tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8810099708146569685.post260788621665422457..comments2024-02-20T00:55:18.782-08:00Comments on Change Your Life. Ride A Bike!: Close EncountersAdrienne Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16658593098911314756noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8810099708146569685.post-75708770471538271272010-12-01T22:39:15.269-08:002010-12-01T22:39:15.269-08:00I feel your pain. I live in Australia where our po...I feel your pain. I live in Australia where our police force is probably even more ignorant and hellbent on making life difficult for cyclists than your local constabulary. We get fined $40 for not having a bell on our bike and it is law to wear a helmet everywhere - otherwise you get a $200 fine. Never mind the multitude of pedestrians with iPods in their ears who can't even hear the ding of a bell or cars who will never hear it. Police hide on bikeways with speed radar guns (even though there is no designated speed limit for bikes on these paths), to scare cyclists, and then pull them over if they think they "are going to fast for the conditions". If they don't have a bell they force you to let the air out of your tyres and you have to walk home as well as pay the fine. Here in Australia (I live in a city of 1.5 million people called Brisbane), we have almost no separate bike lanes on roads to speak of, and cyclists are treated like pests and are abused daily. Our local council spends a pittance of their budget on bike infrastructure but is happy to build billions of dollars of road infrastructure. Despite all this, I ride to work every day and wouldn't change it for anything. <br /><br />Regarding this story about San Hose Ave, I admire that your stick to your principles with riding where you want to within your rights. A word of caution though, never place any trust with motorists. You mentioned that cars have become accustomed to seeing cyclists here which provided with you a degree of comfort in regards to your safety on San Jose Ave, but I would suggest this is something you shouldn't do. Don't trust motorists to see you, it only takes one inattentive driver to cause huge problems. Always look out for yourself. Safe riding and keep up the good work!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8810099708146569685.post-1064350344583741612010-10-12T14:26:47.412-07:002010-10-12T14:26:47.412-07:00police everywhere, justice nowhere...police everywhere, justice nowhere...erichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01062638976608881224noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8810099708146569685.post-23795661863880889532010-09-30T06:55:48.794-07:002010-09-30T06:55:48.794-07:00Well done for keeping your cool, I think I'd h...Well done for keeping your cool, I think I'd have lost it with the police officer; there's nothing I dislike more than ignorance coupled with law enforcement.<br /><br />Of course the greatest sadness of all is that an official bicycle route involves 50mph roads at all. But well done for persevering and using what you have a right to use.<br /><br />Keep on riding!ibikelondonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06978714126105951294noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8810099708146569685.post-44346871528588929742010-09-29T21:58:22.334-07:002010-09-29T21:58:22.334-07:00i hate San Jose Ave. I used to bike through there ...i hate San Jose Ave. I used to bike through there on my way to school everyday and it was nerving when i drivers wouldn't understand why i was there. i'm glad you defended your rights as a cyclist on that road. i'm interested to hear what the verdict was on traffic reduction in that area. keep us posted.christinahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12454898138117340431noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8810099708146569685.post-58253372170386668332010-09-29T17:18:00.291-07:002010-09-29T17:18:00.291-07:00I ride in the opposite direction to City College a...I ride in the opposite direction to City College and at Bosworth there is a sign that advises cyclists to get off San Jose Ave completely, you know, because it turns into an unofficial highway.... So my commute is pretty much 50/50 bike routes and just riding with crazy traffic. Unfortunately not every SF neighborhood is like the Mission (I live in Portola).Maryhttp://thefwave.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8810099708146569685.post-6908061573785040762010-09-29T00:28:00.689-07:002010-09-29T00:28:00.689-07:00well on one hand you are right to be miffed with t...well on one hand you are right to be miffed with the officer, who clearly doesn't pay attention to signage (here in the Uk this is called "driving without due care and attention" and is an offence).<br /><br />on the other hand at least he took the time to stop and enquire, most officers here are oblivious to cyclists in any formRocketdoghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10967485996063631612noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8810099708146569685.post-84727404178392087412010-09-29T00:27:05.335-07:002010-09-29T00:27:05.335-07:00This comment has been removed by the author.Rocketdoghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10967485996063631612noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8810099708146569685.post-71723229729061854612010-09-28T20:36:37.335-07:002010-09-28T20:36:37.335-07:00I find this as annoying as the fellow bicyclist wh...I find this as annoying as the fellow bicyclist who passed me and chided me for not wearing a helmet. Why do some people, be they cops, co-workers or other bicyclists think they have more perspective on my safety than me? I guess I'd be less irritatd if you had reported flying along the street,zipping around cars on a racing bike while talking on your cell phone but that clearly wasn't the case. Maybe the only thing to do is smile patiently and nod.She Rides a Bikehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10269615938898501712noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8810099708146569685.post-28477459659354175292010-09-28T18:20:08.854-07:002010-09-28T18:20:08.854-07:00With my experience with a couple of events like th...With my experience with a couple of events like this in Houston, Texas your police officer was really incredibly nice and understanding. In Houston, I've never been pulled over by a cop who is willing to understand that bikes have a right to be on the road. They've all been incredibly rude, hostile, and dangerous. One officer pulled me over once my pulling out in front of me, almost hitting me.<br />-ryanRyan A.https://www.blogger.com/profile/18123131580286029954noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8810099708146569685.post-5372853651279742622010-09-28T09:59:11.517-07:002010-09-28T09:59:11.517-07:00I think you handled that very well, standing your ...I think you handled that very well, standing your ground with confidence. I'm not sure I would handle it so well, but then I have very little experience with being pulled over on a bike.<br /><br />We need to get a bicycle culture going (as much as some, such as BikeSnobNYC, like to say there is no such thing) where bicycles are an accepted transportation alternative and both the general public, preferably beginning in elementary school, and law enforcement officials get adequate training.<br /><br />Thanks for doing the tough type of training of both your kids and law enforcement personnel.Abram Bergenhttp://www.icyclehamilton.canoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8810099708146569685.post-50750994321848891432010-09-28T09:27:44.163-07:002010-09-28T09:27:44.163-07:00Definitely typical - around here I am frequently t...Definitely typical - around here I am frequently threatened with citations for "Impeding Traffic", though no officer has ever taken the time to actually write one. Ironically, I was recently pulled over on the local MUP by a motorcycle cop with a radar gun. He was sitting by the side of the trail, and gunned me doing an outrageous 12 mph. That's right, the speed limit on this trail has been changed to 10 mph. So, if I'm on the road doing my usual 12-14, I'm "Impeding Traffic" and if I get off the road onto the trail doing the same speed, I'm speeding, and liable for a $101.00 fine. I think I need to move. ValAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8810099708146569685.post-12749051688064985052010-09-28T08:49:08.682-07:002010-09-28T08:49:08.682-07:00A related problem that we have here in Portland, i...A related problem that we have here in Portland, is that the police will only enforce things they feel will go through in court, otherwise they obviously look stupid - so for instance, if a driver does something stupid (depending on HOW stupid), often they won't do anything about it because they know a judge will just dismiss it.<br /><br />Agreeing with PaddyAnne, I've often thought about how a lot of the anger that gets leveled at cyclists being in the road comes from a place of fear of injuring them - but yet the people who get angry at us being in the road have no desire to see money spent on giving us a safe place to be.<br /><br />That indifference to other citizens of the same place is one of the things I find most infuriating about America. Personally, I would be happy to pay higher taxes for great infrastructure, fully subsidized public transit, etc, even if I never used it - what helps other citizens of my city helps me, helps the city as a whole, helps the local economy, etc.<br /><br />But so few people care about that here, they'd rather just force people to either spend beyond their means to own and operate a car, or just leave them transport-less.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8810099708146569685.post-50706527626252081542010-09-28T07:26:59.659-07:002010-09-28T07:26:59.659-07:00Your story reminds me of a conversation I recently...Your story reminds me of a conversation I recently had with a fellow bike riding friend. We concluded that most of the drivers angst about cyclists is their own fear for our safety - but that its unrecognized as such and instead gets labeled as "drivers annoyance at cyclists". It would be great if all the anxious energy was instead translated into their full and vocal support for safe bike lanes, but sadly, that rarely happens!PaddyAnnehttp://pedaltalk.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8810099708146569685.post-55767776602653840952010-09-28T06:59:53.695-07:002010-09-28T06:59:53.695-07:00We are living under the delusion that police (of a...We are living under the delusion that police (of all kinds) are intelligent, aware and educated. <br />In fact they are just like anyone else that is willing to work a low paying, dangerous job. Some are special most are not.Oldfoolhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14688289425207257034noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8810099708146569685.post-59850740883876914672010-09-28T06:23:39.047-07:002010-09-28T06:23:39.047-07:00You are so right. The profound ignorance of law e...You are so right. The profound ignorance of law enforcement officers concerning how to ride bikes or what the law requires and allows (along with their tendency to bully others in their ignorance) is key to so much that's wrong. <br /><br />I too had an encounter with a douche bag with a badge--but in rural Texas. I'm afraid I was not quite as polite as you.<br /><br />http://trigreyhound.blogspot.com/2008/12/it-aint-over.htmlgreyhoundhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01177698669715595307noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8810099708146569685.post-46588990056469625752010-09-28T00:55:12.712-07:002010-09-28T00:55:12.712-07:00the curse of san jose. gaaaaahthe curse of san jose. gaaaaahMELI.https://www.blogger.com/profile/01871688353021351859noreply@blogger.com