[*BCM*] bike lanes

[Peter]

Jarrett has summed up my situation.  After a bad accident I simply cannot bring myself to ride in traffic again.  (yet)  
 
Our rights under civil law do not trump the laws of physics.  I don't think that folks appreciate the nerve that it takes to ride until it's gone.
 
Until police and others can be compelled to do their jobs in terms of traffic enforcement (the ultimate reason for my accident, and something that will never happen) I will take whatever comes in terms of paths and lanes.
 
I appreciate what CM does but please understand that not all of us that ride are at that level. 
 


--- On Tue, 12/16/08, Jarrett Sloan <js at jarrettsloan.com> wrote:

From: Jarrett Sloan <js at jarrettsloan.com>
Subject: Re: [*BCM*] bike lanes
To: "Boston Critical Mass" <list at bostoncriticalmass.org>
Date: Tuesday, December 16, 2008, 7:15 PM



Hello,
I think Yuki sums up things well. The sad part is Yuki right some people just stop riding all together if they feel that their route or part of it is dangerous. 

On Dec 16, 2008 7:07 PM, "Hiroyuki Yamada" <hyamada at mit.edu> wrote:

+1, with an addendum

Riding into boston, I rarely feel like I am actually in danger, except
for certain areas -- parts of commonwealth can be dark, fast, and
narrow, and some side streets can often be too narrow for their own good
(for even 1 single lane of cars, let alone a car and a bike). Mostly,
the city is ok. The problem with only having bike lanes in the outlying
suburbs is that it creates inconsistency and makes inexperienced
cyclists confused or those uncomfortable riding in the street nervous to
do so -- they then take to the sidewalk (thinking perhaps that they are
*supposed* to, or that  it's safer there), or don't ride at all. A
classic example of this is southbound on the Mass Ave bridge //-- the
bike lane ends all of a sudden, with no warning (actually, come to think
of it there *may* be a sign there, I don't remember seeing it though),
and quite frequently I am tailing someone just as we cross the bridge,
and watch as they pull up onto the sidewalk as the bike lane ends --
right into a bus stop! It might also be partly that right there the road
becomes kinda shitey (the entrance to the parking lot behind beacon),
but I think it has at least partly to do with the lane disappearing.

As for bikes being legal vehicles on the road, yes that's true, but
there's a difference between law, and common perception/action. If an
area is way unsafe for bikes, people will simply not bike there. You'll
get a few fixsters and messengers using it, and people who /have/ to,
but people will largely ride around, or just NOT ride at all, and take
the T or drive. Given that this IS the first renovation in several
decades (of that area), and it's unlikely there will be another one in
quite a few years, it'd probably make sense to put in a bike lane this
time around.

--Yuki

Antony Rudie wrote: > someone said: > > It looks to me like whomever is suing the city doesn't ge...> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
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