Do you agree with bike LAWS?

I personally don't think the bloody things should be allowed on the roads to begin with. You're looking at an entire infrastructure system built to facilitate mass transit in multi-ton hunks of steel that can do 100mph or more, and placing a vehicle that weighs maybe 40 pounds and tops out at around 20mph when used by the average person in the middle of that system, expecting the two to conform to the same rules. It's insanity, and ignores the most basic principle of the road: the law of gross tonnage. A bike is to an SUV what a car is to a monster truck, there's no comparison. Way I see it, highways ought to have minimum speed limits and be reserved for motorized vehicles.

What a cry baby. Yes. Laws apply to Bike riders. You arrogant self entitled laws and decency don't apply to me cry baby. Do you have any idea how much most people despise you bike riders. Not because you are going green or saving money in a bad economy or whatever. But because you guys. NEVER stop at stop signs. That ILLEGAL!!!!!! You guys meander all over the road like you own it. THATS ILLEGAL!!!!!!!!! You guys ride in the opposite direction of traffic. THATS ILLEGAL< AND STUPID. You guys do 25mph on the sidewalk. THATS ILLEGAL AND RECKLESS DRIVING OF A VEHICLE< BY LAW!!!!!! IT"S ILLEGAL!!!! don't you get it you self entitled ass wad. You are the bane of half of society. Ask any bus driver what they think of a bike rider. Ask most traffic cops what they think of bike riders.

reply to post by BASSPLYR

Yeah, but you live in LA and everyone on the road there drives like jerks so why shouldn't you expect the same from bicyclist ... Driving a car does not give you any more rights on the road than a person on a bicycle.

reply to post by BASSPLYR


Do you know how many bikers, and pedestrians, despise car drivers?

Car drivers are the whiners, nice and safe behind your steel and glass, as you bitch and moan about having to stop for other people. I bet you don't just bitch about bikes on the road do you?

Bikes have as much right to use the road as you do, and yes they do have a right to bitch about you, because you are the epitome of drivers with bad attitudes to other road users.

Cars are the problem, not bikes. They fill our cities with noise, pollution, danger.

reply to post by ShadeWolf


So where are cyclist supposed to ride then?

You know that not all cyclists are doing it just for fun, to be in your way, you know?

The problem isn't cars being bigger than bikes, it's your attitude, and I honestly fail to understand it.

The road doesn't belong to you, learn to share.

Originally posted by ANOK
reply to post by BASSPLYR

 

Do you know how many bikers, and pedestrians, despise car drivers?

Car drivers are the whiners, nice and safe behind your steel and glass, as you bitch and moan about having to stop for other people. I bet you don't just bitch about bikes on the road do you?

Bikes have as much right to use the road as you do, and yes they do have a right to bitch about you, because you are the epitome of drivers with bad attitudes to other road users.

Cars are the problem, not bikes. They fill our cities with noise, pollution, danger.

edit on 2/28/2013 by ANOK because: (no reason given)

How many despise car drivers? How many bikers and pedestrians are not licensed motor vehicle operators?
Please cite sources.

We tend to bitch and moan about almost killing someone who is doing something unsafe.

Bikes have the right to share the road, within the law. I will gladly make room for the cyclist using the proper hand signals.

People with no regard for their safety and the safety of others are the problem, regardless of what vehicle they drive be it motorized or not.

Originally posted by randomtangentsrme
How many despise car drivers? How many bikers and pedestrians are not licensed motor vehicle operators?
Please cite sources.

I know plenty of cyclists and peds who are not licensed drivers. I live in a city, maybe you are in the sticks?

But so what? Peoples attitudes change when they're in a closed vehicle.

We tend to bitch and moan about almost killing someone who is doing something unsafe.

Bikes have the right to share the road, within the law. I will gladly make room for the cyclist using the proper hand signals.

People with no regard for their safety and the safety of others are the problem, regardless of what vehicle they drive be it motorized or not.

How about car drivers use the right signals? I know for a fact that a large majority of drivers don't signal. They cut cyclists off, they don't yield to peds at intersections, or even marked cross walks. Don't talk to me about cyclists not abiding by the laws, because the majority of drivers don't.

I have got hit twice in crosswalks by drivers who weren't paying attention, one was a hit and run, the other payed out 125,000 in insurance to pay for my hospital bills.

Cars are the danger, you can kill someone. Cyclists and peds are the one YOU need to watch out for, have some respect and consideration for other people.

And I'll bet you claim this is a free country huh? Freedom is not freedom when you want to deny others. We all have to use the roads, we can't fly over them unfortunately, so you need to learn that they don't belong to you alone, and others have as much right to travel as you do.

If you're so worried about the cyclist being so vulnerable then stop hating and share the road. Slow down, and stop getting impatient behind the wheel.

A person that wasn't riding or driving a motorized vehicle has no need to be licensed for a motorized vehicle..It appears that the main reason there is hatred being expressed toward bicyclist is that they aren't caged up in a car and represent freedom from laws that are imposed on those that are... Reality is that they are still subject to the same laws and have the same rights as anyone else on the road.. Where I live you can mount a gasoline motor of 49 cc displacement on a bicycle and still not need to be licensed to ride it on roads other than expressways provided you don't ride over 25 MPH... Everyone seems to be talking on cellphones while driving these days.. Maybe they should use their phones to report the large groups on bikes that are impeding the flow of traffic so the authorities can enlighten them by writing tickets for breaking the law if that is what they are doing.

Originally posted by ANOK

Originally posted by randomtangentsrme
How many despise car drivers? How many bikers and pedestrians are not licensed motor vehicle operators?
Please cite sources.

I know plenty of cyclists and peds who are not licensed drivers. I live in a city, maybe you are in the sticks?

But so what? Peoples attitudes change when they're in a closed vehicle.

We tend to bitch and moan about almost killing someone who is doing something unsafe.

Bikes have the right to share the road, within the law. I will gladly make room for the cyclist using the proper hand signals.

People with no regard for their safety and the safety of others are the problem, regardless of what vehicle they drive be it motorized or not.

How about car drivers use the right signals? I know for a fact that a large majority of drivers don't signal. They cut cyclists off, they don't yield to peds at intersections, or even marked cross walks. Don't talk to me about cyclists not abiding by the laws, because the majority of drivers don't.

I have got hit twice in crosswalks by drivers who weren't paying attention, one was a hit and run, the other payed out 125,000 in insurance to pay for my hospital bills.

Cars are the danger, you can kill someone. Cyclists and peds are the one YOU need to watch out for, have some respect and consideration for other people.

And I'll bet you claim this is a free country huh? Freedom is not freedom when you want to deny others. We all have to use the roads, we can't fly over them unfortunately, so you need to learn that they don't belong to you alone, and others have as much right to travel as you do.

If you're so worried about the cyclist being so vulnerable then stop hating and share the road. Slow down, and stop getting impatient behind the wheel.

edit on 2/28/2013 by ANOK because: (no reason given)

I live now in the suburbs. I work in the city. No sources for your claims?
I agree peoples attitude change when in a closed vehicle. We realize we are in a powerful machine, and as such we respond to the responsibility.

This thread is not about motorized vehicle drivers. Which I agree are not the best at remembering to properly signal. However, even if motorized vehicles are not doing it right, shouldn't that make cyclists more interested in doing it right?
Again I invite you to please cite sources for your claims. I will give you a second opportunity to back up your "facts."

There are laws in this country, so freedom is as freedom is accepted by society. I do not mind bikes on the road when they are following the laws.
See, there's the point you are overlooking, many times over. There are laws for cyclists, just as well as motorized vehicles.

I have recently become aware of large group rides by people that call themselves "Critical Mass" and their purpose is to get people to notice and be aware of cyclist by acting like complete jerks and causing traffic backups.. It has been big in Austin for quite awhile and now the same sort of stuff is being done in a hipster part of North Oak Cliff in Dallas... They have gotten narrow bike lanes marked off on streets where they congregate but drivers still recent them being on the road even though the narrow lanes have them travelling in single file... Of course there will be faster riders that will exit the lane to pass a slower rider and anger the motorized vehicle operators... There was a little bit of hostility awhile back but I believe people are adjusting...

Im in the UK, so this doesn't directly apply to me, however, I'd like to point out that while bad cyclists exist, there are more bad drivers than there are bad cyclists (if only because there are more drivers to begin with).

I'm a cyclist, and not by choice. In 2005 my drivers licence was cancelled due to a degenerative eye condition, meaning I was no longer able to meet the minimum visual requirements to hold a licence, and the eye hospital informed the dvla (Driver and Vehicle Licencing Authority) of this. I cycle because I need to be mobile, not because its a "green" thing to do.

In the years I've been a cyclist, I have witnessed some colossal stupidity from both drvers and cyclists. Like a friend who insisted on cycling in the middle of the lane, holding up a huge queue of cars, just because he was legally allowed to. Not even the police who were following could say anything, as he was breaking no laws.

Or the driver who forced his way past me with less than a foot clearance as I was overtaking some parked cars. Had one of those parked cars opened a door, I would have been a gonner.

Stupidty exists on BOTH sides, so don't try and blame it all on the cyclist.

As for the OP whining about a law requiring him to have brakes fitted. Good. The law exists to protect me from your stupidity. Theres no way a fixie without brakes will ever stop in time to avoid an incident.

Originally posted by burdman30ott6
reply to post by MichiganSwampBuck

 

Just for clarification's sake, I ride a mountain bike to and from work most of the summer (about 12 miles round trip). I do this for additional exercise, to enjoy the most beautiful summer on the planet, and because half of my trip is along a greenbelt trail next to a creek I like to fish in (I carry a flyrod in my backpack most days)... I am not anti-bike at all. I do, however, find a minor percentage of "elitist entitlement" cyclists out there who will go out of their way to ride in a car lane, slowing traffic and creating a road hazard, even though the roadway may have a fully developed bike path running alongside it. These individuals are complete asses who create a negative opublic opinion of cyclists in general.

Glad that you clarified that point about your own cycling. I have a few fishing holes on the way to work as well.

I'm not sure why, but there are those idiots who would gamble with their own lives by riding a bicycle so hazardously.

Regardless of the occasional idiot on the road, I feel certain that people who ride bicycles are generally looked down upon by people in automobiles. Many times while riding a bicycle on a road, people in cars don't even see you in broad daylight, much less at night, so I have no trust that they will watch out for me. I think that many motorcyclists probably have that same lack of trust about people in cars and trucks.

Glad you asked, my friend...


Here is the answer....bike lanes are part of the implementation of Agenda 21...as a means to get people out of cars and onto bikes, but as such, it all becomes more and more regulated. Ahhh the days of freely riding your bike are over, now you have to wear safety helmets and get pulled over for going the wrong direction.

www.theatlanticwire.com...

But to some conservatives, all that do-gooder speak is actually just a cover for something much more sinister: the creation of a new one world government. As this pamphlet puts it [PDF], "Sustainable Development documents call for the abolishment of private property and the freedom that private property supports. If individual members of our society do nothing, the continuing loss of liberty will result in increasing social confusion and discord, rising resource shortages, financial decay and a dimming future for us and our posterity.The looming battle of ideas should be recognized as a classic – and perhaps ultimate – battle between Liberty and Tyranny."

If you follow the Agenda 21 conspiracy (which can also be known as "Sustainable Development"), 20 years ago, these guys got together in Rio and put into motion a nefarious plot to enact centralized rule across the planet, quashing individual liberty, and outlawing self-rule. If it doesn't sound terrifying, it does at least sound complicated. And that's where this bizarre conspiracy theory gets truly bizarre. See, this confederacy of ruthless world leaders are not taking over the world by internationalizing finance or communications. No, you have to look much, much closer to home. See, the path to tyranny appears to run through banal local legislation. Here are just a few of examples of Agenda 21 that freedom lovers are fighting

In Georgia, some state lawmakers see Agenda 21 in a 1-cent state sales tax to fund build a new highway and bike lanes in metro Atlanta. "That's Agenda 21 101," said former Cobb County commission chairman Bill Bryne in an interview with Atlantic Journal-Constitution writer Jim Galloway. How can he tell? Well, take a closer look at those bike lanes. "Bicycles and pedestrian traffic as an alternative form of transportation to the automobile. That’s Agenda 21."

sorry, your bike lanes are part of UN Agenda 21

I thought I'd mention the Atlantic seems to poke fun at the whole Agenda 21 bike lane thing, but it's obvious it is an issue.

Here is the agenda for getting people out of cars right from the horse's mouth in local areas


www.mydesert.com...

Michele Mician, sustainability manager with the city, said the Sustainability Commission supports the use of department funds for bike lanes because it promotes “getting people out of their cars and seeking alternative modes of transportation.”

So the truth is the whole agenda is to promote getting rid of cars and forcing them onto bikes. In order to do this, they have to regulate everything even more.

In my neighborhood, to promote the bike lanes, they would stop the kids from riding their skateboards on the sidewalk, and made the kids ride in the streets along the bike lanes.

Last summer the woman in front of me pulled out and a guy on a bike slammed into her hitting the roof and going over the car . Broke his leg and the only thing he could scream is that BIT*&* pulled out in front of me!! We were laughing pretty hard because he ran the red light and the cop kept telling him he ran a red light and there was 7 witnesses but he kept saying it was HER FAULT. They loaded him up in the ambalance and the cop was tired of the guy yelling it was HER FAULT so he had a wrecker come and pick up the bike to make it legal and all.

Here's the bike plan from the perspective of DemocratsAgainstUnAgenda21

Bikes. What does that have to do with it? I like to ride my bike and so do you. So what? Bicycle advocacy groups are very powerful now. Advocacy. A fancy word for lobbying, influencing, and maybe strong-arming the public and politicians. What’s the connection with bike groups? National groups such as Complete Streets, Thunderhead Alliance, and others, have training programs teaching their members how to pressure for redevelopment, and training candidates for office. It’s not just about bike lanes, it’s about remaking cities and rural areas to the ‘sustainable model’. High density urban development without parking for cars is the goal. This means that whole towns need to be demolished and rebuilt in the image of sustainable development. Bike groups are being used as the ‘shock troops’ for this plan.

blnnews.com...

reply to post by hypervigilant

I have recently become aware of large group rides by people that call themselves "Critical Mass" and their purpose is to get people to notice and be aware of cyclist by acting like complete jerk

This Critical Mass group sounds like a page right out of Agenda 21 and bike advocacy groups...I just posted on it.
I googled it and found what group you are talking about.

reply to post by ThirdEyeofHorus


I do see how this has anything to do with agenda 21.

Cyclists have been protesting, and demanding bike lanes for years. The state is not going to provide them without some kind of laws enforced. There has always been helmet laws, and going the wrong way on the road also always illegal.

I was going to critical mass 15 years ago when it was a real protest by working cyclists, bike messengers, to try to get car drivers to realise they need to share the road. Now it has become an excuse for a party, and bike messengers hate it because all it does is piss people off. But it's not the fault of the cyclists, it's YOU, and your attitude that because you are in a motorised vehicle you somehow think you own the road. Cyclists don't impede traffic any more than stop lights, stop signs, road work, and many other things you as a driver have to deal with.
You'll get there, have some patience when you drive. You can make up those few seconds you lose.

If you can't deal with other traffic on the road you shouldn't be driving. Adjust and deal with it. Put yourself in the place of the cyclist and realise what they have to go through.

Agenda 21 lol. Is every group of people who get together to change something some kind of evil entity out to get you? Why are Americans so paranoid about organised groups?

reply to post by mikell


A few years ago I hit a women in a crosswalk on my bike while I was working. I had the green light, and she just stepped right in front of me, hit her before I even realised. All she could do was say it was my fault, and she was going to sue because her head hurt.

But you know what? I didn't laugh at her because it was her fault, I called 911. Why didn't I laugh at her for claiming it was my fault when she "ran" the red light? Because I'm not an asshole who thinks they own the road.

She did try to sue the company I worked for, but it was determined I was not at fault.

reply to post by ANOK


Well it was a red light for the guy on the bike and he seemed to think it didn't matter. We all stood around waiting for the paperwork talking about the a hole who thought redlights were only for cars