Bicyclists are so obnoxious (construction, law, safety)

[arjay57]

I find the vast majority of cyclists to be courteous. There aren't that many of them and I haven't found them to be a problem at all.

[cqholt]

Originally Posted by TheTravelinMan

Turning onto Edgewood a few mins ago from Krog St. as I was turning this Bicyclist came by and shook his head at me as if I offended him somehow. I was like ok your kind of a jerk but whatever. Then of course get down to the next intersection and Im stopped at the red light and of course this guy comes and sails right through it. So when the light changed I pulled up next to him and said hey you shake your head at me and yet you run through red lights?? He then proceeds to pull his water bottle out and blast me with it. WTF?

If bicyclists want to be respected and looked out for on the roads then can the attitudes and start obeying the same traffic laws!

As a cyclists I am shocked and agree this guy is just an aholt. Him being on a bike does not change him from a nice guy into an aholt. He is also an ahole in a car. He is just an AHOLE.

[MattCW]

I'm beginning to think I'm the only cyclist that signals, and knows how to make a legal left turn.

[TheTravelinMan]

Originally Posted by samiwas1

You want to know what I saw the other day?

You know when you see those drivers who wait until the very last second to swerve across three lanes of freeway traffic to take an exit, and how terrifying that is to watch?

Now, imagine that with an 18-wheeler going 70 MPH. Now, imagine that with another 18-wheeler stopped in the exit median V. It was close...very close.

That's not obnoxious driving though, thats just plain reckless. Obnoxious is a driver that flips people off, etc

[CrownVic95]

Originally Posted by TheTravelinMan

Turning onto Edgewood a few mins ago from Krog St. as I was turning this Bicyclist came by and shook his head at me as if I offended him somehow. I was like ok your kind of a jerk but whatever. Then of course get down to the next intersection and Im stopped at the red light and of course this guy comes and sails right through it. So when the light changed I pulled up next to him and said hey you shake your head at me and yet you run through red lights?? He then proceeds to pull his water bottle out and blast me with it. WTF?

If bicyclists want to be respected and looked out for on the roads then can the attitudes and start obeying the same traffic laws!

That would take a can the size of Saturn.

Some day that idiot is going to do that to a less-civilized guy with nothin' to lose and will likely ride courteously after a 6 month recovery....if he ever rides again.

[chabang]

I thought this thread was going to be about bicyclists on the beltline. I am so sick of being buzzed by bicyclists shrieking "On your left!" when the beltline is packed with people with kids, strollers, dogs, etc. The pedestrians will be the ones on the losing side of those collisions and bicyclists needs to realize the beltline is NOT for high speeds.

[toll_booth]

Originally Posted by TheTravelinMan

Turning onto Edgewood a few mins ago from Krog St. as I was turning this Bicyclist came by and shook his head at me as if I offended him somehow. I was like ok your kind of a jerk but whatever. Then of course get down to the next intersection and Im stopped at the red light and of course this guy comes and sails right through it. So when the light changed I pulled up next to him and said hey you shake your head at me and yet you run through red lights?? He then proceeds to pull his water bottle out and blast me with it. WTF?

If bicyclists want to be respected and looked out for on the roads then can the attitudes and start obeying the same traffic laws!

As much as I want rights and rights-of-way for bicyclists, and as much as I want them to be more respected than they are...This is a problem that is 100% on them. And it needs to stop. And frankly I don't think it will stop until cops start issuing them citations.

Cyclists, if you're reading this, never, EVER pass cars that are waiting at a red light or a stop sign. It's a dick move, it's dangerous for you, it creates a needless hassle for the drivers once they have to pass you again, and I'm pretty sure it's illegal. If it's not, it should be.

[toll_booth]

Originally Posted by samiwas1

You want to know what I saw the other day?

You know when you see those drivers who wait until the very last second to swerve across three lanes of freeway traffic to take an exit, and how terrifying that is to watch?

OH GOD I HATE THIS SO MUCH. I damn near saw a wreck on 285 a couple years ago because of this. If there's literally one thing and one thing only that Georgia State Patrol would consistently nab drivers for, it would be this.

Now, imagine that with an 18-wheeler going 70 MPH. Now, imagine that with another 18-wheeler stopped in the exit median V. It was close...very close.

[kasuga888]

The OP prob almost hit the bikers hence the head shaking. Maybe you should consider how you are driving habits are dangerous. I really don't care if bikers run thru lights or stop signs as long as they are not impeding my path or making me stop. They take the risk not the car.

[dblackga]

The red light thing irritates the heck out of me, too -- I'm a bicyclist, and it annoys the hell out of me when other bikers flaunt the rules of the road, and then turn around and whine because cars don't respect them. It needlessly antagonizes drivers, not to mention running a red light is a sure way to get yourself killed by a car trying to skate through on a yellow light from the other direction.

On the other hand, there are over 15 states that allow "drive on red" for motorcyclists and bicyclists, but ONLY after the cyclist has come to a full stop (for a varying amount of time, from 45 seconds to 120 seconds). That's because cycles are often too light to trip the signals. Georgia isn't one of those states, though.

As far as passing cars waiting at a red sign -- then yes, I am going to pass cars, and wait BEHIND the first car (because I don't know if he's going to turn or not -- not everyone signals). It is far more dangerous for me to be in the middle of a line of traffic -- I can't accelerate as quickly as the car behind me can (and the car behind me is probably texting while waiting for the light), and cars in adjoining lanes may not see me and respect the gap that I've created, so I may be sitting there waiting patiently for the green light, and suddenly a car thinks they see a gap and swerves into the gap I've created between cars. No bueno.

On the other hand, cars do a pretty ****-poor job of watching the road and situational awareness, and the prevalence of cell phone use has made this even more chancy. I have to assume that ANY car is going to cut me off if we are coming up to a cross street. Cars also drift into bike lanes, making our progress haphazard.

Let's just say there's a lot of learning that needs to happen for both drivers and bikers.