More cyclists are being killed by cars. Advocates say US streets are the problem
npr.org
npr.org
As a pedestrian, ironically, one can also witness cyclists behaving in a similarly reckless manner.
Sure, and people respond to incentives and the environment around them. Or in this case the lack of incentives (e.g. lack of fines, imprisonment).
People can provide solutions, too, like adding better division between car and bike lanes and removing street parking entirely (which would have many other benefits).
I lived in Ontario for a while. The easiest way to get away with murder there is to kill a cyclist with your car. “Didn’t see them, sun was in my eyes, woopsie” is usually a valid defense. All you get is a 500$ fine if the judge is really in a bad mood. In any case you walk away from it all.
Speeding, running red lights, assault with a vehicle as a weapon etc aren’t even ticketed or brought in front of a judge anymore. And that’s been the case for years.
Same goes for parking in the bike lane, it’s almost encouraged.
> I don’t actually want to kill anyone. And I don’t endorse the idea of wanting to kill anyone. But if I did, and I were looking for a way to do it and get away with it, how would I do it? I’d wait ‘til they were outside, walking down the street, maybe crossing at the light … and then I’d run them over in my car. Now, I’d have to make sure that no one knew I was trying to run them over. But they’d be dead and I, especially in New York City, would in all likelihood go scot-free.
Not the same for a bike. I mean it's still not ideal, but it's on a different order of accident.
With bikes, there's not much I can do. I've had bikes pass me from behind at speed on the left on a sidewalk. If I had decided for whatever reason to step to the left at the wrong moment they'd have hit me full on. The worst street injury I've had was when a bike came at me from the front on a sidewalk in the dark from under some trees. By the time I realized it was a bike, it was too late, but luckily I lurched out of the way at the last second. I tripped over my feet and faceplanted at jogging speed but it could have been much worse.
In that time:
As a cyclist I've been: Hit by 2 busses. On the hood of 3 cars because they hit me Almost hit by a dozen more.
As a pedestrian I've been almost hit by a cyclist a few times.
Just once, have a car hit you and end up on the hood of a car and then let's talk.
Based on my own observations I don't think cyclists always appreciate the risk to pedestrians. Cyclists can wear protective gear, are more maneuverable and can choose to bike only when healthy. Pedestrians might wear only a t-shirt and shorts and can have any number of invisible health problems. People die or end up in the hospital from simple falls, now imagine having a bad hip and being slammed in the back by an adult going fast on a bike and being thrown into traffic or head-first into a parked car, bench, pole or some random junk on the ground. Instead of arguing over whether being hit by a car on a bike is more/less dangerous on average than being hit by a bike as a pedestrian, I hope we instead can agree that either type of accident has a very real risk of serious harm or death, and better infrastructure for bikes would reduce both types of accidents.
I acknowledge it's very difficult to bike safely on the sidewalk. You need to assume you'll have to dismount and walk around every pedestrian. The exception is if the pedestrian clearly sees you, moves aside and signals you forward. If you can't or won't constantly dismount, you're putting other people at risk. That's just how it is. Dinging a bell or shouting "passing!" two seconds before reaching a pedestrian who is in the middle of the sidewalk, who might be wearing headphones, is not sufficient. Unfortunately a lot of cyclists put other people at risk instead of finding alternative transportation. I'm not saying you personally ride unsafely, of course.
(However, I've not been able to find where the document makes the necessary exception for small children on toddler bikes.)