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Dear PoPville – Be Careful Another Vehicular Assault on Bicyclist last Thursday
Dear PoPville,
On Thursday in the 0800 hour (or perhaps slightly earlier), a bicycle traveling near the intersection of 22nd and P Streets NW was intentionally rammed by a vehicle. I did not witness the incident… I came outside shortly afterward and saw the bike on the ground and heard about it from some neighbors who HAD witnessed it. Their attention was at first drawn because the car (female driver) was repeatedly honking at some cyclists in front of it (not sure, but I think they were traveling West on P and then queued at the red light at 22nd). At some point this escalated into the car ramming a bike from behind, then driving off. When I walked by, the cyclist appeared unhurt but his bike was damaged, and police were on the scene.
Did anyone else happen to see what happened?
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Now that is some mighty fine hearsay.
+1
What had happened was that Kisha told Mike who told Betty who told me what she had heard from some dude standing on the corner who said that his boy saw most of it.
Yeah… my thoughts exactly.
The bicyclist was probably asking for it.
I really hope that this is sarcasm, in the same way that it is used in the context of rape.
Funny how amidst this discussion of bikers “asking for it”, there is a complete disregard to the fact that this was a hit and run and someone could have been seriously hurt.
I heard the bicyclist had just stopped at a coffee shop and asked for iced espresso. The barista flipped and tried to run the bicyclist down with her car.
I’m shocked this doesn’t happen more. Over the past year, I’ve been cussed at by 6 bikers, twice as a pedestrian, four times while driving. I’ve had 1 confrontation with another driver, and zero incidents with pedestrians while walking or driving.
I’ve gotten accustomed to the verbal assaults, and wind up just telling them to go fuck themselves and move on. Pretty sure many of the people in the city aren’t civil. Beware bikers, beware.
sounds like you need to drive better. I’ve been driving for 3 years in the city and have never been “verbally assaulted” by anyone. I also bike and hope I never end up on the same street as you.
Seriously. I’ve been living and driving in the city for 15 years and have never been in any kind of altercation with a cyclist.
I am annoyed by bicyclists as much as the next car-driving a-hole, but seriously can everybody please chill the f out?
Honking, shaking one’s fist, telling off a biker is one thing.
Vehicular assault with a 2 ton weapon is something else that’s entirely uncalled for.
Amen.
shake harder boy!
http://29.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_l9i4abLVeD1qc073co1_400.gif
Ha! That was awesome
honking at a biker can be dangerous
The driver of the car should just shout “on your left!”
I predict a rational discussion with cogent points from both drivers and bikers.
I’d like to hire you to manage my financial investments.
+1
Nothing about this account makes sense, we all know cyclists don’t stop at traffic lights. In this case “que”.
I’ve never been able to figure out the POP demographic. Why are so many of you anti bicycle. Or are you just angry-ish on the internet in general?
I think most of us are both occasional drivers and occasional drivers. We naturally become defensive when someone generalizes all bikers or all drivers because of the rare reckless or pyschopathic one.
Meant to say “occasional BIKERS and occasional drivers.”
Point being, it’s silly to assume someone in a car doesn’t understand what it’s like from the biker’s point of view, and vice versa. Many of us do both.
I think a lot of PoPsters just like complaining on the Internet.
I think a lot of the antipathy stems from bicyclists demanding that drivers treat them with the same respect that drivers give to other vehicles… but then not wanting to obey the traffic laws that vehicles are supposed to obey.
I see a lot of drivers in D.C. driving like idiots and disobeying traffic laws. But I regret to say that I see an even higher proportion of bicyclists disobeying traffic laws… and doing so really flagrantly (like going through red lights without even slowing down and looking both ways).
I would also add that virtually everyone is a pedestrian. Some moreso than others. Cyclists tend to complain about driver carelessness, yet rarely show concern for pedestrians.
Right on 100%. Don’t demand to be treated like a car in one context, and then ignore driving rules when it suits. Example: hog the lane so I can’t drive the limit or pass, and then when traffic stops, slide up the right shoulder to the front of the line, and hog the lane again. Fist shake!
OK – in most cases. If you’re driving in a bus / bike only lane, then I will cut up to the front. Or, if there’s gridlock and you’re not going anywhere for the next 10 minutes anyway… seeya, I’ll be up there and going.
Bike Haters: Please note all of these situations when bicycles have the right of way:
http://www.dc.gov/DC/DDOT/On+Your+Street/Bicycles+and+Pedestrians/Bicycles/DC+Common+Enforcement+Errors+Involving+Bicyclists
I know it is the gov website but #4 has all kinds of issues.
such as?
Such as the law cited in #5:
Why it was wrong: Title 18 (2202.2) requires
an overtaking vehicle to pass to the left at a
safe distance.
Two different situstions. You pass on the left, but you get altough way to the right (including into the bike lane) to turn right. Passing in order to turn right in front of a bicyclist is both incredibly dangerous and a violation of 18 2203.3.
It isn’t very clear. Is a bike lane involved? Shouldn’t the bike be behind me and not beside me? Is it a turn lane? I am just saying, there are a whole lot of variables that come into play and to simply say the driver was wrong because he/she made a right turn and hit a biker that was riding on the right at an intersection (for whatever reason) is I think a little short-sighted.
Bikes can legal lane-share, whether there is a bike lane or not. Cars are supposed to get all the way right (including into the bike lane) to make their right turns. So those aren’t factors. I think it is fair to assume that this isn’t a right turn lane, because then the biker would be in violation of a different part of the code, which isn’t suggested at all.
I think it’s fairly obvious that it’s talking about a regular right-most lane, not a bike lane or turn only lane.
While it’s stupid for a bike to pass a car on the right in that situation, it is legal. If the bike hits the car, the bike is at fault and vice versa.
If I pass a bike and I’m going to make a right, I do look out for that stupid move. Unfortunately, it’s more common than I’d like.
Sorry but I took this from another poster because it speaks to my point about #4. Maybe I didn’t say it clearly but #4 seems to negate a lot of other rules.
pdmtp says:
Yes. You are right, and they are wrong. Some of the biking pamphlets love to cite half a rule that purportedly means bikes can pass anybody at any time on either side and never have to stop or yield ((b) and (c) below). However, passing a car signaling a right turn on the right clearly violates (a).
1201.3 (a) A person operating a bicycle may overtake and pass another vehicle only under conditions which permit the movement to be made with safety.
(b) A person operating a bicycle may overtake and pass other vehicles on the left or right side, staying in the same lane as the overtaken vehicle, or changing to a different lane, or riding off the roadway, as necessary to pass with safety.
(c) If a lane is partially occupied by vehicles that are stopped, standing, or parked in that lane, a person operating a bicycle may ride in that or in the next adjacent lane used by vehicles proceedings in the same direction.
Incidentally, if you get doored on the passenger side passing a pulled-over car on the right, that’s your fault too. Aside from the rule above and the fact that you just made a dumb move, the rule on dooring only covers opening the door into traffic, not on the curb side.
So don’t just zip by on the right of a car in the curb lane without paying any attention to what the car is doing – seriously, it’s dangerous as well as illegal. And I promise not to lay on the horn if you do the smart and responsible thing and take the lane while you’re waiting.
Word. #4 assumes the bicycle was ahead of or beside the car when it began to turn, which ain’t the typical scenario. Bikes tend to try and overtake cars on the right hand side while the car is already in the process of turning. See this every freakin day. So yeah, #4 has issues.
That is a completely dumb thing for a bicyclist to do, and a smart bicyclist would absolutely pull back. But the point of the illustration is that the car is supposed to get all the way to the right to turn.
Well, sometimes cyclists have no choice in this case. If I pass a car on the right at an intersection I first check for a turn signal, and if there isn’t one, I’m still SUPER-careful. This is a very common way to get hit by a car, yet many beginner cyclist don’t know to look out for this.
True dat. I have no issue with responsible riders like, say, Anonymous 2:59 – or me, when I’m on my bike – who are trying to share the road. As usual, it’s the zealots on both sides – in the case of bikers, people who seem to think that the law is that bikers never have to stop or yield, or if they don’t it’s never a big deal because bikers are less dangerous – who are the problem.
+1 Well said.
Drivers are not supposed to just make a right. Put on your blinker look in your mirror then make your turn. This is why I take the lane when I bike. This is why A-hole ladies from Maryland (common for me) cuss me out call me whitey, honk their horns at me weekly. Lets face it Bikers are here to stay and if you think bikers are the real problem you are foolish whether or not you see bikers run a red light now and then.
Any one that drove around this city last weekend with traffic lights that were out, saw first hand peoples little knowledge of the traffice laws. I wish the news added to all their reports of this storm, TO TREAT A NON WORKING TRAFFIC LIGHT LIKE A STOP SIGN. this is a basic law learned in drivers ed.
Drivers need to realize that bikers drive cars, its not always the other way around. They most likely know the rules of the road for both cars and bikes. I will continue to give you the eye, flip you off, smack the hood of your car, flip your mirror backwards, when you continue to run me off the road. You will not get hurt, I will.
+1000
Considering that getting run off the road can be fatal, is it worth smacking the hood of someone’s car?
Please show consideration for pedestrians.
actually – your wrong. If i put on my blinker and make a right with a cyclist behind me, I dont have to yield. He does. Cyclists dont get to drive around the city with out using their brakes. I havent seen a cyclist yet who slows down while I turn. they all go right by me on the right. I cant tell you how many have yelled at me for stopping in the bike lane as I turn right but am yielding for a pedestrian.
steve, no I’m not wrong, neither are you, get on a bike and you will learn the rules.
As you can see on this thread. There are rules that cars have to follow, there are rules that bikes have to follow. You must be aware of those rules, but most importanly be aware of your surrounding and use common sense. When a car turns on their blinker that lets the biker know, that may be ready to overtake you, You are turning and to slow down. Common sense, right. If there is a bike lane there, you bet you have to slow down and let me go, thems the laws.
Riding a bike is like riding a motorcycle, you always need to be aware, and be defensive. When a car is slowing down, assume its taking a right or going to do something stupid. When you arrive at a stop sign first. Assume that car doesn’t care and will pull out infront of you. When that cab or car pulls over infront of you, assume that door will swing open. Thats what will keep you allive and safe on the road.
Any seasoned biker or motorcyclist will have their own set a rules that keep them safe. Let me add this while I’m on my rant. If you’re on a bike and you want to break the laws, say go throught a red light. I am fine with that, but if you at all by any means, make regular car traffic slow down, get in the way of pedestrians, anything, you’re an ass. If you pull up to a light and there is absolutely nobody there. Stop look both ways and I say proceed. Thats why we are on bikes!
Share the road means that sometimes I’ll hold up someone driving a car, and sometimes they’ll hold me up while I’m on my bike. Laws are there to dictate behavior and I’ll follow those, not your notions of breaking laws to get out of people’s way.
I am glad you finally admit that there is the law and then what bikers consider their own personal set of rules.
I have my own personal set of rules too, one of them is you’re a total idiot if you consciously violate the law and assume everyone knows what you’re going to do.
Thank you Anon X, I’m an idiot, yet one that has been riding in DC for 8 years commuting and running deliveries by bike and motorcycle.
Let me guess, when you look at your phone while driving you probably do it in your lap, because you knows it’s illegal. Or you put your phone on speaker so you’re not holding it. Are these your own set up rules.
My own rules keep me safe against dip sh*ts like you. You never have any thing constructive to say on this blog other than to push buttons and degrate it’s posters. I’ll be sure to make a fist when I pound on the hood of your car.
At best, slapping the hood of someones car will only make them hate you and every other biker. At worst, you’ll get run over or your ass beat. You will never convince me that you aren’t an asshole or are entitled to reckless plow through stop lights and down the wrong way of a one way street.
Either way, you will be taking a ride in ambulance eventually. Whether it is an honest accident, or well deserved retaliation for slapping a hood is your choice.
thanks for wishing me harm.
Heres a clear example, I’m not slapping somebodies hood cause they are on their cell phone.
I take the whole lane when riding through dupont circle, cars like to be in the left lane to speed around traffic then cut over to the right to make a right turn. I was riding probably around 10 miles an hour, and a car from right turns right into me paying no attention. I am going to flattened, I slap the hood and it makes a loud noise. the drive finally then notices i’m there and stops, Me not getting run over he appologizes for almost killing me.
I ride to keep myself safe, and thats it.
No one is wishing you harm, merely predicting that this kind of behavior will probably cause harm to happen to you. I don’t think any of us care enough to WISH it.
Like the BLandBiker, I’ll slap a hood to get the attention of a driver who is doing something that will injure or kill me. Regardless of who is right or wrong in the initial situation, if you feel that a hood slap to prevent bodily harm to another human being deserves retaliation, then you need to be removed from society.
Wow, did neither of you see the thread the other month about a bicyclist who got in a confrontation with a driver and ended up in the hospital with a broken jaw??
I certainly don’t think slapping someone’s hood is “deserving of retaliation.” It is, however, a rude and situation-escalating move. And if you try it with someone short-tempered, you risk getting beaten up or maybe even shot.
I’m a cyclist, motorcyclist and driver too. Regardless of which I happen to be doing, when someone who isn’t paying attention and almost hits me, my first instinct is to anticipate and avoid by braking/swerving. The time you spend hood slapping is time that could be better spent initiating a proper avoidance maneuver. Admittedly, most of the time I use my horn, it’s to communicate my displeasure.
what #4 is saying is that the car should be far enough over that the bike cannot pass on the the right.
I get that but it kinda negates a lot of other things. It is one say to do this but you also have to be thoughtful to the other rules when doing it. If I were to look at it just as it is, it says that, the driver is wrong when in fact, he or she may not have been in the full context of the situation.
With this and the increased number of crime text alerts I’ve been getting, clearly the heat has gotten to DC.
We are in need of a massive chill out.
Mayor Gray, I propse a One City slip and slide party on the mall, STAT!
A little off topic but something to be aware of: I was getting out of a cab the other day and almost “doored” a biker when opening the rear passenger side door. It’s a different ball game because clearly you don’t have mirrors to check when exiting the rear doors of a cab but I’ll always remember to turn and look when exiting a cab next time.
Yeah, I think it’s the biker’s responsibility, to some extent, to keep an eye out for cars that have just parked or parked cars with people in them. If someone opened the door on me I wouldn’t be particularly mad (assuming they were apologetic and asking if I was ok) because it’s an easy mistake to make.
(except getting doored can be a severe-injury accident. A smart bicyclist will bike defensively and watch out for cars. But it is the passenger’s responsibility to make sure the door can be opened safely. Title 18 2214.4.)
Please. So now every tourist who opens a taxi door has to be aware that some stupid biker might be passing on the right? Passengers normally exit taxis from the right so they don’t have to step into oncoming traffic. If you are on a bike and see a cab with people in it stopped in front of you, act defensively and stop. Getting doored in that situation would totally be the biker’s own fault.
If a cyclist is passing a taxi on the right,then the taxi isn’t at the curb. Correct me if I’m wrong,but I’m pretty sure the law states you must pull over to the curb to let passengers out.
How do you pull over to the curb when it’s full of parked cars? I seriously doored a bicyclist getting out of a cab, and the cop cited the driver. The cyclist left in an ambulance. It was awful. I always check before getting out now — regardless of who “should” be checking.
“I’m pretty sure the law states you must pull over to the curb to let passengers out.”
If that’s true then most cabs drivers are breaking the law almost every time they drop off a passenger. Not that they don’t break the law half a dozen other ways on a daily basis…
Thank you for the PSA and being thoughtful!
How is not having a mirror a different ballgame? It takes <1 sec to turn around and look behind you before opening a door. A girl in my old neighborhood in Brooklyn got doored, pushed into the lane of traffic, and had her head run over by a delivery truck. While cyclists should always look out for people opening doors, legally the car owner who doored the cyclist was 100% responsible for her death. The fact that you "almost" doored someone means that you were acting irresponsibly, dangerously, and illegally!
First off, you’re clearly upset about me putting out a little piece of public information that may actually save a life (based on the story you mentioned.)
That’s exactly my point, it only takes less than a second to look behind you however I guarantee most people don’t look behind them when getting out of the rear passenger side of a cab that is parked in a safe spot to let you out. The biker was between the double parked taxi and a row of parked cars. When I’m in my car it’s second nature to look in my side view mirror when exiting my vehicle, it’s not second nature to turn around an look outside the rear window of a taxi when exiting in a safe spot next to a row of parked cars.
We can all benefit by being extra vigilant when driving, biking even walking. I’ve spent my whole life here and it’s crazy (and awesome) to see the amount of bikers on DC streets today.
Nope, I’m not upset at all, especially with regards to “putting out information.” I’m simply disagreeing with your assertion that this is a “different ballgame.” What do you mean by that? If you “almost” doored someone, you clearly were not paying attention as you should have. Are you suggesting that people should learn from your error?
Sorry, I just saw that you wrote PASSENGER side! My error!
How far was the cab from the curb???
Good golly jeepers. A cyclists cannot pass on the right in such situations. It violates the “which permit the movement to be made with safety.” portion of the regulation.
A person exiting a cab on the curb side of the car is not responsible for dooring a cyclist anymore than a person exiting a bus would be.
people of the “the bikers in dc have no respect for traffic, so when one gets hit by a car they were probably asking for it” school of thought have it completely wrong. whether or not a cyclist is being an asshole (and i agree, it happens a lot), he/she is riding a ten pound metal tube with wheels. you’re driving a two-ton air-conditioned tank. yell at them and call them out on their bullshit, don’t ram them with your car.
and yes, i agree that everyone just needs to chill the fuck out.
I’m not surprised. I pass through the intersections of 23rd & P and 22nd & P every day on my commute (I bike to work) and both are incredibly scary. I always stop at red lights on my bike, and obey the right of way, but so many motorists think that I don’t have the right to use the road and have run me off the road or nearly hit me (intentionally or unintentionally) so many times. I understand no one likes getting stuck behind the biker– hell, I don’t like it when I’m in my car, either– but for goodness’ sake, don’t put my life at risk over it. You can wait 10 seconds for me to clear the intersection and get over to the right so that you can pass me.
Can we all just agree that everyone using DC streets are pretty much selfish a-holes? Cars, bikes, peds… the problem is the same. Stop being a douche on the road.
Could not agee more! A+
At the risk of injecting another element of loathing, can I add that oblivious phone-yakkers walking, driving and bicycling are a serious menace, as well?
(Ducking flying phones)
Bikes need their own infrastructure: see Amsterdam, Madison etc… As a biker, I don’t want to be anywhere near cars and based on almost being run off the road on a daily basis, I sure as heck know that cars don’t want to be anywhere near me. We need to rethink the whole system.
Until then, if everyone slowed the f**k down and just calmed down, everyone would be safer.
So I have a legitimate question referred to a little in the comments. If I am in a car turning right (neither the street I’m on or turning onto has a bike lane), does a bike coming up from my rear have the right of way?
In my commute I turn from 18th onto Mass and I almost hit/cut off a biker who was going straight. Since I had a green light I was not looking into my mirrors. It occured to me that a biker in that case is in the far superior position to avoid a collision, and they are in effect passing me. But I imagine the code might just say who has the obligation there. Anyone know?
It is extremely stupid for a bike to pass a car on the right when the car is about to make a right turn. But it is legal. Did I say stupid?
It can be more questionable when traffic is backed up and the best way through (say gridlock) is for the bike to pass on the right.
Gotryit,
This is kinda of what I was getting at in my earlier post about #4. As you all put it, it is stupid but legal I guess.
As far as I can see from this law:
1201.3 (a) A person operating a bicycle may overtake and pass another vehicle only under conditions which permit the movement to be made with safety.
(b) A person operating a bicycle may overtake and pass other vehicles on the left or right side, staying in the same lane as the overtaken vehicle, or changing to a different lane, or riding off the roadway, as necessary to pass with safety.
2
(c) If a lane is partially occupied by vehicles that are stopped, standing, or parked in that lane, a person operating a bicycle may ride in that or in the next adjacent lane used by vehicles proceedings in the same direction.”
So that reads, to me: If you are going south on 18th, turning right onto Mass., and you are in the right hand lane with your turn signal on, it is illegal for a cyclist approaching from behind to overtake you and pass you on the right.
This is a better example of my point about #4. Thank you.
Yes. You are right, and they are wrong. Some of the biking pamphlets love to cite half a rule that purportedly means bikes can pass anybody at any time on either side and never have to stop or yield ((b) and (c) below). However, passing a car signaling a right turn on the right clearly violates (a).
1201.3 (a) A person operating a bicycle may overtake and pass another vehicle only under conditions which permit the movement to be made with safety.
(b) A person operating a bicycle may overtake and pass other vehicles on the left or right side, staying in the same lane as the overtaken vehicle, or changing to a different lane, or riding off the roadway, as necessary to pass with safety.
(c) If a lane is partially occupied by vehicles that are stopped, standing, or parked in that lane, a person operating a bicycle may ride in that or in the next adjacent lane used by vehicles proceedings in the same direction.
Incidentally, if you get doored on the passenger side passing a pulled-over car on the right, that’s your fault too. Aside from the rule above and the fact that you just made a dumb move, the rule on dooring only covers opening the door into traffic, not on the curb side.
So don’t just zip by on the right of a car in the curb lane without paying any attention to what the car is doing – seriously, it’s dangerous as well as illegal. And I promise not to lay on the horn if you do the smart and responsible thing and take the lane while you’re waiting.
actually, you are wrong. As many have said the passing might be stupid (presuming the driver is using their signal) but it is legal. The driver needs to get far enough over so as to not give the bike enough room to pass on the right and should look in the mirror and make sure bikers are not coming.
http://www.dc.gov/DC/DDOT/On+Your+Street/Bicycles+and+Pedestrians/Bicycles/DC+Common+Enforcement+Errors+Involving+Bicyclists
(a) A person operating a bicycle may overtake and pass another vehicle only under conditions which permit the movement to be made with safety.
As many, including you, have said, that’s stupid. Therefore not legal – if everybody agrees that it’s dumb, you are not in conditions that permit the movement to be made with safety and DO NOT have the right to pass.
The turning car has to be in the curb lane. It does not have to have its tires rubbing the curb – and yes, there are people who try to pass through very narrow spaces on the right.
How is it safe for a cyclist coming upon a car in the right hand lane with their turn signal on to pass on the right, when that would then put them in a position to be hit by a car?
And then you’ll get cyclists complaining about the cars being purposely as far over to the right as they can to prevent cyclists from coming up from behind and passing on the right (how dare those drivers do things that are perfectly legal).
Or you’ll have a truck who makes wide right turns with 10 feet of space to the right that a whole peloton of cyclists could fit through.
It doesn’t make sense to force cars to hug the curb or a parking lane to ensure cyclists don’t pass on the right. It makes more sense for cyclists to stop passing on the right in these scenarios.
That said, right hooks do happen, and generally happen when a car accelerates ahead of the bike and then misjudges the speed of the cyclist and turns right in front of them, causing the rear of the vehicle to squeeze or hit the cyclist.
Alight, I back off of someone needing to get over that far. The right turn is a tough situation for both and I think both need to understand that. As someone who bikes and drives I understand that it is hard to drive with bikers going by but its not hard to make an effort to pay attention to the fact that they might be in your path.
The issue for me is that drivers need to understand that you have to put your signal on well before you are approaching the intersection. People tend to put the signal on right before they turn and at that point its often too late for a biker to do anything.
Of course bikers should now plow into cars turning right or try to squeeze by them at the last minute.
Lastly, laws aren’t written perfectly, sometimes what makes sense is not what the law is
The cyclist would have been in a good position to avoid this if you had your turn signal before you approached the intersection. If you didn’t, then the cyclist probably thought you were going to go straight. Even if the cyclist had the right of way by law, this was potentially really stupid/dangerous of the cyclist. My best advice is to be very vigilant about using your turn signal with plenty of time/room so others know and go ahead and check your blind spot when turning.
+1
To me that is how the illustration plays out, the bike was coming from behind while the car was turning and ran into the car. Other wise the car when have hit the bike and that is not what happend. Thanks saying what I could not.
#4 in the illustration does not “play out this way”. #4 in the illustration states:
Bicyclist going straight in the right lane is hit by car from same lane while
the car is making a right turn.
This means the car and bike are in the same lane – meaning they are moving together. This is akin to a car in the left lane driving evenly with a car in the right lane and the car in the left lane takes a right turn.
The scenario above is that the car is stopped, signal on, awaiting a right turn, and the bike overtakes the car passing on the right. These are not the same thing.
It would be a good idea for DC to redo the laws and simply say a bike may not pass on the right in a shared lane.
“It would be a good idea for DC to redo the laws and simply say a bike may not pass on the right in a shared lane.”
But that would mean that bikes would have to pass on the left, which isn’t always possible. It would also mean that bikes would need to take the entire lane or risk being passed by a car, which could then come to an immediate stop for no reason, and force the cyclist to stop (and yes, this happens to me frequently).
There is no need for a law change, but there is need for:
1) Better education about this law/problem for both drivers and cyclists (especially cyclists IMHO).
2) Police crack down on drivers who do not use their turn signals. Ultimately, if a driver is properly using their turn signal, the vast majority of these accidents should be avoided.
You forgot one:
a) that DC police crackdown on cyclists illegally passing on the right.
I think the laws should be as similar as possible. It appears that many cyclists do not know/will not follow the laws about passing on the right, and as such, change them so that all road-users cannot pass on the right.
Yes, that would mean sometimes cyclists couldn’t pass… just like cars sometimes cannot pass. But it would remove all of this cyclists confusion over when/where they can pass as the word “safely” doesn’t seem to work that it is safely for all road users, not just the safety/ease of cyclists.
This should prove it is best to take the lane. And yeah, before it comes up, I cycle, drive, walk and take public transport. Mostly walk.
passing on the right by bikes should be prohibited. bikes dont need to get to the front of the line, they’re the slowest moving. There’s no reason for a line of cars to have to pass a bike every single time they stop at a stop sign. Its a pain in the ass to get around a bike and unless the bike plans to run the stop sign/stop light – if they’re going to stop 50 feet back, it slows them down absolutely 0 minutes. If a bike is moving fast enough to pass a car that isnt stopped, it should be passing on the left. Thats the way cars (are supposed to) pass. Passing on the right isnt just dangerous for right turns, it can put the bike in a car sandwich, put it in the position of being doored, or being pushed into the curb. Pass on the left. If you cant pass on the left, dont pass. Its a car; odds are their 85hp-450hp engine will eventually render them out of your way.
“bikes dont need to get to the front of the line, they’re the slowest moving. There’s no reason for a line of cars to have to pass a bike every single time they stop at a stop sign”
I sent WABA an inquiry on something similar to this a while back and their response was essentially that lane-splitting is legal. They did not really answer my question, which was “why is it safer to filter to the front of the traffic stopped at a red light, as opposed to queueing up in line with the traffic?”
Take this scenario for instance: At 16th and U there are bike boxes at the front of the traffic queue. If heading north on 16th on your bike, you are riding up-hill, clearly unable to keep pace with traffic. During rush hour, you may have been passed by upwards of 15 vehicles since the last light. If you then filter by all the vehicles stopped at the red light (the same ones that just passed you) to get to the front of the traffic and into the bike box, how have you increased your safety, and the safety of those around you?
you try sucking tailpipe exhaust for your whole commute.
ALso biking should be made as efficient as possible so as to encourage more people to get off cars (that take up way more space and cost taxpayers way more money in road repairs) and get on bikes.
I am late to the party and I am not WABA but to answer these 2 questions.
“why is it safer to filter to the front of the traffic stopped at a red light, as opposed to queueing up in line with the traffic?”
“how have you increased your safety, and the safety of those around you?”
If there is a que of cars at a stop light that are not moving it is safer for the bicyclist AND more efficient for the car traffic if the biker passes on the right and waits in the crosswalk for the light to change.
The reason for the increased safety is that the cyclist is much more visible and also can see the entire intersection while they are waiting in the crosswalk.
The biker does not have to worry if the car next to them is going to make a sudden right turn and run them over.
They don’t have to worry if a car is waiting to make a left turn, causing other traffic to swerve into their lane of travel to go around the waiting car.
They do not have to worry if an oncoming car will try to make a left turn in front of them, cutting them off.
It is more efficient because bikes require more time to accelerate than cars. As a driver, you do not want to be behind a biker as they start from a dead stop within a que of cars since they do not have the space to get their feet on the pedals and move. DC lights have pedestrian walk sign start a few seconds before traffic, if the bicycle starts at that moment he will be nearly across the intersection before the light even turns green.
Safer AND more efficient.
And that’s the response I hear most often and here’s my take on it:
1. Cyclists waiting in the crosswalk is illegal.
2. I would never recommend passing on the right. It increases the chance of being doored and right hooked. Plenty of material out there to back this up.
3. The cyclist is no more visible at the front of the line as they would be anywhere else in the line, so long as they lined up in line with traffic and not between cars in their blind spots.
4. Jumping the red is also illegal (unless explicity indicated by signage as being legal, such as on the 15th street cycletrack).
Tail pipe exhaust is about the only viable reason not to queue up in line with traffic.
It must be the heat, right? People are good, in principle.
So the driver hit the bike and then drove off? What an @sshole. Hit and run is a serious crime – I hope the police find the driver and arrest her.
Hey, I’m famous! I’ve been trying to make PoP by growing a Garden-of-the-Day-worthy garden. Instead, it’s because I was hit and run (runned?). Eh. At least I made it.
So far they haven’t found her. Seems five out of seven license plate digits, a physical description, three witnesses, and make and model of car aren’t enough to catch someone.
finally somebody gives us a legitimate update on this thing (rather than just arguing)—it’s sad that it had to be the victim. glad that you are doing okay. are they still looking for the perp?
You’ll need DNA.
I’m telling y’all: get a camera and wear it or attach it to your bike. It’s inexpensive and would do wonders for finding the road raging lunatics who drive away after (allegedly) hitting & running.
Sorry to hear about this incident Scott, hope you are alright. It’s always a f’ed up when people can’t behave in a responsible manner, even worse when they are controlling a 2 ton weapon.
I wouldn’t hold you’re breath. I was hit by a cab in front of a MPD officiers, but he refused to file a report because “it was too much paper work.” I hope you fare better in this case, but I don’t have much faith in MPD.
Post the details on POP we will help you ID this person. He/She might drive in the Dupont area regularly, maybe someone can get a photo of drivers and plates of cars that fit the description. Was there any distinguishing “thing” about the car / driver? Never know.
Seems like they’ve stopped looking for her.
In case anyone sees the car, it was a two-tone silver/gold Cadillac, Maryland tags, license plate 5AN _ _ 61 (with the letters oriented vertically), early-to-mid thirties A/A female driver.
Be careful out there. I’m not always a saint on my bike, but in this case I was doing nothing wrong. There’s just nothing funnier than people, sometimes.
My guess? Just sit on that same corner during the 8 o’clock hour for a few days and you’ll probably see her drive by. Likely just a commuter. If you really want to catch her, do that.
1. Chill out
2 drive defensively
Even if someone does something stupid, that’s no reason for you to get angry.
I rode a bicycle here for a number of years, and still pull it out to ride on some trails from time to time. But to ride the city streets with all the crazy cars, cab drivers, metro busses, tourists, etc? No way.
Cars don’t respect bicycles at all in this city.
I still ride the city on two wheels, but I’m glad I have a motor with mine. I have 90% of the freedom of a bicycle (go between cars, etc), but I can leave them from a light and be far enough ahead that they don’t pose a threat to me. Anytime I have a threat from behind, all I have to do is twist the throttle a little. Plus I can position myself anywhere on the road I please because no one is going to get stuck behind me.
And the ghetto crowd that doesn’t like bicycles and sees them as a symbol of yuppie gentrification seem to be cool with motorcycles. I live in NE, so I ride through some of the more questionable parts. A lot of the ghetto crowd in cars in these parts wave at me and ask me to do wheelies. LOL.