Complaints About How Bicycles Act On The Roads

[heights]

It could, but after the required environmental impact studies, search for a transgendered-minority-women-owned business that serves fair-trade coffee, "concerned" residents townhalls, and other related nonsense it will take about 3 years. And if and when it is built it will have one reversible lane for cars and trucks and four bike lanes. Car and truck drivers will be required to pay a carbon off-set fee and must endure "share the road shouts" from biketavists while creeping along in their single undersized lane. Any person on foot will be granted stop transit authority if they should smell anything other than biodiesel being emitted from Wal-Mart trucks.

I am always amused at how bicyclists gripe about how they are treated by motorists yet they seem to be incapable of following the traffic laws. Lately there have been huge groups of bicyclists riding in the evenings on Heights Blvd and they blow every stop sign and red light they come to. And what good is a bike lane if they don't ride in it?

[samagon]

I am always amused at how bicyclists gripe about how they are treated by motorists yet they seem to be incapable of following the traffic laws. Lately there have been huge groups of bicyclists riding in the evenings on Heights Blvd and they blow every stop sign and red light they come to. And what good is a bike lane if they don't ride in it?

It's not like all cyclists do this.

I doubt that the cyclists that do this are running stop lights and stop signs with cross traffic.

It's pretty much akin to motorists habitually going 5 to 10 over the limit and not using their signals to indicate a lane change or turn.

Not that this exonerates cyclists, but it's not like your people are any better. It's best to just get back to being angry with walmart.

[TGM]

It's pretty much akin to motorists habitually going 5 to 10 over the limit and not using their signals to indicate a lane change or turn.

No it is not. Running a controlled intersection is not the same as exceeding a speed limit. In their campaign to remind drivers that bikes are vehicles too, they somehow failed to realize that they too must obey the law.

[samagon]

No it is not. Running a controlled intersection is not the same as exceeding a speed limit. In their campaign to remind drivers that bikes are vehicles too, they somehow failed to realize that they too must obey the law.

If there's no oncoming traffic, it really is about the same.

I never took you for the hipster type, but you do a pretty good job of being ironic by admonishing one group for breaking the law, then saying another group can break the law, cause it isn't that bad to break the law.

[samagon]

In response to my post about deviant cyclists, you alluded to "your people" and "angry with walmart".

I take insult to this. I have never been angry with walmart. I am looking forward to the day it opens and I will shop there often. And stop signs and lights are not only to be obeyed when there is cross traffic approaching.

And not all cyclists run stop lights/signs.

And the speed limits and turn signals are not only to be obeyed when it's convenient for the driver.

we can do this all day

in a futile attempt to get sort of back on subject, did anyone else notice how the standard smiley looks very much like the walmart smiley?

[callisthenes]

we can do this all day

in a futile attempt to get sort of back on subject, did anyone else notice how the standard smiley looks very much like the walmart smiley?

You will never convince the majority of Houston drivers that they are not the victims of bicyclists.

And perhaps your attempt is not futile. Could it be a pro-Walmart virus infecting the forum?

[samagon]

You will never convince the majority of Houston drivers that they are not the victims of bicyclists.

And perhaps your attempt is not futile. Could it be a pro-Walmart virus infecting the forum?

I have no aspirations of convincing anyone of anything, but it would be nice to at least see them acknowledge their hipster irony

[Marksmu]

You will never convince the majority of Houston drivers that they are not the victims of bicyclists.

And perhaps your attempt is not futile. Could it be a pro-Walmart virus infecting the forum?

The majority is right....Im tired of everyone cowtowing and acting like the minority user deserves special treatment.

Just get out of the way, your slow, you break all the rules of the road, and you are inconveniencing far more people than not. Bicycle riders are selfish, regardless of whether or not they have a legal right to use the road, they are still, nonetheless selfish.

[RedScare]

The majority is right....Im tired of everyone cowtowing and acting like the minority user deserves special treatment.

Just get out of the way, your slow, you break all the rules of the road, and you are inconveniencing far more people than not. Bicycle riders are selfish, regardless of whether or not they have a legal right to use the road, they are still, nonetheless selfish.

Speaking of irony...

[callisthenes]

Just get out of the way, your slow, you break all the rules of the road, and you are inconveniencing far more people than not. Bicycle riders are selfish, regardless of whether or not they have a legal right to use the road, they are still, nonetheless selfish.

See? The guy driving the 1.5 ton SUV is the victim, not the guy riding the 10 pound bike.

I'm a little worried that Walmart smiley-virus will infect my computer... will the new Walmart offer computer repair services?

[samagon]

The majority is right....Im tired of everyone cowtowing and acting like the minority user deserves special treatment.

Just get out of the way, your slow, you break all the rules of the road, and you are inconveniencing far more people than not. Bicycle riders are selfish, regardless of whether or not they have a legal right to use the road, they are still, nonetheless selfish.

no one's asking for special treatment.

it's attitudes like yours that get me cheering every time I see the price of oil rise. Comments like yours make it so I can't wait for the day when gasoline prices are so high as to make driving prohibitive.

either way, I respect your opinion, but luckily, it's just that, your opinion.

[fwki]

it's attitudes like yours that get me cheering every time I see the price of oil rise....

It's the city in which I live that gets me cheering every time I see the price of oil rise. Sometimes bikers forget.

[TGM]

it's attitudes like yours that get me cheering every time I see the price of oil rise. Comments like yours make it so I can't wait for the day when gasoline prices are so high as to make driving prohibitive.

Wow, what delusional utopian world you must live in. The people hurt first are the people you claim to love.

[Ross]

Wow, what delusional utopian world you must live in. The people hurt first are the people you claim to love.

The next group to hurt will be the rollerbladers I saw on the T C Jester bridge over the railyard next to White Oak Bayou. It's one thing to roller blade in the street going up the bridge, but to stay in the street on the down side reeks of a desire for an early demise. Just how fast do they think someone coming over the bridge at 45mph can stop?

[TheNiche]

The next group to hurt will be the rollerbladers I saw on the T C Jester bridge over the railyard next to White Oak Bayou. It's one thing to roller blade in the street going up the bridge, but to stay in the street on the down side reeks of a desire for an early demise. Just how fast do they think someone coming over the bridge at 45mph can stop?

45mph. Is that all!?

[TGM]

45mph. Is that all!?

Well that's enough for HPD. License and registration please.

[Marksmu]

Speaking of irony...

I wrote that hoping for a far bigger response than I got. I intentionally made that an easy target to get a rise of folks.

As to not being able to afford gas? I don't worry about that....my 1.5 ton Truck gets better gas mileage than many cars....after deleting the ridiculous EPA emission controls from the diesel engine and adding a programmer (once it finally went out of warranty) my fuel economy went from 14/17 to 17/22.

At $8 gallon gas I can still happily drive wherever I want in my truck...My office is only 17 miles from home, an $8 commute each way is not going to hurt me at all, heck if gas went to $8 it may reduce traffic so much that I will actually get better fuel economy than I do now.

If bicyclists don't think they are getting special treatment by inconveniencing the other 99.99999% of the population by using the roads and traveling drastically below the speed limit, at a rate of speed that is FAR below any vehicles most fuel efficient ranges they are crazy. If cars got on the road and went 10-14 mph they would get pulled over by the police all the time for not traveling with traffic flow and obstructing others....bikes do this daily without any repercussions. Luckily when the Walmart is open those bikers will need to get in their car to be able to get home with the massive piles of cheap Chinese junk they were able to buy at WalMart - so traffic should improve somewhat.

[samagon]

Wow, what delusional utopian world you must live in. The people hurt first are the people you claim to love.

it was a troll response to what I suspected was a troll comment.

It appears I wasn't off the mark.

Believe me though, I thoroughly enjoy driving my sports car that gets maybe 20mpg on the highway, but damn it puts a smile on my face.

That being said, I think that honing in on the not so egregious law breaking done by cyclists when motorists do their own not so egregious law breaking is a horrible argument.

Hone in on the cyclists that run red lights with oncoming traffic, or blow through stop signs without even slowing down to check for traffic, and I'll hone in on the motorists that buzz too close to cyclists and don't respect the fact that they are targeting a human being with a very deadly game of chicken.

Hell, lets talk about those guys who think they are doing a service to the cycling community with the critical mass rides, and then cork intersections for minutes as hundreds of cyclists amble through, or intentionally block the entire street (both directions of traffic) so no traffic can move at all.

I wrote that hoping for a far bigger response than I got. I intentionally made that an easy target to get a rise of folks.

If bicyclists don't think they are getting special treatment by inconveniencing the other 99.99999% of the population by using the roads and traveling drastically below the speed limit, at a rate of speed that is FAR below any vehicles most fuel efficient ranges they are crazy. If cars got on the road and went 10-14 mph they would get pulled over by the police all the time for not traveling with traffic flow and obstructing others....bikes do this daily without any repercussions. Luckily when the Walmart is open those bikers will need to get in their car to be able to get home with the massive piles of cheap Chinese junk they were able to buy at WalMart - so traffic should improve somewhat.

Sorry to disappoint you

I don't think, in the grand scheme of things, that the cyclist is really posing such a hindrance to you that they should receive such ire. If you calculate out the amount of time you take for your journey, then calculate the journey with having to get around a cyclist, I'm betting it's within a margin of error to make it not matter. unless you're really going more than just 5-10 over the limit, having to drop from 55 to 15 is a big difference, even for the 100 yards it might take for you to get around him on your 8 mile journey. going from 35 to 15 for the 100 yards it takes to get around him on your 8 mile trip, it won't make such a difference.

Myself, when I ride my pace is usually about 20mph, and I stick to back streets if I can, cause I enjoy my life too much to put myself in a position to come in contact with one of the drivers that thinks they have more of a right to the road than I do, and also doesn't understand that if they accidentally hit me, I will probably die. the only way I can do that is to stop riding, but I like to ride, so I will try to put myself as far from the rabid idiots as possible.

[fwki]

...Hone in on the cyclists that run red lights with oncoming traffic, or blow through stop signs without even slowing down to check for traffic, and I'll hone in on the motorists that buzz too close to cyclists and don't respect the fact that they are targeting a human being with a very deadly game of chicken....

...I enjoy my life too much to put myself in a position to come in contact with one of the drivers that thinks they have more of a right to the road than I do.....

Actually in Houston, Texas, bicyclers must follow all traffic laws AND special bicycle laws. So you really don't have all the rights of motorized drivers. I wish you would spread the word that bicyclers must follow Texas Transportation Code Section 551.103 Operation on Roadway:

(A) Except as provided by Subsection (8), a person operating a bicycle on a roadway who is moving slower than the other traffic on the roadway shall ride as near as practicable to the right curb or edge of the roadway....

AND,

C) Persons operating a bicycle on a roadway may ride two abreast. Persons riding two abreast on a laned roadway shall ride in a single lane. Persons riding two abreast may not impede the normal and reasonable flow of traffic on the roadway. Persons may not ride more than two abreast unless they are riding on a part of a roadway set aside for the exclusive operation of bicycles.

[west20th]

I wrote that hoping for a far bigger response than I got. I intentionally made that an easy target to get a rise of folks.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Troll_%28Internet%29

[fwki]

Back on OT....In just a few months time, The Leader headline will be "Heights Hipsters Convert" and forget about parking a car at Antidote or Premium Draught because the lot will be full of these:

[infinite_jim]

(A) Except as provided by Subsection (8), a person operating a bicycle on a roadway who is moving slower than the other traffic on the roadway shall ride as near as practicable to the right curb or edge of the roadway....

AND,

C) Persons operating a bicycle on a roadway may ride two abreast. Persons riding two abreast on a laned roadway shall ride in a single lane. Persons riding two abreast may not impede the normal and reasonable flow of traffic on the roadway. Persons may not ride more than two abreast unless they are riding on a part of a roadway set aside for the exclusive operation of bicycles.

I highlighted the operable words here.

What is practicable is staying alive; riding in the gutter is asking to get side swiped for which you have no legal protections.

Also reasonable flow of traffic means no freeway riding since ONLY freeways have speed minimums. There's nothing against the law as far as driving slower than the rest of traffic, my grandfather does it all the time.

IMO the laws need to be amended to better protect bike riders; that's why I'm waiting for a good ole case of Texas justice to arise where a bike rider shoots and kills a driver who appears to "threaten" the rider.

It's just a matter of time; so to all my bike riding friends I say "roll strapped!"

Take that as fair warning drivers, I'll shoot you 1st and ask questions later.

[fwki]

...It's just a matter of time; so to all my bike riding friends I say "roll strapped!"

Take that as fair warning drivers, I'll shoot you 1st and ask questions later.

I'm not sure the Wal-Goose could handle the recoil, might end up in the gutter anyway. And those Chinese rounds will be just bouncing off that tempered auto glass....maybe you could take out a plastic tail light, but not one of those new LEDs, no way.

[Marksmu]

Also reasonable flow of traffic means no freeway riding since ONLY freeways have speed minimums. There's nothing against the law as far as driving slower than the rest of traffic, my grandfather does it all the time.

I don't agree with your interpretation....If your impeding the flow of traffic what is reasonable is probably up to the officers discretion. We know its illegal to ride on a highway b/c it has minimum speed limits, but it is also illegal to drive too slow on any road when doing so creates a hazard to other drivers...I believe the same can be imputed to a bike...if your riding so slow that traffic is building up around you b/c they cant get past you easily then you are indeed breaking the law.

It's just a matter of time; so to all my bike riding friends I say "roll strapped!"

Take that as fair warning drivers, I'll shoot you 1st and ask questions later.

Its pretty hard to pull your gun, let alone aim it, as you roll helplessly head over foot into a 18 caliper inch live oak

[infinite_jim]

Oh great! now I need to find a range where I can practice shooting and riding together..

[RedScare]

I don't agree with your interpretation....If your impeding the flow of traffic what is reasonable is probably up to the officers discretion. We know its illegal to ride on a highway b/c it has minimum speed limits, but it is also illegal to drive too slow on any road when doing so creates a hazard to other drivers...I believe the same can be imputed to a bike...if your riding so slow that traffic is building up around you b/c they cant get past you easily then you are indeed breaking the law.

On neighborhood Heights streets, it will never happen, regardless your attempted stretch of the statute to fit your argument. The cops won't write the ticket, and it wouldn't hold up in court if they did.

But, if it makes you feel better, you can start a thread about it on freerepublic. They'd probably agree with you there.

[TGM]

On neighborhood Heights streets, it will never happen, regardless your attempted stretch of the statute to fit your argument. The cops won't write the ticket, and it wouldn't hold up in court if they did.

I don't even think court enters into the equation. It's more about not wanting to catch hell about writing chicksh!t tickets from their fellow officers in the locker room.

"Yo Peterson, my kid rides a big wheel. Ya wanna ticket him?"

[SilverJK]

heaven forbid you have to wait 10 seconds to safely pass another vehicle. I was riding on the shoulder one time and this guy kept honking at me and yelling for me to get out of the road. After a few seconds of him yelling at me, he swerved towards me to "scare" me. As someone who has been hit by a car on two seperate occasions I didn't appreciate his threat, and he left the next light missing a side mirror. Using a 2 ton vehicle in a threatening manner to cyclist should be treated the same as a using a deadly weapon.

[RedScare]

heaven forbid you have to wait 10 seconds to safely pass another vehicle. I was riding on the shoulder one time and this guy kept honking at me and yelling for me to get out of the road. After a few seconds of him yelling at me, he swerved towards me to "scare" me. As someone who has been hit by a car on two seperate occasions I didn't appreciate his threat, and he left the next light missing a side mirror. Using a 2 ton vehicle in a threatening manner to cyclist should be treated the same as a using a deadly weapon.

Actually, not only should it be considered a deadly weapon, DA's offices throughout the state routinely file charges alleging vehicles as deadly weapons. Depending on how the vehicle is used, it can be alleged as a deadly weapon in felony DWI cases, and also in Aggravated Assault cases. Swerving at a pedestrian or cyclist in an attempt to scare them, or to cause them to crash, is a clear case of aggravated assault.

Sec. 22.01. ASSAULT. (a) A person commits an offense if the person:

(1) intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly causes bodily injury to another, including the person's spouse;

(2) intentionally or knowingly threatens another with imminent bodily injury, including the person's spouse; or

(3) intentionally or knowingly causes physical contact with another when the person knows or should reasonably believe that the other will regard the contact as offensive or provocative.

Sec. 22.02. AGGRAVATED ASSAULT. (a) A person commits an offense if the person commits assault as defined in Sec. 22.01 and the person:

(1) causes serious bodily injury to another, including the person's spouse; or

(2) uses or exhibits a deadly weapon during the commission of the assault.

Tough talking motorists could find themselves facing 2-20 in TDC. If it happens to you, get a license plate number and try to get a view of the driver, and report it.Pictures make wonderful evidence. It may not result in charges (due to lack of evidence), but the motorist may at least be interviewed by police, making him think twice about committing road rage incidents in the future.

[TGM]

I've witnessed more passive agressive behavior from drivers when on my bike than vise-versa. On the rare occasion that a cyclist is being a roadhog I roll down the window and in a sarcastic, honey-sweet voice I remind them to "share the road!"