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(05-24-2017, 01:26 PM)danbrotherston Wrote: [ -> ]This is what I do.  I don't judge others for doing differently, but it's backed up by all the HTA.

Where?
So, on my ride home from work I paid more attention to this, and I guess I actually am in the "1m" camp. That's about where I have to ride on average to keep out of the really broken asphalt and all the crap on the road. It's only Charles I'm thinking of where I hug the sides as close as I can.

We had some errands in town to do and on King at around Northfield a young lady with no helmet came flying out of a driveway in front of me and started riding against traffic. I repeat: On King, by Northfield. This is how people die.
(05-24-2017, 04:38 PM)kps Wrote: [ -> ]
(05-24-2017, 01:26 PM)danbrotherston Wrote: [ -> ]This is what I do.  I don't judge others for doing differently, but it's backed up by all the HTA.

Where?

The Ontario Ministry of Transport provides a handy dandy little book giving guidance to cyclists:

http://www.mto.gov.on.ca/english/safety/...skills.pdf
I used to "ride as close to the curb as possible," but then I took a CAN-BIKE course a few years ago and have been in the "1m out from curb" camp ever since.

I find that motorists give me more space and respect when I ride 1m out.

That course also gave me the courage to "take the lane" when I need to.

I highly recommend the course. I was a pretty avid and confident cyclist before I took the course and still learned a lots and gained a lot of confidence.
(05-24-2017, 06:25 PM)Canard Wrote: [ -> ]We had some errands in town to do and on King at around Northfield a young lady with no helmet came flying out of a driveway in front of me and started riding against traffic. I repeat: On King, by Northfield. This is how people die.

I really don’t understand the reverse cycling. Although I once saw it on University at Keats Way, where the bicycle lane is between the straight-through lane and the right-turn lane. So instead of being right at the edge of the road cycling the wrong way, the person was coming right at me. In other news, my car’s horn works properly, and keeps working if you hold down the button!

If somebody doesn’t want to cross the street to get to the right-way bicycle lane they should just use the sidewalk, carefully. Although I suppose somebody who thinks it’s OK to bicycle the wrong way probably won’t be careful on the sidewalk either, so maybe I shouldn’t encourage them…
(05-24-2017, 09:44 PM)ijmorlan Wrote: [ -> ]If somebody doesn’t want to cross the street to get to the right-way bicycle lane they should just use the sidewalk, carefully. Although I suppose somebody who thinks it’s OK to bicycle the wrong way probably won’t be careful on the sidewalk either, so maybe I shouldn’t encourage them…

I am 100% in favour of cycling on the sidewalk when you feel it is an unreasonable burden or dangerous to cross the street (possibly twice).

However an interesting thing happened to me today.
I was biking westbound on Lexington, when I notice a bike in the distance that appears to be going the wrong way in the bike lane. I was getting geared up to confront him, block his path, and generally make him yield to me, the person going the right way in the lane.
But as I approached, I realized it was a ~11 year old boy. And I thought that jesus, I don't blame him for not wanting to cross the street and bike in the bike lane, he should just be on the sidewalk. Of course, this is Lexington, where the homeowners successfully lobbied against a sidewalk on the north side of the street.

So I guess what I want to say is:
Fuck those homeowners robbing this child of a safe space to bicycle.
(05-24-2017, 09:44 PM)ijmorlan Wrote: [ -> ]
(05-24-2017, 06:25 PM)Canard Wrote: [ -> ]We had some errands in town to do and on King at around Northfield a young lady with no helmet came flying out of a driveway in front of me and started riding against traffic. I repeat: On King, by Northfield. This is how people die.

I really don’t understand the reverse cycling. Although I once saw it on University at Keats Way, where the bicycle lane is between the straight-through lane and the right-turn lane. So instead of being right at the edge of the road cycling the wrong way, the person was coming right at me. In other news, my car’s horn works properly, and keeps working if you hold down the button!

If somebody doesn’t want to cross the street to get to the right-way bicycle lane they should just use the sidewalk, carefully. Although I suppose somebody who thinks it’s OK to bicycle the wrong way probably won’t be careful on the sidewalk either, so maybe I shouldn’t encourage them…

There are many reasons for this, but they largely come down to the infrastructure being terrible.

Its one part laziness.

One part being taught to walk against traffic and cyclists ending up being treated like pedestrians by a third of the drivers on the road.

One part believing it's better.

And again, infrastructure.

I've noticed this time and time again.   To be a cyclist in the region, you're forced to break the law frequently.  When that happens enough, it becomes clear the law isn't designed for you, it doesn't make sense for you, it trains people to ignore it.

Frankly, I don't entirely blame these cyclists, I sure feel nervous when listening to a car passing me way too closely from behind.

I'm not defending bad behaviour here, I'm simply suggesting the best way to mitigate it is better infrastructure.

As for wrong way cyclists being bad actors on the sidewalk, my observation is the reverse, most wrong way cyclists I see are ones who just jumped off the sidewalk to go around pedestrians.

I'm just frustrated to hear people complaining and speaking of this getting people killed, when I walked home today and counted no less than 30 drivers distracted on their cell phones. That actually kills people, and unlike cyclists, it kills innocent people who've done nothing wrong.
(05-24-2017, 09:53 PM)danbrotherston Wrote: [ -> ]As for wrong way cyclists being bad actors on the sidewalk, my observation is the reverse, most wrong way cyclists I see are ones who just jumped off the sidewalk to go around pedestrians.

I'm just frustrated to hear people complaining and speaking of this getting people killed, when I walked home today and counted no less than 30 drivers distracted on their cell phones.  That actually kills people, and unlike cyclists, it kills innocent people who've done nothing wrong.

No disagreement here. Now that I think of it, I can’t actually say what the wrong-way cyclists I’ve seen were doing 2 minutes before and after I saw them. If they were avoiding pedestrians I can see the point. Except the specific one I mentioned, that guy really did have a death wish.

I should be clear that I am an unrepentant sidewalk rider (when appropriate). My comment was more of a snarky assumption that somebody who drives on the road wrong will probably drive wrong on the sidewalk too, and endanger pedestrians while they are there. I don’t actually have a bad view in general of sidewalk riders, just as I don’t have a bad view in general of car drivers as a class — just the particular riders and drivers who go carelessly.
(05-24-2017, 09:49 PM)Markster Wrote: [ -> ]I don't blame him for not wanting to cross the street and bike in the bike lane, he should just be on the sidewalk.  Of course, this is Lexington, where the homeowners successfully lobbied against a sidewalk on the north side of the street. 

So I guess what I want to say is:
Fuck those homeowners robbing this child of a safe space to bicycle.
Why municipalities don't install sidewalks everywhere now is troubling. The city of Kitchener has no less than 5 policies that require sidewalks on both sides of the road. I'm sure Waterloo and other government entities have the same policies. It would seem legislation wouldn't even allow counsel time for debate. It should be mandatory that sidewalks go in on both sides during construction or reconstruction of urban roads. If staff can't find the budget to install them the project should be scaled back so that sidewalks are included.

Sidewalks are good for everyone, even if you have to shovel them. They encourage community, exercise and provide safe routes of travel just to name a few positive features.

It really bothers me when individuals don't want a sidewalk going across their front yard. It says to everyone else "you don't belong here". It's not even the homeowners land and yet we allow a few of these complainers every year to "win" by not allowing better community paths through neighbourhoods that would benefit everyone. Then that kid wouldn't have to ride on a busy road and put more people at risk.
Sidewalks are great, but I don't understand why it isn't done one step further and also putting MUT's everywhere. Just a little extra width and we can accommodate everyone.

It thrills me to no end to see them on Franklin in Cambridge and in Waterloo by the ion stop at Conestoga, or along Caroline. It's a start, but I wish they were everywhere.
Not sure MUTs should be put on every street; certainly every arterial road, though.
I'm OK with more multi-use trails, but I would appreciate more of them being made of concrete.
I might be the minorority but I really like the paved ones better. They're much smoother to bike on. The one on Caroline is concrete and my teeth chatter!
Concrete does last longer, though. An asphalt MUT will fracture into an uneven surface faster, and thus require more maintenance.
"Multi-use trails everywhere" doesn't make sense. They're a bit wider than sidewalks, but our sidewalks are generally woefully narrow anyway. I don't see why the default would be to take yet more space from people on foot.

They certainly make sense in a lot of places, but not everywhere, and not where there's much foot traffic.