Road Awareness Test: Are You a Safe Driver?
“He just came out of nowhere. I didn’t see him.” Most of the 700 automobile drivers who hit and kill a bicyclist in the US each year say something similar. (In France, they say, “Je ne l’ai pas vue.”)
If you are an automobile driver and you fail this test, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you’re an unsafe driver, but please, remember to stay aware of bicyclists and pedestrians.
The bear reminds me of a bike rider dressed all in black, on a bike without a light or reflectors, riding on the wrong side of the road, on a street without lights, that ran a stop sign right in front of me when I was 1/4 way through the intersection. He screamed at me and called me names……… I managed to stop - he never did….. just kept going, running more stop signs. Yes - it was night - no moon. Bike riders need to obey the rules and make themselves visible. The world isn’t perfect - they need to be proactive. I am.
@ Bike rider and driver: Thank you. This is an important point. It frustrates me (and I’m an avid bike rider) to see bicyclists not following the rules of the road. It gives the rest of us a bad name in the eyes of both car drivers and pedestrians.
Just a recap for bikers and drivers as well, in the US at least, bicyclists are subject to all of the same rules of the road as car drivers. For example:
1. Bicyclists must stop at stop signs, lights, and four way stops.
2.Bicyclists must ride in the direction of traffic, to the right side of the road. When biking, allow about 3 feet from parked cars to avoid being surprised if someone suddenly opens a car door.
3. When making left turns, bicyclists should either signal a left turn and get in the left hand turn lane or stop at the crosswalk and walk across.
4. Passing on the right is still illegal, unless you’re in a bike lane.
5. Watch for pedestrians and give them the right of way. The last thing the biking community wants is to anger pedestrians.
6. Common sense says: wear bright clothes with a headlight and at least one tail light. Reflective biking jackets make you safer and keep you warm as well as ventilated. You can even get super-strong headlights that rival car headlights, which I’ve found very helpful, for about $100-$200.