When Riding the Sidewalk

Bikes do not belong on sidewalks. A group of bmxers popping off and on the sidewalk and dashing back and forth across the street is unneverving to me as a driver. Some folks seem to think riding the sidewalks will make them safer. After all it is unusual for cars to cross the sidewalks, right? Not the case. I will sometimes ride the sidewalks where there’s really no option. The Blue Bridge, Memorial Bridge, Southway. We sometimes ride Memorial Bridge North to South on the roadway butr almost never the reverse. Bur none of these examples have the inherent problems that riding sidewalks inresidential areas has.–Corrie

Top 5 Rules for Riding on the Sidewalk | Commute by Bike

The subject of riding bikes on the sidewalks continues to be a hotly debated topic. Despite your stance on the subject, the fact remains that it’s going to happen, so I want to share the top five rules that must be followed when choosing the sidewalk over the road.

Fear is, by far, the biggest motivator for choosing the sidewalk over roads.

Read the Tips

Rationalized Bike Laws

Take the Lane is a blog written in Toronto. Usually items deal with Canada, but he posted this piece about South Carolina laws regarding bicycling.–Corrie

Some rationalized bicycle laws

The South Carolina state assembly has signed into law a number of amendments to the laws concerning bicycles in the state.

Read the rest of the story.

San Francisco considers Idaho Bike Laws

Do you always stop and put a foot down at every stop sign. I confess. I do not. Saturday morning, the car behind me turned out to be a friendly officer. It’s nice to know vehicular cycling is being promoted. Still driving and cycling are not the same. Idaho law recognizes this and San Francisco may join Idaho in permitting the rolling bicycle stop.-Corrie

Via Carectomy, a San Francisco CBS affiliate reports that the Bay Area’s Metropolitan Transportation Commission is considering whether to revise the rules of the road to better accommodate cyclists. The changes would make it legal for cyclists to treat stop signs as yield signs, and stoplights as stop signs.

Read the rest of this story.

Rules of the road

Linda and I will be taking the League of American Cyclists LCI Seminar in October. They teach Forrester’s Vehicular Cycling and that’s what we’ll offer in club classes like Jen’s. Still Fiedler makes a point about still paying attention to the situation. For example, I’m inlined not to put my foot down at stop signs if I can roll up and see that it is clear in all directions. Fiedler discusses what he does at an intersection with lots of traffic.

Do you filter to the front of the line?

When you’re coming to a stop sign or stop light, and there is a line of cars ahead of you, what do you do? Do you get in line with the cars and wait your turn, or do you filter to the front of the line?

Cyclists’ opinion vary on this, of course. Those who follow the doctrine of vehicular cycling gurus like John Forrester will tell you that a bicyclist should behave like a motor vehicle; in other words, wait your turn and no cutting in line.

Safety Tips for Commuting

Q: What’s the best way to stay safe while biking to work?

A: Here’s an abbreviated version of some tips from Indiana State Health Commissioner Judy Monroe. The tips were distributed recently by the Indiana State Department of Health:

Read the Tips

When a stop light is a stop sign.

You probably hadn’t considered the difference. At a stop light you wait until the light changes, but at a stop sign you look and go. A bicycle should follow the same rules, right. Not in Idaho. The law allows cyclists to treat stop lights like stop signs which makes since in rural Idaho where there may not be any traffic at all despite the need for a light some of the time. What about a stop signe? Well, you know we roll through those all the time, first checking for traffic. And that’s legal in Idaho. Rules for a sparsely populated state? San Francisco, though is considering these rules. Read the article but don’t forget to read the comments below it.

The San Francisco Bay Area Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) bicycle advisory committee (BAC) will consider a proposal for changing California law to allow bicyclists to treat stop signs as yields and red lights as stops. If the BAC likes the idea, they will forward the proposal on to the MTC which can eventually forward their suggestion to the California legislature.

Sidewalks or Street?

The sidewalk may seem safer but it is not. This blogger has reviewed the research. The bottom line is cyclists in traffic are safer when they behave like cars. Be both visible and predictable. One issue is the courteous driver who blocks traffic to allow you to cross the street. Be careful since the car behind him may not extend the same courtesy in a  multilane situation. If you wouldn’t perform the maneuver as a driver, don’t do it as a cylcist.

Risks of Sidewalk versus Road Bicycling

Published June 11, 2008 Bicycling

I promised a long time ago to post on the findings of studies on the risks of sidewalk versus on-road bicycling. From a 1994 paper by Wachtel and Lewiston studying bicycle-motor vehicle collisions in Palo Alto:

Fat Tire Trail: Iron Horse

Here’s a trail for the adventurous and not far away. Doug sent this some time ago.–Corrie

The Iron Horse is suitable for any rider with a bike that can go off pavement. It is perfect for families with older kids, ideal for casual mountain bikers and a great trail for fat-tire warriors to burn mileshttp://seattlepi.nwsource.com/getaways/101499/ironpix2.html.rom Doug

Bike Race kills 1 in Mexico

I tend to ignore these stories anymore. Jim and Doug both sent me this story this afternoon. When you read as many blogs as I’ve been doing, you encounter stories of cyclists injured or killed pretty frequently. Keep these events in perspective. Most car/bike collisions are avoidable and often feature a cyclist doing something unexpected like riding the wrong way.

It is tempting to be fatalistic about these events. When your number is up . . . I don’t like fatalism, however. These are chances you take which can be minimized by educating yourself as a cyclists and by advocating more cycling awareness in the general community. Point ‘em at our Bike Month page for tips.

1 dead as car plows into Mexican bike race

	A car collides with cyclists participating in a race in Mexico’s northern border city of Matamoros on Sunday. View related photos
Jose Fidelino Vera Hernandez / AP

Americas video

MORE VIDEO

Car collides with cyclists June 3: A bike race in Mexico ends in tragedy when a car plows through the crowd, killing one rider and injuring ten others. MSNBC’s Tamron Hall reports.

updated 3:11 a.m. PT, Tues., June. 3, 2008

MONTERREY, Mexico - A car plowed into a bike race along a highway near the U.S.-Mexico border, killing one and injuring 10 others.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24943229/

House Bill Includes Commuter Benefit

The bill passed the House is on its way to the Senate. Bicycle commuting is not only getting the obvious gas price related news stories but respect at the highest levels. Thi bill inclludes a  provision for $20 benefit for bike commuting.

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Bicycle Commuter Benefit on House Tax Extender Bill

On May 21, 2008, prior to the Memorial Day recess, the House passed H.R. 6049, the “Renewable Energy and Job Creation Act of 2008.” Included in the legislation is a $20 per month transportation fringe benefit for bicycle commuters to cover costs of commuting by bike.

Read the Rest of the story and find a link to write your Senator provided by the League of American Cyclists.