Ride respectfully: Don’t give bike critics ammunition

Submitted by Rburke on Wed, 07/25/2012 - 2:38pm

Ride respectfully: Don’t give bike critics ammunition

You may have seen Mark Konkol's recent rant against "crazed" cyclists in the Chicago Sun-Times and my response in today's paper.

While his tone and broad-brush attack on cyclists is way off base, he raises a legitimate point: Too many people riding bikes are blowing through stop signs on the Kinzie Street protected bike lane.

Yes, these stop signs apply to cyclists, too, the same as if there was no bike lane on Kinzie. This means people on bikes should yield to people driving cars who get to their stop sign first. And, of course, people biking always must yield to pedestrians entering or in the crosswalk.

The Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT) has taken steps to discourage stop sign disregard on Kinzie by painting the word "STOP" on the bike lane pavement, deploying bike ambassadors to educate cyclists, and working with police to issue warnings. But it’s still pretty common, in part because cyclists are confused.

For example, the lane's physical separation gives people on bikes the sense that they are not part of the street and, thus, not subject to the same traffic rules. CDOT inadvertently added to the confusion by posting "Bikes Stop for Pedestrians" below the stop signs to emphasize the importance of yielding to pedestrians. You might think that means stop for pedestrians, and ONLY for pedestrians. Incorrect.

With so many cyclists using the Kinzie lane, it’s easy to “follow the herd” and blow through a stop sign because the people in front of you did. Sure, it would be fantastic if the Kinzie lane was a straight shot with no stops signs, but that’s not the case. So set a good example for your fellow cyclists on Kinzie and people riding bikes everywhere: Ride respectfully. Doing so will make cycling more enjoyable and safe, and give bike critics less fodder.

Image courtesy of CDOT

share the road, yeah.

Submitted by Jon Doer (not verified) on Sat, 09/01/2012 - 4:10pm.

Share the road does not mean everybody yields to you!

You ride on the road, you are a vehicle and you ignore road signs at your own risk. I drive a car AND ride a bike and follow road signs whenever I ride either type of vehicle.

This is why car drivers hate cyclists. They act like pedestrians when they want to (i.e., they ignore stop signs like pedestrians and cross when their light is red, etc.) and clog up narrow roads by riding 2-3 abreast while holding up the car traffic.

Where bicyclists can run stop signs

Submitted by Greg Forrester (not verified) on Tue, 08/07/2012 - 10:45pm.

If you want to legally run stop signs, go to Idaho. The state has a law where bicyclist only have to yield to cross traffic at stop signs. Here is how the Idaho law is worded,

49-720. STOPPING — TURN AND STOP SIGNALS.
(1) A person operating a bicycle or human-powered vehicle approaching a stop sign shall slow down and, if required for safety, stop before entering the intersection. After slowing to a reasonable speed or stopping, the person shall yield the right-of-way to any vehicle in the intersection or approaching on another highway so closely as to constitute an immediate hazard during the time the person is moving across or within the intersection or junction of highways, except that a person after slowing to a reasonable speed and yielding the right-of-way if required, may cautiously make a turn or proceed through the intersection without stopping.

As a bicyclist who rides the

Submitted by Karen 896 (not verified) on Wed, 07/25/2012 - 3:20pm.

As a bicyclist who rides the Kinzie bike lane twice a day, I truly hope your words are taken to heart. Sadly, I don't attribute running the stop signs to confusion, as I observe cyclists whizzing through them and narrowly missing pedestrians in the crosswalk, or preventing pedestrians from entering the crosswalk. Those bicyclists blatantly ignore the stop signs, period. I've apologized to frustrated pedestrians countless times.

And to be honest, I'm concerned that I'm going to get rear-ended when I stop at a crosswalk. The protected bike lane is supposed to create a better bicycling environment and experience, not a more hazardous one.