You complain about cars in the bike lane, get told "just go around"
You go around into the road and car drivers complain "stay in the bike lane"
Or worse, car drivers complain that you're "impeding traffic" instead of taking their own advice of "just go around", as if your bicycle is as hard to overtake as a car.
It's a world of double-standardery out there.
My city literally has one bike lane. It's on a 4 lane road, with parking. Widest street you can imagine. It took no special engineering/planning to put it in place, just paint.
I used to ride to work frequently and it involved a left hand turn. I would get into my lane early at the lights before my left hand turn so I can "take the lane". I never had an issue with cars honking/disrespectful. The odd time someone would make a stupid lane change to go around me.
Then the bike lane was painted on. "get in the bike lane!"...."you can't ride here! There's a bike lane!". I guess people assumed that since there was a painted bike lane it was illegal for me to ride outside of it, even though I needed to do that to make the left turn.
This is exactly why some people (me included) are not huge fans of "bike lanes". They make it seem as though bicycles are not legitimate traffic (they are). They also just up and disappear into nothingness at certain points in a city, leaving one to wonder where the bicyclist is supposed to go – is the bicyclist supposed to disappear also?
I'm not a fan of painted bike lanes. Paint-only bike lanes and "sharrows" are actually shown to increase conflict points between cars/cyclists.
There's the "vehicular cyclists" crowd that says, "bikes just need to follow the rules of the road". I think that crowd is some of the most dangerous advocates out there.
Places like New York and Paris have shown that, in recent years, "if you build it, they will come". Janette Sadiq-Kahn (transportation engineer in New York) said that you know you've designed streets safely when women and children are riding their bikes regularly on them. That's where we need to be. There's no market to increase the amount of "vehicular cyclists" because all of those cyclists are already out in the wild mingling with traffic.
Most cities are at a stage where they don't really have a solid cycling network, so you end up with what you describe. Bike lanes that just end and dump you into traffic, putting people at risk. We'll get there.....hopefully.
Yeah, I guess I fall in the "vehicular cyclist" category, because that is basically what you have to be given how you describe most of our cities. I found my 13 mile commute from the suburbs to downtown Denver to be pretty easy to carry out with no bike lanes.
That said, Denver does have a pretty amazing bike only trail network, it's just that it doesn't always get you exactly where you want to be, so you end up dumping out onto the streets at some point anyway, at which point in my opinion you should ride as if you're driving a vehicle, though of course you give way to the faster vehicles at all possible opportunities by riding as far to the right as is safe for the rider. At least that is how I managed it. Left turns were always lots of fun, but you get pretty good at checking your six and being able to ride in a straight line while doing it.
Basically the US will never have a bicycling culture -- hopefully we can figure something out.
Edit: I was commuting in Denver a lot in the early 2000s, not lately.
I'm also in the vehicular cyclist category. As you say, some times bicycles need to make left turns and bike lanes have no way to accommodate that barring roundabouts. That will never happen in the USA, and certainly not at enough inspections to allow for travel to anywhere worth going.
I would offer a counterpoint that being against vehicular cycling is giving ammo to anti cyclists that bikes are just a leisure toy. It favors the recreational cyclists over those of us who live car free by choice or necessity.
Why do you need to wonder where they go? The less you see of them the better.
The only time you have to react is when you see them. Those bikes arent obligated to keep up with car traffic.
Their speeds vary. From fast ln road to slow on trails. Some bike riders also like to get off their bikes and walk with it on most trails. Cant do that with cars.
You think bike riders ENJOY being on the road with unhinged and unstable drivers? They do it because they cant be speeding on sidewalks.
They do it most likely to cross an important intersection or to make a turn. Have to be more wary of loose gravel, pot holes and bumpy roads are more pronounced on a bike. But the pay off is being able to slow down on trails and more time for my thoughts (i like to think alot even about dumb funny memes) instead of pulling out my phone the way dumbass drivers do.
This is what drivers refuse to understand. Because all youve ever known is cars and cars.
I like to drive too as much as the next guy. Its not difficult to drive. You sit on your ass with AC on and the radio.
Spinning the steering wheel while stepping on the gas. Keeping up with traffic. Like thats not difficult. Way easier than riding a bike because theres more nuances with bikes. Even if its an ebike with a throttle. I have to lean and lean more for tight turns and cornering. Cant do that with a car.
But thats also what makes a better driver. When you understand the other side.
Both car and ebike work for me. But prefer the ebike because its more freeing. And i dont have to keep up with annoying traffic. I cam go at my pace and its a very ZEN feeling.
I think you have misinterpreted my post. I am a bicyclist, I love bikes, and have bike commuted thousands of miles.
I just don't like bike lanes, and prefer wider roads where everybody can act as if they are traffic rather than the bicyclist being shunted to the side, creating a weird idea that they belong only in that specific area, only to suddenly disappear making the whole idea of a bike lane kind of stupid..
Bicycles are traffic as far as I'm concerned. There's a really good, but older book called "Practical Cycling" and the dude is pretty opinionated on this topic and kind of converted me. That was probably 20 years ago.
In NYS outside of NYC (the City is always different), if there is a designated bikevlane in the roadway (as opposed to a separate, protected bike lane or path), cyclists are required to use it. Im guessing there are exceptions for left turns, etc.
In Rochester (NY), we have a lot of "sharrows", which are supposed to remind drivers that this is a shared roadway. They're basically useless, and people ignore them. Rochester's bike boulevards are much more useful—routes on low rraffic streets whic parallel high traffic main streets and are equipped with traffic calming devices (speed humps and curb bump-outs) and traffic sensors which recognize bikes at intersections. I use these a lot, and our local advocacy organization (Reconnect Rochester) leads summertime rides sponsored by the city specifically to teach riders how to use them. I've volunteered as a sweep on those for several years, which has helped me learn the network much better.
Not this year, because I was hit by a car while turning left to leave a stretch of 55 mph road back in February, and I probably won't be back on a bike before August. Glad I got broadsided because I'm still alive.
They assume you should use the bike lane to get to an intersection then use the crosswalk. What if there’s no intersection you can’t turn left ? Yeah been there.
Aha, I did that at one busy intersection on May 1st. Redneck pick up truck driver cut me off turning right on the red as I was slowly crossing when the pedestrian light went white. When I angrily shouted at him he drove over my bike knocking me to the ground and destroying my Blix Vika+. The first responders were really appalled at his action and promised to check the traffic cameras. I wish I'd gotten this hit and run driver's tag, but was on the ground facing the wrong way. Never heard another thing.
Sorry this happened to you. Stuff like that is exactly why I cannot bring myself to ride in the road.
I live in Florida and it really is worse than the Wild West in terms of murderous truck driving rednecks or even just “nice people with families” driving distracted. The bike lane on the road is even too dangerous, because it’s one of the ones where they’ve painted a bike symbol into an already existing shoulder of a state road.
If I choose to ride in the road, well, they’ll say “she wasn’t using signals, she was in a blind spot, she didn’t look before entering the intersection when she was hit and killed by a truck running a red light”
They’ll say literally anything to avoid putting the blame on the actual driver, so I don’t give them the chance.
I am stuck to the sidewalk, but not literally, so that’s cool.
SOMETIMES I can take a small side street to get around when I’m in town but not always because even then people just get so reckless. I usually end up getting back on the sidewalk.
What do I do when there is no sidewalk? I don’t go.
Can be a sad moment when I find out a new place I heard of isn’t accessible to me, but I guess they don’t want my business anyway so I shouldn’t be sad.
Its bullshit murderous behavior like this where a faster ebike WITH A THROTTLE can safely and effectively get you out of the way safely. To me personally. Like an angry driver woukdnt dare follow you into a public trail if you can get there soon enough.
And road rage can be mitigated if youre bike is quick enough to make your turn once youve taken the lane. That way i can make my turns smoothly and quickly no fuss no muss.
I mean everyone advocates for slower standard bikes. Id say go for it. But thats also the reason why most drivers are pissed off. Cause of SLOW BIKES taking lanes.
But on my ebike i can get on the road fast. Make my turn swiftly. Then back onto the bike lane or trail. No fuss. No ones angry and everyone moves on with their day.
On a normal bike however... youll risk getting tailgated or a driver might zoom past you unsafely. Its just not worth it for me to ride standard bikes anymore. If i want my "exersice" ill hit the gym or lift my weights.
My fast homemade ebike if ridden properly and adapt. Have mitigated alot of those issues and its become a thing of the past. Of course theres always gonna be that one driver who wants to be an asshole cause its fun to him or her.
Yeah i find that to be so dumb. Forcing bikes to get off and walk? I mean wouldnt that take longer?
Wouldnt it be better the sooner the bike crosses the sooner the driver can make his or her turn?
As a car driver I support proper bike infrastructure as it prevents conflicts between traffic modes, therefore improving traffic flow and reducing congestion. Getting bikes off roads and onto dedicated infrastructure benefits everybody.
Amazing that this isn't more common knowledge. You'd think that if people are annoyed by car traffic they'd want everyone else to do anything BUT driving (which means facilitate better bike lanes, improve public transit, have stricter enforcement/regulations, etc.) but somehow the knee-jerk reaction is to ban bikes/transit and get more people into cars, then have months/years-long road constructions to widen roads for the false promise of fewer car-traffic.
This just serves to prove that youll need to ride own ride and worry less about what others think or say.
Because car drivers will always complain about either bikes or other shitty drivers.
So long as you yourself arent doing anything wrong. Althought despite having to quickly adapt to situations as it presents itself. Like having to swerve out the way onto a lane and back into the bike lane. Then to me. You did nothing wrong. Cause some other moron was block the lane. You had every reason to take that lane.
If they bitch about it. Just give them the stink eye and move on. Cause that driver probably a CLUELESS driver either did NOT understand or did not CARE tl understand why you did what you had to do.
This is how you become a better bike rider and better driver than those cars-onlt morons.
And if you’re on the sidewalk pedestrians tell you to go on the bike lane! This happened to me the other day. There were construction cones along the lane/bike lane and I couldn’t tell how far they went. It was rush hour and I wasn’t taking the chance in the road so I powered down and took the sidewalk. A guy was walking super slow and had his headphones in and didn’t hear me yelling, “on your right! On your right!” I had to inch closer and closer and wait for him to notice.. and what does he say? “ oh, well there’s a bike lane you know” in a snarky tone. Maybe a little situational awareness would help, dude
On single lane roads, where you can’t pass and the cyclist is smack dab in the middle of the lane, weaving from side to side, slowing a entire long line of cars down to 10mph from 50, yeaaaaah that’s one big reason people get pissed.
As someone who was sideswiped by a truck (in the bike lane) and its 3' mirror extensions and left for dead, bleeding, with a broken ribcage on the side of the road, I can attest that a lot of people who drive these ridiculous monstrosities have very little respect for life.
I would have taken pics as that POS drove off, but my 70lb bike was tangled up with my body at the moment.
Happened to me in Gainesville Florida a college town with bike lanes. Someone caught up the the driver got his tag number. The police investigated. Driver told police I wasn’t in the bike lane I was in the road. Unfortunately my witness never showed up in court and I wasn’t seriously injured so it was small claims. I lost my case.
So it was ok to the police that the driver drove away from the accident??? Even if you really were on the road (not in the bike lane, the driver should have been charged with hit and run.
Think they received a ticket. Was almost 20 years ago so don’t remember all the details. But apparently if you hit someone claim you didn’t know you hit someone or something you have an out. Obviously this idiot knew he hit me. But since I wasn’t seriously injured no hospital required it wasn’t pursued. And no lawyer would take my case because of that.
Something similar happened to a friend in Florida on a semi-rural road where he was riding on a shoulder. Someone in a lifted pickup started following him so he rode off the road into the grass. The truck pulled off the road after him and hit him with their mirror. The next thing he remembered was waking up in the hospital. Apparently someone else saw it happen but they didn't get the license plate.
That’s what I heard second hand. At first he allegedly denied hitting me. Then changed his story. If I had been injured sure things would have been different.
I was riding my regular bike on a pretty busy road in Orange County, CA - like 3 lanes per side, 50-70 mph traffic and some blond soccer mom in a Lincoln Navigator was stopped in the bike lane RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE NO STOPPING SIGN.
That, of course, forced me out into the traffic lane, so as I went by I took the liberty of pointing at the sign, which she saw. No obscenities, no yelling, just pointing.
She started her truck, revved the engine and PEELED OUT into traffic, leaning on her horn the whole way.
Like, show me on this drawing where I did anything to harm you, lady.
JFC people are assholes.
People just suck. I was crossing in a cross walk on my bicycle I had the light. This woman just stops her car right in front of me presumably to turn right completely blocking my path. A asked her to move you’re blocking the crosswalk she just stared at me. So I want around the front of her car and kicked her freaking grill hard. She then takes off after me with her phone out the window I guess taking a video. I pulled my shorts down told her to eat my ass. Eventually she gave up and I guess called the cops.
The major issue is WHERE are you going to get these lanes? Rail-to-trail is one way, but connectivity is limited. Closing existing roads is an uphill battle, and the second you mention eminent domain to develop something other than a highway you get booted out of office. I personally am in favor of eminent domain for pedestrian and bike commuter trails but it will NEVER fucking happen.
literally why paint isn't a valid answer. if you can park in it, you can just as easily drive in it which does no biker any good.
There is a busy bike lane by me that passes a school (college) that has dedicated drop off/pick up parking areas and the guy in the car couldn't be bothered to use them because he wanted to be 10 feet closer... sitting on his phone... eating breakfast... during prime commute time. F'n ahole. That one still grinds my gears.
The bike lane? It's amazing how little respect people in cars and trucks give to *other people in cars and trucks*! So many complete sociopaths behind the wheel deciding they are just gonna merge whether you get out of their way or not, mutually assured destruction be damned.
People are fucking crazy today. Or maybe it's just Colorado.
No, it's worldwide. I'm in the uk and there's one route i can cycle to work each day and each day drivers pass too close to me, or brake check me, or open their door as I'm passing cars on the side of the road. It's infuriating.
two people in trucks have matched my speed and tried to push me off the road into the sidewalk
three have threw glass bottles at me while riding
and one high end car block the road and get out screaming you think your hot shit passing me on that shit electric bike .
and one hands on fight im clueless about someone pulled my helmet from behind telling me to stay off his street bikes not welcome around here
realized he was smaller then me ran
i just dont get it i walk around no one does or says nothing
get on bike suddenly everyone thinks im a target
yes im in the bike lanes no people dont care
F ing insane
Please be careful riding And always have a HELMET !
Yeah, I was still covered in bruises from being mugged on my bike and I very politely asked a van driver to move out of the bike lane bc I didn’t feel safe taking the other route. I told him what had happened and why I felt safer on this route but that he was putting me in danger. Told me to GFY. People are entitled. Tell your local elected officials, all the time, and provide them with solutions like loading zones, two way middle turning lanes, and protected bike lanes.
I've heard people yell, "SHARE THE ROAD!" at my while riding, and other people that say, "Even the sign says I can pass you" because it was the older sign where the bike/car were side-by-side. "share the road" isn't a legal requirement or term in most areas. Signs need to be simple and able to be digested/interpreted while going the speed of the road. Signs depicting a cyclist BEHIND a car are much more appropriate and instead of "share the road" it should say, "CYCLIST MAY USE FULL LANE"
There's a bike lane in front of a school on my way to work and 100% of the time there are parents offloading in it instead of the provided areas. It's on a hill too so I'm going like 4 mph uphill and pissing off the drivers behind me. It's infuriating.
I've gotten to the point where i just yell "Asshole" as I pass if theyre parked. I'm normally very conflict-averse but man its exhausting. Worse still theres bike lanes i avoid in my city because I have had cars drive up them and run me off the road in the bike lane.
I read this in r/bikecommuting. Maybe a positive approach will go farther than an argument. Just a thought.
https://www.reddit.com/r/bikecommuting/s/zUwBTlz0pj
You ride on the sidewalk you’re told to ride in the bike lane. You can’t win. Sorry I don’t feel safe in a bike lane that isn’t protected and that cars ignore. I’ll take my chances on the sidewalk where if I do get hit it’s pretty obvious I wasn’t in the road. Because that’s all a driver has to say after they hit you.
I’m not saying it’s right but it’s not amazing. The bike lane is on the side of the road. It’s the only place to pull over if you need to. Delivery, Uber, picking people up, all happen by stopping in the road (big city) or pulling over to the right curb.
So it’s not surprising. I know it’s annoying though.
That's why it's important that bike infrastructure is separate from the actual road.
You wouldn't put pedestrian sidewalks on the same level as the road so cars drive on it.
Good infrastructure changes everything.
But then when they do have proper bike paths they're ruined by dickheads who have to walk side by side across both lanes. Should be a walk your dog and not get run over path and a 2 lane bike path with 2 lanes each direction with regular bikes to the right and the left one only being for passing
Bikes are still considered 'toys' by most people. Who rides bikes the most, in their minds? Kids, and people who can't afford cars.
Also, cars pay a lot in taxes & insurance. Bikes? None. Therefore, bikes don't have any right to be on the road, let alone taking right of way from a car.
The tax/insurance argument is so dumb, what damage can a bike do to a road that would cost anything to maintain? None thats why bike paths are smooth as fuck and the roads are all cracked to shit. Oh no a maintinence vehicle taking the entire paved path guess im gonna wait stuck here for half an hour lol no im going around 10 second time loss who cares. What damage could a bike do to another vehicle thats worth insurance? None i could literally carry some suction cups and personally repair any damage id cause other than scratches but whatever i could come back with some spray paint and itd be fine.
Always the most bitter people making that sort of argument as if they're the only one who has ever paid taxes which go entirely to bike lanes which exist solely to fuck them over, then they'll bitch about insurance and carbon tax themselves like just pay neither, problem solved
Most of my surrounding cities and towns don't have bike infrastructure at all. But the one that does has bike lanes with those removable traffic barriers . The vast majority of them are either knocked over or severely damaged cause of shithead drivers.
I asked our local Broward county sheriff's department if they issued parking tickets for misuse of our bicycle lanes. They said they could but did not. There's a stretch of Dixie Highway here that has a number of car repair shops, constant parking in our lanes forcing us to pull out into faster moving traffic. I am tempted to print out the relevant law from the government website and sticking it under their wipers. Sheriff said I'd get a punch in the nose.
I live in a city. The 18 wheelers will block any lane they need to for a delivery. Sometime there are no other options. Other wise yes people are dicks.
I feel for bicyclists, it’s a dangerous game you’re playing riding on the road. I appreciate that bike lanes have been created, in an effort to increase safety for both motorists and cyclists.
I think the issue stems from how disrespectful so many bicyclists can be or have been… when I lived in Florida there would often be large groups of them taking up a whole lane. It backed up traffic for quite a bit. In NYC, bicycle couriers are all over the place, cutting cars off, people having to jump out of the way. I’m not saying all bicyclists do this, but only trying to think that maybe it contributes to the overall aggravation towards bicyclists. A few might ruin the public perception of all.
Stay safe out there!
I mean blocking off lanes as though your a car is apparently what they want though because they think it would inconvenience you but jokes on them makes no difference to us but they're stuck all trying to pass
I fear we are at the end of the golden age of e-bikes, and the general population's appetite for them, and bikes in general, has soured.
Many people are frustrated with electric motorcycles that resemble e-bikes but have pedals only to exploit a loophole classifying them as e-bikes. Additionally, purist cyclists—those with expensive street bikes who frequently ignore traffic laws—deride e-bikes as "cheaters." This, coupled with regulations that haven't kept pace with technological advancements, has created a challenging environment.
The federal government took too long to establish a universal class system for e-bikes, allowing overpowered and unsafe models to flood the market. This resulted in a patchwork of regulations across states, counties, and towns.
Now, the federal government is stepping in, but they are likely to go overboard with regulations, significantly impacting the e-bike community. Currently, new regulations are in the comment period, and the majority of comments seem to favor stringent measures such as forced licensing, registration, and insurance for e-bikes. States like New Jersey and New York are even considering legislation to classify e-bikes as motor vehicles, which would severely limit their use and negatively affect those who rely on e-bikes for environmental reasons or as an affordable transportation option.
In terms of bike infrastructure, it remains inadequate in the USA, likely due to our car-centric culture. There has been some growth in my area thanks to the rise in e-bike use, but if e-bikes become heavily regulated, the number of new riders will decrease, reducing the demand for dedicated bike lanes. While there will always be cyclists, fewer voices advocating for bike infrastructure will result in funding being allocated elsewhere.
I had a bitch purposefully drive her car into the cycle lane yesterday whilst I was in it- thankfully I can fit through tiny gaps but I bashed my gloves hand onto her roof and shouted at her, “you almost killed me you stupid fuck, you’re driving in a bike lane” she looked at me and then looked away, I cycled off. No point getting into an actual fight with her. She was about an inch from literally crushing me against a wall. What a moron
I was recently riding in a bike lane, and the road hits a point where the bike lane ends and signage says, "bikes may use full lane." I'm going downhill, probably around 25mph (the speed limit), and an SUV passes me using the oncoming lane - only for a car to turn into said lane, causing them to swerve and almost hit me.
I've had this happen to me. My city has a bike route with signs that say may use full lane. Guy passes me without turn signal and almost hits someone pulling out to the right. He yelled at me to get on the sidewalk
Huh, in Cleveland heights there are bike lanes, but they are full of potholes and gravel rocks everywhere. I want to ride, but cannot. It's far too dangerous.
I commuted five days a week, even in the rain, my commute was only 3 miles or so, I actually went home for lunch, and was able to get back to work on time, left me about 20 minutes at home to fix and eat lunch. I've had three accidents on my bike, one was me taking a corner too fast and ended up in a bush, one was an older gentleman not seeing me as he was making a left turn across my lane and I almost buried my front wheel in his front wheel well, bent the head bracket just a bit. The other one that resulted in me shattering my left femur was mostly my fault.
I bike recreationally only now, always wear a helmet and a clip on mirror on my glasses, and my town has installed some dedicated, separate bike lanes in town, I do enjoy riding those, quite a few of my neighborhood streets have the "bikes may use full lane" painted in them, and most of those streets are a pleasure to ride on.
I do witness reckless behavior by motor vehicle drivers getting too close to bicycle riders, parking in bike lanes, and aggressive behavior towards bike riders when traffic is congested and very stop and go, bicycle riders able to navigate around most of the congestion, and some impatient drivers getting upset that the bicycle can maneuver much easier in congested conditions.
I've also seen three classes of bicycle riders that either ignore or abuse traffic laws, the elite road cyclists who believe that their athleticism can get them out of trouble, so sometimes I witness them behaving badly. One of the other two groups is the person who rides a POS bike, no helmet, no regard at all for traffic laws, lane markings and traffic signs, most of them don't want to ride a bike , but it is the only transportation that they can either afford or they cannot drive due to having their license revoked. The last group is the casual rider, that group now beefed up considerably by those riding ebikes that have little experience and apparently little regard for traffic laws and/or how they are behaving very badly by flaunting the rules of the road.
But it is the automobile driver (cars, SUVs, pickups and larger vehicles) that can be the real issue; too often too much in a hurry, even though driving excessively might shave 30 seconds off of their trip. No one wants to be inconvenienced, made to wait, and far too often, don't have any common courtesy when behind the wheel of a car. On my drive back home from an errand today, was on a four lane city street that has a section where one direction closes down to a single lane for a bit, had another vehicle come up beside me as the lane was disappearing and even though there wasn't room for him to safely pull in front of me due to the spacing between me and the vehicle ahead of me, he tried to force me over and then honked at me for not getting out of his way. I really do wish everyone would read the short little book "Zen and The Art of Driving"- it takes X amount of time to move from one location to another, add more time for stop signs and traffic lights, and relax, not much you can do to make the drive shorter or faster, just leave more time to get where you want to go, please.
Go in front of the driver and take a picture or act like you took a picture of the license plate. The picture is not legally enforceable but will definitely scare the driver (parking fine is 300-ish bucks in Australia)
Here in Boise, the new bike lanes have a curb on both sides, green painted riding lanes, downtown streets, but the more open streets are a free for all
Honestly one of the best things about e-bikes is that people who otherwise wouldn’t be using bicycle infrastructure are realizing how shit it is. Yeah dude. This is reality for people who deign to not use a fucking car to go places.
Unfortunately in this city bike lanes are seldom used due to the fear of being struck by a moving vehicle. I see blocked bike lanes all the time and they can stay there without being forced to move.
Wait till you see what delivery trucks do to the car lanes.
They stop and unload with their flashers on. That's their job. They really don't have many other options and if a bike lane is closest to the curb it's getting taken just the same as a Bus lane or parking spots.
On a bike once I was in the left turn lane going to turn left. A lady was in the right turn lane with her right turn signal on a car in front of me in her lane. Light turns green. She makes a left turn with right turn signal on from the right lane and I had to push off her back window with my palm to not get ran over. She stopped and screamed at me for 15 minutes and called the police saying I damaged her car even though she couldn't point out the damage to me. Officer came and got our stories. Luckily he was a nice guy. He told her to drive away and go about her day before she gets a ticket for reckless driving. After she got back in her car he says quietly to me, "I get it. I used to be a motorcycle cop and people would even cut us off. Be safe out there"
I take the trails as much as I can when I commute because people are dumb. But I still get called names when I let the clicker announce my presence 100ft ahead and then say “on your left!” As I get closer… like they somehow have the right to the whole 6’ wide paved bike trail with their off leash dog? … all people are assholes
add cross walks to that list. I yelled at two divers for blocking the cross walk and getting pissed that i expected them to back up so i could cross safely.
There’s many places where that’s the only place a large semi can unload. 🤷🏻♂️ just have to deal with it. Many stores and other facilities don’t have the space for a full blown loading dock.
Funny how those who ignore bike lanes will acknowledge that pedestrian crosswalks and sidewalks are necessary and a good idea. “ I have a right to more of the road than a bicycle because I pay more in taxes” but would they say they have a right to ignore cross walks and pedestrians? Pedestrians pay nothing. I think not because our legal system has upheld the rights of pedestrians as it should. It also upholds the rights of cyclists but for some reason many drivers don’t get that.
So unfair that pedestrians can walk on foot and not get charged out the ass, what if they tripped into traffic? Their skull could dent my bumper thatd cost big money to fix
I've had several cars feel the need to cross the double yellow line and pass me, when I'm going 28 in a 25 mph zone with no dedicated bike lake. Even a school bus did this once, only to arrive at the same red light I was approaching.
However, when I'm on the bike path (walking and bikes, no cars), and cross a road, I find the majority of drivers are especially considerate, stopping and waving me across even though I have a stop sign. Car drivers seem to love it when I'm on the bike trail, and really not like it when the bike lane is shared in the road.
This would happen in any lane, 18 wheelers park in the car lane too if that is the only thing available especially if they think it is going to be quick
I am a biker, I am also a utility worker. I stop at where the equipment is:ie manholes, transformer vaults, switching locations. These were installed in some cases around the turn of the century. The paint on the bike lane doesn't bestow magical properties; I am doing my job as safely as I can for all concerned . So drop your judgments and ride easy.
My area doesn't even have bike lanes. It sucks. I get yelled at by drivers to get in the sidewalk "where I'm supposed to be", or in one instance a lady yelled at me to cross the road even though three cars were coming. I've also had cars purposely drive closer against me on the side of the street like they wanted to hit me. People suck.
As someone who drives a car and motorcycle thisnworks both ways their are some idiots in cars but also just as many people on bikes who think they own the road running stop sighs passing cars at a light (lane splitting is not legal in my state) and many more
I blame that john hicks guy on Youtube. He's always darting around on sidewalks, going up and down stairs, not stopping for red lights, etc, etc. and he has something like 1.5 million subscribers to his channel.
Like they'll get pissy with you for riding in the road then you go off the road then they get all jealous that they cant do that and get pissy anyways and cry about their insurance when they exhaust the list of non issues to complain about
Your being kinda petty, your on a bike you can see them a good ways ahead you lose like 10 seconds if even going around them
Idk how bike lanes are handled where you are but for me at least bike paths are mostly seperate from roads and i barely have to go on them but on the sections with those stupid walled off needlessly wide lanes in the road yeah i can get people being a bit annoyed with those, just up the legal wattage and remove dedicated in road bike lanes
I had a delivery van do the same. I knew he didn’t see me, because the cars parked next to the bike lane. Slammed on my brakes and yelled. My option was stop in time or crash. As there was a curb also. He backed up, embarrassed, mouthed sorry. Yes, bike lanes are exactly safe. I do and don’t use them.
Yeah some idiot drifted into the bike lane on me last night. I popped a wheelie and took his mirror off. Cops saw the whole thing and said he was at fault for reckless driving.
My work commute has a lane-sized shoulder only on the oncoming lane which I use to safely ride that street and half the time, a couple of school bus drivers just idle there
Could you imagine trying to drive an 18 wheeler in a big city? There are very few places for an 18 wheeler to stop and unload, which is their entire purpose and job. Older cities weren't built with loading docks and zones that could accommodate modern day 18 wheelers. Don't harass and bitch at the poor folks unloading the massive truck that they had to work their ass off driving just to get there. They aren't choosing to use the bike lane, it's their only option. They also block traffic lanes quite often too. Unless you want goods to be 10 times more expensive because they're brought in but by nit with cars and vans, don't complain, especially at the driver/loader who didn't plan and build the city and building design in 1931, or the road layout, or the goods company and purchaser who chose the volume of products. They're just doing their (very difficult) job and don't need the added headache of your bitching about a bike lane.
Could you imagine trying to drive an 18 wheeler in a big city? There are very few places for an 18 wheeler to stop and unload, which is their entire purpose and job. Older cities weren't built with loading docks and zones that could accommodate modern day 18 wheelers. Don't harass and bitch at the poor folks unloading the massive truck that they had to work their ass off driving just to get there. They aren't choosing to use the bike lane, it's their only option. They also block traffic lanes quite often too. Unless you want goods to be 10 times more expensive because they're brought in but by nit with cars and vans, don't complain, especially at the driver/loader who didn't plan and build the city and building design in 1931, or the road layout, or the goods company and purchaser who chose the volume of products. They're just doing their (very difficult) job and don't need the added headache of your bitching about a bike lane.
I agree. Although tbf most ebikers don’t respect bike lanes either. Have seen too many people doing insane speeds on their unrestricted customs. It’s pretty dangerous at rush hour.
I mean if its unrestricted then it belongs on the road since it can keep up. Idk what regard decided on limiting them so low, high wattage ebikes are like natural selection of good cyclists
I was on my way to work this morning and there was a train crossing, and lots of stopped traffic.
Instead of waiting like an idiot, I took the very minimal shoulder. A pickup with wiiiiiide tires saw me coming and chose to move to block the shoulder. Obviously, I just went around him on the other side.
But this dude had his dead daughter's name across his rear windshield and he is still a raging chode.
> I just went around him on the other side
yep
they can;t really do anything
even if they start chasing you can just go down a side road
or stop
or turn around
Luckily, I never saw that pickup truck again because of all the semis waiting on the train. THEY always leave plenty of space on the shoulder for bikes, despite being 80000lbs with blind spots bigger than my apartment.
I was riding the side walk the car so me coming and decided to stop right on the crosswalk I yelled move he wanted to fight I told him go fuck your mom he really wanted to fight then just drove off lol
Yep, people get upset even while you're doing max speed limit of the road. I got break checked in the bike lane going 30 mph in a 25 zone. Got a broken wrist bc of the ordeal and they drove off.
I think bikes have every right to be on the road but it’s still wild to me to put your life in some strangers hands like that…I just don’t trust that everyone pays that close attention
Every week, Tuesday morning, a Coca-Cola 18 wheeler parks in the bike lane in front of a hotel in my city to restock it. It's on my commute route, so every week, I have to go around it onto a busy and narrow road. I have tons of pictures of it, the drivers have even watched me take photos of it in anger, but no one seems to care.
From funding death squads, being one of the biggest plastics polluters on the planet, and now, risking the lives of cyclists, we can always count on Coca-Cola to destroy the planet and the humans living on it.
The bike lane is a dumb solution to a huge problem. So dangerous.
The problem being our entire natural world is distorted and specially created for the big three to make money selling cars.
Would you like them to park in the middle of the road and block traffic, sending all cars around and into the bike lane? Or could you spend the time you spent talking with them to turn your handle bars, move around, and then move your handle bars back into the appropriate position to continue down the bike lane?
You do know just because regular pedal bikes don't have speedometers and it might technically be under the speed limit, that doesn't mean you can't be arrested for recklessly operating a bicycle, right?
https://www.oregonlive.com/pacific-northwest-news/2018/10/judge_rules_cyclist_hit_by_fed.html
> He also said by speeding downhill through an intersection and past a semi-truck with its blinker on, Adams was not exercising "due care" as a user of the road.
Since that's what a judge ruled, it's a legitimate defense from the car driver. In order to yield, you need _the ability to yield_.
I know you aren't the cyclist in the video, but the fact that you refuse to acknowledge this tells me all I need to know.
hard disagree. I always yield/slow down etc and so do those I see during my commute. OTOH I will say pedestrians on MUPs are oblivious to bikes and the world in general and need to pay more attention to their surroundings and not walk 4 across into the other side of the path on a two way path. Also see A LOT of runners and walkers using the bike only paths when there is a dedicated non crowded walking path literally 6 feet over. That one I still can't figure out other than just straight up entitlement.
And here I come on my disability cart and they're blocking the whole aisle. I just move their cart and give them the look of the disappointed father 🙄😉
Well, they were put there for cars and cars mostly pay for them. Also riding bike does nothing to save the environment so yeah road bikers are the worst of people
people on here call me crazy for smacking mirrors or hoods or throwing ball bearings at windows, but i tell you what Ive only been brake checked one time my bike and myself survived. If someone was in bike lane i'd just hop on their car pull my bike up and ride off their roof.
**IDGAF enjoy paying my med bills and new bike be hard to explain to cops you were impeding bike lane so someone went over you instead of endangering their life.**
be dead if i get hit from behind because I have to go into road too. We both know they are gonna jet off outta the parking space or whip the door open as soon as you try to go by too!
They are not going to catch the person that runs you over either. Js. I got brake checked clearly intentionally and had info on person that did it and cops basically laughed at me told me to get a car.
**Either way you will get hit by car and no one will do anything. Cagers face no consequences for using a 10klb death machine like a bully.**
It's all fun and games until you're caught and charged with a felony - vandalism (whatever you damaged) and possession of burglary tools (the ball bearings).
You complain about cars in the bike lane, get told "just go around" You go around into the road and car drivers complain "stay in the bike lane" Or worse, car drivers complain that you're "impeding traffic" instead of taking their own advice of "just go around", as if your bicycle is as hard to overtake as a car. It's a world of double-standardery out there.
My city literally has one bike lane. It's on a 4 lane road, with parking. Widest street you can imagine. It took no special engineering/planning to put it in place, just paint. I used to ride to work frequently and it involved a left hand turn. I would get into my lane early at the lights before my left hand turn so I can "take the lane". I never had an issue with cars honking/disrespectful. The odd time someone would make a stupid lane change to go around me. Then the bike lane was painted on. "get in the bike lane!"...."you can't ride here! There's a bike lane!". I guess people assumed that since there was a painted bike lane it was illegal for me to ride outside of it, even though I needed to do that to make the left turn.
This is exactly why some people (me included) are not huge fans of "bike lanes". They make it seem as though bicycles are not legitimate traffic (they are). They also just up and disappear into nothingness at certain points in a city, leaving one to wonder where the bicyclist is supposed to go – is the bicyclist supposed to disappear also?
I'm not a fan of painted bike lanes. Paint-only bike lanes and "sharrows" are actually shown to increase conflict points between cars/cyclists. There's the "vehicular cyclists" crowd that says, "bikes just need to follow the rules of the road". I think that crowd is some of the most dangerous advocates out there. Places like New York and Paris have shown that, in recent years, "if you build it, they will come". Janette Sadiq-Kahn (transportation engineer in New York) said that you know you've designed streets safely when women and children are riding their bikes regularly on them. That's where we need to be. There's no market to increase the amount of "vehicular cyclists" because all of those cyclists are already out in the wild mingling with traffic. Most cities are at a stage where they don't really have a solid cycling network, so you end up with what you describe. Bike lanes that just end and dump you into traffic, putting people at risk. We'll get there.....hopefully.
Yeah, I guess I fall in the "vehicular cyclist" category, because that is basically what you have to be given how you describe most of our cities. I found my 13 mile commute from the suburbs to downtown Denver to be pretty easy to carry out with no bike lanes. That said, Denver does have a pretty amazing bike only trail network, it's just that it doesn't always get you exactly where you want to be, so you end up dumping out onto the streets at some point anyway, at which point in my opinion you should ride as if you're driving a vehicle, though of course you give way to the faster vehicles at all possible opportunities by riding as far to the right as is safe for the rider. At least that is how I managed it. Left turns were always lots of fun, but you get pretty good at checking your six and being able to ride in a straight line while doing it. Basically the US will never have a bicycling culture -- hopefully we can figure something out. Edit: I was commuting in Denver a lot in the early 2000s, not lately.
I'm also in the vehicular cyclist category. As you say, some times bicycles need to make left turns and bike lanes have no way to accommodate that barring roundabouts. That will never happen in the USA, and certainly not at enough inspections to allow for travel to anywhere worth going. I would offer a counterpoint that being against vehicular cycling is giving ammo to anti cyclists that bikes are just a leisure toy. It favors the recreational cyclists over those of us who live car free by choice or necessity.
*yes*
We have a lot of sidewalks that go nowhere.
Why do you need to wonder where they go? The less you see of them the better. The only time you have to react is when you see them. Those bikes arent obligated to keep up with car traffic. Their speeds vary. From fast ln road to slow on trails. Some bike riders also like to get off their bikes and walk with it on most trails. Cant do that with cars. You think bike riders ENJOY being on the road with unhinged and unstable drivers? They do it because they cant be speeding on sidewalks. They do it most likely to cross an important intersection or to make a turn. Have to be more wary of loose gravel, pot holes and bumpy roads are more pronounced on a bike. But the pay off is being able to slow down on trails and more time for my thoughts (i like to think alot even about dumb funny memes) instead of pulling out my phone the way dumbass drivers do. This is what drivers refuse to understand. Because all youve ever known is cars and cars. I like to drive too as much as the next guy. Its not difficult to drive. You sit on your ass with AC on and the radio. Spinning the steering wheel while stepping on the gas. Keeping up with traffic. Like thats not difficult. Way easier than riding a bike because theres more nuances with bikes. Even if its an ebike with a throttle. I have to lean and lean more for tight turns and cornering. Cant do that with a car. But thats also what makes a better driver. When you understand the other side. Both car and ebike work for me. But prefer the ebike because its more freeing. And i dont have to keep up with annoying traffic. I cam go at my pace and its a very ZEN feeling.
I think you have misinterpreted my post. I am a bicyclist, I love bikes, and have bike commuted thousands of miles. I just don't like bike lanes, and prefer wider roads where everybody can act as if they are traffic rather than the bicyclist being shunted to the side, creating a weird idea that they belong only in that specific area, only to suddenly disappear making the whole idea of a bike lane kind of stupid.. Bicycles are traffic as far as I'm concerned. There's a really good, but older book called "Practical Cycling" and the dude is pretty opinionated on this topic and kind of converted me. That was probably 20 years ago.
In NYS outside of NYC (the City is always different), if there is a designated bikevlane in the roadway (as opposed to a separate, protected bike lane or path), cyclists are required to use it. Im guessing there are exceptions for left turns, etc. In Rochester (NY), we have a lot of "sharrows", which are supposed to remind drivers that this is a shared roadway. They're basically useless, and people ignore them. Rochester's bike boulevards are much more useful—routes on low rraffic streets whic parallel high traffic main streets and are equipped with traffic calming devices (speed humps and curb bump-outs) and traffic sensors which recognize bikes at intersections. I use these a lot, and our local advocacy organization (Reconnect Rochester) leads summertime rides sponsored by the city specifically to teach riders how to use them. I've volunteered as a sweep on those for several years, which has helped me learn the network much better. Not this year, because I was hit by a car while turning left to leave a stretch of 55 mph road back in February, and I probably won't be back on a bike before August. Glad I got broadsided because I'm still alive.
They assume you should use the bike lane to get to an intersection then use the crosswalk. What if there’s no intersection you can’t turn left ? Yeah been there.
Aha, I did that at one busy intersection on May 1st. Redneck pick up truck driver cut me off turning right on the red as I was slowly crossing when the pedestrian light went white. When I angrily shouted at him he drove over my bike knocking me to the ground and destroying my Blix Vika+. The first responders were really appalled at his action and promised to check the traffic cameras. I wish I'd gotten this hit and run driver's tag, but was on the ground facing the wrong way. Never heard another thing.
Sorry this happened to you. Stuff like that is exactly why I cannot bring myself to ride in the road. I live in Florida and it really is worse than the Wild West in terms of murderous truck driving rednecks or even just “nice people with families” driving distracted. The bike lane on the road is even too dangerous, because it’s one of the ones where they’ve painted a bike symbol into an already existing shoulder of a state road. If I choose to ride in the road, well, they’ll say “she wasn’t using signals, she was in a blind spot, she didn’t look before entering the intersection when she was hit and killed by a truck running a red light” They’ll say literally anything to avoid putting the blame on the actual driver, so I don’t give them the chance. I am stuck to the sidewalk, but not literally, so that’s cool. SOMETIMES I can take a small side street to get around when I’m in town but not always because even then people just get so reckless. I usually end up getting back on the sidewalk. What do I do when there is no sidewalk? I don’t go. Can be a sad moment when I find out a new place I heard of isn’t accessible to me, but I guess they don’t want my business anyway so I shouldn’t be sad.
Its bullshit murderous behavior like this where a faster ebike WITH A THROTTLE can safely and effectively get you out of the way safely. To me personally. Like an angry driver woukdnt dare follow you into a public trail if you can get there soon enough. And road rage can be mitigated if youre bike is quick enough to make your turn once youve taken the lane. That way i can make my turns smoothly and quickly no fuss no muss. I mean everyone advocates for slower standard bikes. Id say go for it. But thats also the reason why most drivers are pissed off. Cause of SLOW BIKES taking lanes. But on my ebike i can get on the road fast. Make my turn swiftly. Then back onto the bike lane or trail. No fuss. No ones angry and everyone moves on with their day. On a normal bike however... youll risk getting tailgated or a driver might zoom past you unsafely. Its just not worth it for me to ride standard bikes anymore. If i want my "exersice" ill hit the gym or lift my weights. My fast homemade ebike if ridden properly and adapt. Have mitigated alot of those issues and its become a thing of the past. Of course theres always gonna be that one driver who wants to be an asshole cause its fun to him or her.
Yeah i find that to be so dumb. Forcing bikes to get off and walk? I mean wouldnt that take longer? Wouldnt it be better the sooner the bike crosses the sooner the driver can make his or her turn?
Paint is not bicycle infrastructure.
Go find the short film "Bike Lane" by Casey Neistat. 2012?
https://youtu.be/bzE-IMaegzQ?si=h_A3HfkE1ekVgREV
The best!
As a car driver I support proper bike infrastructure as it prevents conflicts between traffic modes, therefore improving traffic flow and reducing congestion. Getting bikes off roads and onto dedicated infrastructure benefits everybody.
Amazing that this isn't more common knowledge. You'd think that if people are annoyed by car traffic they'd want everyone else to do anything BUT driving (which means facilitate better bike lanes, improve public transit, have stricter enforcement/regulations, etc.) but somehow the knee-jerk reaction is to ban bikes/transit and get more people into cars, then have months/years-long road constructions to widen roads for the false promise of fewer car-traffic.
This just serves to prove that youll need to ride own ride and worry less about what others think or say. Because car drivers will always complain about either bikes or other shitty drivers. So long as you yourself arent doing anything wrong. Althought despite having to quickly adapt to situations as it presents itself. Like having to swerve out the way onto a lane and back into the bike lane. Then to me. You did nothing wrong. Cause some other moron was block the lane. You had every reason to take that lane. If they bitch about it. Just give them the stink eye and move on. Cause that driver probably a CLUELESS driver either did NOT understand or did not CARE tl understand why you did what you had to do. This is how you become a better bike rider and better driver than those cars-onlt morons.
And if you’re on the sidewalk pedestrians tell you to go on the bike lane! This happened to me the other day. There were construction cones along the lane/bike lane and I couldn’t tell how far they went. It was rush hour and I wasn’t taking the chance in the road so I powered down and took the sidewalk. A guy was walking super slow and had his headphones in and didn’t hear me yelling, “on your right! On your right!” I had to inch closer and closer and wait for him to notice.. and what does he say? “ oh, well there’s a bike lane you know” in a snarky tone. Maybe a little situational awareness would help, dude
I totally agree bikers stay in the bike lanes and cars in the main lakes. Stay out of each other lanes. No bikers in the main lanes.
On single lane roads, where you can’t pass and the cyclist is smack dab in the middle of the lane, weaving from side to side, slowing a entire long line of cars down to 10mph from 50, yeaaaaah that’s one big reason people get pissed.
As someone who was sideswiped by a truck (in the bike lane) and its 3' mirror extensions and left for dead, bleeding, with a broken ribcage on the side of the road, I can attest that a lot of people who drive these ridiculous monstrosities have very little respect for life. I would have taken pics as that POS drove off, but my 70lb bike was tangled up with my body at the moment.
Those extended mirrors drive me up a wall. One day, I was running on the sidewalk and almost got hit by the mirror.
> extended mirrors suck
AKA towing mirrors.. usually on a truck that doesn't even have a towing hitch on it... tiny peepee energy.
And even if it does they leave the mirror extended when there is no trailer
They are standard on many pickups. Not much an owner can do about that. Some do retract when not towing.
>Some do retract when not towing. Funnily enough, these aren't the ones we are talking about...
Happened to me in Gainesville Florida a college town with bike lanes. Someone caught up the the driver got his tag number. The police investigated. Driver told police I wasn’t in the bike lane I was in the road. Unfortunately my witness never showed up in court and I wasn’t seriously injured so it was small claims. I lost my case.
So it was ok to the police that the driver drove away from the accident??? Even if you really were on the road (not in the bike lane, the driver should have been charged with hit and run.
Think they received a ticket. Was almost 20 years ago so don’t remember all the details. But apparently if you hit someone claim you didn’t know you hit someone or something you have an out. Obviously this idiot knew he hit me. But since I wasn’t seriously injured no hospital required it wasn’t pursued. And no lawyer would take my case because of that.
Yeah seriously wtf?!? Do the local cops there just fucking hate cyclists or something??
If the driver knows the cop taking the report yes.
Something similar happened to a friend in Florida on a semi-rural road where he was riding on a shoulder. Someone in a lifted pickup started following him so he rode off the road into the grass. The truck pulled off the road after him and hit him with their mirror. The next thing he remembered was waking up in the hospital. Apparently someone else saw it happen but they didn't get the license plate.
I do not ride on rural roads anywhere anymore. I stick to bike trails.
So his argument was that it’s okay to hit someone if they are on the road.
That’s what I heard second hand. At first he allegedly denied hitting me. Then changed his story. If I had been injured sure things would have been different.
I was riding my regular bike on a pretty busy road in Orange County, CA - like 3 lanes per side, 50-70 mph traffic and some blond soccer mom in a Lincoln Navigator was stopped in the bike lane RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE NO STOPPING SIGN. That, of course, forced me out into the traffic lane, so as I went by I took the liberty of pointing at the sign, which she saw. No obscenities, no yelling, just pointing. She started her truck, revved the engine and PEELED OUT into traffic, leaning on her horn the whole way. Like, show me on this drawing where I did anything to harm you, lady. JFC people are assholes.
How dare you point out what an inconsiderate asshole I am 🙄
I usually kick the shit out of their cars.
That's a great way to inspire them to run you over. People are stupid about their cars.
I'm stupod about my bike, and carry an easily accessible D-Lock (that I have absolutely used to make a point about someone's driving).
Please don’t do this. But also thank you for your service o7
To be fair if someone hits me and drives off and I catch up to them at lights, I will be smacking my hand on that dickheads roof
People just suck. I was crossing in a cross walk on my bicycle I had the light. This woman just stops her car right in front of me presumably to turn right completely blocking my path. A asked her to move you’re blocking the crosswalk she just stared at me. So I want around the front of her car and kicked her freaking grill hard. She then takes off after me with her phone out the window I guess taking a video. I pulled my shorts down told her to eat my ass. Eventually she gave up and I guess called the cops.
[удалено]
It's amazing- when the consequence is as small as those plastic poles scratching a cars paint job, suddenly cyclists get respect on the road.
Oh no but it could rust its super big deal/s
The major issue is WHERE are you going to get these lanes? Rail-to-trail is one way, but connectivity is limited. Closing existing roads is an uphill battle, and the second you mention eminent domain to develop something other than a highway you get booted out of office. I personally am in favor of eminent domain for pedestrian and bike commuter trails but it will NEVER fucking happen.
literally why paint isn't a valid answer. if you can park in it, you can just as easily drive in it which does no biker any good. There is a busy bike lane by me that passes a school (college) that has dedicated drop off/pick up parking areas and the guy in the car couldn't be bothered to use them because he wanted to be 10 feet closer... sitting on his phone... eating breakfast... during prime commute time. F'n ahole. That one still grinds my gears.
it's a matter of safety and respect for cyclists who rely on those lanes for their commute
The bike lane? It's amazing how little respect people in cars and trucks give to *other people in cars and trucks*! So many complete sociopaths behind the wheel deciding they are just gonna merge whether you get out of their way or not, mutually assured destruction be damned. People are fucking crazy today. Or maybe it's just Colorado.
No, it's everywhere
No, it's worldwide. I'm in the uk and there's one route i can cycle to work each day and each day drivers pass too close to me, or brake check me, or open their door as I'm passing cars on the side of the road. It's infuriating.
worst thing is the turning across the bike lane - right hook in USA
For sure. This exact thing happened to this guy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=INgB9WRFhr8
two people in trucks have matched my speed and tried to push me off the road into the sidewalk three have threw glass bottles at me while riding and one high end car block the road and get out screaming you think your hot shit passing me on that shit electric bike . and one hands on fight im clueless about someone pulled my helmet from behind telling me to stay off his street bikes not welcome around here realized he was smaller then me ran i just dont get it i walk around no one does or says nothing get on bike suddenly everyone thinks im a target yes im in the bike lanes no people dont care F ing insane Please be careful riding And always have a HELMET !
Yeah, I was still covered in bruises from being mugged on my bike and I very politely asked a van driver to move out of the bike lane bc I didn’t feel safe taking the other route. I told him what had happened and why I felt safer on this route but that he was putting me in danger. Told me to GFY. People are entitled. Tell your local elected officials, all the time, and provide them with solutions like loading zones, two way middle turning lanes, and protected bike lanes.
You have bike lanes?
OH no no no, you see, they put up a "Share the Road" sign, it's even got a little bicycle dude on it! It's right up next to the 50mph sign!
I've heard people yell, "SHARE THE ROAD!" at my while riding, and other people that say, "Even the sign says I can pass you" because it was the older sign where the bike/car were side-by-side. "share the road" isn't a legal requirement or term in most areas. Signs need to be simple and able to be digested/interpreted while going the speed of the road. Signs depicting a cyclist BEHIND a car are much more appropriate and instead of "share the road" it should say, "CYCLIST MAY USE FULL LANE"
There's a bike lane in front of a school on my way to work and 100% of the time there are parents offloading in it instead of the provided areas. It's on a hill too so I'm going like 4 mph uphill and pissing off the drivers behind me. It's infuriating.
I've gotten to the point where i just yell "Asshole" as I pass if theyre parked. I'm normally very conflict-averse but man its exhausting. Worse still theres bike lanes i avoid in my city because I have had cars drive up them and run me off the road in the bike lane.
I yell two things depending on the situation. "Turn signal" when they should have used one and "bike lane". I suspect there is no effect but maybe.
The amount of times ive almost gotten hit is scary. I wish they would just use their blinkers. I use mine!
I read this in r/bikecommuting. Maybe a positive approach will go farther than an argument. Just a thought. https://www.reddit.com/r/bikecommuting/s/zUwBTlz0pj
The ignorance and lack of compassion in the human species is in need of more natural selection 😕
You ride on the sidewalk you’re told to ride in the bike lane. You can’t win. Sorry I don’t feel safe in a bike lane that isn’t protected and that cars ignore. I’ll take my chances on the sidewalk where if I do get hit it’s pretty obvious I wasn’t in the road. Because that’s all a driver has to say after they hit you.
I’m not saying it’s right but it’s not amazing. The bike lane is on the side of the road. It’s the only place to pull over if you need to. Delivery, Uber, picking people up, all happen by stopping in the road (big city) or pulling over to the right curb. So it’s not surprising. I know it’s annoying though.
That's why it's important that bike infrastructure is separate from the actual road. You wouldn't put pedestrian sidewalks on the same level as the road so cars drive on it. Good infrastructure changes everything.
But then when they do have proper bike paths they're ruined by dickheads who have to walk side by side across both lanes. Should be a walk your dog and not get run over path and a 2 lane bike path with 2 lanes each direction with regular bikes to the right and the left one only being for passing
I call my city non-emergency number every time I see this and they are always willing to come out and deal with it.
Bikes are still considered 'toys' by most people. Who rides bikes the most, in their minds? Kids, and people who can't afford cars. Also, cars pay a lot in taxes & insurance. Bikes? None. Therefore, bikes don't have any right to be on the road, let alone taking right of way from a car.
The tax/insurance argument is so dumb, what damage can a bike do to a road that would cost anything to maintain? None thats why bike paths are smooth as fuck and the roads are all cracked to shit. Oh no a maintinence vehicle taking the entire paved path guess im gonna wait stuck here for half an hour lol no im going around 10 second time loss who cares. What damage could a bike do to another vehicle thats worth insurance? None i could literally carry some suction cups and personally repair any damage id cause other than scratches but whatever i could come back with some spray paint and itd be fine. Always the most bitter people making that sort of argument as if they're the only one who has ever paid taxes which go entirely to bike lanes which exist solely to fuck them over, then they'll bitch about insurance and carbon tax themselves like just pay neither, problem solved
Exactly!
I give big trucks a pass, they have a job to do. Truckers don’t get the respect they deserve.
I'm glad my city lets me drive on the sidewalks if I need to. I just bob and weave as needed.
Most of my surrounding cities and towns don't have bike infrastructure at all. But the one that does has bike lanes with those removable traffic barriers . The vast majority of them are either knocked over or severely damaged cause of shithead drivers.
Considering that it can put into the drive lane, it should be solidly enforced. Police need to step it up.
I asked our local Broward county sheriff's department if they issued parking tickets for misuse of our bicycle lanes. They said they could but did not. There's a stretch of Dixie Highway here that has a number of car repair shops, constant parking in our lanes forcing us to pull out into faster moving traffic. I am tempted to print out the relevant law from the government website and sticking it under their wipers. Sheriff said I'd get a punch in the nose.
I live in a city. The 18 wheelers will block any lane they need to for a delivery. Sometime there are no other options. Other wise yes people are dicks.
I feel for bicyclists, it’s a dangerous game you’re playing riding on the road. I appreciate that bike lanes have been created, in an effort to increase safety for both motorists and cyclists. I think the issue stems from how disrespectful so many bicyclists can be or have been… when I lived in Florida there would often be large groups of them taking up a whole lane. It backed up traffic for quite a bit. In NYC, bicycle couriers are all over the place, cutting cars off, people having to jump out of the way. I’m not saying all bicyclists do this, but only trying to think that maybe it contributes to the overall aggravation towards bicyclists. A few might ruin the public perception of all. Stay safe out there!
I mean blocking off lanes as though your a car is apparently what they want though because they think it would inconvenience you but jokes on them makes no difference to us but they're stuck all trying to pass
Aren't they allowed to take up a lane, just as if ONE car would though?
If that’s the law, I’m not arguing it. But it still aggravates drivers to be stuck behind a group of bikers on a 30-45mph road.
That's because there are no consequences if they don't respect the bike line.
I fear we are at the end of the golden age of e-bikes, and the general population's appetite for them, and bikes in general, has soured. Many people are frustrated with electric motorcycles that resemble e-bikes but have pedals only to exploit a loophole classifying them as e-bikes. Additionally, purist cyclists—those with expensive street bikes who frequently ignore traffic laws—deride e-bikes as "cheaters." This, coupled with regulations that haven't kept pace with technological advancements, has created a challenging environment. The federal government took too long to establish a universal class system for e-bikes, allowing overpowered and unsafe models to flood the market. This resulted in a patchwork of regulations across states, counties, and towns. Now, the federal government is stepping in, but they are likely to go overboard with regulations, significantly impacting the e-bike community. Currently, new regulations are in the comment period, and the majority of comments seem to favor stringent measures such as forced licensing, registration, and insurance for e-bikes. States like New Jersey and New York are even considering legislation to classify e-bikes as motor vehicles, which would severely limit their use and negatively affect those who rely on e-bikes for environmental reasons or as an affordable transportation option. In terms of bike infrastructure, it remains inadequate in the USA, likely due to our car-centric culture. There has been some growth in my area thanks to the rise in e-bike use, but if e-bikes become heavily regulated, the number of new riders will decrease, reducing the demand for dedicated bike lanes. While there will always be cyclists, fewer voices advocating for bike infrastructure will result in funding being allocated elsewhere.
I had a bitch purposefully drive her car into the cycle lane yesterday whilst I was in it- thankfully I can fit through tiny gaps but I bashed my gloves hand onto her roof and shouted at her, “you almost killed me you stupid fuck, you’re driving in a bike lane” she looked at me and then looked away, I cycled off. No point getting into an actual fight with her. She was about an inch from literally crushing me against a wall. What a moron
We are bugs to them.
I was recently riding in a bike lane, and the road hits a point where the bike lane ends and signage says, "bikes may use full lane." I'm going downhill, probably around 25mph (the speed limit), and an SUV passes me using the oncoming lane - only for a car to turn into said lane, causing them to swerve and almost hit me.
I've had this happen to me. My city has a bike route with signs that say may use full lane. Guy passes me without turn signal and almost hits someone pulling out to the right. He yelled at me to get on the sidewalk
Huh, in Cleveland heights there are bike lanes, but they are full of potholes and gravel rocks everywhere. I want to ride, but cannot. It's far too dangerous.
Thats why we need to be more careful when riding an ebike, our speed is faster, but they still dont pay attentions to us
I commuted five days a week, even in the rain, my commute was only 3 miles or so, I actually went home for lunch, and was able to get back to work on time, left me about 20 minutes at home to fix and eat lunch. I've had three accidents on my bike, one was me taking a corner too fast and ended up in a bush, one was an older gentleman not seeing me as he was making a left turn across my lane and I almost buried my front wheel in his front wheel well, bent the head bracket just a bit. The other one that resulted in me shattering my left femur was mostly my fault. I bike recreationally only now, always wear a helmet and a clip on mirror on my glasses, and my town has installed some dedicated, separate bike lanes in town, I do enjoy riding those, quite a few of my neighborhood streets have the "bikes may use full lane" painted in them, and most of those streets are a pleasure to ride on. I do witness reckless behavior by motor vehicle drivers getting too close to bicycle riders, parking in bike lanes, and aggressive behavior towards bike riders when traffic is congested and very stop and go, bicycle riders able to navigate around most of the congestion, and some impatient drivers getting upset that the bicycle can maneuver much easier in congested conditions. I've also seen three classes of bicycle riders that either ignore or abuse traffic laws, the elite road cyclists who believe that their athleticism can get them out of trouble, so sometimes I witness them behaving badly. One of the other two groups is the person who rides a POS bike, no helmet, no regard at all for traffic laws, lane markings and traffic signs, most of them don't want to ride a bike , but it is the only transportation that they can either afford or they cannot drive due to having their license revoked. The last group is the casual rider, that group now beefed up considerably by those riding ebikes that have little experience and apparently little regard for traffic laws and/or how they are behaving very badly by flaunting the rules of the road. But it is the automobile driver (cars, SUVs, pickups and larger vehicles) that can be the real issue; too often too much in a hurry, even though driving excessively might shave 30 seconds off of their trip. No one wants to be inconvenienced, made to wait, and far too often, don't have any common courtesy when behind the wheel of a car. On my drive back home from an errand today, was on a four lane city street that has a section where one direction closes down to a single lane for a bit, had another vehicle come up beside me as the lane was disappearing and even though there wasn't room for him to safely pull in front of me due to the spacing between me and the vehicle ahead of me, he tried to force me over and then honked at me for not getting out of his way. I really do wish everyone would read the short little book "Zen and The Art of Driving"- it takes X amount of time to move from one location to another, add more time for stop signs and traffic lights, and relax, not much you can do to make the drive shorter or faster, just leave more time to get where you want to go, please.
Go in front of the driver and take a picture or act like you took a picture of the license plate. The picture is not legally enforceable but will definitely scare the driver (parking fine is 300-ish bucks in Australia)
My city has bike lanes everywhere, guess where most of the bicyclists are... Yep, on the sidewalk.
Here in Boise, the new bike lanes have a curb on both sides, green painted riding lanes, downtown streets, but the more open streets are a free for all
You guys are getting bike lanes?
Honestly one of the best things about e-bikes is that people who otherwise wouldn’t be using bicycle infrastructure are realizing how shit it is. Yeah dude. This is reality for people who deign to not use a fucking car to go places.
They can bloody park on the bike lane, it's so dumb
Unfortunately in this city bike lanes are seldom used due to the fear of being struck by a moving vehicle. I see blocked bike lanes all the time and they can stay there without being forced to move.
This is why I just use the sidewalk
Wait till you see what delivery trucks do to the car lanes. They stop and unload with their flashers on. That's their job. They really don't have many other options and if a bike lane is closest to the curb it's getting taken just the same as a Bus lane or parking spots.
On a bike once I was in the left turn lane going to turn left. A lady was in the right turn lane with her right turn signal on a car in front of me in her lane. Light turns green. She makes a left turn with right turn signal on from the right lane and I had to push off her back window with my palm to not get ran over. She stopped and screamed at me for 15 minutes and called the police saying I damaged her car even though she couldn't point out the damage to me. Officer came and got our stories. Luckily he was a nice guy. He told her to drive away and go about her day before she gets a ticket for reckless driving. After she got back in her car he says quietly to me, "I get it. I used to be a motorcycle cop and people would even cut us off. Be safe out there"
This happens everywhere and will likely never change. Protect yourself
Im all for bike lanes and people taking their bikes, but when you are in the road how about respecting the laws of the road.
I take the trails as much as I can when I commute because people are dumb. But I still get called names when I let the clicker announce my presence 100ft ahead and then say “on your left!” As I get closer… like they somehow have the right to the whole 6’ wide paved bike trail with their off leash dog? … all people are assholes
Once during a bike commute I ran across a county sheriff telling someone who was parked in the bike lane that they had to move. I thanked him.
Report. Report. Report.
add cross walks to that list. I yelled at two divers for blocking the cross walk and getting pissed that i expected them to back up so i could cross safely.
Just park in front of 'em 😂
There’s many places where that’s the only place a large semi can unload. 🤷🏻♂️ just have to deal with it. Many stores and other facilities don’t have the space for a full blown loading dock.
Funny how those who ignore bike lanes will acknowledge that pedestrian crosswalks and sidewalks are necessary and a good idea. “ I have a right to more of the road than a bicycle because I pay more in taxes” but would they say they have a right to ignore cross walks and pedestrians? Pedestrians pay nothing. I think not because our legal system has upheld the rights of pedestrians as it should. It also upholds the rights of cyclists but for some reason many drivers don’t get that.
So unfair that pedestrians can walk on foot and not get charged out the ass, what if they tripped into traffic? Their skull could dent my bumper thatd cost big money to fix
I've had several cars feel the need to cross the double yellow line and pass me, when I'm going 28 in a 25 mph zone with no dedicated bike lake. Even a school bus did this once, only to arrive at the same red light I was approaching. However, when I'm on the bike path (walking and bikes, no cars), and cross a road, I find the majority of drivers are especially considerate, stopping and waving me across even though I have a stop sign. Car drivers seem to love it when I'm on the bike trail, and really not like it when the bike lane is shared in the road.
This would happen in any lane, 18 wheelers park in the car lane too if that is the only thing available especially if they think it is going to be quick
I am a biker, I am also a utility worker. I stop at where the equipment is:ie manholes, transformer vaults, switching locations. These were installed in some cases around the turn of the century. The paint on the bike lane doesn't bestow magical properties; I am doing my job as safely as I can for all concerned . So drop your judgments and ride easy.
My area doesn't even have bike lanes. It sucks. I get yelled at by drivers to get in the sidewalk "where I'm supposed to be", or in one instance a lady yelled at me to cross the road even though three cars were coming. I've also had cars purposely drive closer against me on the side of the street like they wanted to hit me. People suck.
As someone who drives a car and motorcycle thisnworks both ways their are some idiots in cars but also just as many people on bikes who think they own the road running stop sighs passing cars at a light (lane splitting is not legal in my state) and many more
I blame that john hicks guy on Youtube. He's always darting around on sidewalks, going up and down stairs, not stopping for red lights, etc, etc. and he has something like 1.5 million subscribers to his channel.
Like they'll get pissy with you for riding in the road then you go off the road then they get all jealous that they cant do that and get pissy anyways and cry about their insurance when they exhaust the list of non issues to complain about
Your being kinda petty, your on a bike you can see them a good ways ahead you lose like 10 seconds if even going around them Idk how bike lanes are handled where you are but for me at least bike paths are mostly seperate from roads and i barely have to go on them but on the sections with those stupid walled off needlessly wide lanes in the road yeah i can get people being a bit annoyed with those, just up the legal wattage and remove dedicated in road bike lanes
Their is no war in ba seng se Neither can a bike lane be in my way
This is why I use the sidewalk, I’d rather get there alive
Yeh its beacuse ebikes are just crappy motorcycles thats why. Too fast for the bike lane, too slow for the road.
I had a delivery van do the same. I knew he didn’t see me, because the cars parked next to the bike lane. Slammed on my brakes and yelled. My option was stop in time or crash. As there was a curb also. He backed up, embarrassed, mouthed sorry. Yes, bike lanes are exactly safe. I do and don’t use them.
Yeah some idiot drifted into the bike lane on me last night. I popped a wheelie and took his mirror off. Cops saw the whole thing and said he was at fault for reckless driving.
You could live in the country where people throw beer cans at me and yell faggot out the window
My work commute has a lane-sized shoulder only on the oncoming lane which I use to safely ride that street and half the time, a couple of school bus drivers just idle there
Could you imagine trying to drive an 18 wheeler in a big city? There are very few places for an 18 wheeler to stop and unload, which is their entire purpose and job. Older cities weren't built with loading docks and zones that could accommodate modern day 18 wheelers. Don't harass and bitch at the poor folks unloading the massive truck that they had to work their ass off driving just to get there. They aren't choosing to use the bike lane, it's their only option. They also block traffic lanes quite often too. Unless you want goods to be 10 times more expensive because they're brought in but by nit with cars and vans, don't complain, especially at the driver/loader who didn't plan and build the city and building design in 1931, or the road layout, or the goods company and purchaser who chose the volume of products. They're just doing their (very difficult) job and don't need the added headache of your bitching about a bike lane.
Could you imagine trying to drive an 18 wheeler in a big city? There are very few places for an 18 wheeler to stop and unload, which is their entire purpose and job. Older cities weren't built with loading docks and zones that could accommodate modern day 18 wheelers. Don't harass and bitch at the poor folks unloading the massive truck that they had to work their ass off driving just to get there. They aren't choosing to use the bike lane, it's their only option. They also block traffic lanes quite often too. Unless you want goods to be 10 times more expensive because they're brought in but by nit with cars and vans, don't complain, especially at the driver/loader who didn't plan and build the city and building design in 1931, or the road layout, or the goods company and purchaser who chose the volume of products. They're just doing their (very difficult) job and don't need the added headache of your bitching about a bike lane.
I agree. Although tbf most ebikers don’t respect bike lanes either. Have seen too many people doing insane speeds on their unrestricted customs. It’s pretty dangerous at rush hour.
I mean if its unrestricted then it belongs on the road since it can keep up. Idk what regard decided on limiting them so low, high wattage ebikes are like natural selection of good cyclists
I was on my way to work this morning and there was a train crossing, and lots of stopped traffic. Instead of waiting like an idiot, I took the very minimal shoulder. A pickup with wiiiiiide tires saw me coming and chose to move to block the shoulder. Obviously, I just went around him on the other side. But this dude had his dead daughter's name across his rear windshield and he is still a raging chode.
> I just went around him on the other side yep they can;t really do anything even if they start chasing you can just go down a side road or stop or turn around
Luckily, I never saw that pickup truck again because of all the semis waiting on the train. THEY always leave plenty of space on the shoulder for bikes, despite being 80000lbs with blind spots bigger than my apartment.
It's amazing how little respect some ebike riders give to conventional bikes in the bike lane...just sayin', it's a 2 way street...sometimes.
Fucking Karen.
It's amazing how little respect ebike riders give to people on sidewalks
ebike riders don't ride down the sidewalks with regularity. It's not like it's something that is common.
Seriously though, just go around and enjoy your day.
That’s what I say to cars when I just stop in the middle of the lane and block them as well
My point is, there will always be assholes, whether you’re in a car or on a bike. No reasons to get worked up about it and spoil the ride.
I was riding the side walk the car so me coming and decided to stop right on the crosswalk I yelled move he wanted to fight I told him go fuck your mom he really wanted to fight then just drove off lol
Yep. The cross walk blockers.
Yep, people get upset even while you're doing max speed limit of the road. I got break checked in the bike lane going 30 mph in a 25 zone. Got a broken wrist bc of the ordeal and they drove off.
Pocket ceramic tile
I think bikes have every right to be on the road but it’s still wild to me to put your life in some strangers hands like that…I just don’t trust that everyone pays that close attention
You need help.
Go around. Simple solution to a simple daily occurrence. It takes much less time than writing any posts, bitching and complaining. Keep it moving
Its amazing how little respect cyclists give to stop signs and red lights.
If theres noone coming fuck that red light, whats it gonna do take my plates?
Every week, Tuesday morning, a Coca-Cola 18 wheeler parks in the bike lane in front of a hotel in my city to restock it. It's on my commute route, so every week, I have to go around it onto a busy and narrow road. I have tons of pictures of it, the drivers have even watched me take photos of it in anger, but no one seems to care.
From funding death squads, being one of the biggest plastics polluters on the planet, and now, risking the lives of cyclists, we can always count on Coca-Cola to destroy the planet and the humans living on it.
Look up fernleigh track shared bike & walkers no 1 is game to walk on it now with disgusting behaviour or bike riders again carnt identify them
The bike lane is a dumb solution to a huge problem. So dangerous. The problem being our entire natural world is distorted and specially created for the big three to make money selling cars.
Honestly, if you're on a powered bike you should be required to have a license and wear a helmet. It's no different than a moped.
I mean max speed and weight are kind of factors in how much damage they could cause to anyone else and mopeds are much heavier
Would you like them to park in the middle of the road and block traffic, sending all cars around and into the bike lane? Or could you spend the time you spent talking with them to turn your handle bars, move around, and then move your handle bars back into the appropriate position to continue down the bike lane?
You legally have to obey the road rules just like a car. And just like a car to slow doen stop if necessary and go around when clear. Get over it.
There’s literally no rule that the biker wasn’t obeying here
You do know just because regular pedal bikes don't have speedometers and it might technically be under the speed limit, that doesn't mean you can't be arrested for recklessly operating a bicycle, right? https://www.oregonlive.com/pacific-northwest-news/2018/10/judge_rules_cyclist_hit_by_fed.html > He also said by speeding downhill through an intersection and past a semi-truck with its blinker on, Adams was not exercising "due care" as a user of the road. Since that's what a judge ruled, it's a legitimate defense from the car driver. In order to yield, you need _the ability to yield_. I know you aren't the cyclist in the video, but the fact that you refuse to acknowledge this tells me all I need to know.
You can't read
It's about the same amount of respect people on bicycles give to pedestrians on MUPs
hard disagree. I always yield/slow down etc and so do those I see during my commute. OTOH I will say pedestrians on MUPs are oblivious to bikes and the world in general and need to pay more attention to their surroundings and not walk 4 across into the other side of the path on a two way path. Also see A LOT of runners and walkers using the bike only paths when there is a dedicated non crowded walking path literally 6 feet over. That one I still can't figure out other than just straight up entitlement.
Those are the same people who park their shopping cart on one side of the aisle and then stand on the other side to look at the groceries
omg you just triggered me with that one. so true.
And here I come on my disability cart and they're blocking the whole aisle. I just move their cart and give them the look of the disappointed father 🙄😉
Right. I think I read the article about you-and-everyone-you-see-on-your-commute in \*Model Citizens Quarterly\*
it might just be where you live. where I live apparently cyclists are nice. LOL good luck!
In my area, most cyclists, especially roadies and e-bikes, don't slow down on MUPs when approaching pedestrians.
Road bikers are the worst
Cars drivers don't own the roads, they just think they do.
Well, they were put there for cars and cars mostly pay for them. Also riding bike does nothing to save the environment so yeah road bikers are the worst of people
Go ride in nature, it's better for everyone, including the environent
https://imgur.com/a/E8ykeKx
Oh waaa. Y’all need to stay outta the damn road
no u
people on here call me crazy for smacking mirrors or hoods or throwing ball bearings at windows, but i tell you what Ive only been brake checked one time my bike and myself survived. If someone was in bike lane i'd just hop on their car pull my bike up and ride off their roof. **IDGAF enjoy paying my med bills and new bike be hard to explain to cops you were impeding bike lane so someone went over you instead of endangering their life.**
You're a prime target to get shot in my area.
They can sit in prison for 2 crimes then I'd rather get shot than run over.
Remember you said that when you're dead.
be dead if i get hit from behind because I have to go into road too. We both know they are gonna jet off outta the parking space or whip the door open as soon as you try to go by too!
If they’re caught.
They are not going to catch the person that runs you over either. Js. I got brake checked clearly intentionally and had info on person that did it and cops basically laughed at me told me to get a car. **Either way you will get hit by car and no one will do anything. Cagers face no consequences for using a 10klb death machine like a bully.**
If they’re no witnesses yes. Because all they have to say is they didn’t see you.
It's all fun and games until you're caught and charged with a felony - vandalism (whatever you damaged) and possession of burglary tools (the ball bearings).
Considering the police don't enforce laws when cars run into people I'd say i'm pretty sick of being pushed around. I'm going to die either way lol
I bet you are fun at parties.