Dear Driver Passing My Bicycle: Shut Up
On one of her earlier trips out with our daughter in a bike seat, my wife got roundly told off by a stranger in a car for daring to do something so dangerous with a child.
I wish it were feasible to print up little copies of this post over at ChildWild and toss them into the windows of cars with drivers like that.
Short and sweet, and more polite than I would be, even in theory, the writer points out that taking your attention off the road to “startle, alarm, and anger” the bicycle rider vastly increases the danger of the situation.
Some great follow up comments note that the more people who bike, the safer it is (i.e., if you’re concerned about how safe it is, get on a bike yourself), and that regular biking is modeling healthy, active behavior for your kids, which we certainly need more of.
If I were actually making such an informative flyer, I would add “Oh, and by the way, it’s illegal for me to ride on the sidewalk, as I am over 10 years old, even though I do so sometimes anyway when I feel unsafe on the roads due to jerks like you. I like to follow the law. I’d appreciate it if you did the same, which in your case includes sharing the road with other vehicles.” Then I would give said informative flyer to the police among others.
It’s not that everyone with any experience in urban cycling isn’t constantly aware of how defensively they need to ride, especially with kids in tow. The point is not that it’s risk free. But it is amazing how many drivers who would never yell at parents for doing other less safe, less legal, less otherwise beneficial things feel OK letting loose at parents who cycle with their kids.
Photo CC by Howard N2GOT.
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Tags: Axel-Lute, bicycles, bike safety, bike seats, bike trailers, biking with kids, ChildWild, dangerous drivers, Free-range kids, judgment
14 Comments
maeby commented on Jun 15 09 at 4:49 pmjust a question, but if your bike is like a car then how come you dont have to go the speed limit or have auto insurance? im just curious.
mirthful commented on Jun 15 09 at 7:46 pmthe parents i see bicycling usually take all the side roads and are very safe. i live in a bike utopia so more cars expect it. plus a lot of people i know are too poor to own a car so its the only way they get around, plus bus of course.
Amy Jo commented on Jun 15 09 at 8:58 pmI think that parents riding with kids are more likely to follow the rules of the road to the letter. What bugs me are bikers who want to share the road but don’t follow the laws, i.e. stopping at lights and using turn signals. I honestly wish I knew a cyclist so that I could ask them about that.
blue jeanie commented on Jun 16 09 at 2:58 am@maeby
Whoever said that a bicycle is like a car?
And to answer your question: because that’s the law! I really wish that all communities were required to have extensive bike paths or bike lanes on the sides of the road. However most communities are lucky to have a recreational bike path. And since the law says that sidewalks are for pedestrians only (which I understand), cyclists are relegated to the roads, alongside motorists, who are more often than not, incredibly aggressive and rude. I don’t understand why so many motorists feel they have the right to harass cyclists, who have as much right to the road as they do.
Shana commented on Jun 16 09 at 9:29 amMy husband rides his bike to work everyday, rain or shine, year round. He once broke his hand because someone suddenly cut him off. He has also had many problems with car drivers that start to move into the bike lane or try to make sure they can speed off ahead of him (like it’s a race). Here in New York, most of the bike lanes are completely inadequate. I really like the new lanes they did in the Fashion District on Broadway which has a partition between the bike lane and street parking. Sure the road is narrower, but beyond cabs and delivery trucks, not that many people are driving around there.
patricia commented on Jun 16 09 at 9:52 amAmy Jo, I’m with you on that. I respect cyclists tremendously. I just wish some of them respected the rules of the road like I’m supposed to.
Knitty commented on Jun 16 09 at 10:13 amWhile I loved most things about living in Portland, Oregon, I did not love sharing the road with bicycles, especially the older, narrow streets like Hawthorne. I can’t tell you how many times I came thisclose to hitting some idiot on a bike who decided to swerve out in front of me or make a left turn across traffic. It was like they thought a bicycle was an armored tank.
Courtney commented on Jun 16 09 at 4:15 pmI used to commute to work regularly on a bike, and I ALWAYS followed road rules. I stopped at lights, I signaled lane changes, I always rode on the proper side of the road, wore my helmet, and made sure lights and reflectors were well placed and working properly. Believe me, unsafe cyclists tick off other cyclists just as much as they do motorists. I’ve always said that if I were ever ridiculously wealthy, I would keep a supply of bike helmets in my trunk to pass out to random cyclists I see on the road without them (My bike helmet is the only reason I still have a face, so I’m a big believer).
That said, I’ve also been cut off by buses and doored by my fair share of lax motorists, and I got very sick of having cars treat me like an interloper on the road. One guy who doored me actually got out of his car to check to make sure he hadn’t gotten a scratch on his door and never even looked at me!
For many in my area, owning a car is just completely impractical. Parking is terrible, the streets are congested, and the costs are exorbitant. Bike commuting is an ideal way to get around, in addition to being very environmentally friendly and good for you (I went from a size 16 to a size 6 biking to and from work, and my commute time stayed exactly the same. It was great!).
My son just came of age for riding in a trailer, and I’ve been on a couple of rides with him. Unfortunately, It will be a while before I can go again, since I’m now waaay to pregnant with #2 to get on a bike, but I’m really looking forward to taking bike trips with my boys once they’re both of age. Yes, it’s a little scary, but ultimately we’ll all be better off for the experience.
Sam commented on Jun 16 09 at 4:38 pm“I think that parents riding with kids are more likely to follow the rules of the road to the letter. What bugs me are bikers who want to share the road but don’t follow the laws, i.e. stopping at lights and using turn signals. I honestly wish I knew a cyclist so that I could ask them about that.”
As a solely urban cyclist, who bikes with her toddler and has no car, what bugs me about drivers are those who text while driving, talk on their cell phones while driving, deal with their kids melt downs while driving, drink while driving, get stoned while driving; the majority of the time all of these things occur inside of massive SUV’s. Almost every driver I see is texting, on the cell phone or dealing with the kids in the back of their cars. Cars can kill people, bikes can not kill people. Cars can kill pedestrians, cyclist and other motorists. It is inherent to their being. Driving a car is not a right, it is a privilege, a very dangerous, wasteful, selfish privilege. Cyclists are navigating streets where people are driving in cars completely oblivious to their surroundings and their inherent power. Drivers park along bike lanes and don’t even look before opening their car door, getting doored on your bike can KILL people. I’d feel a whole lot safer taking my hands off of my handle bars to signal a turn if I thought that mom in her SUV was actually paying attention to what is going on around her instead of watching her GPS, texting and picking up the sippy cup her kids just threw at her. Of course cyclists have to follow traffic laws, but so do drivers, and even more so because they are driving behind the wheel of a deadly vehicle. Open your eyes before you open your door, pay attention while you are driving, it is the ONLY thing you should be doing while your vehicle is in motion, if you have to take a call, text, check your GPS or pick up your baby’s lovely, find a safe spot to pull over to take care of what you need to. When drivers take driving seriously and give it the respect it deserves and know that it is NOT a right, then maybe you can begin to complain about a cyclist not using a hand signal.
elohveeee1012 commented on Jun 16 09 at 9:12 pmi am not much for riding a bike, well not since i was like 14ish anyway. in factthe last time i did, on a recreational path, was about a month ago with my daughter in tow. I will never do that again, bike seats have gotten much smaller (or my rear end much bigger) and i couldnt sit for 2 days after that.
However, When i do see people riding, or even walking down the street i always make sure to give them a good amount of room and try not to go too fast by them as well. I just try to imagine how i would feel if i were the one on the bike. I also come to a complete stop at stop signs, even if there is no one else around, I stop to let pedestrians cross at a cross walk, or to let a car sneak in front of me when I can tell they have been stuck waiting for a long time. I always try to do unto others because i feel like it will eventually come back to me. I may not have always been that way, having my daughter has made me more concious of my actions, especially in residential areas and such.
Marj commented on Jun 16 09 at 11:54 pmThere need to be more bike lanes. Our cities are not bicycle friendly. I won’t ride a bike in the city, because I’d rather be alive than right. Also, I think bicyclists who enjoy riding on curving mountain roads, where locals drive too fast, and can’t see you around those curves, are insane. Lovely area, but way too dangerous.
PlumbLucky commented on Jun 17 09 at 2:40 pmOkay, from the Detroit Metro region where all forms of commuting are mainly car-centric. What, pray-tell, does “doored” mean? Please?
Sam commented on Jun 18 09 at 10:58 amGetting doored is what happens when a car is parked along the street and opens the door and the biker has no time to move and slams into the open door. It is one of the main causes of urban cyclist injuries.
Sierra Black commented on Jun 20 09 at 12:41 amYou should totally make those fliers! You could fold them into paper airplanes for better delivery through those open windows.
