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Monday, August 29, 2005

Behind the handlebars: Cyclists sound off about dangerous drivers

By KRISTEN DIZON
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER

Eric Heller commutes to work seven miles each way from Green Lake to Amazon.com on Beacon Hill. Heller has been hit twice in the past three years -- both times in the bike lane on Second Avenue when drivers turned into him. In what cyclists say is a common occurrence, one motorist drove off; the other drove down the block before returning to help. Heller had scrapes, bruises and a bent frame.

"So I don't ride in the bike lane anymore. I ride in the street," he said, though he gets "the finger all the time." People yell, "Get into the bike lane. You're breaking the law." (It is not illegal to ride in traffic lanes.)

Blings, a messenger who didn't want her real name used, said she feels some animosity from drivers. "I don't blame them. I'd be upset if I was driving around too," she said. "I think they're mad that we can get away with breaking traffic laws."

Blings was recently hit by a woman who turned right into her bike, then drove off before checking on her. She was unharmed.

She says she doesn't use arm signals and knows only one person who does. She runs stop signs and yield signs when it looks clear -- partially because it takes much more energy and effort to stop and restart the bike with muscles, unlike pressing an accelerator or brakes.

And she won't sit behind a line of cars at a light, because that means sucking up exhaust. She rides to the front of the line, which infuriates some drivers. She also rides between lanes, which she says is a courtesy to not slow cars down. "We feel comfortable riding down those lanes, and people can pass us on either side."

Cyclist Joseph Sheedy, who uses a bike to go everywhere and owns 10 to 20 bikes, says he sometimes splits lanes too. "That definitely provokes strong emotions from people."

He said he's safety-conscious in an aggressive way, usually riding between 20 and 25 mph.

"Speed is safety," he said. "If I can stay at or near the speed limit, I should have the complete right to be in the middle of the lane. It's mostly to increase our visibility to motorists and control the situation around me."

Sheedy, like many cyclists, is wary of riding at the right edge of a lane when there's no shoulder or bike lane, because many drivers try to pass with razor-thin, heart-stopping margins.

A few weeks ago, Sheedy says he was deliberately hit from behind by a driver in the University District at a slow speed. He wasn't hurt, but stopped to call police. After yelling at him and referring to cyclists as "hippies of the road," the driver left, but was later visited at her home by an officer. "She just didn't like the fact that I was slowing her down 5 mph," Sheedy said. "There's definitely a strong us vs. them mentality there."

He says he can't criticize others since he bends the law, but hopes drivers understand the seriousness of piloting a 2,000-pound vehicle around bikes. "I think a lot of motorists don't really understand the consequences for cyclists of not using their turn signals or opening their door without looking."

Nick Spang, a 29-year-old graduate student, said it's not fair for cyclists to follow rules that were designed for cars.

"They never had the vulnerabilities or capabilities of bicyclists in mind when they created those rules," said Spang, who sits on the city's Bicycle Advisory Board, but whose views do not reflect the board's. "Bicyclists are small and can't cause the same amount of damage."

Spang, who has been the victim of a hit-and-run collision with a car, says drivers don't treat bicyclists with the same respect as they do other cars. "If a big truck is in the middle of the road doing 5 mph, the cars will wait. But if a cyclist was doing the same, he'd probably get run down or yelled at," Spang said. "People would not accept it."

See related article: Behind the wheel: Drivers sound off about reckless cyclists

RULES OF THE ROAD FOR CYCLISTS

Cyclists have the same rights and duties as drivers of cars, with a few exceptions.

• Both must follow the speed limit and exercise care not to hit pedestrians. Both must use turn signals -- blinkers for cars; hand signals for cyclists.

• Pass to the left of another car or bicycle at a safe distance.

• Cyclists going at a speed slower than the flow of car traffic are asked to ride as near to the right side of the right lane as is safe (they also may ride in the left part of the left-most lane on a one-way street with two or more lanes).

• Cyclists may ride two abreast in roads or on sidewalks.

• Cyclists using the sidewalk must ride in a "careful and prudent manner" and yield the right of way to pedestrians as well as give them an audible sign before passing.

• Cyclists must yield to pedestrians in and along a crosswalk.

• One hand should be on the handlebars of a bike at all times.

• Helmets are required by city law for cyclists.

• In the dark, bicycles must have a lamp on the front visible from at least 500 feet and a red reflector on the rear visible up to 600 feet from behind (they can also use a red light).

You can find these rules at www.seattle.gov/transportation/bikecode.htm.

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