Another cyclist hit this morning.... (insurance, legally, safe)

[CP79]

People that are vehemently anti-bicycle are in the same league as racists and homphobes. Cyclists are made out to be second-class citizens, and their lives are marginalized.

[shyguylh]

Originally Posted by Tourian

The Amish take up the whole lane in vehicle sized wagons and have those orange triangles.

The big rigs that pull houses and other oversized loads have to be off the road by sundown.

I can not equate a man out getting his exercise or otherwise enjoying a hobby to these analogies you have put forth. It is a recreational activity. Sure, people drive cars and ride motorcycles for fun, but they have the power to stay up and with the flow of traffic. Right or wrong, some people view it as very selfish for one or two (or more) people to block up a road on a bicycle holding up traffic for a recreational activity while other people are trying to go to work, to the store, here to and fro - etc. So the backlash is palpable and understandable. I would not want to be on the wrong end of the road rage or road apathy or road recklessness that can result from it.

Oh I see, so a horse-drawn carriage taking up an entire lane is less of an intrusion than a bicycle taking up like 1/1000th the space? Got it. (Yeah, that makes a lot of sense.)

Originally Posted by CP79

People that are vehemently anti-bicycle are in the same league as racists and homphobes. Cyclists are made out to be second-class citizens, and their lives are marginalized.

Exactly.

[Troubleshooter]

Originally Posted by dijkstra

I don't care if the cyclist had an airport beacon on top of his head. If he was riding on a paved street meant for motorized vehicles when it was dark outside, he is an IDIOT and was COMPLETELY NEGLIGENT with his own life. I have seen them riding with those little bitty blinking lights when it was almost dark and I can see how it would be easily missed. Another thing to consider is it is a single little blinking light so there is no way for your depth perception to calculate how far away or how fast the object with said light is traveling. It is just an accident waiting to happen.

It boils down to he chose to get on the road where he is competing for turf with 3500 pound vehicles and an accident happened. He shouldn't be all that surprised.

Wrong. The law requires bicycles and cars to share the road. Bicycles are prohibited from sidewalks in most states.

Note that a flashing red light is technically illegal for the purpose used here:
- Red lights are not allowed to be displayed on the front of any kind of vehicle except an emergency vehicle.
- The correct lighting for a bicycle is a steady burning white headlight and a steady burning red tail light. A red reflector can be substituted for the tail light.
- A flashing yellow light can be displayed in all directions as an added warning. It must be used in addition to the required night lighting.
- The light must flash at 1 Hz or less. Flashing a light at 2 Hz or faster may attract attention, but it can also trigger epileptic seizures in some people that are not otherwise susceptible to epilepsy.

The bicycle must obey all road rules for motor vehicles. A bicycle disobeying the rules is doing something unexpected, confusing other drivers.

If the bicycle had nothing but flashing red lights, the driver might have mistaken it for a stationary emergency vehicle, a disabled vehicle, or a parked service vehicle. Flashing red lights are NOT normal illumination for a bicycle.

[TN2HSV]

On my way home tonight saw a guy riding his bike at 8:02 PM. It was dark, on Browns Ferry Rd in Madison. He had red blinking light on back of his bike and a white headlight. Luckily I saw him as he was crossing County Line Rd & I was stopped at the light. Would've hated to come up behind him.

He was obviously riding for recreation based on his attire. WHY, given recent events, would someone choose to ride on a non bike friendly road in the dark??? I just don't get it.

[Reactionary]

Regarding 'bigotry', some of my best friends ride bicycles...

BTW - Amish carriages get hit fairly often (thus the lights / signage). Accidents are more likely to occur when fast objects and slow objects share the same space.

[BanditoBandit]

Originally Posted by TN2HSV

On my way home tonight saw a guy riding his bike at 8:02 PM. It was dark, on Browns Ferry Rd in Madison. He had red blinking light on back of his bike and a white headlight. Luckily I saw him as he was crossing County Line Rd & I was stopped at the light. Would've hated to come up behind him.

He was obviously riding for recreation based on his attire. WHY, given recent events, would someone choose to ride on a non bike friendly road in the dark??? I just don't get it.

I see that a lot on Palmer. To be fair, many will get on that walking trail at some point. But that area of Palmer near Wall Triana is not safe and that's where I seem to see them most often during non day light.

[MisterEd51]

Some people find it safer to ride against the traffic on a bicycle. That way they can see oncoming cars and get out of the way. If they ride with the traffic they have no warning when the car coming up behind them is being driven by a distracted driver.

Years ago when I went to a college with on campus bike trails I really had to watch out for people standing around on the bike trails. That could be really treacherous when it was raining since bicycles can be hard to stop when the brakes are wet.

Even residential neighborhoods can be dangerous since distracted drivers are there also. A friend of mine had to drive his bicycle into the curb when a distracted driver in Southeast Huntsville was about to run him over. After the incident when she realized what happened she floored it to get away. He had minor injuries but his bicycle was totaled.

[Nlambert]

Originally Posted by shyguylh

Done as such, the bicycles have just as much right to be there as you do. Adjust, or drive elsewhere. Period. Simple as that. Don't like it--feel free to drive elsewhere, or swan dive off a cliff, whatever.

I have no issue with them riding on public roads. I take issue to them riding on public roads that create a dangerous situation for everyone involved. I don't know how many different ways I can say this. Pick a public road with better visibility and pick a better time to ride. At dusk and dawn are horrible times to ride. Flashing lights or not, I cannot see them until I round the curve and it's too late to stop.

As or the comment about bigotry, that is completely unjustified. I don't see how you can compare some of us to bigots because we don't like the fact that some cyclists create hazardous situations. And not to mention, you never see me say ALL cyclists. Some cyclists extend a common courtesy to vehicles and understand that they are larger and more difficult to maneuver than a bicycle and they will yield to the vehicle at some point. The cyclists in question are the ones who seem to have no care about others and will take up an entire lane and back traffic up for a mile without once moving to let them pass.

We have a close friend that was involved in an accident with a bicycle not far from Brown's Ferry some years back. She was riding in the evening and was coming up on a bridge. Vehicles coming from both directions and no emergency lane on the bridge. She kept riding and the truck coming up behind her didn't see her until last minute because the oncoming car's headlights washed out the small light on the back of the bicycle. He couldn't go around because of an oncoming car, and couldn't stop quickly enough so he hit her with the mirror of his truck and knocked her off the bridge into a creek. She spent the next year in and out of the hospital recovering from broken bones, etc..... She even admits that she should not have been on the road when she was, but didn't think it would be a big deal. She and her husband now choose to bike in their neighborhood where traffic is less of an issue.

[BanditoBandit]

Originally Posted by BanditoBandit

I see that a lot on Palmer. To be fair, many will get on that walking trail at some point. But that area of Palmer near Wall Triana is not safe and that's where I seem to see them most often during non day light.

Speaking of the devil. Today just on Palmer. Heading east into the sun. Cyclist heading east as well with only a red blinkin light. I did not notice him until I was a car length from him and was fortunate not to run him over. Some cyclist are just begging to be hit.

[TN2HSV]

Just because you CAN do something doesn't mean you SHOULD.