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Monday, August 18, 2008

Four wheels good, two wheels bad

It is time to consider that the single biggest reason for antagonistic, wary attitudes between drivers and bicyclists in the urban setting is not the thoughtlessness of drivers or the differential outcomes for participants in the typical bicycle-versus-car accident; rather, it is that bicyclists disregard traffic rules at a much higher rate than operators of other kinds of vehicles.

Search your feelings—you know this to be true. If cars broke basic traffic laws at the rate cyclists do, there would be chaos. If motorcyclists went about things like their pedal brethren, motorcycles would probably be illegal. Like cars or not, you must admit that the great majority of drivers are making a solid, good-faith effort to obey major laws.

You can't really say that about bicyclists. Many bicyclists break the law whenever it suits them, ignoring red lights, turn-only lanes, vehicle spacing requirements, the distinction between roadways and sidewalks, etc. Not all bicyclists are like this by any means, but many. Note that I don't mean "running" red lights shortly after they've turned red. I mean ignoring them. In the last 24 hours I've seen two bicyclists blow through steady red lights like the lights weren't there. And I haven't driven much in the last 24 hours.

The bicyclists I am concerned with behave with impunity because, so far as I can tell, the laws to govern their behavior either do not exist, lack sufficient sanctions, or are not enforced. Bicyclists may worry about being killed, but they sure don't have to worry about being ticketed for all the crazy stuff they do, at least not in Seattle. And assuming they were to be ticketed, what would happen to habitual offenders? Answer: nothing. There is no concept of licensing bicycles, of losing the privilege of operating a bicycle. (No license plates also means little citizen reporting of reckless lawbreaking.) As far as I know, nothing a person does on a bicycle—sober, anyway—can affect his or her ability to operate a motor vehicle. You can run red lights to your heart's content and none of it will ever come back to impact your driver's license. Insurance is another inapplicable notion. You could do all kinds of insane stuff on your bike and no one could ever say "you must obtain high-risk insurance if you want to continue riding your bike."

This is a city that wants to tax grocery bags. But it allows the risk of personal injury or death to be the main consideration regulating how bicyclists conduct themselves.

How about some comments on this one?

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posted at 8:58 PM

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