This is the reason why I ride on sidewalks (if its available) when I bike commute, even though we have the same rights as vehicle to ride on the road.
"Share the road" "May use full lane" are half-@$$ attempts by politicians, transportation officials, and traffic engineers to fulfill the minimum standards of "bike infrastructure" without to addressing the foundational issues in our transportation infrastructure. SMH.
by SemaphoreKilo
4 Comments
I think drunk driving is pretty bad …. I mean, that’s what happened here. Share the road = pay attention and don’t be an idiot
You’re not wrong. A good illustration for why separate facilities are ultimately required in most instances. However, shitty people exist and will do shitty things. Drunk drivers also hit pedestrians and other drivers.
You put more people at risk (including yourself) when you ride on the sidewalk.
I like “Cyclists may use full lane” more than “Share the road” since it isn’t ambiguous about the law. In a commuting context, it isn’t as good as proper infrastructure, but it is good for my longer weekend rides.
By me, riding on the sidewalk is both illegal and more dangerous than riding on the road. I’m in a dense (by North American standards) city, where there is a driveway, intersection, or entrance every dozen meters. Cyclists that elect to use the sidewalk (many do) are putting themselves at risk of being hit in these areas, particularly by right hooks.
A sad development is our protected bike lanes also encourage right hooks. We’re starting to design intersections with right hooks in mind, but we’re a long way off. Taking the lane and passing potentially turning vehicles on the outside is the best method for me.
Perhaps where you are, riding on the sidewalk is more practical and safer. It can be if it’s long and uninterrupted with no pedestrians. This is never the case for me. The suburbs give way to rural roads with no sidewalks very quickly.
As for this DFW example provided – it involves a potentially impaired driver, it’s not in a commuting context, and there are no sidewalks as far as I can tell.