Are bikes allowed to go through red lights on major roads?

Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Can you imagine what it would be like if cycling was actually popular in DC?

PARIS — On a recent afternoon, the Rue de Rivoli looked like this: Cyclists blowing through red lights in two directions. Delivery bike riders fixating on their cellphones. Electric scooters careening across lanes. Jaywalkers and nervous pedestrians scrambling as if in a video game.

Sarah Famery, a 20-year resident of the Marais neighborhood, braced for the tumult. She looked left, then right, then left and right again before venturing into a crosswalk, only to break into a rant-laden sprint as two cyclists came within inches of grazing her.

“It’s chaos!” exclaimed Ms. Famery, shaking a fist at the swarm of bikes that have displaced cars on the Rue de Rivoli ever since it was remade into a multilane highway for cyclists last year. “Politicians want to make Paris a cycling city, but no one is following any rules,” she said. “It’s becoming risky just to cross the street!”

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/02/world/europe/paris-bicyles-france.html#:~:text=In%20Paris%2C%20parts%20of%20the,bike%20lanes%20weave%20through%20traffic.


There is an unfortunate culture among cyclists where they ignore traffic laws. It’s not that big of deal here because so few people ride bikes. But as this suggests it would be a major problem if cycling ever caught on


As evident by this thread, there is also a culture among cyclists of never taking responsibility for anything. Everything is always someone else’s fault. They’re like spoiled children.


Yes, every cyclist is exactly the same, this is correct.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I drive on Wise road almost every day to drop my kids off at school. I truly want to share the road with the cyclists. But the actual boneheaded, unpredictable moves they make on this stretch daily are terrifying. There’s a four way stop at the bottom of a hill leading up to Wise, and they come zipping through it without even slowing down. Yesterday, after I came to a complete stop and looked all directions, someone came out of nowhere scaring the bejesus out of me. I don’t understand this mentality. It’s very difficult to share the road when cyclists don’t ride in a predictable, safe manner.


Cyclists should be required to get licenses just like drivers


What would the benefit of this policy be? What age would you allow people to be licensed to cycle?
Anonymous
Having just nearly been killed on a crosswalk (with a green signal) by a turning driver who ran a red light (and, yes, I was walking), I completely understand why some cyclists, pedestrians, and other vulnerable road users opt to take responsibility for their own safety rather than relying upon basic road rules that an increasing proportion of drivers seem to regard as completely optional.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Can you imagine what it would be like if cycling was actually popular in DC?

PARIS — On a recent afternoon, the Rue de Rivoli looked like this: Cyclists blowing through red lights in two directions. Delivery bike riders fixating on their cellphones. Electric scooters careening across lanes. Jaywalkers and nervous pedestrians scrambling as if in a video game.

Sarah Famery, a 20-year resident of the Marais neighborhood, braced for the tumult. She looked left, then right, then left and right again before venturing into a crosswalk, only to break into a rant-laden sprint as two cyclists came within inches of grazing her.

“It’s chaos!” exclaimed Ms. Famery, shaking a fist at the swarm of bikes that have displaced cars on the Rue de Rivoli ever since it was remade into a multilane highway for cyclists last year. “Politicians want to make Paris a cycling city, but no one is following any rules,” she said. “It’s becoming risky just to cross the street!”

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/02/world/europe/paris-bicyles-france.html#:~:text=In%20Paris%2C%20parts%20of%20the,bike%20lanes%20weave%20through%20traffic.


There is an unfortunate culture among cyclists where they ignore traffic laws. It’s not that big of deal here because so few people ride bikes. But as this suggests it would be a major problem if cycling ever caught on


As evident by this thread, there is also a culture among cyclists of never taking responsibility for anything. Everything is always someone else’s fault. They’re like spoiled children.


There is no such culture. You apparently like to imagine things that don’t exist to reinforce a worldview built around stereotypes about social groups that you don’t belong. It’s really quite sad. You should try to get out more and meet a more diverse set of people.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I drive on Wise road almost every day to drop my kids off at school. I truly want to share the road with the cyclists. But the actual boneheaded, unpredictable moves they make on this stretch daily are terrifying. There’s a four way stop at the bottom of a hill leading up to Wise, and they come zipping through it without even slowing down. Yesterday, after I came to a complete stop and looked all directions, someone came out of nowhere scaring the bejesus out of me. I don’t understand this mentality. It’s very difficult to share the road when cyclists don’t ride in a predictable, safe manner.


Cyclists should be required to get licenses just like drivers


License plates too.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I drive on Wise road almost every day to drop my kids off at school. I truly want to share the road with the cyclists. But the actual boneheaded, unpredictable moves they make on this stretch daily are terrifying. There’s a four way stop at the bottom of a hill leading up to Wise, and they come zipping through it without even slowing down. Yesterday, after I came to a complete stop and looked all directions, someone came out of nowhere scaring the bejesus out of me. I don’t understand this mentality. It’s very difficult to share the road when cyclists don’t ride in a predictable, safe manner.


Cyclists should be required to get licenses just like drivers


License plates too.


They shouldn’t be allowed to be anonymous and they should also have to carry liability insurance too
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I drive on Wise road almost every day to drop my kids off at school. I truly want to share the road with the cyclists. But the actual boneheaded, unpredictable moves they make on this stretch daily are terrifying. There’s a four way stop at the bottom of a hill leading up to Wise, and they come zipping through it without even slowing down. Yesterday, after I came to a complete stop and looked all directions, someone came out of nowhere scaring the bejesus out of me. I don’t understand this mentality. It’s very difficult to share the road when cyclists don’t ride in a predictable, safe manner.


Cyclists should be required to get licenses just like drivers


License plates too.


Yes there is a huge stolen bike market. Licenses and tags required for all bike and riders. The police should be able to track all bikers in DC.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I drive on Wise road almost every day to drop my kids off at school. I truly want to share the road with the cyclists. But the actual boneheaded, unpredictable moves they make on this stretch daily are terrifying. There’s a four way stop at the bottom of a hill leading up to Wise, and they come zipping through it without even slowing down. Yesterday, after I came to a complete stop and looked all directions, someone came out of nowhere scaring the bejesus out of me. I don’t understand this mentality. It’s very difficult to share the road when cyclists don’t ride in a predictable, safe manner.


Cyclists should be required to get licenses just like drivers


License plates too.


They shouldn’t be allowed to be anonymous and they should also have to carry liability insurance too


Too funny. I bet the overlap between the car drivers who want cyclists to be regulated and the people who whine about “big government” and the “nanny state” is huge.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I drive on Wise road almost every day to drop my kids off at school. I truly want to share the road with the cyclists. But the actual boneheaded, unpredictable moves they make on this stretch daily are terrifying. There’s a four way stop at the bottom of a hill leading up to Wise, and they come zipping through it without even slowing down. Yesterday, after I came to a complete stop and looked all directions, someone came out of nowhere scaring the bejesus out of me. I don’t understand this mentality. It’s very difficult to share the road when cyclists don’t ride in a predictable, safe manner.


Cyclists should be required to get licenses just like drivers


License plates too.


Yes there is a huge stolen bike market. Licenses and tags required for all bike and riders. The police should be able to track all bikers in DC.


That’s a great idea. In fact, we should find ways of regulating and heavily taxing all manner of socially beneficial activities. How about we ban fruit and vegetables, pay people to develop methamphetamine addictions, and impose user charges on public parks and even sidewalks? That way, we all might be able to achieve the same level of miserableness that you’ve managed to get to.
Anonymous
I drive a car and don’t get the vitriol for cyclists as there seems to be an incredible double standard.

Some cyclists break the law but far more drivers break the law, yes? If you are a driver and accelerate through red lights, go over the speed limit, don’t stop at stop signs, hold your phone while driving, don’t stay in your lane when on roundabouts or turning the corner, don’t indicate when changing lanes, you’re also breaking the law, yes?

Do you think more drivers do this than cyclists? I certainly do. So why so resentful of cyclists especially when there are d as I few of them?
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:I drive a car and don’t get the vitriol for cyclists as there seems to be an incredible double standard.

Some cyclists break the law but far more drivers break the law, yes? If you are a driver and accelerate through red lights, go over the speed limit, don’t stop at stop signs, hold your phone while driving, don’t stay in your lane when on roundabouts or turning the corner, don’t indicate when changing lanes, you’re also breaking the law, yes?

Do you think more drivers do this than cyclists? I certainly do. So why so resentful of cyclists especially when there are d as I few of them?


Because drivers are higher status than cyclists, and higher status people can flaunt laws. Low status people can not.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I drive on Wise road almost every day to drop my kids off at school. I truly want to share the road with the cyclists. But the actual boneheaded, unpredictable moves they make on this stretch daily are terrifying. There’s a four way stop at the bottom of a hill leading up to Wise, and they come zipping through it without even slowing down. Yesterday, after I came to a complete stop and looked all directions, someone came out of nowhere scaring the bejesus out of me. I don’t understand this mentality. It’s very difficult to share the road when cyclists don’t ride in a predictable, safe manner.


Cyclists should be required to get licenses just like drivers


License plates too.


Yes there is a huge stolen bike market. Licenses and tags required for all bike and riders. The police should be able to track all bikers in DC.


That’s a great idea. In fact, we should find ways of regulating and heavily taxing all manner of socially beneficial activities. How about we ban fruit and vegetables, pay people to develop methamphetamine addictions, and impose user charges on public parks and even sidewalks? That way, we all might be able to achieve the same level of miserableness that you’ve managed to get to.


This is just bizarre. Cyclists can seriously hurt or kill people. And if they do, they should just be able to ride off? Without anyone being able to identify them? They should have to get licenses, license plates and insurance.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:I drive a car and don’t get the vitriol for cyclists as there seems to be an incredible double standard.

Some cyclists break the law but far more drivers break the law, yes? If you are a driver and accelerate through red lights, go over the speed limit, don’t stop at stop signs, hold your phone while driving, don’t stay in your lane when on roundabouts or turning the corner, don’t indicate when changing lanes, you’re also breaking the law, yes?

Do you think more drivers do this than cyclists? I certainly do. So why so resentful of cyclists especially when there are d as I few of them?


There’s a half million cars in DC. If they blew stop signs at the rate cyclists blow stop signs, there would be thousands of car accidents every single day.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I drive on Wise road almost every day to drop my kids off at school. I truly want to share the road with the cyclists. But the actual boneheaded, unpredictable moves they make on this stretch daily are terrifying. There’s a four way stop at the bottom of a hill leading up to Wise, and they come zipping through it without even slowing down. Yesterday, after I came to a complete stop and looked all directions, someone came out of nowhere scaring the bejesus out of me. I don’t understand this mentality. It’s very difficult to share the road when cyclists don’t ride in a predictable, safe manner.


Cyclists should be required to get licenses just like drivers


License plates too.


Yes there is a huge stolen bike market. Licenses and tags required for all bike and riders. The police should be able to track all bikers in DC.


That’s a great idea. In fact, we should find ways of regulating and heavily taxing all manner of socially beneficial activities. How about we ban fruit and vegetables, pay people to develop methamphetamine addictions, and impose user charges on public parks and even sidewalks? That way, we all might be able to achieve the same level of miserableness that you’ve managed to get to.


This is just bizarre. Cyclists can seriously hurt or kill people. And if they do, they should just be able to ride off? Without anyone being able to identify them? They should have to get licenses, license plates and insurance.


Runners too!
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:^^^and this annoys drivers who think it's somehow not fair that bicyclists can "jump the line." It may or may not be fair, I'm not interested in discussing that question, but the important point is: it's legal.


Frankly, f those car drivers. A bike isn't a car and isn't going to "wait in line". It's totally legal to lane filter in DC.
post reply Forum Index » Metropolitan DC Local Politics
Message Quick Reply
Go to: