP ENABLING BAD CYCLIST BEHAVIOR. If you have the right of way use it. In the meantime, following some basic courtesy like properly passing (which a huge number of drivers fail utterly at) and generally not noticing cyclists being there go a long way in the other direction. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Miskatonic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr.miskatonic/32/310_2.png) [@Mr.Miskatonic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Miskatonic)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2013, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sick-and-tired-of-bicyclists-ignoring-traffic-law/663413/40 "2013-07-14T16:27:19Z")
> [@Whitney\_Harper](#): > > I agree. In addition, it greatly upsets me when bicyclists use the road (which is for cars) when there is an adjacent bike path. It is extremely annoying and dangerous. Why don’t they use the bike path? It is likely not a bike path, but a Multi-Use trail. That might be OK for toodling along, but it is often full of dog walkers, joggers, slow cyclists, rollerbladers, and walkers. Furthermore, most such trails have poor design: blind corners, path thinning and other hazards are extremely common. Riding in the road is rarely as dangerous as cars think it is, they just want to think it is dangerous so they can justify getting the cyclists out of their way. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sick-and-tired-of-bicyclists-ignoring-traffic-law/663413.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sick-and-tired-of-bicyclists-ignoring-traffic-law/663413.md?page=3)