I made the mistake of posting this not as a PSA to friends and family to slow down and all that good stuff. Of course strangers on the internet have some how found it and are tearing me a new one.
“I ran the stop sign”. I actually came to a near full stop without putting my foot down and signaled with my arm, again something you can’t see. I guess it’s hard to judge speed and momentum in a wide angle video? Tell me your thoughts though!
Alright gang, am I in the wrong in these two scenarios?
byu/Dinosaurtattoo11315 inbikecommuting
by Dinosaurtattoo11315
32 Comments
You didn’t stop in the first clip and in the second clip it appears you are in the cross walk. I think how you are riding can be easily fixed but the choices you are making are unpredictable.
The first one is debatable. You should have stopped at the stop sign. The car should have let you go through as you were on the middle of the crossing before the car moving into the crossing.
In the second one, the driver is in the wrong! The car definitely should have stopped for you as you are on a pedestrian crossing.
in the first scenario, if I’m looking at your arms/hands here ??? I don’t see how that second car could have seen your signal.
In the first case, you clearly ran the stop sign – but so did the both drivers. You had right of way on the turn. Did you signal? I can’t tell.
The second one, depends on where you are, but in most places you’d be technically in the wrong since you’re riding in a crosswalk. However, that driver is being a dick. They know you’re there and can clearly see you, and are running at you to punish you for being wrong.
In the first clip, imo in terms of who’s technically correct, it’s irrelevant whether you stopped for the stop sign because that basically only would have affected the first car, and you were in the intersection way before the second car.
However, because of snow, I think the second car may have actually not realized where the stop sign was from that direction or that you were already actually in the intersection (they probably thought they entered the intersection first).
Either way, regardless of who’s right, given the snowy conditions, I don’t think it was smart of you to try to turn in front of the car that was clearly already pulling out because if there was ice or something and they lost traction it could have been dangerous..
Second clip you are being killed while crossing thru zebra crossing. Driver’s fault 100%. First clip is debatable, but I gotta say: if you get killed, who cares if it’s the driver’s fault? You gonna carve that on your gravestone? Just keep yourself safe at all times. Assume nothing but evil intent. Plus, in snowy conditions you have less maneuverability and braking ability. Just take it easy and stay alive.
In the first clip it’s not clear when you signalled, but I hope it was the whole time between the stop sign and starting your turn. if you could see the second car, then you should have come to a complete stop, at least to clearly establish which of you stopped first (and therefore which could go first).
In the second clip you shouldn’t have been biking in the crosswalk, but that doesn’t matter because the driver should not have turned while anyone was in the crosswalk.
In the first one, I didn’t see your turn signal and the car and you both reached the intersection about the same time. I’d never risk my life on the driver being courteous. In the second, you had the right of way and the driver should have waited for you. Again, safety should be the overriding concern. I think if you practice a bit, it will be second nature to you. I usually look at the driver in the eye and if they are staring daggers at me, I figure one maniac in a car isn’t worth my life.
As others said, the 1st one you didn’t signal and in your state may actually have to stop at that stop sign.
Second one, in most states. You do not have right of way in a crosswalk when operating a vehicle. You can walk the bike and have right of way. But pedaling the bike means you have to follow vehicle traffic laws. It would be expected that you would be crossing the street with normal traffic and not on a vehicle in a crosswalk.
I had a friends dad get jammed up for the crosswalk one. He got tboned. And we all assumed open shut case, he was in the crosswalk. But the police refused to cite the driver because he did not have to a yield to a vehicle that he didn’t know was going to cross a street in a crosswalk.
If you are interested, I had a thread discussing a similar situation to #1 framed more from a staying safe perspective as opposed to having right of way. I think in #1 the stop sign (I’m assuming based on the line) is set way back from the intersection, which may make it difficult to notice who was there first. Also, I can’t tell if you signaled and they probably assumed you were going straight.
[https://www.reddit.com/r/bikecommuting/comments/1p1bwpd/nighttime_defensive_riding_turning_at_a_4way_stop/](https://www.reddit.com/r/bikecommuting/comments/1p1bwpd/nighttime_defensive_riding_turning_at_a_4way_stop/)
If you stopped and signaled in the first one why not upload that part?
First one yes, second one no.
The first one, if you did not signal, the car had no way of knowing you planned to turn. No signal means going straight.
The second one is the driver’s fault. I almost got creamed (and my dog, too) exactly like that only we were on foot. Good thing I had taught her to back up. That car came inches from us. People who saw could not believe we didn’t get hit.
I would stay out of crosswalks where possible. Watch that giant blind spot the motorists have where the support goes from the roof to the hood just on the edge of the windshield. Ride straight and with some purpose. Not fast, but at a confident speed as road conditions allow. Be defensive and assume they are zombies.
If talking about legally, no, you had the right of way since it was your turn next.
Not addressing the stop signs because the motorist didn’t stop either and I don’t know your safety stop laws there. But since the motorist ran the stop sign, and didn’t have right of way of it being their turn, they’re def in the wrong.
Edit: Depends on where you live for the crosswalk one. Here in Denver it’s not illegal to be in the crosswalk on a bicycle unless there is a sign that says to dismount.
As long as you’re under the speed limit, it’s legal
First one is an honest mistake and why I prefer the Copenhagen Left.
Second one is a fuckhead steering with their arse.
So, neither of you can stop on a dime, but you decide to let the four ton vehicle try to stop faster that your 200 pound combined weight of you and the bike – in the snow/mush…….
You are wrong. X2.
When I’m on a bike, I want to be alive not right. I wait until it’s safe to cross any intersection with cars, I try hard to make eye contact before crossing infront of a car. Otherwise, I’ll wait..patiently…
Did you live?
First one: you needed to stop and signal 😬
Second one: car wasn’t paying attention.
There’s always the who’s wrong or who’s right debate with people in their cars, they just do not care. The streets you cycle through seem calm enough to go over that debate but if you value your life, always let them go first. For me you’re okay on the first one but the second one is just playing with fire. I say that because I live in a chaotic city, doing that would be a death wish…
First one yes, it looks like the 2nd car reached the intersection before you so had right on way. They were also going straight, while you were not left /center to show your intention to turn left, which one streets like this you should. 2nd no you had right of way.
In the first case, if you signaled, you had the right of way, and were 100% allowed to turn left there. You waited for your turn, then went. This driver could have seriously hurt you and I hope they think about it for a while like I did when I almost made that mistake some years ago.
In the second one, you were absolutely in the right, there is no reason for that SUV driver to try to turn when you’re engaged in the road, and they had even less reason to just slow down so much there and make things even more dangerous by blocking your way after cutting you off. According to the SAAQ, it is a driver’s responsibility to ensure that the more vulnerable are safe on the road. This driver does a double whammy of bad decisions.
First one, yes. Second one, no.
First clip: It was all cool until you turned without signaling. I realize you’ve got those windbreaker mitts on for the weather but that outcome was totally predictable as a result of not signalling.
Second clip: I dislike seeing a bike using the crosswalk for pedestrian right of way benefits. I realize some cities just don’t have the infrastructure to support bikes and it’s a necessity at times, but I can’t tell contextually who’s in the wrong here. I want to say that a car turning left would have more liability to ensure they can clear an intersection safely before turning. But it also seemed like you entered sort of late and I think you’re both doing something wrong in that clip so it’s a wash
First scenario you neither stopped at the stop sign nor signaled that you were turning left so you were wrong. Second scenario you were biking in the crosswalk. If you’re operating your bike like a vehicle, then behave like a vehicle. Be predictable. I don’t know if in your state you’re allowed to bike on crosswalks legally. But next time stick to the road if you want to bike in the road. Be visible and predictable. Both of these scenarios were filmed in low light so you may not have been very visible to the drivers.
This looks like the Chicago suburbs, is it?
In both situations car was not looking.
In the second clip, knowing the infrastructure in these types of areas it’s normal for bikes to start from a red light at the cross walk due to pressing the button.
Idk I think i would have still turned in front of that car. Especially if I was comfortable with my traction. I think they saw you, wernt going fast, likely would have honked, but you would have been fine IMO.
The 2nd one he just came.so fast without looking at all.bit looks like you had the light to cross but not sure
Pick one or the other you can’t be a cyclist and a pedestrian. If your gonna use the cross walk, dismount and walk your bike. If your your gonna use the road, use your hand signal and give the car R.O.W. as if you were driving.
They were going straight and it was pretty obvious they were starting to move. You could have easily just waited and coasted for a few seconds before making the left turn
Didn’t stop at the first stop sign, what did you expect. Second you were on the cross walk, dude should still have waited but you were in the wrong.
You’re in the wrong on the first one. You said you stopped in your paragraph but you clearly didn’t. You’re at fault for that one in my opinion.
Second one you had the walk signal so that driver was at fault and they’re blind as a bat.
Please ride carefully and expect these situations to happen but don’t run stop signs when cars are there.