Check out the comment in my post about bikes on the sidewalk.
It's really dangerous to leave the house. No wonder people develop agoraphobia--that comment is bringing it on in me!
Yesterday I was leaving the Y after my workout, and I had the sidewalk to myself.
Or so I thought.
I took a step to the right to put some distance between me and the guys eating lunch on the steps, and nearly stepped right into the path of a girl on a bike.
A girl on a bike was coming up BEHIND ME.
Now I need to look BEHIND ME for oncoming vehicles before I alter my course on the sidewalk?
I am a little oversensitive, perhaps, because I am 5 months pregnant.
But this is ridiculous. The bikes have taken over because the streets (as pointed out in that comment) are not safe.
Shall we swing from tree to tree like monkeys?
At least we still have trees over here.
Saturday, June 30, 2007
Seriously, I Don't Want to Die
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3 comments:
You are not over sensitive - you are right! Bikes on the sidewalk are a hazard. I have two children and it is insane that I have to worry about them being run over by bicycles while they walk down the sidewalk. But I do!
And congrats on the pregnancy!
Years ago I was mowed down by a maniac on a bicycle who was running a red light, going the wrong way, on a one-way street. I waited for the "walk" sign, stepped off the curb, and the next thing I remembered I was lying in the middle of the intersection. The guy who hit me screamed at me for ruining his bike. Cops eventually showed up but we never found the creep. To this day, I freak out when I hear the sudden whir of bike tires behind me. I applaud bike riders for their commitment to reducing car traffic, but that doesn't excuse them from obeying traffic laws or yielding to pedestrians. They're called sideWALKS for a reason! And remember, humans don't have eyes in the back of their heads, so you have to let them know that you're coming.
As an avid bicyclist in New York, I have to say that you are absolutely correct. Legally, a bike is a VEHICLE, and therefore must be on the street. They must also stop at red lights, obey one-way streets, and yield to pedestrians. In return for following the rules, they are supposed to be given room along with the cars and buses.
I am one of those rare cyclists that knows the rules and sticks to them, so I always find myself apologizing for the crazy guy who almost mowed you down.
Having said that, there is also a reverse problem from DRIVERS and PEDESTRIANS and COPS who don't know the rules either. I have ridden my bike through a green light, getting nasty comments from pedestrians who have a 'Don't Walk' I have been threatened by drivers who don't know that I have to share the road with them. And worse, I have been told by police officers "Get on the sidewalk! You can't ride in the street!" What we need is city-wide education and public awareness on how cyclists are supposed to ride, along with a strict crack-down on cyclists who break the rules.
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