Column: If only drivers shared the road, cyclists would be safer

I just moved here from Boise, Idaho, for graduate school. I was excited because I thought the roads would be more bike-friendly here than out West, where everyone commutes by SUV. Needless to say, I have been highly disappointed by the conditions facing road cyclists. I dream of a city in which the roads are full of bikes and there are no autos anywhere but the interstate. Wouldn't that be nice?

Oh, so many things wrong with this article. First, I have the "pleasure" of driving to work through "cyclist heaven" (Lexington, Belmont, Bedford, etc) and have had on more than one occasion, seen a "law abiding" cyclist do the following: take a right turn around a car from the wrong lane; failing to stop at stop signs/stop lights, not stopping for school buses (yes, there was a near miss). I am all for cyclists getting exercise and using alternative transportation, but YOU as a cyclist should be required to be licensed. If I have to be licensed to drive my car on the streets/roads of MA, you should be too. Just two weeks ago, I thought I had inadvertantly struck a cyclist who cut me off (while he was wearing iPod headphones) on a busy road. An officer cited him for reckless "driving" and ticketed him. one word: karma.

Cyclists want it both ways -- they want to run through traffic lights when it suits them, cut people off (pedestrians and cars), weave in and out of traffic, not stop at stop signs - and then they want to say, "But we are just like CARS!" when things don't go their way.

If cyclists actually were "out there obeying the rules," then perhaps drivers wouldn't be so hostile towards them. But nearly everyday I see cyclists in the Back Bay and surrounding areas driving exactly how cars are not allowed to drive.

That has been my experience as well.

Except you forgot to mention the teenage boys in Acton who throw explosives out the window of (what I assume to be) daddy's vintage mustang. Or, while stopped at a sign waiting to turn left in Wellesley, a driver turning from the cross street going left of center right into me. Or the manufactured housing delivery trucks in Vermont whose favorite passtime is shoving riders into the guard rail (or under the trailer). Or the SUVs in Yarmouth who, rather than waiting 3 seconds for opposing traffic to pass, insist on threading the needle and pushing everyone off the road.

Or

What infuriates motorists about many cyclists is their flexible approach to the rules of the road. Cyclists will often peddle much slower than the speed limit and ride far from the shoulder, making it impossible to pass. Then that same cyclist will weave through a line of cars waiting at a red light, and proceed to coast right through the red. Another pet peeve is the cyclist who braves a snow storm, which poses a safety hazard to everyone.

The expensive, impractical solution is to build wider sidewalks that safely accommodate cyclists and pedestrians. Like it or not, we are a motorized society and our roads and traffic systems are designed for cars only.

"Why are you so angry? We're out there obeying the rules, getting exercise, and saving gasoline. We've ridden in charity rides that benefit cancer, mental retardation, poor children, multiple sclerosis, and myriad other causes. We stay on the far right side of the lane. We never blow through traffic lights or stop signs. We're cautious because we know that you're out there in mega-ton vehicles, any one of which could flatten us in an instant."

Speaking as a driver (and an avid pedestrian whenever I'm somewhere close enough to walk), we are so angry because of the large amount of arrogant and obnoxious bikers who aren't as polite as the ones you mention. Just this morning a biker nearly caused a major accident by zooming in front of a car at a green light forcing the car to stop short and the car behind him to swerve desperately. I see things like this every single day. So yes hats off to you for getting excercise but plenty of you think you have MORE of a right (not an equal right) to the road than cars. It's like you said, we need to work together and respect each other because the Boston area is hard enough to navigate without all of us acting so selfishly.

I think many drivers dislike cyclists because many of them don't obey the proper laws of the road. I personally see bikers blowing through red lights, not using hand signals when turning, and there are always a few bikers who think that they have the right of way no matter what. I get angry at those people and have had words with some, but never would I consider harming or injuring them.

That said, I see many other bikers who ride properly and I have no issue with them. The problem is, people see the bad more than the good. It's unfortunate that some people feel the need to be violent towards bikers. They are taking their anger at some bikers too far and applying it to those who are in compliance with the law.

I am 56, fit, and a road bike rider. I have had generally good luck, but it seems to me that young men in cars are the worst. I recently had an experience were a group of them cursed at me and swerved to hit me. Unfortunately for them, I caught up with them at the next light and administered a beating to the driver that he will not forget while the rest of his friends looked on in horror and disbelief. It seems they were not so tough without their metal safety shield. I am hoping people will think twice both about the safety of the biker and their own safety if they are caught.

"We stay on the far right side of the lane. We never blow through traffic lights or stop signs."

This is a pretty big assumption made by one rider about all riders. That's about equally as ignorant as the assumption that all drivers are dangerous, angry and stupid.

Sometimes, there are bike paths created for bicyclists to ride in, and it would be prudent of bicyclists to use them rather than coast in the middle of a narrow single-lane road where all cars must slow to a crawl behind the lackadaisical joyrider who is "sharing the road". Also, there are arm signals for bicyclists to signal their turning intentions, which would be helpful for cars trying to drive.

Not all drivers or bicyclists are created equal, or safe, or even angry. Sharing the road also means sharing the responsibility for safety.

Couldn't agree more with Minisoup....The arrogance of these cyclists in Bedford/ Lincoln is beyond silly, with their Lance Armstrong wannabe costumes, it's downright dangerous. Some ride with a toddler in back!! If you want to share the road, stay on the far side of it...I've actually seen a few riding down the center yellow line! ..and please lose the outfits...I don't get dressed up like Paul Pierce when I go down the street to shoot baskets......

I'm with minisoup. Every day I encounter groups of bicyclists who think they are in the Tour de Massachusetts; riding three abreast at 15-20 mph along a 35 mph stretch of road only to give me the hairy eyeball as I attempt to carefully pass them.

This road hogging goes both ways and for every bicyclist who is targetted by some non-sterotypical male in a pickup, there is a contientious driver who is nearly made into a motor vehicle homocide perpetrator through the careless and thoughtless actions of some non-sterotypical bicyclist just following his own rules of the road.

I live in a suburb that must be published in some biking magazine as a great cycling route, because I pass literally 100's of bikers per week. Unfortunately, the polite bikers are the minority. Many times I drive up to packs of bikers who look and act like they are on the Tour de France. They ride all over the road and make very little or belated attempts to move over. They really seem to expect me to cross over the yellow line on a curvy narrow street to pass them. I'd rather not do that ! So yes, I do feel like bikers in general are rude. It's too bad because I believe in saving energy and enjoying the outdoors. I think it must be the very competitive bikers out there who are giving the recreational bikers a bad name.

I agree with this article 100%. I commute on my bike to work -- a round trip of about 25 miles -- and am endangered by an automobile _every_ time I do it. I've been hit deliberately, had people honk horns and shout at me, even had someone intentionally spray me with window washing fluid. The fact of the matter is this: Cars and trucks greatly outnumber bikes on the road and have nearly all of the physical advantages -- size, speed, acceleration. In a contest between a car or truck and a bike, the bike will always fare poorly. For these reasons I have little sympathy for complaints like Minisoup's and think it's absolutely incumbent on motorists to defer to bikes and treat them with an abundance of caution. Unfortunately, in my experience, only about 10% of motorists actually do that.

bike riders are a hazzard on the road much like dogs and squirrels. The roads should not allow any pedestrian whether on bike or walking TRUCKS RULE!!!!

I have no objection to biking as long as the bikers obey the rules. And, most of you don't. Examples:
1. You don't stop at red lights or stop signs, you yell obscene words at people who try to avoid hitting you when you do run a light or a stop sign
2. You ride on memorial drive, when there is a perfectly good bike path; paid for by our tax dollars. Please note that mem drive is barely wide enough for the cars travelling this way.
3. You have absolutely no regard for pedestrians, i have been hit by two cyclists, both got up and got back on their bikes leaving me on the ground with out even an apology.
4. No hand signals are used for the majority of the cyclists I encounter everyday.
5. Cyclists want the rights of car without the responsibility.

I agree with Minisoup, you need to be licensed, ticketed when not obeying the rules just like cars. That day can't happen fast enough.

I'm going to have to agree with Minisoup's post. I fully respect individuals rights to ride their bikes and for the most part I they don't bother me on the road.

However, I have yet to see a cyclist follow any rules of the road ever. Red lights are generally considered "optional" by cyclists. Many times I've had to slam on my breaks for a cyclist making a left turn across 4 lanes of traffic who thinks just because he stuck his arm out he can go. When I turn on my blinker I still have to wait until the lane next to me is clear before I cross it - same rule applies for bikers.

Also, if you're on a higher speed road I don't think it's unreasonable to expect a bike going less than 10 mph to pull over to let a car who wants to go the 40 mph speed limit pass. Slow cars do the same and it works fine for everyone.

Also

Hello-

I think riding a bike to work is a great idea. With that said, only about half of the people I see riding on bikes through Brookline and Longwood Medical during rush hour are actually following proper bike etiquette. I am so careful with my car as not to hit them. Each day I have people jut out in front of me, cross over a lane when cars are moving, etc. A week ago, I was turning right at a green light onto my street. A cyclist was about twenty yards behind me. I got yelled at by the cyclist for not yielding to him! But wait- wasn't he supposed to yield to the car in front of him making a right turn? A cyclist was killed outside my office about a year ago in an accident. It was reported that the cyclist was at fault for the accident. I have to say that my opinion is that many cyclists feel that they have the right of way, regardless of the situation on the road. It's arrogant and dangerous. Of course, this is not to say all cyclists are flippant and uncareful. We have narrow roads in New England, that has to add fuel to the fire as well.

I agree with minisoup. I live in an area packed with cyclists (Dover, Sherborn, South Natick) and consistently have to deal with packs riding up to 3 across. A cyclist almost hit me as he came barreling down a turn on the YELLOW LINE. I am not exaggerating and do not think the author here should either. By no means are all serious cyclists so cautious and law abiding and by no means are all those frustrated with this ever growing problem driving trucks or SUVs. There should be punishments handed out for reckless cycling and am glad an example was posted above. Being considerate goes both ways, and just because its exercise and your leisure does not mean anyone should assume it takes precedence over commuters and other automobile drivers.

I, too, find many of the things written in the article laughable. Just yesterday afternoon while driving home from work I stopped at a red light on Mass Ave in Cambridge. Three bicyclists came up on my right side, approached the light, and then sailed right through. Not a single one stopped, which is the norm in my neighborhood. What I found best was the hypocrisy - at the next light, one of them had the nerve to yell at the car in front of me when the car allegedly was taking up too much of the bike lane. The angry bicyclist actually hit the car with his fist! Imagine what would have happened if the car driver had used the same tone, gestures and physical intimidation. I'm sure there would be an article written about that, but no one ever mentions the myriad (who, I believe, constitute the vast majority of bike riders in the area) who think they own the rode and do not have to abide by the rules car drivers must follow every day.

Who is this "we" you are referring to in relation to those who obey the rules of the road? A great number of those on bikes (especially in the city) pay no attention to the rules of the road. They don't stop at stop signs, cut off cars that clearly have turn signals, blow through intersections against lights, go up one way streets, weave in and out of traffic, and hardly ever give any kind of hand signal when they make a turn. I also see an increasing number of riders with headphones and even cell phones who aren't paying much attention to their surroundings at all. Lastly, I am a runner and encounter many rude and non moving bike riders on my route. Why do riders feel like they have the divine right of kings on pedestrian paths but whine and complain when they are treated that way by cars on the road?

Are you kidding me? I live in a bucolic Metrowest suburb and have to drive white knuckled on the weekends in the nice weather because the cyclists TAKE OVER the road. Ever heard of riding single file people? This is not the Tour de France for goodness sake. For the record, I am neither angry or stupid, I would just like to get from point a to point b in my car without being crowded off the road by a bunch of Lance Armstrong wannabes.

I don't drive, but as a pedestrian, I hate cyclists. In my experience, they never stop at crosswalks (I've had to jump out of the way of bikes way more than I have with cars) and they never obey stop lights. Last I knew red meant stop, not sneak out into the road and then weave your way through oncoming traffic to get through an intersection.

I'm confused by your construction story. If bikes are considered vehicles, and the road was closed to traffic, what right did the rider have to go through that construction zone? He should have followed the detour, or gotten of his bike and walked it on the sidewalk. I have nothing against cyclists, but there are just as many ignorant riders as there are drivers.

Don't get me wrong, I love riding my bike around town, but I can't stand bikers swerving in and out of traffic, breaking every driving rule in the book. Bikers here are constantly running over pedestrians and cutting off cars all the while complaining about everyone else. Give me a break.

There is a cyclist vs. car situation in Boston. This is the most dangerous thing. Instead of fighting and arguing that one or the other is completely correct we need to accept that we are both in the wrong.

To the driver: The main thing that drivers need to remember is that cars kill cyclist but cyclist don't kill cars. As a driver and a cyclist I know it is difficult to always pay attention to everything and it is difficult to look out for cyclist. I understand that mistakes are made. What we ask is that you communicate with us and other drivers. Use your blinker when you turn. If you are making a right hand turn edge over just a little to inform people you are turning.

To the cyclist: Understand that drivers make mistakes. If you yell at them each time they make a mistake they will only get pissed. I know that your life is on the line but think how you would react if someone called you an a****** each time you make a mistake? Being nice about it is the most effective way to make a positive impact. If you do something illegal when the car did not, you are in the wrong. Do not yell at drivers when they are in the right. Do not run a red light unless you are willing to get hit. I see cyclist all the time run red lights and cut off drivers. Of course drivers are going to hate cyclist if we keep up this attitude.

I enjoyed this post but I have to disagree with your praise of Menino. He has been mayor for over a decade and has done little for bicyclists. How many miles of bike lanes has he created in 10 years? How many bike racks has he added compared to parking spaces added? When Boston was named worst bike city years ago, he appointed a bike advisor and then fired him and didnt replace him for years, until just recently. Biking from JP, I often have to swerve off the southwest bike path because employees at police headquarters park in the park on the bike trail to avoid paying for parking or, taking the T. Menino needs to start showing real leadership instead of lip service and get the long delayed South Bay Harbor Trail done, add bike lanes on Mass Ave and stop trying to make Boston more car centric.

I too believe in "sharing the road," but am constantly confronted by bicyclists who arrogantly use discourtious (if not illegal) riding techniques. In Newton recently I was in the right turn only lane when a pack of bicyclists rode through the lines of cars and gathered across the road directly in front of my car. Not only could I not take a right turn on red, but had to wait until they finished yacking to turn, nearly missing the green light as well.

And those of us in cars can be stereotypical too... How come every time there's a bicyclist riding in the middle of a lane of traffic causing a line of traffic behind him at 25 miles an hour in a 45 mile an hour zone he's alway riding some skinny little 10 speed and covered from head to toe with multicolored spandex?

I agree with Bella that autos need to be safer and more aware of bikes and pedestrians. However, she fails to mention that a plethora of cyclists do not follow the rules of the road making it dangerous for everyone. I've seen a lot of bikers (especially in bigger cities like nyc) swerve all over the road with no regard for their safety or for others safety. I think both parties are guility of not "sharing the road," bikes and automobiles alike.

A co-worker of mine was recently hit by a car while riding his bicycle in Newton as part of his training for the Pan Mass Challenge. He was listed in critical condition with major trauma and soft tissue damage to his right arm and left shoulder. His left leg was also broken in several areas and he had emergency surgery to insert titanium rods into the leg.

When will drivers in Boston start treating bicyclists with basic respect and courtesy? I know from my own experience as a biker that Boston deserves its reputation as the most biker-unfriendly city in the country.

Minisoup, I am shocked! On occasion you've seen cyclists who have not fully obeyed the traffic laws!? I've never seen a motorist run a stop sign, or a red light, or disobey the speed limit, or swerve all over the road while talking on the phone, or otherwise pilot a few tons of metal as though it were a deadly weapon. Clearly we should all obey the traffic laws, but the fact that a few cyclists may not always do so does not excuse dangerous or aggressive driving toward any cyclist. As a cyclist who regularly commutes 25 miles each direction to work in Boston, I can tell you that I've personally not seen a cyclist put a car at risk of harm, but during the course of almost every single ride I see at least one motorist driving aggressively around a cyclist, turning immediately in front of a cyclist who is traveling straight in a lane, pulling immediately in front of a cyclist and stopping quickly, opening a car door right in a cyclist's path, or simply honking, yelling and gesturing like an ignorant yahoo to the effect that cyclists should not be on the road. And in the busier areas near and in Boston, double-parking in any bike lane that may exist seems to be a favorite motorist pastime. A time-honored saying of experienced road cyclists is that you should ride like you are invisible. That is certainly how Boston-area motorists will treat you when they aren't honking or swearing at you.

I'm very happy I live, commute, and bike in Cambridge. 90% of drivers are very nice and generally accommodating. I've had the occasional idiot, but for the most part both police and drivers seem to know the rules of the road.

And Minisoup, I ALWAYS stop at signs/lights, stay on the right (with door zone clearance) unless I think doing so is dangerous, use hand signals, and generally do my best to follow the law. There's bad drivers as well as bad cyclists, that doesn't mean there aren't good drivers as well as good cyclists.

How many bicycles are there compared to cars and trucks? What is the effective mass of a car vs. a bicycle? How much more damage can happen when a car runs a stop sign or a red light vs. when a bicycle does it? Which does it more often?

I don't get to ride my bike much these days, but I walk much more. As a pedestrian, I have similar problems. Too many motorists do not respect the safety of pedestrians either.

Good article, Bella, even if some people don't read half of it.

Minisoup - The article actually adresses your concerns, and it points out that many cyclists fail to obey the law. As do many motorists. In cases of bicycle v. automobile we all know who wins regardless of who is "right" and who is "wrong". I think we can agree there, no?

So, what I'd like to know is what is really wrong with the above article? What's wrong with advocating a little restraint and acceptance of each other? What's wrong with asking people in vehicles to not malicously attack cyclists? Seems fairly reasonable, as does asking cyclists to obey the law.

I'd also like to know what (aside from the obvious revenue and increased enforcement workload for law enforcement) licensing cyclists would accomplish. We require motor vehicle operators to be licensed currently, yet many drivers operate their vehicles in a piss poor manner in general, never mind around cyclists and pedestrians (or any other perceived affront to their forward momentum). So if licensing drivers has such obvious flaws (way less than a 100% success rate) why, and who, would licensing cyclists help?

I read this article in Sunday's paper and had the same reaction as many of you -- why did the biker think they could ride in the lane that was closed to vehicles due to construction? And while Ms. English may be following the rules, she is making great leaps of faith that so many of her bicycling brethren are doing the same.
I agree with M.A. Murphy's points -- the majority of bicyclists I encounter in the southern suburbs are not cognizant of the needs of drivers and pedestrians with whom they are supposed to share the road.
Many cyclists seem oblivious to the fact that cars and bikes travel at different speeds, and so riding two-abreast on narrow streets and refusing to move to the side when cars approach is arrogant. And when cars do pass even the single-file riders, many are rude and shout at drivers as if they are doing something wrong. These same riders then ignore stop signs and other rules of the road that they are supposed to follow.
What do we need? Better education of drivers is one thing; more "bike friendly" paths and roads are another. But bicyclists need to change their behavior as well -- from acting more civilly on the road to choosing to stay away from streets that are dangerous because they are so narrow, winding, or otherwise not conducive to both cars and bikes.

I totally agree with Minisoup. I have lived in Boston for a decade now and drive my car very rarely - I use it mostly to run errands. It seems like there are more and more cyclists on the road now, most of whom either don't know the first thing about road rules or choose to ignore them. They constantly weave in and out of traffic, zig-zag on the road, speed through red lights, take left and right turns whenever they please - thinking they should be exempt from the rules because they are "doing their part" to save the world. I find myself getting very nervous in my car as I cannot predict what the cyclist is going to do next and have slowed down to a fault at times. The worst situation is when there are multiple cyslists - sets of two or three - who are so focused on following each other that they forget they are on a road with cars.

People - it is dangerous, dangerous, dangerous.

I agree it would be great to have the option of riding your bike whenever and wherever you please, but our road infrastructure is not there yet. So, please stay on bike paths to ride your bikes, and if there are none, do us all a favor and keep your bike at home.

Here is when drivers get mad. When a person on a bike takes up an entire lane of of the road, and slows down traffic. In case some of you don't know the obvious, cars move faster than bikes, so I need to slow down, go half the speed limit? No, get out of the way. The city needs to commit more to bike paths, but people on bikes need to respect that the entire moving car world is not going to slow down for them.

Drivers are ridiculous. When trying to pass a cyclist on a narrow road you're inconvenienced, what 15, maybe 30 SECONDS? What's the hurry? Trying to get to a gas station before it closes?

When a cyclist moves over closer to the middle of the lane, it's temporary so that drivers can SEE a cyclist ESPECIALLY if its coming around a narrow bend in the road. If we moved over as far to the right as we possibly could, it signals to the driver that they can TAKE that space. In that case, a biker would be inadvertently creating an unsafe situation. A responsible biker (and yes, that's most of us) will let you pass during the next available opportunity.

Another point, often times the sound of the wind rushing past our ears makes cars difficult to hear.

Lance Armstrong wannabes, please... There are FAR more Dale Earnhardt types. Guess who poses the greater danger?

I think this post brings up some good points and agree with the poster that said that we are both in the wrong. I am a cyclist and a motorist and agree that many riders do not follow the rules of the road and this causes a general dislike from the driving public of all bikers. I would also ask that drivers respect those bikers that are following the rules of the road and recognize that we all have the right to be on the road.

The one thing that annoyed me the most over the past weekend was as I was riding as far to the right that I possible could without being off the road the number of drivers that told me to get on the sidewalk. In most cases I am not suppose to ride on the sidewalks. Sidewalks are for pedestrians.

In general I would like to see the state/cities and towns be more proactive in making roads more bike friendly. Adding bike shoulders where approp. when roads are redone.

Lots of anger out there. The Bottom Line is Cyclists do have the same rights as Cars. Most of you writing appear to be kin of the guy who attacked the New York resident for being a "Yankee fan"!

If the roads were a bit wider and drivers weren't so aggressive in Massachusetts, I'd bike to work. It just isn't safe though. Also, most bikers don't follow the rules of the road, even though they're supposed to by law.

I once hit a girl on a bike with my car because she was going the wrong way down a one way street. When I went to turn right onto the street, I looked left for traffic, but she was coming from the right and didn't bother to stop even though she wasn't sure if I had seen her. Luckily I only grazed her back tire and she was fine. I was terrified for a while thinking that something bad would happen to me, but then learned that she was at fault and should have never been riding in the wrong direction.

Get off the road! Bikers do NOT follow the rules of the road.

someone posted a comment complaining that cyclists don't bike the speed limit. i find it hard to believe that's a law anywhere. i am a biker- do you have any idea how hard it is to go 35mph, and i'm not even talking uphill!!

I live on Route 225 - biker heaven. There are frequent packs of bikers going by 2 - 3 abreast, seldom single file. They even had a road race one Saturday morning which went by my house - I had no idea that the event was to be held and hundreds of bikers were involved. It might be nice if some warning was given that the event was to be held. Rte 225 is a narrow, heavily travelled country road - it was not meant to field a bikers' road race and can barely manage normal traffic flow.

Sorry to say but I can't stand bikers or their peculiar outfits.

i feel bad for the law-abiding bicyclists. but in boston, brookline i have seen few like that. talka bout angry, they always seem to be looking for a fight. and i was once surrounded by 4 bikers as described in teh article. i see very few abiding by the traffic rules, lights, pedestrian crosswalks, etc. the best i see are in cambridge where they have a lot of decent bike lanes, and at least some of the bicyclists, do abide, but definitely not all, not even close to all.
joe

My only complaint of bicyclists is the tendency for some to ride other than single file. The deviation from single file is the single most dangerous thing bicyclists due in traffic areas.

I have been biking for nearly 50 years. Yes, I am a 54 year old woman who has been involved in two serious bike accidents. The first accident was a long time ago and the driver was drunk and drove right into me, head first. The second accident happened 10 years ago, when a driver simply drove through a stop sign and kept going after I flipped to avoid being hit. She did not come back until a crowd gathered and shamed her into it. She never even saw me!

I love biking, but it has become a battle of the car vs bike. I have been screamed at, driven off the road, had things thrown at me and had cars so close to my outer leg, I was sure I would get hit again. I follow all the rules of the road, but drivers have become so rude and difficult. Too many drivers are so preoccupied that they run stop signs, traffic lights and do not look at the objects around them.

We do not belong on the sidewalk when we are pusing our bikes to 15 mph or more. Now, I only bike during times with minimal traffic. It is sad that there are so many ignorant, selfish people in this world. They are the ones that should be out getting the exercise, instead of demeaning those of us who ride and love it. I hope to keep riding until I am in my 70s!

The overwhelming gripe from motorists here seems to be routed in a perception that roads are for cars and bicycles are only there on a pass. Sorry, that's not the law.

This is the only region I know where it is a point of pride to be rude. When that rudeness is employed in driving it becomes dangerous, and often, frankly, criminal. You don't have to be a cyclist to see how badly folks drive around here. (Is the concept of "merge" not on the MA driver's test?)

I drive, I ride and I walk. I walk more than either of the first two and have often been nearly hit by a car on foot, not so bikes. I've been doored while on my bike. I have had pedestrian's behave incredibly stupidly on the street in front of me, and still managed not to hit them.

But then, I am looking for cars and pedestrians while biking. I am looking cars and bikes and skaters and what have you while walking and I watch for cyclists, pedestrians, wayward pets and frisbees while driving. And if I have to brake or slow down to let someone in or pass safely or make a turn, so be it.

Maybe if Bostonians, and more so, the suburbanites around them were a tad less narcissistic on the road we could be all be safer and happier. Ok now, folks, group hug.

First, to clear up a few misconceptions:
Bicyclists are considered vehicles under the law. They can therefore ride on any road that is not limited access, where "no bicycles" signs are posted. Bicyclists have all the same rights and responsibilities as motorists.

Bicyclists can ride on Memorial Drive if they want to. (I will note that the path there is narrow, in poor condition, and filled with walkers and runners. Bicycling is not so pleasant much of the time there.)

Bicyclists should ride to the right but are not obligated to if there are hazards such as road debris or parked cars. Also, if a bicyclist is concerned about being seen by motorists or passed too closely, he or she may ride out further in the lane for his or her own safety.

In response to the other comments, just about every type of road user flaunts the rules of the road to some extent. Some pedestrians cross without looking or when it says "don't walk". Some cyclists run red lights or don't stop at stop signs. Motorists speed, drive aggressively or don't signal their turns. That doesn't give anyone right to harass someone else.

Everyone needs to just relax, be safe, and be respectful of each other. We're all just trying to get where we're going.

I have a suggestion for all the drivers on this board are so supremely confident in the "arrogance" and "exaggerated" tales of bikers:

Go for a ride around a Boston suburb (try a 20 mile loop for starters) in as safe a manner as you THINK you can. Do it regularly (at least twice a week) and see if you don't change your tune after a month.

It's clear that drivers can't win in a debate over bike safety issues. Virtually all bikers are drivers as well so we have the benefit of seeing BOTH sides of the coin.

I tell you what, I like to ride my bike, a Trek 7700. I wear a helmet and don't think I do stupid stuff, like the idiot I saw recently who was riding a bike on the center line of a busy four-lane road, in heavy rush-hour traffic. When it's possible, I stick to bike paths.
I wish there were an extensive network of bike paths, as there should be, but until there is - if ever - I'm going to continue to be wary and careful. That seems to mean less riding. Wish it were otherwise, but it's dangerous enough driving around in a car in these parts!

There are two different realities here. I live in the western burbs. My reality is dealing with guerrilla bicylists who are on an agenda. Yes, bikes have a right to ride on the road. SINGLE FILE IS THE LAW! They also have to stop at stop signs and red lights, not go down one way streets the wrong way, use the bike lane where provided and yield to pedestrians.Yesterday I stopped my car for an elderly lady in crosswalk only to have a bike pass me and narrowly miss the woman. In my area (Needham,Dover) we have to deal with packs of riders who ride 4-5 across during morning and afternoon rush hours. I can match your "driver caused" incidents with plenty of bike rider's in the wrong AND being confrontational about it.
Make adult bike riders pay excise taxes too.

So it seems, based on the comments here, that drivers resent cyclists for not always obeying traffic laws (just like drivers who change lanes without using a signal, make illegal u-turns, speed, double park, etc., etc., etc.); and that cyclists are hostile to drivers because cyclists would prefer not to be killed or maimed by a car. Those cyclists are so gosh-darn unreasonable!

Agree with # 2.
Just try to walk across the street at a crosswalk around Cambridge and you will inevitably have to dodge a bicyclist illegally blowing through a red light or stop sign. There's a bike lane on Broadway in Kendall Sq., yet I routinely see a number of riders on the sidewalks weaving in and around pedestrians.

You are right Bella, bicycles are considered vehicles. Maybe you should remember that when you or one of your compatriots almost run over a pedestrian after violating the laws you assure us that every cyclist follows.

What is far more stupid than riders going without a helmet is riders wearing earphones. There has been a huge influx of riders listening to music in the last year and it is only a matter of time til one of them is hit and killed. We need all our senses available to stay safe on the road.

For amusement and edification, try what I've done a few times. Pick a relatively busy intersection, one with a bench or wall for sitting. Do it on a nice day when you'll see both drivers and cyclists. Start recording traffic violations.

The most common is one to six drivers passing a red light, usually turning. They are guilty of the light violation and often of reckless driving, turning without a signal and sometimes failing to yield to pedestrians in a crosswalk with the light. In theory each driver should get a suspended license, points, fines and jacked up insurance. When I've done this, I found a much smaller percentage of cyclists violating the laws. Are drivers willing to take their punishment?

I bike, I take the bus, and I sometimes even drive. I agree that bikers need to follow the rules of the road. I also agree that drivers should be careful. Putting bikes and cars on the same path can lead lead to terrifying brushes with death, or actually dying-- we obviously haven't found a way to share the roads effectively. But our roads are narrow, in poor repair, and make commuting hell for cars and bikes alike. Why should we expect buses, trucks, cabs, hurried commuters, and bikers to "get along" on roads that were once cow paths and are now riddled with pot holes? This is a larger issue than just one of politeness. We need real bike paths and wide bike lanes if we're going to make Boston a bike-friendly city. There is an urgent need to develop the kind of infrastructure that will support alternate modes of transportation in Boston.

"We stay on the far right side of the lane. We never blow through traffic lights or stop signs. "

Really?

I understand the way you think, because as a scooterist who rides in the city, I have a permit, follow the rules, wear proper safety gear, and stop at all lights and signs. Because I always assume everyone else is trying to kill me (whether car, truck, bike, or pedestrian), I keep my eyes open for potential danger at every turn. I think, "I am following the rules, why can't everyone else?"

But from years of driving, walking, biking, and now scooting (an M class vehicle), I can say that everyone, whether car, bike, human or motorcycle, is potentially angry or stupid or both. My commute takes me daily through Harvard Sq., Allston, & Newton, and I've come to one conclusion: The SUV driver on the cell phone, the cyclist who rides the wrong way on a one-way street and blows red lights, the pedestrian with headphones who jaywalks during rush hour, and the scooterist wearing flipflops -- ALL can be arrogant and dangerous, posing a hazard to themselves and everyone around them. They all have the same ability to harm or upset others regardless of mode of transportation.

Last week, I rode near many cars and two cyclists who followed the rules, as the light turned green. As we came past the intersection, another bike came out of nowhere, crossed the brick divide and rode perpendicular to traffic over a bridge. I beeped at him and he swore at me in response. If anything, I did him a favor, since I could see him coming and the cars behind me might not have.

This area is dangerous for all people, regardless of vehicles. Until we all learn to share the road and leave the rage behind (which is hard when someone is trying to kill you), its going to continue. I would not be opposed to local enforcement keeping a closer eye on everyone and citing the angry and the stupid for their behavior more often, if it would help save lives.

There's obviously a lot of anger on all sides -- something about our transportation infrastructure makes us ALL angry (perhaps something to think about!).

I imagine that most of us, if we are honest with ourselves, can recall seeing car and truck drivers turn without signaling, coast through stop signs, fail to yield to cyclists, pass on the right, obstruct the bicycle lane, and carelessly open a car door into an active bike lane.

Likewise, if we are honest, we can also recall seeing cyclists weave through traffic stopped at an intersection, sail through red lights, shout curses at drivers, cut off cars, and block the travel lane.

If we are really honest, we might even admit to having done some of these things ourselves! Imagine that!

The key point, though, is that automobile drivers are in command of thousands of pounds of metal capable of pulverizing the strongest bones, while cyclists have essentially their own body weight protected by some styrofoam on their heads if they're smart. There's just no contest.

The next time you -- as a cyclist, a driver, or a pedestrian -- find yourself enraged by a driver, a pedestrian, or a cyclist, try to remember that it's OKAY if your trip is delayed by another 30 seconds!

A very wise man advised us to see the bright red brake lights as a signal that reminds us to breathe deeply, in and out, to smile and to see the world with grace.

Know what - I played sports and execrcised my whole life and you know what? I've never seen as large a percentage of people participating in a sport contort the ruIes to work for them. I have lived and worked in Boston and the suburbs for over 15 years, since graduating school -- in that time I'd say 1 in 10 bike riders obey the rules of the road. Bikers - you have the same rules as a car and a motorcycle. That goes for failing to stop at stop signs, traffic lights, to ride their bikes in a line as opposed to side by side when traffic goes by them.... you name it. If I'm in a car that is going slower than traffic, I have to pull as far to the right as is possible. 90% of any biker that says they do that is kidding themselves. Including Mr. Beard I have no doubt -- I love how you still save room to spew backhanded vitriol at someone that apologizes to you. Err on the side of caution and realize that is what you have to do when trained eyes are normally looking for other cars.

That does NOT make it okay to DO anything to them, but I will tell you something -- if bikers were policed - as they should be and are not - to follow the rules of the road, there would be far fewer bikers.

Motorists, PLEASE GO WITH THE FLOW OF TRAFFIC and do not do anything special for a cyclist. As a cyclist and regular bike commuter, it is frustrating and dangerous when a car yields, stops or otherwise goes against the flow of traffic for me. I am making my quick-second judgment calls based on everyone following the rules of the road. So when a motorist gets skiddish and acts differently because I am next to him on the right or balancing on my pedals at a light, this is likely to disrupt the flow of motor traffic around the scene and cause an accident. Cyclists like others on the road are capable of waiting our turn. Such so-called curtesies are uncalled for and potentially dangerous.

As a cyclist I have to disagree with Minisoup. The double standard goes both ways. The cyclists are expected to follow all of the rules of the road while absorbing none of the benefits of it. The practicality of the matter is that we compromise on both. Yes, we go through red lights when nobody is at the intersection, but yes, we also get run off the road on occasion by a reckless driver. The fault lies on everybody.

As for the pedestrians, I have seen three accidents involving bikes and pedestrians. All were the fault of the pedestrian, who blindly walked into traffic expecting everybody to get out of the way for them.

Cyclists should find roads and routes that provide a comfortable margin for safe cycling. The unfortunate outcome of a collision between an automobile and a cycle is that the automobile will always win. Having the ability to say you were in the right from a wheelchair does not seem like a reasonable trade-off to me.

I also wonder what is wrong with drivers of all vehicles these days. Everyone is upset if anything gets in THEIR way. I ride bikes on the road and follow the rules. I also ride horses and to ride down the street now is very dangerous. If bikers do not let a horse rider know they are coming up behind them a couple of lenths away, they can and many times do scare a horse. It has severe consequences for everyone. Horses are very unpredictable and could leap out in front of the biker or a car. Please people, give bikes and horses a wide berth. It will only take a second of extra time in your day and could save your life or someone else's. FYI Horse by law have the right of way. Please pass wide and slower for everyone's safety.

To all the Boston drivers who are complaining about bikers, let me ask you this: when was the last time you signaled to make a turn? I can't count how many times I've been in the bike lane to the side of the road and been side-swiped by some idiot making a right turn without looking or signaling.

As one who both bikes and drives through Boston and Cambridge regularly, I appreciate and share people's frustrations with cyclists who flout traffic rules. It is true that many cyclists are not anything like what is described in the article. But the frustration of cyclists is not with those who justifiably resent such reckless riding. Rather, the problem is that some drivers think it is appropriate to express that dislike of cyclists by using their multi-ton vehicles (or other objects) as weapons. No amount of red-light running can justify throwing a bottle at a cyclist (or a pedestrian, or another driver), and certainly it does not justify intentionally swerving toward a cyclist. Boston has a bad reputation because too many drivers feel it is okay to enforce their opinion with the bumper of their car.

It seems to me that the only consensus of those with comments is that too many people on the road either in cars or on bikes are at best inconsiderate and at worst dangerously hostile, with a whole range of careless, law-breaking, and vindictive behaviors in between.

There is no doubt that some cyclists break the rules of the road and engage in other bad behavior, but drivers of cars, trucks, and SUVs, who are in a clear position of dominance, have a greater responsibility not to retaliate with their vehicles. Drivers must be more careful because the consequences of their mistakes or angry reactions can be so high. Surely, despite the animosity you feel toward those whose biking fashion is not to your liking, you don't want them to pay with their lives and limbs for their yellow shirts and tight shorts? I am a driver of a car, but reading all these comments makes it hard not to side with the little guys without the ton of steel wrapped around them.

To Matt who moved here from Boise....if want to see real commitment to bicycles you need to go to Europe: check out Amsterdam, Munich, The Hague...often there are separate Rights of way for bikes right through the downtown areas using parks and canals edges...they even have separate sets of traffic signals for the bikes..lots of riders...one of my friends in Munich owns 5 bicycles...he can go right from the center all the way to the Bavarian Alps on a series of grade separated paths.....I live in California, which is much better than Boston for bikes ,but not as good as Europe..all the buses in Orange County for example have front loading bike racks so you can do long distance trips or ones with tough grades by taking the bus at least one way...also most of the main streets have striped bike lanes but there are few grade separated bike lanes, except along the beaches and along some of the river edges...

I agree that cyclists and motorists should share the road in peace. However, I understand the "rules of the road" as a cyclist, and I have seen way too many people on bicycles running stop signs and red lights. It's infuriating. I was literally almost run down by a cyclist in a crosswalk in Newburyport a couple of weeks ago. The traffic had the red light and I had the "Walk" sign. But, the cyclist decided that the red light did not pertain to them. I just let out a loud "SIGH" as they passed around me. Someone yelled, "Bikes have to stop for the red light, too!" A week before that I was in NH and saw a man riding with two boys through a busy intersection. They did not stop for the red light - they didn't even slow down or look. Nice that parents are teaching their kids how to ride in safe and legal fashion. Just as motorists need to make room for bikes on the road, and be nice about it, cyclists needs to pay attention and realize that the rules which pertain to a car also pertain to a bicycle.

First, I'll concur in the observation that far too many people riding bicycles seem to think they're entitled to ignore red lights.

Second, I'll mention a problem that hasn't yet been made part of the discussion. Too many people on bikes pass buses stopped at bus stops at high speed on the right, endangering bus riders trying to get off. Alert bus drivers watch for this.

Yes, some bicyclists break the rules of the road.
How is that an excuse to physically assault random cycleists while riding?
Sorry, I don't buy the 'blame the victim' train of illogic

Cyclists make car drivers nervous because they are erratic and in all too many situations, fail to signal. Just yesterday a guy on his bike was riding down the middle of the road, slowed down, and came to a stop in front of a 4-way intersection (no stop sign for our direction). I had a hunch he was going to take a left, but thinking he may just be taking a wide right turn, I had to stop and wait. Turns out he was going left. A simple hand signal would have made that very clear.

People with cars don't want to be around bikes because we are afraid of something going wrong, you getting hurt, and us getting sued.

Its pretty simple. Build bike lanes.

We use too much gas, have too much traffic and people are out of shape. Bikes make sense for a lot of people. With bike lanes, there would be reason to ticket bikers who disobey and for drivers who infringe on a biker's space.

Pedestrians on sidewalks. Cars in car lanes. Bikes in bike lanes.

Let's build the bike lanes and not just token ones for 15 feet. In my opinion, as an avid city cyclist, these do more harm than good.

The reason why drivers are so angry is because of the way bikers ride down the middle of the lane and almost out to the center of the road. If the speed limit is 45-50 then the bikers SHOULD NOT be in the middle of the road. Bikes WERE NOT made for the center of the road... CARS ARE MADE FOR THE CENTER OF THE ROAD. If you stay to the right then there will be no problems.... if you ride in the middle of the road and expect me in my car to go to the OTHER SIDE OF THE ROAD to pass you, then you will definitely have problems.

To the gentlemen that said he gave the driver of a Jeep a beating, I will tell you that I know you think you are big and bad but be careful of the person that pulls out a gun and permanently sends you away..... tough guy..... I'm sure you were doing something STUPID to provoke the situation.....

Free speech in America, just watch what you say!

If cyclists want proper respect within the roadways, they need to follow all the rules motorists follow. We have all seen cyclists run red lights, ride through crosswalks instead and ride against the grain of traffic.

As for the person complaining about the police officer, he was absolutely correct to not allow the cyclist to ride through the construction site. No cars also means no bikes. As for the sidewalk instructions, he was off base there.

I also think some of the unruly bicyclist examples in this thread are actually describing bike messengers. It seems those guys are much more inclined to break the rules when compared to the average bicycle commuter.

Point is, everyone should share the road but cyclists like to live and bike under a double standard yet complain when things do go THEIR way.

Funny how everyone wants to blame soneone else. It is not "their fault" , "Everone does it" "Why should I stop if everyone else does it"

As a pedestrian I have seen cars not use turn signals. They get mad I am in a cross walk. Most have used signals.

I have seen more bikers not use signals for a turn, Not stop at red lights, go through an intersection when there is traffic there.

I have even seen bikes go past a crossing guard in a school zone and cut off children.

I've bee yelled at, spit at, and various other things by bikers. So let's not try and paint them as the put upon group here.

Everyone has to watch out for everyone else.

I commute by bike every day to work (11 miles roundtrip). Obeying stop signs and traffic lights is my way of signaling to car drivers that I'm following the laws of the road just as they should. Taking out, on a law abiding cyclist, frustrations over a wreckless cyclist is inexcusable. In my experience Brookline has the meanest residents of all in Massachusetts. In one week I've been assaulted by a car driver (while sitting on my stopped bike in a BIKE ONLY LANE) and also hit by a car while riding in a dedicated bike lane. Police were called both times. Most everywhere else I have no problems. Brookline has done a great job of creating bike lanes, but bikelanes without educating the public on proper driving/cycling seems almost more dangerous than not having bike lanes at all.

I drive is terror of hitting a biker, and walk in terror of being run down by them.
All too often I find bikers running red lights, shooting up one ways, going down the wrong side of the street, using crosswalks, riding two or more wide and then firing down sidewalks and ringing bells at me if I am walking down the street.

My favorite was while walking down the trail to the canoes beside the charles river this past Sunday a biker, who was riding three wide down the trail yelled "BIKE ROUTE" at me as she drove my gf and I off the paved section.

Generalizing bikers as safe and law abiding is naive.

Bikers and drivers are annoying alike... both need to stop being so aggressive and self-centered. It's not hard to be a good driver or biker, but it does mean being considerate of others, which people don't like to do for some reason.

This piece is complete self righteous dog crap. 90% of bikers ride more agressively than people drive.

It seems like so much of the frustration here is because no-one really knows all the rules - driving, cycling, walking. When I got my driver's licence, I don't remember having to learn any "Rules of Cycling". Bicyclists aren't required to get licences, so the rules are unclear to even them.
Possible solutions:
1. Create dedicated bike lanes throughout the major cities in the state so everyone is happy and in their own place. Drivers on roads, bikers on lanes, pedestrians on sidewalks.
2. Get everyone who is on the road back in to learn the rules of being on the road - drivers, cyclists, pedestrians.
3. Bikers stay off the major roads duyring heavy traffic to keep things sane for everyone. Whether you like it or now, bikers are in the "orphan" category for now as there are very few options for them on the roads.

Option 1 is clearly the best one, good luck implementing Option 2. Unfortunately, once again, we are left with Option 3.

I'm an avid cyclist but this self-rightious and sanctimonious article makes me want to jump in my car and cut off the next biker I see. Yeah I ride the PMC too but that doesn't qualify me and all bikers for sainthood! Unfortunately WAY too many bikers today don't have a clue about the rules of the road and give us all the bad reputation that many drivers react to.

I grew up in England where the local police administered a bike proficiency test. I was shocked in this country to see kids (mostly without helmets) riding all over the road without regard for (or clearly knowledge of) highway rules.

I've been spat on, sworn at, honked at and driven off the road. Drivers can do better. But the vast majority of the time, when I'm riding single file, drivers give me a comfortable wide berth and a polite toot on their horn.

Bella's group of riders must be a serious exception to the majority of bicyclists out there. As most of these posts attest, the bicyclists put themselves in danger more often than not. There are always teens in cars who btw are threatening to drivers as well (hey mr. devlin did you know that assault and battery is a crime?). I agree with the post which calls for bicycles to be licensed, and I'd like to point out to Mayor Menino that if he wants more bikes on the road he has to require his police to enforce the laws regarding bicycles, like that's ever going to happen. Bicyclists on the phone, wearing ipods, pulling children behind them... they must have a deathwish. Then there are those biking in the ice and snow... c'mon now...

I'm an avid cyclist, 54, who rides around 5 days a week, over 3000 miles a year. I obey traffic signals, stop at stop signs, keep to the right, etc.

Yes, as Minisoup and others have suggested, cyclists should obey the rules of the road, and if they don't, they should be cited just like a car would. I have no argument with that at all. And I would have loved to have seen the cyclist get ticketed for wearing headphones - I would have chewed him out myself. When I see other cyclists act like jerks, I let them know. Even when I'm riding with friends, I'll yell at them if they don't do things right. It means a lot to me.

However, some drivers have unrealistic expectations of cyclists. For example, a bicycle cannot be ridden safely on a sidewalk. We're going 20, 30, 40+ MPH, and a sidewalk is not the place to be for numerous reasons. A cyclist is legally entitled to use the road, so get used to it. Sorry TJ.

I find most of the trouble comes because drivers are impatient with a cyclist on a narrow road. I'm on the right, doing the best I can, and a car wants to pass but can't because of oncoming traffic. Sorry, there's nothing I can do. What happens a LOT is that cars pass unsafely on blind corners or blind hills - I've had a number of close calls this way. Hey, I drive a car, too, and have to pass cyclists - it can be hard. Deal with it. And Imhb, it perfectly OK to cross the yellow line to pass the bike - in fact, it's a lot safer than not crossing it, especially on a narrow road.

I live and ride out by I-495 (metrowest) and really have had very few problems. I've had a few of the pickup truck incidents Ms English referred to, but find people pretty good about bikes out here.

If only we lived in a perfect world. I ride in Needham a lot and we have some very narrow roads that head into Dover. Yes, as you say, cyclists abide the rules of the road - as cars do - but not all and the same goes for drivers. You may be the most law abiding biker, but for each one of you, there are many who aren't and they're the ones who give the law-abiding cyclists a bad rap. And, I must disagree with your argument about your friend riding in the "great for biking" section that was closed to cars. If it's closed to cars - it's closed to cyclists too!

I just wanted to reiterate what Eric (comment 65) said - I'm both a cyclist and a driver, and I really am very conscious to obey the rules while cycling. I stop where I am supposed to and I ride single file. Not everyone does, and that is a problem. However, as many have pointed out, cars are bigger and faster - if you hit or bump a cyclist that cyclist will be seriously injured. Just because you are frustrated with the bad riders is not an excuse to put anyone in the hospital or yell at someone who is obeying the rules.

I will say that there are occasions on which I can't ride as far on the shoulder as I would like - road bikes just can't handle big potholes, so sometimes it is necessary to drive further out in the road than I would like to avoid potholes, branches (especially with the storms lately) or other dangerous hazards. I hate to block cars, especially as it increases the risk of being yelled at, beeped at, or hit, but I also don't want to hit a pothole and fly ass over teakettle into the street.

Cyclists wearing biking clothes somehow contributes to the serious safety issues being discussed here? Grow up, please. When I go running, I wear running clothes, not khakis. When I go on a 25 or 50 or more mile bike ride, I wear clothing designed for the purpose. These folks aren't dressing as Lance, they're wearing clothing designed for comfortable cycling, and perhaps the jersey of their riding club, racing team, or a charity ride they've proudly participated in. How about a bit of basic respect for others, please? Or try biking 50 miles in jeans and see how that feels.

I think that CambridgeMom (above) and I must be neighbors. Between the bikes on the sidewalks (illegal - and dangerous), the flouting of traffic laws (riding up one-way streets, blowing through traffic lights, running stop signs, rights on red, etc.), and that awful eco-terrorist group that blocks traffic with their "protest" rides from time to time, the cyclists in Cambridge and Boston are a dangerous and irritating lot for pedestrians, cars, and other cyclists!

But, all that aside, my main issue is that this metropolitan area just isn't bike compatible due to the very narrow and congested roads built in pre-auto and pre-urban planning days. That's the problem, period. As much as we may want to fix it, we simply can't at this point. I'm originally from the DC area and was relocated here several years ago. I used to commute by bike nearly every day in DC, where the roads are wider, better planned, and generally do not face the mix of cars, buses, trucks, and pedestrians like this city. I've tried to ride my bike here, and there simply isn't room on the road for a bike to ride safely.

What's perhaps counter-intuitive to folks here is that down in the DC area, most city/suburban street traffic moves along much faster and more safely due to fewer and better timed traffic lights, higher speed limits, and general traffic management policies that are designed to keep the flow of cars moving. Here, the "congestion friendly" traffic policies actually make things more dangerous for bikes, cars, and pedestrians because all of the stopping and starting leads to frustration, light running, etc.

Wow...You all need to chill out and get a life...So much pent up anger....You're all going to have heart attacks!

(Maybe a little cycling or other forms of exercise would do you some good!)

If it takes a minute to pass a cyclist, isn't that better than hitting him and being arrested for vehicular homicide?

And when was the last time a cyclist threw debris at a motorist?
And when was the last time a cyclist tried to run a car off the road?

We all make mistakes, but when I'm on my bike and I screw up and hit a car, the only thing damaged is my body and my bike....
When a motorist screws up and hits a cyclist, you can end up costing someone their life and that might be someones father or mother or son or daughter....

Take a deep breath and relax...

I mostly walk, but also ride and drive, and many drivers attitudes expressed in the posts disgust me. All road users should follow the rules. I see plenty of bikers, drivers, and walkers do plenty of stupid stuff. Pedestrians are almost the worst, because of Ma.'s laws around right-of-way. They think they can just walk anywhere, any time. Last a week a woman was killed on Newbury as she was jaywalking. An SUV backed over her. I also know the guy who was mentioned above who was cycling through Newton and went through a windshield. Not his fault, by the way. While everybody needs to chill out, and follow the laws, it's the car drivers who are wielding the biggest weapons and often paying the least attention.

I have been a cyclist and a driver for many years in this area. It seems to me that the problem is not bad drivers or bad riders - because if we are being honest, there is no lack of bad drivers and riders in Boston and the surrounding areas. The problem is stupid, angry, and/or ignorant people. Both bikes and cars will, on occasion, have an accident. Both might act in immature and illegal ways on the road (swerving, illegal turns, running red lights, pushing/hitting each other, or throwing things out a window). The thing is, bikers will get severely more hurt than a driver over these stupid, petty acts, such as throwing a water bottle at someone. Let's all just get over ourselves (especially those drivers who think the road is theirs and get so absurdly heated at the mention of a bike, but also some bikers too), be respectful of anyone trying to use the roads for transportation, be it by bike or car, and let's look out for the safety of others.

As I truck driver I hear "I didn't see you!", all the time. If people can't see 18 huge tires with a roaring diesel engine, the people with 2 wheels and pumping leg muscles don't stand a chance!

I've recently started riding my bike to work from Medford to Beacon Hill. Am I doing this to be "Green" hell no. I'm doing it because I hate the T and it's delays, unairconditioned cars and foul smells. I'm an overly cautious rider. I do hug the side of the road because i'm mainly a driver and I know how much it sucks to get stuck behind a biker. While i'm hugging the road, i'm also praying to god not to get doored by someone getting out of their car. I'm also ridiculed by other bike riders for not going as fast as them, not going through red lights and stopping or slowing to let pedestrians cross.

As a driver, I recently had a bad experience with a jerk on his bike in the kendall square area. I was driving along, and he passed me on his bike. In the bike lane was a garbage truck. Now rather than slowdown to pass the truck safely, he darted out infront of my car, causing me to swerve into a lane of oncoming traffic nearly hitting another car head on. When I honked at this asshole, he pulled up along side my car at a light and spit all over my window. So, who's the problem here? It ain't me.

Oh, and can I mention the bike nazis who link arms across entire roadways and refuse to let people in cars pass, and kick cars, and hit them with bats?? Yeah. You'll get yours one of these days.

I agree that there are some irresponsible riders out there, but don't make the assumption that all are. I ride almost every day, stop at stop signs, red lights, hug the right side of the road, yield for pedestrians. I've also been clipped by a car while doing this, had multiple things screamed at me and things thrown at me out of cars. I think the point of this article is that people need to coexist and learn to share the road. I live in the city on Comm Ave and it can be tough to ride around that area given the amount of traffic and the awful conditions of the road, but I do everything in my power to be safe and not inconvenience anyone else on the road. I have also ridden the Charles bikepath quite a bit in the past and also had some pretty bad comments from runners and rollerbladers, so cyclists are really in a no win situation.

For those who have the comments about the spandex and Lance Armstrong wannabes, you're ignorant, and probably too overweight to fit in anything along those lines. The "costumes" are a necessity if you ride regularly and any considerable distance, for me it is functionality over fashion, I could care less what people think. Put it this way, I play hockey and lacrosse too, do I step on the ice or the field without a jock strap? Nope. But hey if you want to, go for it, I just hope I get to line up against you, I can prove a point very quickly about necessary equipment for different sports.

I'm a cyclist, both for fitness and to commute to work when I can. I don't "always" follow the rules of the road on my bicycle, but I try to most of the time. But, when I drive I don't always follow the rules of the road either.

In a car - Do you always stop at stop signs? Do you always follow the speed limit? Do you always look both ways when you are taking a right turn? Are you always paying strict attention to the road?

I am a fan of motorcycles too. But I rarely see them stop at fully stop signs and put both feet down unless they are forced to. And I doubt many of them are in accordance with the noise limits of the law.

I'd say we all believe we are above the law, regardless of what you are using to travel the road.

If you see a bicycle on the road doing stupid things, just think the same thing you do when you see a car or motorcycle doing stupid things. Wish him or her to change their habits.

I really think it's all three groups of people (drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians) who are guilty of dangerous and arrogant behavior, as many of you cited in examples above. None of us are innocent no matter how vehemently we complain that everything is someone else's fault.

Whoever said it that in this region it's a "point of pride to be rude" is right on the money. It's also a point of pride to be stubborn and snarl "yeah if you don't like it then leave" at whatever the other person has just complained about. I have a feeling that's why things don't get better...people don't want them to and the ones who do get frustrated and move away. Eh well, this is still home to me and I love living here despite the frustration.

I used to live in Lincoln, off a popular road for bikers. ME share the road with THEM? The streets there were tiny and you can't see around corners, so rather than risk my life and that of the biker, I've been forced to follow them for MILES waiting for a chance to drive the speed limit again. Sorry, the bikers are usually at fault on this issue. The roads here just were not built for both of us.

I am a biker. And I obey all the rules of the road. But I have to say my sympathy is with the drivers here - when I observe bad behavior from my bike, it's far more often a biker behaving badly than a car. So I agree that people should treat me well when I'm on my bike, but I have to say that for drivers, dealing with Boston bikers must be pretty frustrating!

Also, to my fellow bikers: when you pass me, say "Passing on your left." Always. Please. You don't know if I'm going to swerve to avoid a pothole or throw out my arm to signal or something - you could cause a collision if you don't audibly warn me that you're passing.

There are clearly two sides to this saga and the bottom line is that there are simply too many self-centered people out on the road. I must be considered some kind of geek both in my car and on my bicycle. I am one of those people who stops at red lights, uses turn signals, leaves my house in a timely manner so that I am not rushed to get where I’m going (both in my car and on my bike). I believe that rude cyclists create much of the road rage out there and that the anger is then indiscriminately imposed on all riders even those who are following the rules (and yes there are riders who follow the rules).

Last year I was riding behind a pack of cyclists who were riding three or four across while a car was coming up from behind. The cyclists ignored many of my "car back" calls. (For those of you who do not ride, this signals cyclists to resume single file.) The group eventually rode in a single line, but not before enraging many motorists. I passed the group of riders because I wanted to distance myself from them. A few minutes later they were back in the middle of the road and I heard a truck lean on his horn. The truck was forced to go over the yellow line to pass the group of riders and by the time he traveled back into his lane, I became his target. I was nearly forced off the road (no doubt in my mind intentionally) and there were inches between the truck's rearview mirror and my head and inches before the pavement ended and a deep trench began. That is as close as I want to be to getting seriously injured or worse. Both the cyclists and the truck were wrong here.

Most people are generally good, but when they get in their car (and some on their bike) all bets are off. Try to remember that the person in the other car or on the bike is human, has a family, may be having a bad day, may be ill or may be caring for someone who is ill, or worse has lost someone dear to them. Can we all just try to be kind to each other? Life is too short.

#89 is right--everyone please take a deep breath and relax. Boston is such an uptight and angry city (and the 'burbs too). If we all practiced respect for others, cars and bikes could live happily together.

For all of you in cars: My husband is one of those avid bikers sharing the road with you everyday. I worry about his safety every time he's on his bike because I know there are a lot of dangerous drivers on the road. Please look twice and SHARE THE ROAD WITH RESPECT. Look twice, slow down and relax. The extra 5 minutes it might take you to get home will ensure that my husband returns home in one piece. My children and I want our father/husband home safely with us each night.

The road is designed for cars. If bikers want to share it, it;s ok as long as it follows the same rules: including laws and common sense.

I rode, drove and walked all the time. I always stayed on the closest to the side so cars can pass. Knowing that the cars are not as flexible as bikes, I try not to stay on the road as much as I can. And I always follow traffic lights.

And last, I never ride my bike like crazy tour de france competitors on the road during rush hour.

"Like it or not, we are a motorized society and our roads and traffic systems are designed for cars only."

Like it or not, the motorized society's days are numbered. Some of us (cyclists) are ahead of the times.

So many angry drivers commenting on here. Maybe if you were out there on a bike, and not sitting in gridlock, you'd be in better moods. Then again, if I were spending as much money as you do on gas, I'd be pretty angry too!

Sorry folks, but all you angry drivers are hypocrites and you don't even realize it. Speed limits are the most basic and most important of traffic laws, and nearly every single driver out there violates them without even thinking twice.

When all the drivers start respecting the speed limit, not to mention all the other traffic laws they regularly break without a second thought, then I'll start waiting at stop signs when I'm on my bike.

And for the record, if all you drivers care to drive around town at 10-15 mph, I'm all for letting you all run stop signs too.

do you "law-abiding" cyclists have any idea how dangerous (not to mention frustrating) it is to be stuck behind you when you're too far from the shoulder you're "always" close to for us to pass? all too often i've seen (or drive) cars that think they have enough room to pass you, only to either have a near-head-on collision or sideswipe the car in the lane next to them. all too often cyclists have collided with the side of my vehicle as i sit patiently at a stop light - and damage or no damage, it's MY car you're swiping! you can't expect it to be ok to be considered a "part" of traffic when you ride at a pace that makes it utterly impossible for us to share the road.

I always try to drive carefully whenever there is a cyclist or a motorcyclist...and that is because in Newton schools years ago they had bicycle safety classes for all students. It taught us the rules of the road for cyclists and also the manners of the road. But this is not what upsets me when I drive every day from Newton to Cambridge. I get stressed by the pedestrians that walk into "unsignaled crosswalks" and assume they have the right of way and also the people running and walking w/ baby strollers (sometimes even with dogs on a leash). No. 1, don't these parents/caregivers realize a vehicle some day may not be able to stop and will kill their child because they are pushing the stroller into traffic first? Also, do they realize what they are doing to the baby when they are running and the baby is bouncing, getting a skinburn or frostbite and their eyes are getting dirt particles and cold air blown into them? I wish there were either more people with common sense or "stroller policing". Well, I guess that's my gripe for the day.

Bikes belong on trails, not roads...get out enjoy nature, go mountain biking!

I agree with you that some drivers are crazy and like to yell and think they own the road. but there is one thing you didn't seem to mention. You sound like a safe rider but there are many who are not. I can't tell you the number of times a biker has swerved out into the middle of the road in front of me without a look back to see if a car was coming. Some take up the whole road and ride 20mph when the speed limit is 40 and using your words "think they own the road" well they don't either. I am sure it is frustrating for you. I ride a motorcycle and it is frustrating to me when i have a massive truck right on my ass or a car turns in front of me without seeing me. It's scary but it is also scary when bikers don't follow the rules of the road and do run stoplight and signs and swirve in front of you instead of staying to the side of the road. You can't blame everything on the motorists here they are frustrated with bikers and bikers are frustrated with motorists.

i would agree with Comment #3. i am a cyclist, i am a british cyclist, i am a british cyclist who is 6ft3.

I am trying my damndest to rid the stereotype of both cyclists and the British. Firstly, I am trying to tip waiter service the correct amount (unlike most brits who struggle with >7%!) and secondly, I stop of red lights. While this is bloody frustrating on mass ave etc where every 70m or so is a bloody traffic light, I am trying very hard to demonstrate to car drvivers we are not all couriers.

Perhaps, in the future, cycle lanes will emerge with the right of way, shorter and dedicated routes to and from certain destinations, and slightly (just slightly!) smoother roads.

Oh my height....well, that was there because if you can;t see me then you shouldn't be driving a car.

Have a nice day

I've been commuting to work for almost 10 years by bike the four miles from Brookline to Boston. I try to avoid the main streets as much as I can and come in on the bike path along the Esplanade. I've probably seen more bad bike behavior than bad car behavior in all that time, mostly by bike messengers returning home for the day, when they weave in and out of traffic. I learned the hard way that you don't pass cars on the right when they're moving, so I only do it when they're stopped. (And since I drive as well, I know how disconcerting it can be to all of a sudden have a biker squeeze past you on the right when you're moving.) I stop at red lights, but if no one's coming, I'll get going because I feel safer getting out ahead of the traffic. There's a brief stretch on Cambridge street where I'll ride on the side walk, but only because riding in the street at that point (Leverett Circle) seems suicidal. Everyone could behave better.

While I don't throw objects at cyclists or try to hit them, almost every cyclist I encounter doesn't behave in a manner that you described. Most run Stop signs, through red lights, never signal and swerve around obstacles into the path of vehicles. I'm all for cyclists having a right of way, but don't act like all cyclists are as well mannered as you describe.

I have to agree with individuals in cars who have issues with cyclists. On many occasions I come up on 2 or more cyclists who, rather than riding single file on the side of road, ride side by side. This causes motorists to swing out and away and can create an accident by swerving into the oncoming lane. Most recently I was on a 2 lane road;, one going north, the other south. A group of four on bicycles were riding right down the middle of the road and creating traffic backup. When I was able to get around and past them I placed my car in a position to block them from continuing in this manner. One had the nerve to come along side my window and asked me to move and I said I would not. To be fair, on the flip side I've seen some drivers aim towards, rather than away from a cyclist.
Of course if Mass had more bike trails and bike lanes this would be less of a problem and we have a long way to go. In the mean time both drivers of cars and those who cycle should try and be more tolerant and considerate of each other.

Biking is so noble. It keeps us from getting fat (unlike the rest of the country), the environment green and money from flowing to gas producing countries that despise our values. But safety continues to be an issue. We need to adopt the rules from Holland - if a biker is struck by a vehicle, the fault is ALWAYS presumed to be with the driver of the vehicle. It makes drivers far more careful. There is another solution - move from Boston to the Bay Area (San Francisco). I have been here for several months and love the genuine respect the environment receives. Respect for bikers is part of that.Ther are many dedicated bike trails and many more are being built. No mosquitos or humidity. A biker's paradise...

is this article some kind of joke?? Obey traffic rules??? blowing red lights, riding between cars stopped in traffic, not signaling when changing lanes. and this is just as I look out my window to type this.

"When my friend Dave rode every day during Bike-to-Work Week in June, he was approaching a small construction site - the right lane blocked off to cars; perfect for biking"

and how many times did the author say that bicycles were vehicles?? The bike didnt belong in the CLOSED to VEHICLES right lane either!!!

We ALL need to be schooled for more stringently from pedestrians crossing the road against a Dont walk signal, to cicyclists not stopping at red lights, to motorists not yielding to pedestrians, or not changing lanes to pass a cicyclists, but this article is such a joke.

what a joke of an article, the most hypocritical, stereotype wielding Ive read in ages.

There are other cities and suburban communities that have made changes to their roads to accommodate bicycles. Portland, OR for example. In this libreral state you would think that people would want more bicyles on the roads.

Drivers in Boston, whether they be on a bike or in a car are a-holes. just the other day i had a guy flip me off because HE was blocking a road that i was attempting to navigate. this isn't an issue of cars vs. bikers...its an issue of people who follow the rules vs. jerks who put others at risk with erratic driving.
as a person who drives around the city, i have a much bigger problem with idiots trying to turn a 30 minute commute into 10, than i do with the biker who can't seem to keep to the right side of the street. but that's just me.

Why would you expect drivers of cars/trucks to share the road with a cycle, when they don't even share the road with other automobiles?

MassBike has been trying to get a bill passed that would make it easier to cite cyclists breaking the rules of the road. They have also been working on incorporating rights of cyclists in driver education and responsible cycling in schools. If everyone on this blog will support these positive approaches we can make cycling, driving and walking in the area better.

BTW: DO NOT BIKE IN THE DOOR ZONE! If not for your own safety consider how bad the driver who runs over you after you are suddenly knocked into traffic will feel. For more on how to cycle safely you can even take a course. Check out MassBike.org/skills for info on riding safely, rights and responsibilities of cyclists and more.

I am a bicycle commuter and agree with most things said negatively about cyclists. I run stop signs if it is safe for me to do so. I stop at red lights and then go only if it is safe. I also stay to the right, signal my intentions and try to be cognizant of everything around me. But if I do something that bugs a driver, then all that I am doing is aggravating the driver. I am not in your way and the rules that I break 99% of the time do little if nothing to actually impact your driving. But a driver only has to do one silly, stupid, reckless, or intentional act and I am basically road kill. So, please think about it and put it in context.

Cylcists have absolutely no regard for the rules of the road. The problem is that when one of these clowns cuts you off and you hit him, it is somehow your fault! Any cyclist who rides to work or is operating their cycle during peak or rush hour traffic should be required to register their cycle and obtain a permit. They need to be held to the same legal standard as autos when they insist on riding their bikes in high traffic areas. So spare me the sanctimonious tripe about what a good thing you are doing and get out of the way. No driver should ever be held accountable for hitting some bozo on his bike when the bozo in question does not obey a single traffic law

I live in Boston and would like to make four points to bicyclists:
1. Sidewalks are for pedestrians only. Get off the sidewalk!

2. Bicycles are considered vehicles. So ride with traffic and in the right direction.
I shouldn't have to worry about bikes going in the wrong direction when I'm crossing an one-way street.

3. Helmets are not a fashion statement. Make sure you cover your forehead.
Parents, make sure your kids aren't tilting their helmets back.
4. Wear a reflective vest and make sure your bike has a headlamp.

Here is my experience from last week - crossing the memorial drive from Harvard - we (the car folks) are stopped at the signal since the cars from opposite direction have exclusive green. Along comes an idiot on a cycle and what does he do - wait for the signal to turn green? Oh no, he just continues hard through the red signal and almost gets hit by the turning car. Hypothetically if he had got hit, with his speed and the car speed, we will probably be praying for him to have a good life in another world. And guess what will happen to the car driver? He will be sitting in jail thinking he why ever lived in this city where only one set of people need to follow rules and others dont. I have nothing against cyclist but may be you should write an article about how they should obey traffic rules and not be a menace to everyone on the road. Thanks!

I have lived in Boston all my ife and as far as I am concerned whatever vehicle is on the road has to be registered and carry insurance. I think if the cyclist use the road which is fine in some cases they should also pay for insurance and registration just like all vehicles that use the road.

i just want to say that I bike to work everyday and 90% of the time drivers I encounter are courteous, respectful and alert. i get smiles and waves, a few cat calls and enough space. true, there is the occasional jerkface, but i endure the brief interruption with a smile.

i obey the laws and make sure to signal, give my fellow commuters a heads up. i make eye contact and blow kisses. i wouldn't change my commute one bit.

: )

These postings provide an excellent demonstration of how we are more likely to believe facts that support what we already believe. As a 20+ year bike commuter who now bikes and drives pretty much equally (it's 29 miles, I can't do that every day!), I think it's simply that people (including me) are selfish, especially about inconveniences such as red lights or having to raise a hand to signal a turn (with your arm or the car blinker). I try, but am definitely not perfect. As a biker, I have two tricks. (1) When I get the chance to talk with a driver about something dangerous s/he just did, I turn that selfishness back on them, asking whether they want people to drive like that around their children. No one yet has said, well, sure! (2) When someone does let me by, I thank them. Who cares if I have the right of way? It's still nice of them.

p.s. Just last week, a driver who was stuck in traffic hollered "get a car, retard" at me. I'm the idiot? I was moving!

I actually once got a ticket in a car for "Obstructing the flow of Traffic" for going just 5 miles under the speed limit. It was 1:00 am and I was on break (working the midnight shift). Clearly there was no flow of traffic to obstruct. On the other hand bicyclists often are much slower than cars and cause them to make a chioce, either drive at a snails pace, or risk it, by going around (which, by the way, is illeagal to cross those double yellow lines!) Just as skateboarders are not aloud on roadways or sidewalks (they have special parks) I think bicyclists, too, should look for other routes.

If bikers want to ride with the cars, they need to follow the rules of the cars. They don't stop at red lights. I am a pedestrian and on more than one occasion have been crossing, at a walk sign, and the bikes just go right through!

Well, there are already a bazillion comments but I'll add my two cents anyway.

Many (not all) bicyclists go through red lights (at crosswalks), stop at red lights, then go straight through, take right or left turns from the wrong lane and do not use a bike path but instead slow car drivers down by using the open road (BU Bridge, Memorial Drive, Pond Street in Brookline/JP) when they have another option.

Right now, there is one lane open on the BU Bridge heading from Cambridge to Boston. You know what that means, right? Right, we all drive behind the cyclist who won't use the sidewalk on the other side.

I'm amazed at the indignancy of motorists, who don't seem to understand that their lives are not generally in play here. Additionally, in our society we have given far too much preference to cars, to the detriment of pedestrians, cyclists, etc.

Just as cyclists need to be extremely careful not to hit pedestrians (where contact can lead to anything from a tiny scratch to major injury), cars need to be exceedingly careful not to hit cyclists or pedestrians (where most contact leads to serious injury or death).

Actually, bikes do not have the right to be on the road, and neither do cars. Owning and operating a vehicle in Massachusetts is a privilege, a privilege that comes with the cost of registration, licensing and gas tax. The gas tax pays for road maintenance. For the poster who dreams of car-less road, dream on. Without cars there would be no gas tax, without a gas tax and tolls there would be no roads.

Until bikes are registered, licensed and taxed like cars, they have no *right* to be on the road. Why not modify the personal property taxes and start taxing adult bikers and their $5000 vehicle. Let the bikers pay their fair share, then we can talk about sharing the roadways.

In response to all of you intelligent posters who are writing things like, "get off the road" and "bikers are a hazard", please refrain from attempting to participate in intelligent conversations and return to your fat pigheaded existence where all you know is television, your stupid gas guzzling giant SUV and when the McRib is going to be back at McDonald's. God forbid someone wants to actually challenge themselves physically and have a hobby other than reality TV.

Bad drivers, bad cyclists. Bad drivers can do more damage, but I think what gets people about cyclists is the massive sense of self-righteousness.

I'm ride the T and walk. I've been hit by a car (whose driver was apologetic and concerned to the extreme) and by numerous bicycles (whose sainthood precludes them from having to feel sorry at all for plowing through a crosswalk with a walk light).

Imhb, (No 12) do you think that you in a car have more of a right to the road than a person on a bicycle? If you do, you ought to review the rules of the road. Usually when a cyclist is not all the way to the right, it is because there is some sort of hazard in the road (sand, pothole, or a curve, etc). As a cyclist, I generally keep to the right, but if I have to ride in the middle of the lane to avoid a hazard, I do. If it slows drivers down for a few moments, so be it, they can pass me when it is safe to do so; it's just one thing drivers need to deal with when operating automobiles on public roadways. If they're going to let it upset them perhaps they should not be driving. I'm not going to compromise my safety for the convenience of others. As a driver, I know it is important to give space when passing and to be paitent when a slower vehicle is in the lane, and pass when it is safe to do so. I have been driving for 18 years and cycling for 28 years. I have a perfect driving record and have never had any major accidents while on a bike either. The best thing drivers and cyclists can do is to know and follow the rules and be careful of others, regardless of what they're doing.

I used to cycle to work through Cambridge and Somerville every single day from May through October. I've given up and now I just take the T, because I am sick and tired of getting yelled and and cut off by OTHER CYCLISTS. I'm used to dodging cars and busses, because it's easy to see/hear them coming. Other cyclists, not so much. Every time I stop for a red light (because, you know, it's the law) on my bike, other bikers behind me in the bike lane swear, crash into me, or amble past me so I have to pass them again once the light turns green. I told off a guy for doing it once, and he said "We don't have to stop for red lights, that's the great thing about biking."

While there are a few good bikers in Boston, most of them (particular in Cambridge and Somerville) are self-righteous jerks who think that they rule the world because they aren't burning any "blood oil" to get to work. I have one thing to say to them: Get over yourselves. You're not that awesome.

And any biker who wears headphones while biking (or worse, watching a movie on your iPOD, like I saw one guy doing) deserves to get hit. I must be the only biker left in metro Boston whose parents told him to be aware of your surroundings and not be distracted when biking in traffic. If you want to listen to headphones, go bike on the Minuteman - otherwise take the headphones out of your ears - it won't kill you to go 20 minutes without listening to music.

First of all, the roads in Boston were not constructed for cars, much less the cohesive existence of pedestrians, cars and cyclists. I am a daily bike commuter, and I admit to running a light when it suits me; weaving through a cross walk scaring the pedestrians that think I'm going to hit them on an almost daily basis, and yes, I am sure to have infuriated dozens of cab drivers, pickup truck jerks and the like over the 17 years I have ridden a bike in our wonderful city.

The point is not obeying traffic laws - we can all work much harder in this area. The point is that cyclists need to accepted as a bona fide method of transport and not a public nuisance that inconveniences auto traffic. There is an arrogance (on both sides) but it starts with acceptance. I fully accept that if I get hit by a car going more than 10mph, I will be in serious trouble. Drivers don't have any concern for cyclists - again we are a nuisance. Why do you think Critical Mass likes to cause traffic jams as the form of protest ?It INFURIATES the motorists.

The solution - be kind. Just take a deep breath. I say this to the cyclist (obnoxiously skilled messenger that scares Grandma breathless as she walks her dog into the Public Garden nearly missing her in the crosswalk), and I say this to the SUV driver: You are bigger. You are bad. Enjoy your rolling living room.

I'm all for equal rights for both cyclists and motorists, but has anyone ever tried to drive through Harvard Sqare? I get more people on bikes cutting me off, jumping in front of me, and almost causing catastrophic accidents more times than I can count!

And if we're going to get into bikes vs. cars, then does anyone want to bring up how bikes can cause serious injury to pedestrians? In the 3 years I worked on Beacon Hill, I was yelled at, cussed out, and almost hit by more cyclists and bike messengers than I can count when all I was trying to do was walk to Park Street T! They have no respect for people who are just trying to walk from one place to another. So before you go accusing the motorists for being a danger or rude and obnoxious, you should look at yourselves.

I cycle to work everyday in Boston and I agree that Cyclists dont have to stop at red lights, they can go through if there are no cars passing nor pedestrianas. I also agree that there are other rules that needs to be followed by cyclists which many times are ignored. At the end I would say you cant go around thinking you hate all drivers or you hate all cyclists!! dont hate them until they put others in harmsway.

I ride all of four miles from Waltham to Watertown.

Two examples that happen to me all the time, and irritate me to no end:

1. I'm sitting at a red light, waiting for my signal to turn green like I'm supposed to, when somebody invariably slams on their brakes and waves for me to cross the street. I usually ignore them and point at their green light. Sorry if that pisses off some of you, but don’t be so stupid.

2. When the crosswalk signal lights up, that's not permission for you to turn right on red. Or do you just assume because nobody is walking, you can take off without looking? I’ve lost track of how many times I waited for my ‘legal’ chance to go and have almost gotten plowed over.

So yeah, it’s tough to be a cyclist out there when the drivers don’t know the rules, either.

It's pretty simple. Bikes need to follow the same rules as cars (stop at lights, etc.), but remember bikers, you are NOT cars. It seems they only follow the rules when it suits them. Just my two cents.

Another thing. What happens when a bike squeezes by on the right between you in your car at a stoplight and the parket car next to you, scratching your car, your sideview mirror, etc? They take off. With the biker not having insurance, you're stuck footing the bill for the repair.

Unfortunately, I don't completely agree. Very seldom do I see bike riders stop for red lights or stop signs. They also don't often stop at crosswalks when people are in them.
I agree with the benefits of biking -- fitness, environmental improvement, etc. But many bike riders have the same traits as the drivers of the pickups, etc. that you describe.

What's wrong with us? These comments are so discouraging. I first want to react to what I've read and spew some vitriol of my own. How did we come to be like this? Was it Mr. Rogers telling us that every one of us is special? Getting trophies for every sport played?

I hear all the complaints by motorists about slowing down, and maybe waiting, to pass cyclists. Maybe sharing the road means travelling under the speed limit for 20 seconds. Get over it, you're not special. Unless someone in your car is dying, relax for a few seconds.

Nobody is without blame - as many have pointed out, all groups break the rules. Cyclists shouldn't be running red lights or ignoring other rules of the road. We're not special, either! And ride single file - that's a reasonable expectation. Every time you piss off a motorist you've just thrown another log on the fire.

Using a car to intimidate a cyclist is the act of a coward. Pull over, get out of your car, and have a conversation if you think it's needed. If you're afraid to do that, you should reflect on whatever it is you just did or how you reacted to the situation.

Why can't we have a little perspective in our lives? Leave your house 5 minutes sooner and show a little courtesy and consideration for others.

As a pedestrian who spends most of the time walking in Boston, the cyclists make me laugh. I have NEVER seen one of them stop at a red light. Not one. A few slow down, but NONE stop and wait for the light to change.

Basic rules of the road that you're taught in grammar school. If you ride a bike on the street you're expected to follow those rules. In over 20 years, I've never seen one cyclist do this.

I've been hit twice by people riding bikes who blew through red lights while I had the right of way in a crosswalk.what happened.

I think the worst part the fruity color outfits bikers wear -get a lif. Dont bother ever looking either I almost ran one over a month ago.

In response to Chris (#95) maybe some people don't "always" drive their car in full accordance of the law. I try my best to. I come to a full stop at stop signs and I NEVER intentionally blow through a red light. I always use my signals and yes I look both ways. I even follow the rules of the road as a pedestrian despite the fact that on two feet I DO have the right of way. So don't put out that bs about not everyone follows the rules fully when you don't know everyone.
In response to Ms. English, I also drive an SUV. And the reason that bicyclists make me angry is much like those who have already listed all their grivences above. For me its that one biker who feels the need to be in my lane when there is a perfectly good bike lane for him (and yes I find that most of the "obnoxious" bike riders are men).
Of course I'm not dismissing that bikers have a tough in between "life." They are too fast for the sidewalks and too slow for the road. There has to be some sort of compromise which is why I love the bike lanes in Cambridge and think they are a great idea when used properly.
I am a cautious, not nervous, female driver which probably makes most people on the road hate me. Because I drive an SUV I have to deal with the people honking behind me because they can't see the slow bicyclist taking up the lane in front of me. I have to say that I, too, agree if bicyclists want equal rights they should have equal responsiblity. They should be licensed and have a plate.

What is needed for it to work is the rare combination of courteous driver and courteous cyclist. Unfortunately, we're most likely always going to have rude drivers and rude cyclists out there. Pessimistic? Yes, but probably true.

I saw a sign on a police car a while ago - "Bicycles and Cars - Same Road, Same Rules." I concur. Bike riders ignore red lights and stop signs, etc, and also seem to want to frustrate drivers by going as slowly as possible while taking up as much of the road as they can, preventing drivers from going around them. Not too smart! Would definitely favor much better enforcement by police of poor road use by bike riders and, yes, licensing and fines when appropriate.

There are bad cyclists and bad vehicle drivers and neither hlps the others cause. I'm an infrequent cyclist, but when I am, I dilligently follow the rules of the road and expect vehicles to do the same. By following the rules I stay to the far right, when cycling with others we stay single file to allow vehicles to readily pass us, I also stop at stop lights and only proceed when they turn green. I act this way because when I'm in my vehicle there is a large number of cyclists who don't follow the rules and want it both ways. Cyclists need to follow the rules and realize that they need to stay out of vehicle blind spots, if you can't see their mirrors, they can't see you.

I'm also a biker (motorcyclist) who follows the rules and ensures that I can see the mirrors of the vehicel in front of me. I do occasionally lane split in very slow traffic below 10 mph because it is a bear keeping a large bike up at slow speed and stop and go traffic is a killer.

I live in the 495 corridor, one of the towns lucky enough to have the Assabet Rail Trail; and luckily, most sane bicyclists choose to stay there. When people want to commute on long winding backroads, they simply have a deathwish (MA drivers have a bad reputation for a reason ya know!). Unfortunately, we a frequently hampered by bike-a-thons; whose hoards of knuckleheads who like to spread out all over the road, and act like we are jerks for trying to get by (you are right, we are jerks, and don't care about which charity you are support in your stupid looking outfits!!!).

NOTHING makes me happier than stopping at a red light and not leaving enough space between my car and the sidewalk for the biker I just passed to get by. Oops. Sorry. You'll have to sit here too...just like the rest of us. If you want to be respected on the road, then use hand signals and sit at red lights like the rest of us.

This battle has been going on forever. Just remember to be SAFE when your riding. There are always a-holes out there on both sides (bikers and drivers). I have seen so many stupid things while riding that I could write a book. We live in impatient world...

Why do I hate cyclist?

Because I have to waited patiently to pass this biker on the road for the last 3 blocks, he has waisted about 5 minutes of my time by going 1/4 the speed-limit, but I safely pass him at the first opportunity. A minute later I wait at a red light like I should and whizzzzz there he goes right by me and right through the red light only to repeat the process all over again

Bike riders need to follow the rules of the road but not under the pain of death or permanent injury. That is what is at stake when drivers become enraged with a rider.

All cars should be banned from within Boston city limits. Long live the Bike Nazis

The fact that bicycles are legally "just another vehicle of the road" is the crux of the problem. There is an inherent conflict between vehicles that can easily drive the posted speed limit or faster, and vehicles that lag seriously behind the flow of traffic forming dangerous bottlenecks. This is not the bicyclists fault, but until car traffic and bike traffic are separated, there will be problems. New England roadways are simply too narrow to allow bikes going 15-20 mph to take over and block a lane where the speed limit is 30 mph or more. We all curse the little old ladies that drive too slow too, so don't think it is just you cyclists.

I am very aware of cyclists when I drive. I was hit while on my bike when I was a kid. I show cyclists every courtesy. Unfortunately, most cyclists do not show the same courtesy. They ride down one way streets the wrong way (a real danger to pedestrians), they dart in front of and zoom by pedestrians with inches to spare, they don't stop for stop lights or stop signs, they act like they are a pedestrians when it suits them but then demand to treated as a motor vehicle (but only when it suits them), they ride two accross which forces a motor vehicle to cross over the center line. I would venture to say that the cyclists who rant the most about how rude motorists are probably drive their cars like the people they complain about.

On more than one occasion I have almost collided with a bike when making a right hand turn. The cyclists neglect to observe my directional light and proceed to go straight, even though I cannot see them because of lack of eyes in the back of my head. On another occasion, I nearly wiped out a cyclist in Harvard Square when I opened my car door to exit the car. Once again, the lack of eyes in the back of my head nearly caused an accident. Cyclists need to realize they are not cars, and need to be aware of their surroundings, particularly if they are surrounded by cars.

Well, this is timely. Last Monday my husband was hit by a car while biking--the woman turned into his path when he had the right of way. She claims she didn't see him-- a full-grown man in a royal blue riding jersey with a white helmet on his head in broad daylight! He had to think quickly--and thankfully was able to swerve around the car to avoid being hit head-on. Not thankfully, he hit the car's side view mirror, the impact of which tore his bike in half and sent him flying off it. After an ambulance ride on a backboard, he was released with "only" contusions and a sprained ankle, the latter of which was probably because he uses those clip pedals.

My husband was training for the Pan Mass Challenge, the cancer ride Bella referred to. This was to be his 16th year riding. Now we are not sure he'll be back on a bike in time...it's the first weekend of August.

A few years ago, the buddy who got my husband involved with the PMC was cut off during the ride by a "fellow PMC-er" who didn't even stop to see if he was okay when he flew off the bike. They had just left the second rest stop. When I saw my husband's cell number on our caller ID that early in the day, I knew there was trouble. His friend's shoulder had to be repaired by multiple surgeries.

These two guys I mention have 6 kids between them. Both lost their beloved moms to cancer, and that's why they're out there on the road. They are not doing anything unsafe or anything to provoke any kind of reaction from drivers. Their goal is to train and get home in one piece.

I should say the woman who hit my husband last week was very apologetic and concerned. She called to check on him, too. Wish I could say that about the guy who cut our friend off. He just kept riding on while Ken and Paul were there waiting for an ambulance. The guys never got a look at his rider number, but if they had, they would have asked Billy Starr to ban him from the PMC.

Bicyclists are so "hated" because they do NOT obey the rules. Never! Ever! It is so unusual to see one who stays stopped at a red traffic light that my children and I remark on it. They want it both ways - no rules and the 3000 lb, not-easily-manuevered vehicles should give them the right of way always.

HEY - doesn't ANYONE understand that bicycle riders MUST FOLLOW THE RULES OF THE ROAD?? We might like the idea of being bicycle friendly, but Boston/Cambridge is a city (with very narrow streets, to boot). Every single day I am cut off by at least one person on a bike who thinks he/she can meander through traffic, ignore traffic lights and stop signs, and that the road is only theirs. I am amazed that more people aren't hit by cars. Someone needs to educate the bicycle riding population. This is INSANITY...

Sanctimonious cyclist BS. Bikes belong on the road as much as horses and buggies do. Just because the law says you can do something doesn't mean it is wise or safe to do so. Riding in the middle of a narrow road designed for cars is not smart, no matter what the law says. (It might be legal for me to walk through the streets of Mattapan late at night with a bag of money in each hand, but it's not exactly smart. The law might be on my side, but it would be small comfort after the fact of the mugging that would probably occur).

Another point, swerving from the middle of the road -or riding on bikes side by side- is not exactly "sharing the road". YOU are the ones taking a stupid risk and blaming the drivers for using the road as it was intended. Stick to the trails, jerks

I ride my bike around the western and northern suburbs a lot. And I drive my car around here a lot. It's frustrating in the car but its scary on the bike. Most bikers including me are very careful and stay way to the edge of the road, follow normal traffic rules and ride very alert and defensively (yes, I know, some don't but not most). And most of the drivers we encounter slow down, move over and don't threaten us (again, I know, some don't). All it takes is a few. I have been hit and thrown off my bike by a car backing up carelessly in Weston. It scared the driver a lot because I am an amputee and the collision knocked the wind out of me so I could not talk; when he came around to the back all he saw was a guy without a leg which I could not explain so he panicked and started looking for a missing leg. Even this, however was an accident. What is inexcusable are the drivers that seem to want to make a "point" and crowd the bikers. Would they really be happy if we swerved off the road and hit a tree full force or one of those metal guardrails? Not if they thought through the consequences. How about if they hit me and I lost the one leg I have? Would any of them be happy about that? We have a bad reputation around our driving and now as a very poor city for biking. But we love challenges here in Boston so why doesn't everyone take a deep breath, think about what might happen if your rage impulse really did kick in and back way off. In these times of crisis around energy consumption it behooves more of us to get out of those cars and ride bikes and see what it's like. I bet you drivers complaining about the bikers would sing a different tune. Then we can all work together to make Boston #1 for biking.

I'm looking at this issue from two points of view.

As a former bicyclist back when I lived in New York State, I find the roads of Massachusetts to be absolutely appalling for bicyclists. There are NO shoulders, even on major numbered routes. I gave up riding a bicycle when I moved here over 20 years ago, because I was terrified to ride here. The roads are barely wide enough for cars, with no room for bicyclists at all.

As a motorist sharing the road with bicyclists, I have no trouble at all with the folks who ride single-file on the far right side of the road, and who obey traffic laws. I drove to work one morning and found one bicyclist riding up the very middle of the travel lane. As I managed to make my way past him, I realized it was one of my co-workers. When I met up with him in the office, I chewed him out for not keeping all the way over to the right. His response stunned me -- he had taken a bicycle safety class, and they had explicitly told him to stay in the middle of the lane! When I pointed out to him that this was illegal, he told me it wasn't. To prove it to him, I looked up the relevant bicycle laws online. You know what? He was right -- NOWHERE in the MA road laws does it require bicyclists to keep all the way to the right hand side of the road. I did find where NY law requires it (the laws I grew up with), which is why I assumed it was also required in MA. It also made good common sense to me. But he was going by what he had been taught, which almost got him hit that morning... Other than riding up the middle of the lane, he did otherwise do all the right things -- hand signals as he turned, etc.

Drivers who become irritated when they can't pass a biker should think of the alternative: would you rather that biker commute in his/her car instead? Traffic is bad enough already, have a little patience. It's not like getting to the next red light 15 seconds faster is going to speed up your commute anyway.

I am an all-year downtown Boston cyclist... The large majority of cyclists around me here are clearly missing the point that the rules are there so that bikes and cars and Hummers and tanker rigs can all play nice together. Of course more respect for cyclists would be nice, but I have to agree with those who feel cyclists generally need to do more to earn it. Like me, most of these cyclists are also drivers sometimes. If your judgment is so airtight, why not drive that way? I'm a pretty conservative guy, but I can't do the safety math.

It can't be about taking bikes off the road. Anything with wheels that goes 20 miles an hour goes on the road, away from the pedestrians etc. on the sidewalks and most of the so-called "bike" paths. If we were talking about my old moped, with the same speed and maneuverability but also a 50cc motor, there would be no argument. If you can ride safely on the sidewalk, you might as well be walking.

Finally I second the comment about motorist "courtesies" and unexpected yielding. I my dreamworld I am treated like any other car. Much safer and easier to anticipate for everyone.

I'm both a driver and a cyclist. I moved here from San Francisco last year, a very bicycle friendly city, and the biggest difference I noticed hasn't so much been the attitudes of the drivers or cyclists (let's face it - there are jerks everywhere) but the roads themselves.

The roads here are tighter, and many drivers get frustrated when they can't go around a cyclist, like they would in a city with wider roads. If I'm driving and I swerve left to avoid a cyclist in a shared road, I run the risk of being hit by someone coming in the opposite lane who isn't making room for me going around a cyclist.

The opposite is true, too. Cyclists rush stop signs and red lights for their own safety, to keep ahead of traffic. I do it myself, not to break laws but to build some distance between myself and the cars behind me, for everyone's safety. It's a dangerous cycle (no pun intended).

A combination of nicer drivers AND cyclists would go a long way.

I can't tell you how many times I have come very close to being hit by a bicycle when I was on the sidewalk. Ridiculous! Sure there are a lot of responsible bikers out there, but I have found a lot of them to be reckless and irresponsible. One time a biker was flying down a sidewalk, at night, no reflective devices, no helmet, and was going the opposite direction of traffic and had the nerve to scream at my husband when he didn't see him. You can't have it both ways. Sorry.

umm lets see, you said bikers obey the same laws as cars do, but you talk about dave who wanted to ride in the closed to cars lane of a construction site?, excuse me but if its closed to cars and bikes are the same as cars then why did dave expect different treatment?
also in massachusetts and many other states it is illegal to pass on the right. ( yes people when someone is making a left hand turn and you go arounsd them to the right, you are breaking the law!, dont belive me get in an accident while doing this sometime and you will learn.) so when im driving in traffic and a few guys or gals on bikes zip by me on the right because there is room for a bike, even though its a one lane road, they are breaking the law! itsthe same as motorcyclists who weave through rush hour traffic. biccylists do it to, and they expect to be able to do it. I worked for 7 years as an EMT and once opened my stopped in traffic ambulance door to help usher a bee out of my vehicle only to have to explain the damage later to my supervisor when mr bicycle man ran into it full speed almost taking the guys head off, and giving me 16 stitches in my arm, and i never did get reimbursed for my torn uniform shirt. the biker got a broken nose and hopefully a lesson not to zip by stopped vehicles.
Btoom line, if bikes obey the laws , then maybe you'll get treated like the vehicles who do.
( sounds like the old if you want to be treated like an adult addage doesnt it!)

as to being pushed by some loud music teens, that has no bearing, they do it to pedestrains and other vehicles as well.

I don't know what cyclists you are talking about. The ones I know ride double file, which is ILLEGAL, and if they are coming towards a parked car, they continue to ride double file forcing their bikes out in the middle of the street forcing a car, such as myself to jam on the brakes to avoid hitting them. They also do go through red lights and do NOT follow the rules of the road like they are supposed to. They have high and mighty attitudes and swear and give you the finger if you come too close, which wasn't your fault until they decided to swerve around something and come full force out into the middle of the street. Perhaps, you are good biker, but many are not. I think these guys where their little feminine biker panties a little too tight and it cuts off any energy to their brains. Try acting like guys, guys and not sisies in stretchies..

Very rarely do I see bikers follow the rules of the road. They are always weaving in and out, running redlights, stop signs, etc. Since you claim in your article that you have to "share the road" and follow the same laws, then how about you start doing it. I'm not defending a lot of the drivers either because a lot of them can be jerks, but a lot of them, probably more than not, are law abiding drivers. The sudden onslaught of mopeds is just as bad. All these tree huggers getting these Vespas need to take driving lessons.

Bikers are their own enemies. In my opinion, they create the animosity between drivers, not the other way around. Indeed, bicycles have equal right to the road, but they also have equal responsibility when it comes to the laws of the road. Too many times have I seen a bicyclist in Cambridge run a red light and force a driver to stop suddenly = Dangerous. I personally had somebody on a bicycle run into the side of my car: She decided to turn left into traffic with no signal and blamed me when I stopped with traffic.

Bicyclist, as a whole, are a fine lot, but you have your bad apples. If you would self-police your group, you might be able to fight off the stereotypes and animosity. I would also like to see cops pull over a bicycle for running a red light, or not yielding to a pedestrian in a crosswalk! Take some responsibility!

The unfortunate reality of the matter is that the road infrastructure was not designed or laid out to handle anything other than cars, bikes are a dangerous hazard to everybody. Yeah yeah yeah, I know it's the law that bicyclists can ride anywhere cars ride - please spare me, it doesn't change the fact that the infrastructure was not designed for it.

Even though I don't ride a bike, I would support. 110%, my tax dollars going towards bike lanes and changing the infrastructure to make the roads safe for everybody, as is the case in many other cities.

Until if that happens, both drivers and bicyclists need to share the road. It's easy to blame one side or the other depending upon where you're standing. But the reality is that both sides have it's fair share of blame. Plenty of drivers break traffic laws, and plenty of bicyclists break traffic laws. And side who claims to be blameless is full of it.

To drivers: It aggravates me to, but it really is not that big of a deal to have to wait 20 seconds to be able to pass someone on a bike. Do yell or beep, it's not going to help, just deal with it. For the most part bicyclists don't bother me providing that the ride single file as far right as they can and obey the traffic laws. In these cases we should all be able to get along.

To bicyclists: This article is completely one sided in the way that it portrays sweet innocent little bicyclists as always obeying traffic laws being run down by the mean old truck drivers. I'm not saying that people in cars always obey traffic laws, but I see plenty of you bicyclists running stop signs and red lights, weaving through traffic and riding three abreast etc. etc. as has been claimed on this board. Further, take a minute to understand that although, yes, the law says you can ride on the road anywhere a car can, the infrastructure was no designed for bikes. I'm not saying that you shouldn't be there, but do your best to not only obey traffic laws, but to not impede the flow of traffic. Too often bicyclists hide behind the mentality of:

"It's the law that bicyclists can ride anywhere cars can - so I can ride anywhere I want. I can ride in the middle of the road if I feel like it. Tough crap if you have to slow down to 10mph, the law says I can do this - so deal with it!!!"

From reading the posts on this board, this is the mentality of many bicyclists (not all, there are a few who posted that surprised me). It is this general attitude among bicyclists that gets you yelled at, beeped at, spit at and stuff thrown at you. Yes, it is the law you can ride on the road but you need to be considerate as well if you expect drivers to be considerate to you.

That's my 2 cents.

Unfortunately, one thing that is prevalent that is not discussed in this article is the preponderance of car drivers who:

drive too fast;

don't look before they resume driving from a standing stop;

look before they make a left or a right turn;

stop before they make a right on red, or even yield when entering a rotary;

make extreme jackrabbit starts, often nearly running over people on the OPPOSITE side of the intersection;

and the list goes on and on. Seems like there's a feeling of "justifiied" anger out there, but when the angry person is in a vehicle weighing a ton or more, they can't be allowed to take out that anger with that vehicle. In any way shape or form. The purported misdeeds of a bicyclist are no where near as dangerous or terrifying as the sight of an angry Mass-hole driver bearing down on you.

No matter how fast you are going or how much obvious cycling gear you are wearing, most drivers still see "a kid on a bike." They don't take the cyclists seriously and, therefore, feel that they can do anything they want to them. I was nearly run off the road (clearly intentionally) just this past fourth of July.) However, there are also cycling snobs that damage the reputation of the rest of us by petulantly riding side by side rather than single file. A $2,000 bike doesn't give you the right to flout the rules whenever you feel like it. Somewhere there is a happy medium between the two sides - I just don't see us ever reaching it.

I didn't realize bikers paid bike tax used to fix the roads. Oh yeah they don't ....get on the sidewalk where you belong......and lose the pointy helmets and spandex. That's more of a road hazard then anything. When I see that, I almost black out form laughter....

I have seen and been aggravated by bikers riding two or more abreast, or way out from the shoulder of the road. However, while riding my bike, I have also been hit several times, and was, while living in Cambridge, once forced into the side of a bus by a Cambridge cop who was pulling to the curb to arrest a drunk. (I asked the cop what he thought he was doing, and was told to shut up, move along or be arrested for obstructing justice (?!)). I have also had countless near misses while riding, both intentional and not. What it boils down to is this: when I'm behind the wheel, I suffer, at worst, frustration from encounters with rude bikers. When I'm on two wheels and encounter clueless or rude or aggresive drivers, frustration has been the least of my worries, and I have wound up in the ER more than once. One of the accidents was clearly my fault, none of the others were. I knew three individuals who were killed by cars while riding, none of them were at fault. Drivers quit your whining.

It's simple. Bikers must obey the same rules as motorists. Someone mentioned it earlier - "Bicycles and Cars - Same Road, Same Rules!" Follow the rules!

Chico is completely right. I am all for bike riders. Ride em' all day and night is you want. But keep to the SIDE of the road. The problem arises when you come out 5 feet and literally cause the cars to slow to a crawl becasue they are afraid of hitting you. Yes, believe it or not some of us car riders don't want an injured bike rider on our hands. But really, stick closer to the sides.

Weaving in and out of traffic, not signaling, blowing reds....wow that sounds like something a lot of DRIVERS do as well. Guess what, when I'm in my car, I get pissed at the people who do that. Those that think flying up to my rear end and then swerving around me (especially when I'm already doing 70 in a 55) and then swerving into the next lane to make the triangle pass. Drivers complain about cyclists but remember you make the same complaints about other drivers.

I'm a cyclist, I do my best to signal at corners unless its blatantly obvious which direction I'm headed. I don't always ride right next to the shoulder for a variety of reasons. 1) If I ride in the middle of the bike lane to the white line, I'd like to believe I'm slightly more visible to passing cars and 2) there is usually a ton of rocks and glass and other crap that has been shoved over there that is horrible for skinny bike tires. Also, a lot of roads where I live don't have bike lanes so I'm more inclined to ride further away from the edge because there are probably some large cracks and drop offs that I, nor my bike, want to take a fun ride on.

Wow. So much pent-up anger, frustration and passive-aggressiveness, coupled with our identities as "driver" , "biker" etc. There are ignorant and stupid people and they may be bikers or drivers - there's no reason the lump all drivers or bikers into a single group because some act stupidly.

And there's absolutely no justification for "blaming the victim" as some comments up above did regarding *some* drivers being intentionally mean to bikers and endangering them. Any sensible person would condemn such stupid behavior, irrespective of whether s/he uses 2, 4, 6 or 8 wheels, or none.

As a pedestrian, I cannot tell how common it is that so many drivers do not stop at a cross-walk - sometimes, the only way I am able to cross is if I aggressively step out and wave at the driver to stop. What's amusing is that a few feet away, the light is red. So, not sure what their hurry is and why would some drivers not pay attention to someone waiting at a cross-walk. And if drivers could please take 2 seconds to look behind in that rear-view mirror after they park their car on a road and before they open the door as they're busy talking to their bf/gf/fb/whoever - there may be a biker behind them about to be doored - that will be much appreciated.

I agree that drivers are sh*ts to cyclists a lot of the time, but honestly, the cyclists are much, much worse most of the time, swerving in and out of stopped traffic, running red lights without a second glance.

Bottom line, if you want respect you have to give it.

Drivers and cyclists seriously need to chill! It's amazing to see how two sided this debate has become with almost no middle ground. Both have a right to the road, and both have their fare share of users who disobey the rules. It's a fact of life that drivers, who want to get from point A to point B as fast as possible, are going to get angry when inhibited by a cyclist or a pack of cyclists. It's also a fact that many cyclists are going to disobey traffic laws and put themselves in danger. The difference is, as has been stated before, that cyclists are at a much greater risk of being injured or killed if something were to go wrong, and cyclists are actively doing their part to ease traffic congestion, reduce fuel comsumption, and improve air quality. So drivers, think about this next time you get impatient and want to lay on the horn at some biker in front of you; that biker is taking one less car off the road that could be in front of you, causing more backups, using more fuel and deterioating the air that you breath.

It's not worth the risk (biking on roads). There are a lot of bike paths, and more need to be built like the one from Cambridge to Bedford. There are a lot of old railroad paths that are perfect, so let's stop wasting our money on the socialist (yeah let's overide 2 1/2 so Teddy K. can pay for illegal immigrant's educations and health care))pigs we have running this state government and spend it on something constructive

I agree that drivers need to be more vigilant about bikers. That being said perhaps some bikers here can explain to me why they need to ride three, four, and five abreast along side roads, and not move when traffic comes up behind them. I have had this happen more than once and a gentle tap to the horn to get their attention results in middle fingers tossed my way. My feeling is if bikers feel they want to peloton on public roads they should enter the Tour de France. If they ride single file they should be given room and courtesy. It's tragic but many bikers who do get hit seem to be ones who are not paying attention, or feel that cars will get out of their way. Unfortunately it doesn't work that way.

Two weeks ago, I was nearly sent to the hospital by a biker who decided that stop signs and crosswalks were merely suggestions for her. I have seen a child get off a school bus, trying to cross the street, only to be hit by a biker who ignored the STOP sign.
I'm all for biking to work, in fact, I walk every day. I lament the loss of biker courtesy - indicating that you're passing another biker or pedestrian "on your left", obeying traffic laws, including one way streets, not riding on sidewalks, walking bikes through crosswalks, etc.
I am very conscious and conscientious of those who choose to bike, but I walk because I can't bike, and I'm taking my life in my own hands with those who bike on the sidewalks upon which I walk. When I do drive, because I can't ride my bike, or walk long distances, I am often faced with rude bikers who seem to think they can bend and break the rules at will.

People who are able to bike to work are great, but respect goes both ways. The next time I'm forced to literally jump out of the way or get thrown off balance because a biker has gotten so close or has ignored the rules, I'm just going to let myself get hit, maybe throwing me in the hospital will make a point.

Gas prices should improve this problem. I moved from Boston to Montreal two years ago and it's a much better biking environment. Gas and parking are expensive, there are a good number of bike lanes, and the city has installed lots of bike parking everywhere making it easy to park near work. Many people commute by bike so drivers are expecting them. The bikers aren't more polite, but drivers have grown accustomed to them, and aren't startled when a bike appears suddenly. This seems to have reduced the stress level that is reflected by drivers posting on this board. In my experience, it's usually the close calls that gets people upset, whether or not it was their fault.

When in my car, I have had to become used to being constantly be on the lookout for bikes, but it's a small price to pay for an overall safer riding environment. And, in general, when driving, I would much rather have others on bikes rather than in cars so as to minimize the automobile traffic. $4 gas not enough to get you on a bike? Wait till it's $6, like we're paying here. You will feel a lot better about becoming bike-friendly!

Most cyclists ride their bikes when they are riding their bikes. I have witnessed a great many motorists who multi-task. While driving, they read the newspaper, read a book, make phone calls, text messages, apply makeup, do their nails, and God bless the one guy I saw playing the trumpet. Please, put down the trumpet and just drive.

If bikers would follow the laws we would all be better off. They rarely stop at red lights or stop signs. They drive right through pedestrians crossing the streets. If they want respect they should follow the same laws everyone else does. I tend to find bikers in the city a menace.

If you think I'm going to bike to work and walk into my office soaked in sweat, you're crazy.

I use to think the same way most of the people who are complaining about cyclists. Running through red lights, etc., etc.. But then gas hit $4 dollars a gallon and the T is getting on the expensive side, so I decided to tune up my bike and hit the road. Now if you think about it if you come up to a stop light on a bike and the sidewalk on your side has a walking sign, why wouldn't you take it. you all would do the same thing if you got out of your car and ride a bike. Most bike riders stay close to the right side of the lane, but with cars parked and narrow lanes they try their hardest to leave room for cars and seriously if there is no on coming traffic you can go to the middle of the road to pass the cyclist. Now for the crazy cyclist who do crazy things I can't explain, you just can't group all the bad apples together. Don't worry gas prices will be $6 dollars a gallon and you all will be joining us as we ridee to work.

I agree with a lot of the other posts that I've seen regarding the bike riders and the double standard as far as obeying the rules of the road. First of all I would NEVER throw anything at a person on a bike, that's just plain wrong. I have however, reminded bike riders that the rules of the road do apply to them as much as it apply to motor vehicles. On more occasions than I can count I've seen bicyclists cutting off cars and pedestrians, failing to stop at lights and stop signs. Another thing that bicyclists should be reminded of is that on narrow roads riding side by side so they can talk is not safe, to avoid hitting them cars have to cross over the center line which puts people's lives in danger.

On another occasion, I nearly wiped out a cyclist in Harvard Square when I opened my car door to exit the car. Once again, the lack of eyes in the back of my head nearly caused an accident.

Izzy, maybe it's time to repair those two rear-view mirrors in your car (inside and on the door) pronto, because biotechnology is still some time away from putting common sense along with eyes in the back of your head.

Modern roads are designed for cars and trucks. Period.

I have no idea why we allow bicycles on roads. I think it's insane. It may be because bicycles were originally competing with horses and horse drawn carriages. But since 1908 when the Model T was introduced till now, authorities have allowed bicycles and motorized vehicles to continue to coexist. It would be a very difficult process, politically, to now remove all the bicycles from the roadways even though it would be safer for everyone.

People in India and China are dropping their bikes in droves in favor of cars. Why? Because they're faster and safer and now they can afford them.

Cyclists: go to the gym and work out instead.

Bikes should be registered with a license plate. As a former car owner in this City (use Zipcar only occasionally--otherwise, I walk or ride the MBTA) I have been in the position of nearly run over by bikers (but never cars even though its Boston) when walking home or to work.

I want the option of reporting bikers who run stop lights (VERY COMMON--the majority of bikers do this--don't know where the author of this piece lives) or ride on sidewalks whirring by me or my husband without even announcing their approach.

It is illegal (or if it isn't, it ought to be) to have a iPod or CD player on when driving a car. You need all senses--eyes and ears to be a rider on the road. I can still hear a horn with a radio on in the car, bikers cannot do this with an iPod.

That being said, I would really like Boston to be more bike friendly. My husband wants to ride a bike to work, but I have no desire to be a young widow. Until we move to the countryside or bike lanes are more present, I do not want him doing so. A pity, because the exercise is great.

Wow. Looks like a lot of car drivers feel that they do, in fact, own the road. Seems that many feel justified because they see bikes not obeying the law. Boo freakin hoo. I see cars not obeying the law all the time too -- I just don't cry about it like a little b1tch. Grow up, let the cops enforce the law and try to get along.

Bikes should be registered with a license plate. As a former car owner in this City (use Zipcar only occasionally--otherwise, I walk or ride the MBTA) I have been in the position of nearly run over by bikers (but never cars even though its Boston) when walking home or to work.

I want the option of reporting bikers who run stop lights (VERY COMMON--the majority of bikers do this--don't know where the author of this piece lives) or ride on sidewalks whirring by me or my husband without even announcing their approach.

It is illegal (or if it isn't, it ought to be) to have a iPod or CD player on when driving a car. You need all senses--eyes and ears to be a rider on the road. I can still hear a horn with a radio on in the car, bikers cannot do this with an iPod.

That being said, I would really like Boston to be more bike friendly. My husband wants to ride a bike to work, but I have no desire to be a young widow. Until we move to the countryside or bike lanes are more present, I do not want him doing so. A pity, because the exercise is great.

When I am driving my car I hate everyone riding a bike. When I am riding my bike I hate everyone driving a car. Why? In general people are jerks and don't think the rules apply to them. There is nothing you can do about it. People will make up their own rules. Pay attention and worry about yourself and f everyone else.

I have been a pedestrian in Boston for the past 10 years. In those ten years I have never seen a bicyclists stop at red light, a stop sign or a pedestrian crossing. Bella must have been talking in the third person when she said, “We never blow through traffic lights or stop signs." I invite Bella to walk the streets of Boston as a pedestrian and see just how many of her fellow cyclists obey traffic laws.

Mr. English, I once tossed a half empty slush puppie at a biker who could not understand how to used handsignals. I hope it was you. Move to Europe if you like biking so much.

I'm one of those bikers! I run red lights, treat stop signs as yeilds, etc. And, on the flip side, Boston drivers don't seem so obnoxious to me! I've heard other bikers talk about these experiences, getting yelled at etc, but it's never happened to me.

Maybe it's because when I do cut people off, I apologize. That I always say thank you when someone lets me cross, etc, and that I know when I'm engaging in high risk behavior, and that, in those situations, an accident would largely be my fault. Plus I've spent most of my life in Boston, and have nothing to compare it to.

In my own mind, there is a gray area for bikes. We are a hybrid between cars and pedestrians. A car needs to follow strict regulations, because it's this massive, fast, hunk of metal that can kill people.

But I notice that hard-core bikers disagree with me. I started biking on a visit to Beijing, where taxis sometimes share the bike lane, buses swerve to stops right in front of you, you never see helmets or bike lights, and bikers will wade into

four-lane traffic

at night. This makes the western attitudes here seem a bit quaint.

Bicyclers on the commute routes to Boston from locations West, bike as if they are daring cars to hit them. They don't obey the basic rules of the road and often put in danger, not only themselves, but pedestrians and atuo drivers as well. Bikes need to stay away from cars and not zig zag crazily out of driving lanes..its awful because of the cyclists, not the cars.

I wish there was bicyclist hunting season, go ride your bike in the woods fruitcake

As a bicyclist on Mass Ave in Cambridge and Arlington, I admit that I will sometimes ride through a red light after carefully checking for cross traffic and pedestrians. I see this as a benefit for both riders and drivers, as it often allows me to get ahead of the traffic and minimizes the amount of time that rush hour vehicles need to work around me.

I will also say that many, many drivers do not bother to use their directional signals, making it impossible for us riders to anticipate their turns into our path.

Bottom line: You are on a bike, you are not a car, get out of the road!!!!

Perception is reality. Both cars and cyclists are right in this debate. For example, I cycle on the Cape and witness many acts of driving while under the influence of bad behavior. Driving in Mass is aggressive to the extreme - evident to both drivers and cyclists. However, I and many other cyclists also fail to exercise good judgement in many situations. The problem is that nobody wins when anyone isn't safe on the road. Reckless driving can injure and kill cyclists, and poor cycling etiquette creates frustration and impatience by drivers, continuing the cycle.

The only answer is tolerance. For every driver who encounters cyclists on the road - imagine that one of them is your own child. For every cyclist bending or breaking the rules of the road - imagine you are riding with your child - and showing them the rules of the road for cyclists.

I find the comments here comical at best.

I ride to work 2 days a week, I drive 2 days and I work from home the third. My trip is about 8 miles each way, with most of that ride in Medford and the rest in Charlestown. When I'm driving I rarely see bike riders acting like people describe above and when I'm riding, I steadfastly obey the rules. While its possible that you can "get away with" riding like a jerk in Sherborn, not following the rules will get you killed in Medford or Sullivan Square. Perhaps its because riding like an ass will get you killed. Too many cars moving too fast to be a jerk. The only thing I do in my commute that I've seen people complain about is I move up to the stop line at a red light. I do that because I also drive, and I know that you're far more likely to see the stopped bike in front of you than the bike behind you.

What I find truely interesting is the number of arogant drivers posting here who think that because they've seen a few cyclists who've done something they didn't like (like run a red light) then all cyclists must be banned. I suspect that if your examined the driving habits of those same people, you'd find they're the people that the cyclists are complaining about. Respect goes both ways. Cyclists failing to keep right (I hate the packs of weekend warriors going 3 across as much as anyone) are just as bad as drivers who cut bikes off and "block the lane." The only difference is those jerks blocking the road are slowing you down, which is an inconvenience at worst. Cutting off a biker has the potential to seriously injure or kill someone. That's a bit of a difference.

And yes, everyone, bikes AND cars need to stop for pedestrians in cross walks.

If they want some type of equality or fairness, maybe they should have to register their Bicycles with the state and pay some taxes to have the pleasure and luxury of riding in our city streets. Everyone who owns a car in Mass. must pay excise tax every year and pay registration, how come bicycles do not pay these fees??

IF you want fairness, try helping us out with the cost of the roads.

Okay, here's a question...I've lived in several major cities, and can believe that many urban cyclists are law-abiding, safety-conscious individuals who do want to "share the road."

But why is it, then, when these same individuals go on vacation, they assume all bets are off?

I live in coastal Maine, and we all dread this time of year because for some reason, our little peninsula is out-of-state bicycle heaven. We have cyclists riding in packs beyond every other blind curve, traveling along at 20 miles under the speed limit, chatting and yakking away to each other and paying no attention to the road at all.

Two days ago I happened to come around a curve to find a bicyclist who was clearly from "away", had no mirrors, was wearing headphones and never had a clue I was behind her. She veered from the right side of the road to the center line as the scenery moved her, and because I was in a no-passing zone and a blind curve, there was no way to get around her safely. Fortunately, since I was going forty instead of the posted speed of 45 mph, I was able to slow down before hitting her.

I then got to follow Ms.Oblivion for almost ten minutes...then when I could FINALLY safely pass her, just as I pulled alongside her in the oncoming lane, she reached for her water bottle --and swerved four feet to the left OVER the yellow line as she drank.

I was still shaking twenty minutes later.

Please, just because you're on vacation and you're in the middle of nowhere, remember that a forty-five mph road with blind curves and no shoulder is just as dangerous (and maybe more so) than a six-lane highway in the city.

I really, really don't want to be the one who hits you.

Many posters, primarily minisoup, are absolutely correct. Unfortunately, while I usually enjoy Bella English's articles, this one could not have more errors. I commute to work daily through Natick, Wayland, Weston and Wellesley, and I have seen far more entitled, scofflaw cyclists than you could imagine. There's a very large problem that goes unmentioned in this story: that bicycles are not cars and should not pretend that they are. They usually cannot keep up with the general traffic speed and they are not usually as visible. This vulnerability alone should make cyclists give way to autos and obey all traffic laws, but many of them don't. Just because the law says you're "a vehicle" doesn't mean you're the same kind of vehicle, and automobile drivers deserve equal respect - something they do not often receive from cyclists.

I applaud cyclists who not only know the law, but combine it with plain common sense. The rest deserve what they get.

"YOU are the ones taking a stupid risk and blaming the drivers for using the road as it was intended. Stick to the trails, jerks"

Stick to the trails? Seriously? Do you think we're all out there cycling for fun?

This is the attitude that lies at the root of the problem; that bikes are toys and not a legitimate means of transportation.

I'd love it if there were a trail that could take me from home to work, or to the store, or to the T. For now I guess I'll have to ride on your roads.

It's understandable when a cyclist "takes the lane" due to hazardous conditions on the right...but it's also assumed that traffic will move at or near the speed limit most of the time (that's how city planners decide on how long to make lights turn red/green, etc), so if you can't maintain that limit, get back to the right as soon as it's safe. A car having to wait 15-30 seconds to pass a biker is fine...that car having to drive at half the limit for a mile or more behind a cyclist who is just in the lane for no apparent reason is not. "Share the road" goes for EVERYONE on it.

Please remember that bicyclist cannot always stay to the right. Our streets are not fit for walking let alone a bicyclist. You think you have pot holes to have to go around – check out the breakdown lanes where we ride. These lanes are not maintained like the main surface of the road is.

I agree that not all bicyclists live by the rules of the road but if you are coming up behind someone in an automobile please slow down. We know who will win if there is a collision. Don’t be in such a hurry to get to the stop sign or red light ahead. If you notice we soon catch-up to you.

As for needing a license – huh. I ride a scooter and you have to have a driver’s license and obey the rules of the road. The same thing happens to people on scooter. As I was going 20 mph in a 30 mph in Braintree this past weekend two car came barreling down the road at a good 50 mph. I bet they had a license too.

Ignorant people will continue to yell at us to get off the road, get a real bike, tossing things out their windows just to show they’re ignorant. I say share the road or stay home, bicyclist were here first and we are not going away. Think before you act because you too may be riding one soon with the rising prices of gas. Drive safe no matter what you are driving…..!!

"Bottom line: You are on a bike, you are not a car, get out of the road!!!!"

Bottom line: The law says bikes can be on the road.

Okay, I admit I skimmed these comments, but as a driver and a cyclist, I think both of the vocal sides here have a point. In particular, I think there are more cyclists who disregard the law than there are drivers who recklessly endanger cyclists. Nothing steams me up more than watching a cyclist blow through a red light, because it ruins drivers perception of those of us who follow the rules of the road.

At the end of the day, the biggest missing piece is probably education—for drivers, cyclists, and police. We're all suffering not just from the bad apples in each camp, but from a "driver" education society, in which bicycles are considered to be kids toys and little or no education is provided on how cars and bikes can safely coexist.

A lot of people who seem to think they can decide what others should do, instead of following the law and trying to get along with others. A lot of Life is learning how to accept things we don't like and still get through the day. When I'm driving my car, I don't like passing cyclists either, but I still try to do it safely. Some cyclists break the rules, and shouldn't. Surprisingly (?), at least as many motor vehicle drivers do the same kinds of things. Just because someone else breaks the rules or annoys you isn't justification for killing them by running them over because you're too impatient to use the brake pedal. That cyclist whose life you don't care about might be your relative or neighbor or friend or boss or maybe just someone you don't know with an equal right to share this world with everyone else.

"The roads are designed for cars"

Wrong. Bikes have been around for decades longer than cars. In fact, the first "Good Roads" movements of the turn of the twentieth century were spurred by CYCLISTS. So for all of you self-righteous drivers who enjoy the roads you seem to think were made for you, YOU'RE WELCOME.

Bella, I don't know what roads you're on, but I can tell you honestly, from my experience, cyclists do not follow the rules of the road. On Comm. Ave., the Mass. Ave. bridge, the B.U. Bridge, Land Blvd., Brookline Ave., etc., they do not stop at red lights or at crosswalks. I see them crossing in front of Green Line trains, riding diagonally across busy intersections. They slow the traffic flow for commuters. They are rude. They think they own the road. Because of their carelessness, I have almost hit them many times. As an automobile driver, I am the one who has to be on alert.

Drive through downtown Boston and tell my bikers follow the rules? They swerve through traffic dangerously, blow through lights, blow across cross walks, and provide a hazard to motorists and pedestrians. They want to act like a car until there is a red light, and then blow through it like a pedestrian J-walking. Bicyclists are the hazard.

Whenever I've seen cyclists in the metrowest area, I've noticed that they tend to slow down traffic by not moving over to the right of the road to allow cars to pass.

This actually results in everyone else driving at 10 hours per hour and wasting fuel. They really should obey rules and move to the right to allow everyone to pass. Until there is a side lane for cyclists, they are more of a safety hazard and cause of high oil consumption!

THERE ARE A HOLES ON BOTH SIDES OF THE ARGUMENT...

WANT TO FIX THE SITUATION? RIDE AND DRIVE THE POLITE/CORRECT WAY SO EVERYONE CAN STOP BEING VICIOUS TO EACH OTHER... IT'S A VICIOUS CYCLE AND UNTIL PEOPLE STOP BEING STEREOTYPICAL A HOLE DRIVERS/RIDERS, NOTHING IS GOING TO CHANGE...

OK, I admit it. I bike a lot in my leafy little suburb south of Boston and break lots of traffic regulations. If there are no cars coming, I blow through stop signs and red lights and I go the wrong way down one-way streets. It's called bike rules and any bike rider who says he doesn't follow them is lying.

On the other hand, I'm not stupid and always assume that everyone else, car drivers most especially, is stupid and will kill me given the opportunity. So I do my best not to give them the chance. If there is traffic at intersections, I certainly stop. I take my lane and won't risk getting doored by riding too close to parked vehicles. If you can't pass me, wait. It's my road, too. I just assume that you will take a right turn while you are next to me and run me over. I expect you to back out of your driveway without looking and just assume that signals mean nothing to you even though I always signal if cars are near me.

Be aware, use common sense and presume worst.

After reading some of these holier than thou, look how green I am, Europe and San Francisco are so much more enlightened than the United States I want to thank all the blowhard bike riders who have posted here today. You have now given us all an incentive to flatten you!

Not to stereotype, but people of certain socioeconomic backgrounds have egos as big as HumVees that fail to deflate safely down into the green zone when they get on a bicycle in an urban setting. Some drivers think they own the road. Some bicyclist do too.

Yeah for the extremists and holier than though attitudes!

That's right, thousands of drivers are out there every day throwing m80s, dumping household garbage in the way, and throwing water balloons at cyclists! Of course the poor cyclists have never done anything wrong and stop at every traffic light, obey every law, and are the saints of the world! I honestly can't remember the last time I saw a cyclist stop at a red light on mass ave when they could go through (probably) without causing a car accident. Additionally, I can say one out of 20 bike riders will use hand signals.

As a bike rider who follows the rules I get frustrated by the other riders. This isn't the 1800s, the roads are built for cars now. There are safe ways to get along without pulling the whole "the whole world is against us" card. Obey the rules, be safe, use signals, WEAR A HELMET, etc. Until that happens, I really have no sympathy for complaining bycyclists. I manage to ride safely most days and drive safely the other days. I get more frustrated with cyclists than car drivers, both when I'm driving and riding.

Pure trash of an article without any objectivity. Who's the boob who thought this was worthy of posting?

I was in an accident while driving my motorscooter and a cyclist I was about to pass turned 90 degrees in front of me without looking first. We t-boned. He landed on his feet, I, on my back, and the scooter on its side. 2 months of chiropractic rehab and $1000 damage to my scoot for me...nothing for him or his bike.

Also, what about drivers who get into accidents caused by trying to avoid cyclists? The motorist doesn't always win the "battle."

(to his credit, the cyclist stopped and was very apologetic, taking the blame for the accident).

Cyclists seem to me to feel that they are engaging in an elite sport and often put themselves out too far in the driving lane, and expect the motorist to honor that move. Motorists approach, especially on windy two lane secondary roads, at a good rate of speed, and when the above occurs have to throw out the anchor so to speak. Not a nice feeling. Also, when you approach one, you wonder if they will keep their balance, and not fall into you, so you don't want to be going too fast beside, or around them. Two wheels, especially the thin variety that is the norm, can cause that feeling in me.

I should add, I don't want it both ways. The fact is that bikes can treat traffic laws more loosely, the same way pedestrians can jaywalk safely.

--As long as we are careful! I have a much clearer view of the road than a driver, and I can hear approaching cars, etc, better. Cars are fast, big, and cannot stop easily, so the risk of a bad accident is higher.

I never block cars behind me, and am always aware of my surroundings, so I get out of the way when I hear a car. I'm sure I don't bike as fast as many of these very serious, "I am a car," bikers. (You know who they are. They wear uniforms.)

Everyone on the road should be treated with respect.

Pretending bikes are just like cars is unrealistic (and a bit precious.) And when people resent bikes greater flexibility, well, that sounds like the proud Boston tradition of griping about everything.

"People in India and China are dropping their bikes in droves in favor of cars. Why? Because they're faster and safer and now they can afford them."

Who said that? Seriously think about it. An average of 44,000 people die every year in the U.S. from Automobile related accidents. About 700 people die in cycling accidents. Still think cars are safer?

My 40+ year old Raleigh bike, bought at a Nantucket yard sale, still has a license plate on the back fender--just a nice green metal plate with 4 numbers on it. Apparently back then bikes were licensed just like cars (at least on Nantucket!)and I can't imagine but that being clearly identifiable might help improve the behavior of some rogue cyclists. I'm generally on the side of the cyclists here, but I also worked downtown for years and had many near-misses with amped-up bike messengers racing through red lights and crosswalks, scooting over sidewalks, etc.. The contentiousness on this forum just shows how intense the feelings are on the road and surely it's not helping make any of us safer.

When I moved back here from Arizona I was hoping to be able to bike around but I just feel it is way too dangerous to even try it! In Arizona the police actually give tickets for traffic infractions like stopping on a crosswalk and even penalize bikers because there they are considered just as worthy as the drivers of cars! My brother even stopped riding a motorcycle because drivers are so disrespectful toward them and so unless the laws are enforced there is no way I am considering hitting the road with my bike. Oh yeah, I live in the suburbs and it's that bad! The law enforcement and highway dept.'s need to goto cities like Phoenix, Tucson, Portland, or even New York and LISTEN to how they enforce safety for all people on the streets!

How about drivers learning to drive? You should not cross a yellow line by five feet to go around a cyclist. You shouldn't cross it at all. If you can't pass a cyclist without leaving your lane you shouldn't be driving, as you don't have the skill. If a cyclist is in my way I tap the horn so he moves over, I do not go wandering into the oncoming lane like the laws of physics don't apply to me. People who cross the dividing line to pass bikes are the same idiots who think two cars at stop signs calls for a negotiation. If you have the right of way, YOU go, don't wave me in front of you!

Don't let a few bad apples ruin the bunch. I commute to work by bike several times a week, 14 miles round trip through the congestion of Boston. I also ride on the weekends, generally west of the city. My opinion is that most of the drivers here in Boston are very respectful to those on bikes. More bike lanes would be great, and I'll pay an excise tax for my bike once I start seeing a bike lane on each major road.

I too treat red lights as Yield signs. Want to know why?

.
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... because it gives me a block to ride where I'm in a lot less danger from drivers and buses and parkers and turning cars and jaywalkers and potholes and taxis and and and and. It gives me a block of peace where I might not get killed.

If I felt safe riding in traffic, I'd stop for a red. Probably.

To the person who argued that a bike causes much less damage by violating the rules of the road than a car: yes, that's true, but that doesn't mean it's ok for cyclists to ignore the rules! Hey, SUVs cause much more damage than my compact Civic - does that excuse me from obeying the laws of the road? Of course not! Many cyclists obey the rules, but the majority that I've seen do not. They want to have it both ways - and when someone gripes about them running through a red light or a stop sign, they argue that they can't cause much damage. Even if that's true: the rules are there for a reason. And they're there to protect YOU. You can't complain if you get hit by a car when you violated the rules.

I bicycle and I also drive very frequently. Whenever I bicycle, I usually attempt to plan out my route so I am on off-road paths more often than not, and if I do need to be on-road, I will be very cautious of what is going on around me. If I hear loud engines coming up from behind me, I will look back and if I see two people drag racing, I will probably pull off to the side. I never really noticed any jerky motorists while bicycling, because I do know that they have bigger vehicles, and most of the roads are designed to accommodate them. I am slower than a vehicle, so I am not going to ride in the middle of the road and slow them down forever. I was on Soldier's Field Road making a left turn into a business when I saw two bicyclists riding eastbound on the sidewalk. As I started the turn, I saw them and stopped so they could pass. They looked at me and yelled, even though I was allowing them to go past. Then when I pulled into the parking lot, I saw them cross the driveway without looking to see if there were any vehicles coming out, and when one was, they spit on the car and yelled at that driver. What struck me as peculiar, is that there is an OFF ROAD PAVED BICYCLE PATH that runs parallel to this road.

People can be idiots alike. Around the immediate Boston area, people have a sense of entitlement and smugness, so I say the bikers are worse than the drivers. When you get out into Pembroke, the drivers may be worse, but the roads are longer, are still narrow, and you may be holding them up if you are too far into the road.

Although I have lived in Massachusetts for over 30 years, I remain amused and appalled at the provincialism and arrogance of the people in the region. Is it a generalized inferiority complex that causes so much anger on this subject? Are we expected to believe that drivers of two ton automobiles REALLY feel threatened by cyclists? And who told some riders that it is ok to ride two and three abreast when a driver is right behind them?

This is an old battle, perpetuated by stubborn fools on both sides. In other regions, drivers, riders and government collaborate to address the issue of a multitude of conveyances in the same space. This is especially important in light of high gas prices and our ongoing support for corrupt middle eastern regimes through energy purchases. Bike vs car should be bike and car and scooter and pedestrian and we need municipal leadership to stand up and recognize what century we are actually in and provide the leadership in accommodating all reasonable modes of transport. Reckless cyclists should be regulated, but drivers must recognize that we may someday all become cyclists and drive accordingly. New Englanders, you are not that special or important.

For a State that intrudes upon all of our lives "for our own good," the Commonwealth should ban bicycles from all public roads - unless there are clearly defined bike lanes. The bicycles are a dangerous to all on the highways.

I try my very best to leave room for cyclists, but cyclists also need to obey traffic rules.

Also, many cyclists, I have noticed, are riding on the sidewalks for lack of either bike lanes or room in the road. I understand their need for safety, but cyclists, remember that the sidewalks are usually filled with unsuspecting walkers.
If you are coming up from behind, yell out and let us know! On more than one occasion recently I have nearly been run over by a cyclist who is on the sidewalk. I have walked in Boston for the last 9 years too, and only recently have there been so many cyclists - and those going up on the sidewalks. I know that the rising gas prices and overcrowding on some buses and MBTA lines have something to do with it. Just be conscientious, folks.

I also think that the City of Boston needs to do something about this and get more bike lanes in so that cyclists have someplace to go. Cambridge is already on the money on this one.

I would like to suggest to the author of the article to come out and ride in the streets of Boston - any part of the city, really - and then over one of the bridges to Cambridge sometime between noon and 5:30pm on a weekday, and then head up to Harvard Square via Mem Drive or Mass Ave or even Broadway. Heck, pick a road with a bike lane. It'll be obvious (with many many reasons as stated above) why motorists are upset with bikers. My commute is only a 3-mile trip from mid Cambridge to the Longwood area, but I've been in a handful near-hits because a careless biker did not obey the rules of the road and just decided to wave in between lanes and cars during very very very busy rush hour traffic. That being said, I agree with everyone above that roads here are not designed for sharing. And I've never had any problems with rule-abiding bikers.

Of course, it seems like the bikers who are reading this article and responding to these comments are probably not the ones who have complete disregard for the road and the other users - pedestrians included. If the mayor wants to make this city a more bike-friendly one, he should consider putting some sort of public service announcement out there to educate the overwhelming majority of urban bikers who habitually ignore the rules. For most people the last time they were taught about the road rules was probably freshman year in high school - it's time for a little refresher! Short advertisements on TV will help both bikers and drivers understand what they need to do. Also, I think bikes as vehicles should be TICKETED for violations - especially running the red light, ignoring stop signs, etc. Not sure how much that would be enforced, but that can help to deter some of these behaviors.

Just last night, I was biking on a little traveled road in Lunenburg, a community in central MA.. I was obeying the rules of the road, and had just turned on a blinking red light under my seat, so as to notify the cars coming to my rear. It was just after 8 PM, with plenty of light. As I crossed a road entering/exiting to my right, I heard a load roar to my right rear, and a young man in a pickup drove within a foot of my bike and roared onto the right exit, swearing and yelling for me to "watch it". He then gave me the finger, and took off! I wasn't even aware that he was there, as he approached form my rear. I was on the side of the road, simply riding as required. Outrageous.

I also commute through Bedford, Lincoln, Concod, and Lexington and have myself encountered what many here have...inconsiderate cyclists who seemingly do not care about "road rules."
But the poster Thom seems to have it right when he points out that there are bad apples in both camps, and that infuriates those of us who try to be courteous to the "other side."
Of course, I'm still trying to figure out how groups of riders who stretch out over entire lanes of traffic near Hanscom Field think that they're the ones getting the bad bad rap. Just my two pence.

The road should be for cars - period. If you want exercise - go on a path specifically designed for bicycles or join the gym and ride the stationary bike. There are too many of us on the road with busy lifestyles commuting back and forth and paying a million dollars for gas because we HAVE TO. To pay our bills, our mortgage, etc. Cyclists have alternatives - cars do not. We should be able to get where we are going without having to consider those who are getting some exercise or taking a leisurely ride and enjoying the view. I shouldn't have to slow down to wait to pass someone on a bike - to then only have to stop at the red light that the same biker blows through. There is no way to enforce cyclists to obey the rules. It is not safe for anyone and they should not be on the road.

Bella, Love you columns but I'll have to vehemently differ with you on this one. We live in a rural town outside Boston with narrow, curvy roads - real favorites of the bicycle set. But why can't they stay out of the middle of the road, stop riding two and three abreast while chatting, and peddling furiously when they see the rest of us trying to safely pass them befor e the next perilous curve comes up ? I understand bicyles have narrow misses but I can't tell you how many near accidents I have almost had when aggravated drivers on the other side of these tiny rodes swerve into my lane trying to pass these bozos who are riding their bikes in the middle of road. And dont get me going on the idiot teams of bicylists who pull out from stop signs in front of you at 6am even though they see you coming legally down the road or the crazed bozos on their racing bikes that come out of nowhere at 45mph in the dusk on these roads and hills. It makes me wish for winter when we are rid of these menaces. The Massachusetts drivers are bad enough but many of these bicycle people are even worse !

A few of these posts point out that "Bikers don't follow the rules". This is a generalization. Unless you see me breaking a law on my bike, you have no right to assume that I will. After you hit a biker, try telling the judge, "Bikers never follow the rules", and see how that works out. Just because there is a road and you have a car or bike does not give you the right to smash into everything that blocks the way.
Especially in Boston, I keep my eyes open and PAY ATTENTION no matter what method I choose to travel. I think everyone should. You never know what might happen there.
These car vs bike forums are such flame and troll bait. It doesn't matter how anyone else gets around, jerks are always jerks. The next time you see some guy on a bike weaving through the lanes and running red lights, don't think "Bikers are all jerks", think "It's a good thing THAT jerk didn't drive his car today".

In response to comment #152:

Yes, our rickety old Massachusetts traffic requires drivers being overtaken (including bicyclists) to stay in the right lane, but unlike in most states, not to keep as far right as they safely can. That does not always mean keeping far right. Motorists' overtaking unsafely is a problem only worsened by bicyclists' offering them the opportunity to do so. The Bicycle Driver Training classes of the Massachusetts Bicycle Coalition, which I am assuming the cyclist meant, teach claiming the lane only when it is too narrow to share. Motorists who demand that bicyclists to keep far right so they can pass unsafely are, I'm sorry, placing their own convenience above the bicyclists' safety. As both a cyclist and a motorist, I've seen plenty of examples of both good and bad behavior from both sides.

Murph (#89) summed up my point before I could post, but for one thing:

"As for the pedestrians, I have seen three accidents involving bikes and pedestrians. All were the fault of the pedestrian, who blindly walked into traffic expecting everybody to get out of the way for them."

If you affirm that, by law, bikes are entitled to every right and responsibility of traveling on public roads, then you MUST accept that, by law, pedestrians ALWAYS have the right of way. That is the benefit/problem of a rules based society as opposed to a principals based society.

Explicitly saying bikes/cars can do this and bikes/cars can't do that somewhat absolves people of personal accountability for their actions. What if the law was don't act like a jerk when traveling on a road?

I think it's rather unfortunate to see bicyclers getting hollered at, spit on and whatever else. It's also pretty bad to see people ripping those who are wearing biking gear. This kind of ignorance is a bit ridiculous.

As others on here have echoed though, I constantly see bicyclers doing stupid stuff. The majority do not seem to respect red lights if they see a wide opening and will go on the walk signal, making them sort of a hybrid vehicle/pedestrian. Many ride to the right, but are quick to dart out rather than slow down if they encounter an obstacle, making it tough to gauge when it is safe to pass. This is why car drivers get annoyed. They don't want to hurt bikers, but it makes driving more difficult.

I almost hit one recently who flew by me on the right while I was taking a right turn (with my turn signal on of course). With the prevalence of bikers lately, hitting someone on a bike is one of my larger fears while driving. I try my best to avoid it, but it's not always easy since bikes can be erratic.

Personally, I'd love to bike to work at least part of the time, but I know it's a death wish and places an undue burden on the car driving majority. I really don't think the infrastructure is there for bicycling around here -- as unfortunate as it is. Poster #88 raises some good points.

Driving a car/riding a bike doesn't make you an idiot. Being an idiot makes you a idiot.

David,

I do own a car and pay all the taxes you mention. I guess for my own safety, despite all the health and environmental reasons to the contrary, I need to be in that car congesting the road in front of you, because otherwise I deserve to get hit and die?

This is ridiculous. Look at the bigger picture.

I am all for people riding bicycles and not driving cars. I like to ride a bicycle myself. But .... my experience in the Carlisle area is that bicyclists persist, when riding in groups, in riding two and three abreast, unnecessarily and illegally impeding the flow of automobile traffic. And if you toot the horn at them, more often than not, you get the middle finger. This has been bad enough out here that the police have had to post signs in Carlisle saying that the bicycling laws will be enforced.

It amazes me that the bicycling community is as rude and inconsiderate as has been the case out here. Yes, cars and bikes can share the road, but it makes no sense for bikes to *unnecessarily* get in the way of the (much faster) cars. But, unfortunately, that is what they do, and it leads to the justifiable anger of automobile drivers.

I see this as symptomatic of the crude oil addiction from which US society is suffering. If we got our heads out of our collective asses many more of us would be on bikes (and/or carrying T passes), and there wouldn't be any nasty huge SUVs around like the one whose driver made a turn without looking the other day and wiped out a coworker of mine who was standing still with her bike, waiting for the light to change. The driver got out, dragged her to the side of the road, and left, leaving it to someone else to call 911. Luckily she'll only need a few surgeries -- on her nose and wrist -- and her leg is only badly bashed, not broken. Her two kids were terrified, and the summer she was looking forward to is now ruined by the cast on her dominant wrist which will be there for six weeks at least. I hope the guy who hit her is having trouble sleeping.

After reading some of these holier than thou, look how green I am, Europe and San Francisco are so much more enlightened than the United States I want to thank all the blowhard bike riders who have posted here today. You have now given us all an incentive to flatten you!

Swaven, speak for yourself, not for me. I want no part of your idiotic and self-centered plan.

(I apologize if I am repeating comments made by others. I read the first 20 or so posts, but only skimmed the rest.) One of the problems is that our roads are not designed to be shared with bikes. In Europe there are separate bike lanes adjacent to car lanes, which create bike space and establish the mindset that roads are for bikes and cars. Many area roads have narrow shoulders, with no room for bikes. Secondly, bikes (both pedal and motor) are "hard" to see, because drivers are not looking for them. Something happens in a driver's brain that sorts information for cars, and "ignores" two wheeled vehicles. Drivers who nearly run over a bicycle or motorcycle and then claim that "I didn't see it" are telling the truth. I've missed "seeing" a bike when driving, and I'm a bike rider (luckily no one was hurt).

Devlin, I think it is less provincialism and more the fact that we have people like you moving to the area. People who think they know better than the next guy and then broadcast what idiots (or unspecial or unimportant) New Englanders are. It creates a poisonous atmosphere.

It is true that in other regions people collaborate on solutions, but their solutions are largely building bike paths. (If you haven't noticed Devlin, Boston and the surrounding infrastructure do not lend themselves to a web of bike paths.) However, Middle America and the vast amount of the west still struggle with the same problems of sharing road space. It is only in the Pac Northwest and parts of NoCal that biking is truly integrated.

What you fail to mention in this article is that many cyclists are just as bad at obeying traffic laws as the drivers you are complaining about. I both drive and bicycle in Boston and I try to obey the rules no matter what kind of vehicle I am driving. I frequently see drivers running stop signs and lights, making illegal turns and bullying other traffic on the road, but I just as often see cyclists who do the same! In order to be safe, anyone using the road on any kind of vehicle needs to follow the rules. Bicycles cannot have it both ways, saying "we have a right to use the road" but then disregarding traffic laws whenever it suits them.

As for the argument made by some posters that bicycles just "slow drivers down," I want to make a point that bicycles can cause situations that are dangerous for drivers and can result in injury to, yes, people driving cars! Several years ago, I witnessed a serious accident where a bicycle ran a red light on Soldiers Field Road, causing one car to panic stop and another to swerve violently. The biker rode away, but the good drivers who avoided him and saved his life were not so lucky. One was violently rear-ended by a pickup truck and the other went over a median into oncoming traffic and nearly had a head-on collision. The driver who was rear-ended was taken to the hospital. I gave a witness statement to a police officer at the scene, who said that there was "pretty much nothing that could be done" since an unknown biker had caused the accident. If a car had caused it, they would surely be out looking for the culprit, since cars can be identified by, you know, license plates.

Re: "You should not cross a yellow line by five feet to go around a cyclist. You shouldn't cross it at all."

Many roads are too narrow for both to co-exist safely, and many don't have shoulders that are safe for either bike or car.

Whenever I'm passing a cyclist, I want the widest margin of safety possible, in part because often when a cyclist looks left to see what's coming up behind him/her, they tend to veer in the direction they're looking.

So yes, I cross the yellow line when it's a passing zone and when it's clear with a decent view ahead.

The same way I pass another car.

I do not mind a cyclist who is a casual biker. However, the fancily clad bikers who are determined to ride like a bat out of hell in our quiet town are really out of control. They take up too much room and their speed is very scary if you are driving along side them.

Why don't they all join up and fund a big vella drome or whatever it is called and they can speed to their hearts content and go around and around till they tire.

Most of the responses to this article will be anti-bike to some extent. And why is that? There are probably a few reasons but I wonder how many of those responding negatively about biking are too fat to even try cycling.

America is a country full of fat slobs rushing around because they cut time too close, and when someone not being lazy gets in your way you cant handle it.

Personally, I think cyclists should have the right of way because they are putting in effort, which is rare these days.

Vespagirl raises an outstanding point...if you are going to ride your bike during peak traffic hours in busy areas, not only should the bike be registered and you be licensed, you should also have to purchase insurance. If you cause an accident (and virtually every accident involving a bike is caused by the bike) you should have to pay!

I live in Cambridge, last week I was almost hit by a bicycle on a sidewalk and cursed at by the cyclist. Last month, I was in my car and stopped at a red light when I WAS hit by a cyclist, who bent my mirror back, got back on her bicycle and with nary a shout of apology proceeded to cycle through the red light. She only stopped when I got out of the car to check the damage and reminded her that she can't just damage someone's property and cycle off. If I'd hit her bike and drove off, I'd be in jail. But what we hear is "share the road, cars are just like bikes."

The refrain from the cyclists here seems to be "but there are bad drivers." Indeed, there are plenty. But most of the cyclists I see aren't merely "bad" or "negligent," they completely disregard the rules of the road - riding through red lights without stopping, wrong way down a one way street, you name it. As bad as drivers may be in Boston, I do not see that kind of behavior from them.

And a tip to you cyclists: if someone in a car has patiently waited for half a mile for a safe opportunity to pass you on a narrow two way street and then done so, for the love of all that is holy, do not immediately pass them on the right at the next red light and force a repeat of the whole time consuming affair. It's obnoxious.

I'd like to know where all of the law-abiding bikers mentioned by the author are riding. I've certainly experienced good bikers to be in the minority. I'm a biker AND a driver, and I'm frustrated by the bad bikers who make up most of the bikers in this part of Massacshuetts.

Most of the arguments here are valid either way. But as a cyclist who also commutes it would be interesting for all of the people here who are so angry with us to have to ride a bike to work for a week and see what your brothers do to us from time to time. That may soften your anger a bit. Every time that I'm tempted to do something stupid in my car I stop and think"hey I don't need to do that, I have a brake AND a gas pedal to get me going again". Think of that the next time I may, in your estimation, be taking up too much road.

"I run red lights, treat stop signs as yeilds, etc"

Why? Why do cyclists think it's all right to ignore the rules of the road and then complain when they don't get the same respect other vehicles get?

I'm a bicyclists and there are many valid comments here. It is interesting to me to see the points of why drivers dislike bicyclists. Basically, the infrastructure in the US is not set up to accomodate bicyclists. The Danes, Dutch, and Germans have figured out how to build a separate infrastructure for bicylists so that bicycle/vehicle/pedestrian confrontations are minimized. The US is so car-centric that confrontations are inevitable. Hopefully higher gas prices will convince the powers that be that a bicycle-friendly infrastructure is a good thing. Education for bicylists and drivers on interacting with each other is something else that would be a huge help, because many of the comments in this article reflect a lack of understanding of how drivers and bicyles should interact.

I found this article very presumptous and idealistic. The presumption in using the general "we" to include ALL cyclists really takes the bite out of any arguments made - as the author uses the same generalization to refer to ALL four-wheeled drivers.

Also, there seems to be an issue of superiority complex with most people that have jumped on the 'green' bandwagon. I'm all for doing what's proper to keep the environment clean but alot of these folks have taken a militaristic approach with it; an "Us" against "Them" attitude that is a real turn-off.

Last week, I was passing a line of cars stopped at a light on the left (as was the correct thing to do in that situation, especially since I was turning left at the upcoming intersection). As I passed one car with an open window, the driver yelled really loudly into my face. I don't remember what he said, it was something like "HEEEYYYYY." He was just being totally stupid, but it could have been dangerous for me. There were cars coming in the other direction and his startling me so severely caused me to swerve left.

I agree with people who say there are stupid bikers too. I see them every day. I can't for the life of me figure out how all the bikers on mass ave in cambridge don't get killed from going straight through intersections at red lights. I do want to comment to the person who said that bikers want it both ways, that we want to go through red lights when it's convenient for us. To an extent, that is true, but there is a reason for it. First of all, any biker should stop first at a red light, that's just stupid if you don't. But after you stop and look, if there is no one coming, it is probably safer for the biker to go through the light. That way, the biker can take the lane and get out IN FRONT of the cars stopped at the light so that he/she can be SEEN by drivers and so that they can get far enough into the middle of the lane so as not to be hit by doors, people pulling out, and people turning into the lane from the right and the left.

In the 4th grade I learned how to ride a bicycle on the streets: you follow the same rules as drivers do. This means you stop at red lights and stop signs. Ride on the right side of the road. Use directional signals. Don't ride on sidewalks or on crosswalks--get off your damn bike and walk it in these areas.
Last year we had a late winter storm in March. I was walking to South Station and crossing the road at the crosswalk/light on Summer Street. The snow was going sideways, and I had my hood up. At the crosswalk I saw that I had the walk sign. I moved across the road hardly being able to see. Next thing I know I hear some guy yelling, "Whoa, ho, watch out!" It was a bicyclist not bothering to follow the traffic laws. He says, "Hey, you gotta watch out." I said, "@#$%^ you, I got the light, you dumb &^%$#@."
Go learn what I learned in the 4th grade before you ride your bicycle on the streets.

Wow! I knew that some motorists have a problem with some cyclists...but this is truly scary. I obey the rules of the road. I have been slapped on the butt, threatened by a woman(with her two children in the car) that she would hit me the next time that she saw me on the road and today I was nearly run off the road by a truck while riding down a very quiet, wide, residential, rural road. The bike will lose every time. Everyone needs to pay attention..cyclists and motorists! Please share the road! The "bike trails" are really for pedestrians and dog walkers. People on "bike trails" don't seem to have much patience for cyclists.

I live on 225 in the Bedford/Carlisle stretch and I can't tell you how many times I have passed, beeped, and swerved around packs of riders, four to six abreast, especially on weekends. I understand safety, especially around some of the bends, however, pull over to the right ASAP! What is so hard about that?

Carlisle just posted signs throughout the town to remind bicycle riders of the laws. Their police officers are on the alert to keep everyone safe.

Another note that is disconcerting for me, however, is when I walk with my dog! We are regularly passed with no warning, some riders have even pushed us into the poison ivy! It is my understanding that as a pedestrian, I have the right of way. Consider, please, that I walk to the right, between the white line and the woods, so refrain from pushing us off the road...

There is a need for caution on the parts of both riders and drivers. I just don't see ttwo cars abreast, going 10-15mph, and remaining in the middle of the lane.

If you ask me, the problem is with the outrageous sense of entitlement shared by everyone who uses the road. Pedestrians cross busy streets on green lights and outside of crosswalks because they insist that they always have the right of way, or that crossing the street requires being "aggressive" instead of just waiting for the signal. Bicyclists cut off drivers, weave in and out of traffic, and ignore red lights. Motorists block intersections and crosswalks (causing unsafe and illegal gridlock all over the city), make turns without looking, fail to signal, and seem unable to grasp that their desire to turn left does not entitle them to try to mow down anything in their way. I see all of these things many times a day, and they're all equally illegal. Consistent traffic enforcement applied to EVERYONE using the road (and maybe just a tiny bit of humility) is what we need.

Y'all need to be reminded of this: you're in boston - home of the rudest, most selfish drivers in the country. If you're on the road in front or or next to a Boston driver, you're in the way no matter if you're in another car, on a bike, on foot, in a baby carriage, in a wheelchair, or a dog who lost his way.
Everyone is in too much of a damn hurry to go nowhere these days. And for that, you can blame our 'service now' society with wireless everything everywhere and everything available right now at the touch of a button!

As a 40 year-old avid cyclist I have seen fellow cyclists behave in an erratic manner. I am not talking about kids but adults that bike for fitness or pleasure. My thoughts are that these same cyclists most likely have similar bad habits behind the wheel of a motor vehicle or on a motorcycle. I regularly see the same cyclist commuting too work on nice days driving his vehicle last week on a rainy day. This person turned right on a red light at an intersection that states "no right on red". Drivers regularly turn right on red at this light, so much so that a police officer is regularly camped out there during the end of the day. Needless to say this person was pulled over.

Last year while training for the PMC a person in a large pickup truck decided to pass me at a dangerous corner and her passenger mirror hit me on the elbow. She proceeded to yell at me and of course use a few hand gestures. Was it so difficult for her to wait the 5 seconds for me to get around the bend before passing me?

It is common to see groups of riders during the PMC weekend riding side-by-side, failing to yield to approaching cars. I can see why motorists get agitated at cyclists but on the other hand drivers, in general, should be the last ones to complain about cyclists. I have seen drivers do some pretty stupid things.

The matter is quite simple, people, whether on bicycle, motorcycle, or in a car, need to show some respect to others and abide by all vehicular laws as well as show some common courtesy. As for requiring cyclists to be license, well that is just plain ludicrous. Why? because of the added expense heaped on state and local governments that can ill afford it at this time, and because the laws to enforce both motor vehicle and bicycle laws are for the most part already on the books, they just need to be enforced.

Let's build more bike paths, widen main streets, register bikes, take the T, slow down, and smile more.

As someone who rides a road bike in a variety of situations -- mostly alone but once a year in a large cross-state fund-raiser -- you have to understand that as much as there are jerks who own big expensive cars and think that entitles them to ownership of the road, there are a lot of jerks who own expensive bicycles and think that entitles them to being the most important thing in the world too. If you don't like driving next to them, I assure you, I don't like riding near them.

The fact of that matter is that we drive like idiots in this state. Is it any wonder, then, that when we strap on a helmet and hop on a bike, this general idiocy carries over? I am a Greater Boston native, proud of it, but we do a terrible job training and policing our drivers, and yes, the same could be said for our cyclists. Add to this environment a road system that at times mandates aggressive driving and at any time of the year can be riddled with with potholes, and you have a scenario that is unfriendly to any form of wheeled traffic.

I think Bella English has only half the story: Angry and stupid are too often the suitable description for anyone on our roads -- cars and cyclists alike.

So, how many times have you seen a car drive through a crosswalk while a pedestrian waits to cross? Actually, has a day gone by when each person reading this hasn't witnessed this? It's illegal. In most states, drivers just stop, but not here. It's emblematic of how people drive in this state, and it explains a lot of the hostile comments on this page. I don't read about any drivers justifying cutting other cars off the road because other drivers "think they own the road," but somehow people feel free endanger cyclists because they think they're "obnoxious."

What is certainly clear is that people say and do things their in cars that they would never do if they weren't in their cars. Massachusetts is not the most polite place in the US, but people here don't so easily give people the finger in the supermarket, or scream and curse at them in the restaurant, or try to run them out of the way at the mall as they do when they're driving. There's no excuse for it, and there's no excuse for endangering cyclists -- no matter what one thinks of them.

I've got to love the people who are complaining about bikers interfering with their "three" mile commutes or less. Makes me wonder how fat and out of shape they must be. Geeze, get out and walk or ride. Maybe you can help reduce our medical insurance costs by having less heart attacks, strokes, and other fat related issues. I'm not too worried about the cyclists getting in my way or the pedestrians who sometimes blindly enter the road. I am irritated at having to help support all the fat and out of shape people's meds, doctor visits, hospital visits, etc. Get off your rear ends and ride or walk to work for a change. It'll do you good and maybe someday have an impact on what I pay for medical insurance.

As a Boston motorist and avid cyclist, I empathize strongly with the author. Most of the responses to this article are surely not from people who cycle on a regular basis. Yes, there are annoying helmetless cyclists in the city who weave in an out of traffic and burn through lights which I find annoying as well. They are called bike messengers.

As for me and the 1000+ people who did the 150 mile ride for a cure for MS at the end of June, Ms. English is absolutely spot-on about aggressive young pick-up drivers. I made the exact same observation during the ride. I am not sure if they associate cycling with environmentalism and other hate-inspiring progressive issues or perhaps - confoundingly - they hate charity, but I was stunned by the amount of deliberate aggression toward law-abiding cyclists on the ride. And I am stunned by the overwhelming anti-cycling sentiment expressed in the postings. Bad driving in Boston poses far more problems than cycling, bad or good.

If you haven't spent time significant time on a bike, you should see how the other half lives...

Wow. This is certainly a heated topic. A lot of people have some anger towards drivers or cyclists (or both...). When you're on the road: CALM. DOWN. slow down. Let someone pass you, wave them on and give them a smile. Are we in so much of a rush that we will swear and yell at another human being? We all go through enough stress and crap in our lives. Let's help each other out. Your world is what you make of it, right? Let's make it good for each other.

I've driven all over the world. Boston is home to the worst drivers ever. It does not matter if it is a bike, car or SUV, Boston drivers not only do not know the rules of the road, they consider the rules to be beneath them. Since I've moved to Boston I have seen cars go down one way streets at 40mph, bikes fly through red lights at very busy intersections and buses kill two people.
Considering some of the conversations I have had with local law enforcement it is obvious that most of them do not know the very laws they are supposed to be enforcing.
Face it, if you learned to drive in Boston, you haven't learned to drive.

What I find ironic in this is that the motorists seem to be irritated the most by the conditions they create... they talk about aggressive cyclists, not understanding the aggression is fostered by having to deal with bone head motorists... thus cyclists are "taught" to do things like filter forward, and run red lights in an effort to avoid confrontations with motorists.

Motorists are ranting about the Lance lookalikes in brightly colored clothing... basically functional clothing, with bright colors so motorists can notice cyclists.

Motorists talk about cyclists not sharing the road when cyclists take the lane, but this is done when the lane is not wide enough to share, yet motorists insist on passing in non passing areas with double yellow lines.

Motorists talk about crowded roadways, yet it is single drivers in large vehicles that crowd the roads... not even three abreast cyclists takes up the road room that a large SUV carrying one driver takes.

And as for obeying the laws... how many drivers out there actually stop at stop signs and actually drive below the speed LIMIT. Do you even understand what LIMIT means???

Maybe motorists need to encourage cycling, and appreciate the space on the road that a cyclist leaves as "one less car, one more parking space."

"I run red lights, treat stop signs as yeilds, etc"

Why? Why do cyclists think it's all right to ignore the rules of the road and then complain when they don't get the same respect other vehicles get?

**************************************************
Ever notice the right turn on red laws? These were designed for motorists to make motoring more efficient. Cyclists are "running" reds and stops as the laws out there now (except in Idaho) are designed for cars, not for highly efficient human powered vehicles. "Bumping" reds and stops preserves inertia making cyclists more efficient. Perhaps it is simply time to change the laws, just like "right turn on red."

I wanted to add another comment about "keeping to the right." On urban streets, keeping to the right is the safest place for a bicycle. The further into the middle of the lane you are, the more easily you can be seen by people onto the street from the right or the left- this is big deal. When people pull out onto the street from a perpendicular street, they are looking for cars, not bikes. The more out into the lane you are, the less chance of getting hit. Also, around here, you have to ride far enough left to avoid car doors.

bikes are not required to stay as far right as possible.

As for riding on the mem drive bike path---have you ever tried this??? It's a nightmare! Unless they start restricting bike paths to bikes, they are definitely not the safest place to be.

Why don't cyclists hug the shoulder? Because it's dangerous---automobile drivers (inadvertently) do not give way to cylclists hugging the white line. Typically, they try to squeeze between the middle line and the cyclist, even when both won't fit in the same lane!
What to do? Ride in the middle of the right hand lane: Better seen than hit. And of course, obey the rules, ride single file, signal and communicate, ride predictably. Be safe.

I think drivers are so aggressive because they can't stand it that they actually have to share the road. I'm an avid cyclist and follow the rules of the road but rarely see drivers doing so. Drivers constantly break the rules - especially when it comes to pedestrians. As I'm 9 months pregnant I've been on foot for a while and they won't even stop for me at a cross walk! I actually had a guy argue with me since he thought he didn't have to stop at a clearly marked pedestrian crosswalk.

Personally I think it's a defensive measure because they know they are in the wrong, are lazy and irresponsible with their large cars so they just get pretend they have something to be angry about to make themselves feel better.

Oh! BTW - if a cyclst breaks the rules they are putting themselves in danger - when motorists do they could kill someone so let's not pretend that it's as big of a deal if a cyclist runs a light compared to a motorist...

I agree with most of what Bella English has stated --but the reality is that both cyclists and drivers must share the road--angry and stupid behavior to be put aside by both parties. Being an avid cyclist riding 100-200 miles a week, I am very aware of cyclists while driving. Riding three abreast is a blatant snub to drivers and should not be done --only to further enrage the driver, not to mention the driver that crosses the double yellow to give a cyclist some space, only to thoroughly surprise the oncoming, unsuspecting and soon to be really agitated driver in the opposite travel lane. I have been nealy hit, once dismounted as a car turned right around me at an intersection and involved in some altercations--yes a pick up truck was involved. I am guilty of being angry and stupid as is the driver. It takes both parties to make the peace happen, along with driver awareness and mature behavior.

If you cause an accident (and virtually every accident involving a bike is caused by the bike)
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Bullshit.

Here we go again liberal cry babies. Cars belong on the road, not bikes. Bikes where NOT included in on the design. If you choose to ride a bike then understand that you MUST be more careful and more attentive to your surroundings. I have all I can do to watch out for the morons that drive cars, let alone bikes and I am also instucted to watch out for idiots on motorcycles and give their illegal meneuvers extra attention. Its articles like this that further my want to move out of this state.
Dont worry, that day is coming!!!!!

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So what this is saying is this is being filtered by an independent opinion and if your blogger does not like it, it wont be seen. so much for freedom of speech and whats the point of a blog if this is the case.

Let's be realistic everyone. There are horrible bikers and drivers - just as there are responsible bikers and drivers. I've seen and experienced horrible things both resulting from an angry driver AND an angry cyclist.

The most important thing is that when YOU are on the road - be mindful of who else is out there. Remember that a cyclist may not be riding safely, but if you two collide - the biker is dead.

As a non-New Englander who's lived in the suburbs and worked in Boston for 28 years, the problem, as I see it, is the arrogant,hostile, and entitled attitudes that are in abundance around here. Both bicyclists and car drivers have them.

No, it's not everyone, but a significant minority do.

Why do you think Massachusetts has the highest accident rate of any state by far?

It's a combination of reckless driving and inadequate, poorly designed and maintained roads.

I think Motorcylces should have to wait in traffic like the rest of us. They shoulnd't be aloud to cut and swerve into between cars.

So the guy last Thursday in Quincy who passed us on the left and cut right in front of us as the light turned green and proceeded to give us the finger and scream profanities because we blew the horn at him was one of those law abiding riders-ya right! As we went by I yelled out the window "keep pulling moves like that and you are going to get yourself hit" he then decided to yell back that he "would kick the car" along with some more pleasant profanities. Not sure who pissed in his Cheerios that morning, but there was no need to yell at us for his wrong-doings! I ride on the roads and wouldn't think of pulling crap like that! That guy gives bikers a bad name!

Several thoughts...

I am a driver, not a cyclist. I haven't ridden a bike in six years, but I'm concerned with those who ride bikes these days.

I drive in Cambridge and find that many streets don't seem wide enough to accommodate cars and cyclists. Cyclists worsen things by pedaling too close to traffic or by choosing to ride on streets that have little or no bike lanes. I see cars swerve into the other lane to pass cyclists who slow down traffic in their lane.

I am disgusted by the violent behavior Ms. English describes toward cyclists in her article. I'm sure cyclists have their own grievances against Massachusetts drivers. I have seen plenty of incidents of individual rudeness among Bay State drivers.

But cyclists need to be responsible, too. To use a bit of historical hyperbole, they are like the small, fast English ships that terrorized the larger Spanish galleons and sunk the not-so-invincible Armada of 1588. More thoughtfulness from both cyclists and drivers would be welcome.

Cities could also help by creating extra bike space and providing better maintenance of roads plagued by potholes that may prevent cyclists from always riding on the right side.

And bikers, here's a tip from someone who's visited (and adores) a more enlightened place than Boston (in some ways): Columbus, Ohio. Get a bell and ring it to let us drivers know you're approaching!

I recognize that there are bad cyclists out there, who don't obey the rules of the road who give the rest of us a bad name, but that does not take anything away from drivers who do not recognize cyclist's right to the road. If drivers were as good at sharing the road as they are about sharing their (wrong) opinion about who should be on the road, the world would be a safer place. Drivers need to realize that they endanger lives by not giving bikes proper right of way.

I quote "The Big Lebowski." "This isn't Vietnam, Walter. There are RULES."
If bikers followed the rules, I would expect things to be better for everyone, including newcomers to the state. You get tickets for driving like most bikers do here in other states.

Huge topic, huh? 250+ comments?

Part of the problem is that many bicyclists believe that because they are not polluting the air by driving a car (which I agree is a good thing), they are excused from obeying traffic laws and extending common courtesy to the people around them. Many of the things bicyclists complain about are results of their own bad habits. One example:
While driving recently, I was read the riot act by one self-righteous middle aged bicyclist. I was attempting to pull out onto a busy street from a side street. There was a van parked on the corner, blocking my view of oncoming traffic. As I slowly inched my way out, one driver showed me some courtesy by stopping to let me out. As I started to move forward, the bicyclist (still peddling at full speed) suddenly came into view as he passed the parked van. I stopped short and instinctively honked my horn. He stopped in front of me and, with some expletives and hand gestures, began a rant about "sharing the road". This guy could obviously see the front end of my car long before I could see him. He could also see that the driver of the other car was stopping to let me out. But obviously, his sense of entitlement would not allow him to show the same courtesy or even stop peddling long enough to slow down a bit and let me out. But I'm sure his version of the story is that another reckless a-hole driver almost ran him down. So here are some tips for a better biking experience in the city:
Stop at red lights, stop signs and stopped school buses.
Yield to pedestrians in crosswalks.
Stay off the sidewalk.
Be aware of the fact that, in general, you see a car before its driver sees you.
And last but not least, if you see that the car ahead of you has its right turn signal on, try to resist the temptation to peddle as quickly as possible to pass the car on the right.

As a biker & a driver, I hate the controversy that exists between these two factions. I understand the frustration of being in a car behind a biker, whether they are biking safely or are all over the map. My number one goal at that point is to pass the biker safely, which isn't always easy, and at times, the bikers "seem" to make this maneuver even more difficult by weaving, riding side by side, etc. That said, as a biker, I strongly feel that it's important to express to the drivers some of the challenges that we bikers face, mile after mile. There are potholes, sand, rocks, fallen branches, litter, etc that we need to negotiate through in a safe manner. That may require me pulling out to the left more than a driver likes, and for that, I apologize. I just wish that perhaps we could both be a bit more accepting of each other, more likely to slow down and be understanding, instead of quick to judge and react in a potentially danger fashion.

The road should be for cars - period. If you want exercise - go on a path specifically designed for bicycles or join the gym and ride the stationary bike. There are too many of us on the road with busy lifestyles commuting back and forth and paying a million dollars for gas because we HAVE TO. To pay our bills, our mortgage, etc. Cyclists have alternatives - cars do not. We should be able to get where we are going without having to consider those who are getting some exercise or taking a leisurely ride and enjoying the view.

Do you really think we're all out riding for pleasure or exercise? We too have lifestyles. We too have a commute. We too are busy people. Don't you get it?

If going to the gym and riding a stationary bike is an alternative to my daily bike commute, than I'd suggest that instead of paying all that money for gas you should just go to your local arcade and play a driving simulation game.

Wow. As someone that commutes to work every day on my bicycle and has been hit by a car (I was stopped, at the side of the road realizing that the driver of a Lexus SUV wasn't paying attention and the car plowed into me and my bicycles), I think nearly everyone's comments have proved the reputation that people from Massachusetts have.

Stubborn, self-important and inconsiderate, oh yeah and bad drivers. And sure, there is a reason why certain city-dwelling cyclists have to be aggressive with drivers. Go up to one of those punk-rockers with tight black pants, the ones that are actually messengers, and ask them if they've been hit and how many times.

I have nothing against riding a bicycle, it's a great way to get some exercise. The problem I have is with self-righteous cyclists who either don't know or refuse to follow the rules of the road.

I have to know the laws and obey them in order to obtain and keep a driver's license. Driving is a privilege not a right, and I can lose my license by failing to adhere to the rules. If cyclists want to share the roads that is fine, however, perhaps they need to be tested on the rules governing their presence on the road and be licensed just like drivers of other vehicles. If a cyclist does not follow the rules he/she should be subject to fines and eventual loss of license privileges.

What's good for some should be good for all.

As I've often said, the dichotomy here isn't bikes vs. cars. It's people who obey the law and respect other people vs. people who don't. Unfortunately, both kinds of transportation have too many of the latter.

I will honestly say I am not exactly the most "law abiding" cyclist but I do drive safely and aware of ALL my surroundings. That being said, I live in Brookline and ride on most days to work in Boston about 5 miles each way. During my ride I have been run off the road, cut off, yelled at, etc...There is even a "bike lane" in parts of Brookline although most of the drivers seem to think this is an extra parking lane for them. The worst offenders out there are the cab drivers who think they are entitled to do whatever it is they want. Bottom line here people is that the drivers need to be aware of the bikers and the bikers need to be aware of the drivers and sharing the road is important for both bike and car to be able to live peacefully on the roads. Hopefully the bike lanes will be enforced over time and maybe more will be put in place so that it will be safer for all of us biking or driving. Add a tax on gas (maybe $1 or more to pay for better mass transit and bike trails), extra tolls, taxes on parking in the city, etc... All those whiny people saying no trains or bike paths in my back yard need to move away. Stop whining and KICK GAS!!!

I'm a 28 year cyclist who has ridden in the Pan MAss Challenge for 26 years, many century rides for fun and countless thousands of miles of training for these event. I've read alot of these postings and agree with many of them. What is not clear to both sides of the issue, is that, yes, bicyclists do have the right of way according to Section 85 Chapter 11b to which I think too many cyclists take much too much advantage of, the motoring public that don't know this law and a limited handful of local police departments. What WE ALL must understand is....

WE MUST ALL SHARE THE ROAD. In todays economic climate, bicyclists are everywhere too. With the price of energy sky rocketing, people are converting to bicycles more and more as their form of transportation. It's a shame that a few of the serious cyclists have experienced the negative response from their local police departments, but that i feel is a minority. I've been the commuting bicyclist for many of my cycling years and very much understand completely what it takes to share the road, and am part of a safety team that gets 5,000+ bicyclists across 360 miles of various roadways of Massachusetts in the Pan Mass Challenge.

It takes the combined efforts of the cyclist and the motorist to get along. It takes the cyclist to realize that maybe some of the roads that they use may not be very appropriate for cycling. It takes the motorist to be patient with the cyclist when passing the cyclists. It takes the cyclist to take the lead in riding single file when the time warrants, use hand signals to communicate their intenstions and communicate with the motorist eye to eye and by hand signals if it is safe to pass by waving a motorist through when it is safe to do so.

To throw things at a bicyclist does the motorist and/or its occupants no good. Their actions could very easily lead to the death of the bicyclist. A bicyclist swearing at a motorist does no good but to enrage the motorist, as does the motorist to the cyclist.

Come on every one, lets be more civil and respectful to each other. We all personal adjendas while on the road, whether in a motor vehicle or on a bicycle. I would encourage all cyclists to take the lead in promoting safe cycling. Our patience on the road with the motoring public can have great benefts for all.

Who knows, with the rate in which gas prices are going up, you as a motorist may be converting to bicycling as your means of transportation and be on the other side of the fence. The how would feel being taunted by a motorist.

As a non-bicyclist who logs 50,000 miles a year driving Massachusetts roads, I firmly believe drivers who dislike cyclists are, as the author writes, ignorant -- including many of the commentators above. That often repeated excuse that many cyclists do not follow the rules of the road is pure baloney, to be polite. Most cyclists do follow the rules of the road. Once in a while there will be some clown zipping through stalled traffic or running reds, but it's rare. (Far less often than the percentage of lunatic drivers out there). It's intellectually lazy to use those few cyclists as a rationale for wishing the rest of them away. Any driver who is driving the way you are morally and legally obligated to drive should have no trouble with cyclists. Cell phone yakkers take note! Get off the phone! You're not even on an important call! Give me a group of cyclists on the road near me anyday instead of another mindless boob in a car and cellphone he/she can't really afford the payments on.

I also have to say I'm troubled by many people's insistence that bike lanes would fix everything, because then bikes would have their place and cars would have theirs and never the twain shall meet. Bike lanes are great when they work, but...what if they're running right past a line of parked cars, and I would prefer not to get doored to death? Or what if they're going straight, and I need to turn left? Or I'm in my car, and need to turn right? Bike lanes can't resolve all possible car/bike interactions and neither drivers nor cyclists will end up happy if they assume that bike lanes equal complete segregation.

Both sides need to give a little.

Bikers defend the running of red lights and stop signs by saying cars to it too -- that doesn't make it okay -- you want to share the road, follow the rules -- all of them -- and please use hand signals and ride single file. I don't personally care if you wear a spandex onesie, but know you look a bit silly.

Bike messengers -- slow down before you kill someone and get off the sidewalk. One of you disabled a friend of mine a few years back when she was struck and suffered a severe pelvic fracture.

Car drivers -- give yourself a little more time and be aware especially on right turns, if you pass a biker, expect he might turn up while you wait at the next red light and if he's off to the right and you don't use your blinker he may assume you're going straight.

Can't we all just get along ...

It's pretty unlikely that someone will read this comment but in any case... If you leave in the immediate Boston area (Boston, Cambridge, Somerville, brookline) you need to accept the fact that we have very poor roads. If you are frustated by very slow traffic (from cars or bikes) I would highly recommend moving elsewhere. I believe that road rage is directly proportional to the complexity and quality of our infrastructure. As a person who tends to get road rage I was very happy living in other cities where driving is much less frustrating. Most of the changes we can make in the Boston area are minimal (unless we have a huge natural disaster and can rebuild from the ground up). Most of the posters who are pissed off drivers seem to complain about Mass ave, the cambridge area, etc. Even if all the cyclists were removed you would still be completely miserable. How can anyone be sane after trying to navigate the intersection of memdrive, storrow drive, and soldiers field road?

If only cyclysts shared the road, drivers AND cyclists would be safer. I've never seen a more reckless bunch than the cyclists on the roads of Massachusetts. Not only do they think they own the road, but they also think they are not subject to the rules of the road--not a good combo. Until cyclists learn to ride more safely, they need to be kept off the roads to keep everyone safe. There are plenty of bike paths in Massachusetts--use them.

As we've heard many points of view already, I'll not bog this down further with anything like that.

Just wanted to compliment the writer of the article - over 250 posts, mostly hotly contested for that matter. Brought forth anger, resentment, and just all around wartime hostility among people that typically know how to drive as well as ride a bike. It's funny when you think about it that we fight so much. It's probably this tendency that tends to make great columns and editorials in Mass.

And will add some anecdotes that I've witnessed firsthand:

A bike group crossing Rte 2 in Concord. A chain of about 10 cars stopped, one bike rider fallen down in the middle of the road. A driver who got out of their car to help out the downed rider. Another biker shoving the driver out of the way and helping their friend up from the road. No idea who was at fault.

A bike riding on the wrong side of a marked four lane 50 mph highway (Rte 9 - 2 ways each direction) against the traffic. Better yet was the fact that the biker had no helmet on, neither did his friend who was sitting on the handlebars. They began yelling curses and epithets at a driver who honked his horn. Couldn't tell if they were drunk or not.

A driver who was so fed up with a biker riding in front of him and unwilling to wait for the oncoming traffic on a two-way road to pass began tailgating the rider - even bumping them lightly with their car. After two or three bumps where the biker wasn't sure what was happening, the biker rode of the road and fell into a ditch by the side of the road. The car zoomed off with the driver laughing at the fallen biker. I think another motorist or the biker got their license plate, but don't know the story ending.

A biker coming down a steeply sloped hill at about 40-45 mph, in a 35 mph zone, a Jeep SUV giving chase in a race to see who reaches the bottom of the hill fastest. The biker had no idea he was in the race until the jeep passed him and took a sharp right cutting him off near the bottom of the hill. The biker spun out of control and landed on his rear. Luckily the biker was able to get up from the ground alive. Not sure about his bike.

In front of a library with a long steep climb of stairs (about equivalent to a long staircase for about a 3-storey building, around 50 steps), that was about 20 feet wide with people walking up and down along the staircase, a biker riding down the stairs at a clip of at least 10-15 mph. She was able to knock about four people off the staircase and made sure a 70 year old had fallen and couldn't get up (although I don't think it was serious as some people helped her up afterwards). The cyclist continued on to cross an intersection without heeding traffic signals at the bottom of the staircase and caused a minor collision between two cars where the first one slammed their brakes to avoid hitting the cyclist.

One last one -
A pedestrian walking along a road while a bike group riding multi-file pushes a walking stick out into the wheel of the last rider in the group. The rider and bike falls to the ground, the stick shoots out of the pedestrian's hand and whacks him in the face. I didn't stick around long enough to see what other whacking he received from the rest of the bikers.

I have to object to your statement that bikers are out there "obeying the rules." Give me a break. I routinely see bikers riding 2 and 3 across, passing each other while veering into the car lanes and blowing thru red lights. Bikes want it both ways - they want the respect of the road while abiding by their own set of rules.
I admit that there are millions of inconsiderate cards on the road. But if bikes would obey the rules, maybe there would be less car/bike encounters.

As an avid cyclist I log about 10,000 miles a year training for races throughout New England. This is a sport that I love so much that I literally risk my life every day I'm on my bike. Many of you have valid points on both sides of this battle.

I beg the motorist out there to please be careful and pause for one second when you see a cyclist who you may feel is in your way. I think perspective has a lot to do with this arguement. I have a wife and three children who I hug each and every day I come home from a ride.
Thank you.

There's only one thing I can think of to point out that hasn't already been said 500 times -
A majority of bikers try to stay to the right When It Is Safe To Do So, but for all you people whining about them riding a few feet further in- have you ever really paid attention to the condition of the road off To The Right?
For crying out loud, that's where all the debris (glass, metal, rocks, garbage, branches, ect) ends up, along with most of the cracks, bumps, potholes, sewer grates and manhole covers (because fewer car tires drive over the shrapnel to scatter it further), not to mention opening doors and cabs aggressively nosing their way into traffic. If bikers stayed off to the right 100% of the time, those obstacles would quite often toss them right out into the middle of the street right in front of you, where bits of their teeth, brains, hair, and helmet shards would end up in the treads of your tires. On turns and on streets with tall vehicles blocking your view, bikers all the way to the right are also much harder to see until it's too late. Is this really an acceptable risk when held up next to those precious seconds sitting at that upcoming red light, gridlock traffic, in front of the computer at work, checking your email, or in the bathroom at the house of the friend you're going to visit? Whether either of you are breaking a rule is irrelevant when you're talking about the difference between the inconvenience of having to actually focus while driving, and a handful of seconds, versus someone's life. Fury and violent aggression directed at a biker simply because they're in your way is akin to feeling justified in knocking someone much smaller and weaker than you to the ground and kicking them in the face because they cut you in line at the Dunkin Donuts.
I'm a driver, pedestrian, and biker who's put in approximately 10 thousand hours of riding in traffic without causing a single accident, and I've told off plenty of idiot cyclists who ignorantly put themselves (and me, and others) in danger, but in the end, the point is they're no match for a 2 ton machine. If you have a car, you have the power to kill several people with the twitch of an arm or leg. If you don't respect this privilege, and you use your power to bully other people, whether they're in cars, on bikes, motorcycles, scooters, or on foot, you need to step out of your ego for a minute and look at things (including yourself) a little more objectively.
I can't help saying this - Spandex does look silly. It's not meant to look good. But those who have tried to bolster their arguments with juvenile remarks about biking clothes aimed at people who are actually going for 30-100 mile rides are making fools of themselves. 50 miles in jeans, indeed. May they bring chafed thighs upon themselves and their posterity forever and ever, amen.

If you guys think Boston is an unfriendly city for cyclist, try riding for a day in the Metro Atlanta area. I have been living down here for over a year as of yet have I had a ride that compares to any of my favorite rides in the Greater Boston area. I lived most of my life in the Boston area and have been an avid cyclists since I first got on the bike. Y'all are really lucky to have wide shoulders, peaceful country roads with in short bike ride from anyone of your suburbs or downtown. Yes you have to be careful and alert wherever you ride. Other than the weather in January, Boston and all of New England are a mecca for cyclist, trust me on this one.

Why doesn't the globe always have an article when someone dies in a bike accident? I know of three deaths that did not merit this much coverage, and should have!

Been riding 40 years, pretty much obeying the law on my bike for all of them (I speed on rare occasions, I roll slowly through stop signs the same way most cars do -- I ALWAYS stop for red lights and peds in crosswalks). A few observations:

Obeying the law does not get you any respect from cars. Been trying it for 40 years, it doesn't work. What makes you safe is being predictable, diligently obeying certain laws, and making sure that you are visible. What would make us safer is a northern-European-style cycling infrastructure.

Massachusetts' single-file law is unusual. Most states allow bikes to ride two abreast. In a study, in Florida, of cycling accidents, group riding was found to be a factor approximately never. It may tick you off, but it is not dangerous.

A single bicycle cannot "take up the whole road". It can take up a fraction of the road. It's your car that needs "the whole road". The bike is sharing, you are not.

There is no behavior on a bicycle that "endangers everyone". The cyclist is faced with the potential for serious injuries, perhaps death. The motorist is faced with the potential for scratched paint, maybe a dent, perhaps a cracked windshield. If you make a mistake driving a car, the consequences for SOMEONE ELSE can be dire; if a cyclist makes a mistake, he only endangers himself. Which of these would you consider the more responsible choice: possibly endangering other people, or possible endangering yourself?

Those incredibly gaudy outfits -- that's so we get seen, and not hit, because careless motorists vastly outnumber the malicious ones.

And - for all the dangers that cars present to cyclists, it is 10 or 20 times more dangerous not to bike, because you need the exercise, and most people don't get it. The cars are plenty scary, but so are heart disease, diabetes, and strokes.

The person who said that any driver with "skill" doesn't need to change lanes to pass a cyclist is absolutely incorrect. A bike can hit something suddenly and then be under a car's wheels in an instant...cars SHOULD give bikes some room when passing. A car IS allowed to cross the center line any time they need to go around an obstacle, given that there's no oncoming traffic.

And to Jessica who said that cyclists have "alternatives" but drivers don't...the majority of cyclists you see on the road during your commute are also commuting to jobs they need to pay their bills. Most leisure riders avoid riding during commute times. The bike commuters you see just happen to be using a different vehicle than you are, and the place for vehicles is on the road.

BTW, drivers have lots of alternatives! Heard of the T? Walking? Carpooling? Telecommuting? Finding a job closer to home? Ooh, I've got another one!! How about biking to work?

$20/gallon of gasoline. That's what I'd like to see. I have 2 cars, but $300/barrel in my lifetime would be awesome.

So some of you imbeciles can't get around me while I'm riding my aluminum/carbon bike - with no crumple zones, airbags or even a jacket to protect myself - on a weekend afternoon, let alone commuting on a weekday, and you're ready to 'flatten' me like any 'squirrel or other hazard'? So you are delayed by 5 or 10 seconds, because the road we are on is too narrow for both of us. And to avoid losing those 5 or 10 seconds, you will gamble my life against a higher insurance premium from the inside of your protected shell.

God help us all. $20/gallon would be a start.

If everyone just operated with one simple principal, it'd be a lot safer and happier for everyone on the road: conduct yourself in such a way that you never make anyone else stop short. Don't cut people off, don't squash people out of their lanes, don't run red lights (this goes for you, too, jaywalkers!! that pedestrian law only applies to crosswalks WITHOUT traffic lights). Just wait your turn - unless you're behind the wheel of a police car, fire truck or ambulance, your destination is no more important than anyone else's.

The article about the girl in DC who got killed biking to work is heart breaking. And yes, it is very dangerous to ride a bike on a road in the US and it shouldn't be. We should have a better road infrastructure. However, in response to so many comments that drivers are 'out to get' them. Come on. No one, except maybe a very few pyschopathic serial killers, is really out to get anyone. Let's all agree on that. But the thing I think we really need to point out here is that yes, the roads we have are for transporation, to get to work, to bring our kids to school. They are not and should not be for large packs (5 and up) of biking groups to train for races. Biking teams and clubs need to invest in some other way to do that. We pay taxes for our roads to be maintained at a certain speed for a certain purpose - transportation. When a large group wants to use them outside that purpose, ie. for training, it's going to cause problems, be dangerous, and is just wrong.

If anything, drivers should be deferential to cyclists because they're providing drivers with many significant benefits:

1) They're reducing congestion on the roads by removing yet another single occupant vehicle.
2) They're helping to ease parking availability by not taking up a space in busy areas.
3) They're not consuming gasoline, so they're in fact helping to reduce demand which keeps prices from being even higher than they are now.
4) Cyclists, especially those in cities who don't own cars, provide all of the above benefits *and* keep your auto prices low by reducing demand on auto purchases, which in turn provides auto buyers with more negotiating room for lowering asking prices.

Well, after reading these mostly appalling comments and seeing the preposterous logic of motorists (to wit: "the cyclists run red lights, therefor I have the moral right to use my 2 ton vehicle as a weapon against them.") all I can say is, I'm so happy I don't live in Boston. What a bunch of hicks.

I am not a Boston resident, but have spent a decent amount of time on my bike (and in my car) on city roads and bikepaths too. I have also always enjoyed biking in Boston proper, mainly between J.P. and Downtown and all around Downtown. I can't speak for the suburbs.I haven't had a problem with cars in the time I have biking in Boston, beyond the normal problems that humans have with one another.

The difference between me and many, many, many cyclists is behavior based upon traffic cycling knowledge and lots of practice--(that and probably luck). There is MUCH much more to cycling than simplY "following the law". And you also have to know how the principles of traffic law reflect on a bike, which is a class of vehicle that is narrow and relatively slow compared to other vehicles. You can't "cycle safely" if you don't actually know what constitutes safety.

I think the best source, maybe really the only source if you want to understand it in its depth, is "Effective Cycling" by John Forester (a longtime boston native and traffic engineer) Following his principles has made my biking drastically more enjoyable and easier and has almost eliminated "incidents" with cars over the past 12 years.

Been cut off by a car? (not an "aggressive" cut off, but an "ignorant, didn't see you" cut off)? Read the book. There's a lot you can do to stop that before it happens. It mainly has to do with your sub-lane positioning within the traffic lane.
Heard of the bike sub-lane positioning?
Lane positioning for bicyclists is a somewhat complicated subject that most bicyclists, or motorists do not understand fully. It has a lot to do with, and can prevent, many potential car-bike conflicts. Bikers would do well to learn and apply it correctly.

Want to know? here it is in short:

Cyclists can view a single traffic lane (on a two-lane road) as being composed of up to FOUR sublanes:

1) the far left by the centerline would be for left hand turn positioning.
This is used only when setting up for a left hand turn.

2 the center of the lane (where the motorists normally drive) is necessary and appropriate for cycling under many, though not all circumstances, ideally keeping courtesy to following traffic in mind. If circumstances require you to bike here, do it, but pull over to let the cars go by if you're blocking them up. This is called "courtesy" and awareness of others. Actually, it's in the general vehicle code, which says that no road user should UNNECESSARILY impede another.

3) Just 2 or 3 feet to the right of motorized traffic is subposition 3. Spend most of your time, when you are riding straight ahead or approaching a right hand turn, here.

4) way the heck over to the curb. Inexperienced cyclists, and those who learned from their parents to do this at the age of 5 and never learned more, tend to do this. No shame to it. But this is actually usually not as good as position 3 in most situations ( I won't go into why. That would be long. It's in the book though.) Stick to position 3. Unless you really know your stuff and know when position 4 is best. For example, 4 would be best when cycling on a Canadian highway (yes, that's legal in Quebec province--it blew my mind the first time I saw it!)

There's more to know about 3-and greater lane roads, boulevards, highways, intersections...:Especially intersections.

Try reading the book. Have fun!

I am so afraid of biking on the road, I keep to the Harborway Path or Neponset River Trail as much as possible. That, or I bike on streets only early Sunday mornings. Don't want to take a chance...however much this limits where I can go on my bike. I would appreciate it if more bike lanes were put in place, where it can safely be done. I once visited Portland, Oregon, what a great place to bike!

As a cyclist who rides in the mornings in the western suburbs, I'm as pissed off as drivers are when I see those rogue three-abreast, red-light-running guys. They're making it worse for everybody.

But watching the drivers, I've also come to the conclusion that they're already pretty angry about one thing or another. People around here just seem to be angry about everything. Maybe it's the traffic or the cost of living or the parking. Who knows? But it's more than just the cyclists.

Lighten up. Look around at the beautiful countryside you get to commute through in those suburbs every day. Appreciate that you have a job to go to. We're incredibly lucky to live in a place that's so well-educated, cultured, naturally beautiful, and architecturally distinctive. Why are you so angry about it?

Give me a break. I live near a very heavily traveled main road on the South Shore that is winding, hilly and narrow. Nearly every weekend morning/afternoon from May to September one of these foolish charity rides has hundreds of bicyclists crowding the southbound lane. There is NOT enough room for them to ride two abreast, but they do it anyway, and it is TERRIFYING to come to the top of a crest and suddenly come up behind them. It is also quite scary to have to move my car across the double yellow line and into the oncoming traffic lane while going around a corner because the bicyclists are in the middle of the travel lane. Raise money for charity in a way that's safe for everyone, like the Relay for Life or by doing something that actually helps people in need (volunteering somewhere), not by disrupting the steady flow of traffic. Biking is great exercise and a great pasttime but when you ride on busy, crowded roads with vehicles, you are a nuisance and you're putting yourself at unnecessary risk. Bike trails abound in the city and the burbs...use them.

I think the government needs to be more proactive with building bike lanes and educating the public with respect to drivers and cyclist. I moved to Perth Australia about four years ago and was astounded by the bike system and approach to educating the public over here. Most major roads have a separate bike path paralleling them and if they don't, they clearly mark out the shoulders(and maintain) with different colored pavements. The drivers manual also has a section devoted to cycling as well the government sponsored commercials to educate the public. While in comparison when I traveled along Massachusetts road shoulders(if there was one) often it was covered with glass and other debris causing me to use more of the road than I wished. Having worked first hand designing roads in Massachusetts there was not much consideration with concern for other road uses, which is a shame because I believe more people would use the roads for cycling if they felt safe, not to mention the health benefits. From my experiences most people are considerate drivers/cyclist but it seems the few bad ones make an impression and become the norm as how to view the majority. If the government made an effort, maybe(hopefully) the number of incidents would drop.

Why are we angry? Yes, I agree that the experiences described by the bicyclists in this article are not to be tolerated but neither are some of the things I see bicyclists do. This past weekend I was out taking a leisurely ride out in the country - along with all the bikes out that day. I came across people on bikes that chose very narrow, winding back roads to ride on and then proceeded to ride 10 feet into the road. More than once my heart was in my throat as I came around a corner, doing the speed limit, and was confronted with a bike in my lane. I also cannot tolerate bicyclists that travel in pairs or groups and ride side by side so they can converse and take up the whole road - then give ME the finger when I beep my horn to warn them I'm trying to get by. It's a two way street for all.

Not that anybody is reading this far down,

I am an avid cyclist and can respond to a few of the complaints posted:

In European cities, bike commuting is far more popular that it is here. When you get of the train in Amsterdam, there is a parking lot for bikes with tens of THOUSANDS of bikes. I've seen parents with an infant in the front basket, a kid on a back seat, and towing another kid. Some ride with, some without helmets. They get where they want to go and I've not seen an accident. And you think OUR roads are narrow?

That being said...

Red lights - no smart cyclist "blows through" a red light. However, if there is nobody coming on the cross street, then our passage through the light makes it safer (we are out of the way) for the cars in line when they start driving again. If we misjudge the cross traffic, too bad for us, natural selection is a beast.

Regardless of the behavior of the cyclist, and I am not apologizing for idiots, there is no contest in the fight between cyclist and car. Don't start. Suck it up if you are aggravated, or you will kill somebody, and I don't think anybody wants to do that. If you are feeling homicidal, check into the Betty Ford Road Rage Clinic. Or, use that anger to take up MMA. Even better, try to use that energy to pedal to the top of Mt. Washington. That will make you feel small.

The peleton needs to get out of the way. Sorry guys, but we shouldn't take up the road. Drivers, give a polite and short beep of the horn and give the riders a chance to get single file. And riders, come on, let them pass. Once they've passed, prove your worth by catching up to them on the open road.

The outfits look ridiculous, but they serve a purpose - visibility. Do you notice the skinny Elton John looking weirdo riding on the side of the road? GOOD! Don't hit, throw things, yell, or otherwise bother the rider. If you don't see them, get your eyes checked, you're blind.

Licensing - I agree in principle that to ride on a traffic route, you should be educated. There are bike associations that have classes in bike safety. Please, if you haven't taken one, do so and bring your kids too. But I am loath to allow further government intrusion into our personal freedoms. Look, if somebody gets hurt because of heir own stupidity, too bad. And if someone causes someone to get hurt out of their own maliciousness or lack of focus, then there are criminal charges for them. We can let the law take care of this as it stands.

What's wierd about this debate is that most bikers drive cars too. As someone who does both, I can say I'm a lot more frustrated as a driver than a biker.

Perhaps it's a pack mentality that takes over with more than one person on a bike or some kind of superiority attitude, I don't know, but on weekends especially, our town is clogged with pack bikers, riding two or three wide and behaving like they own the place.

I usually ride my bike alone, as far to the right as the road permits. I don't own any of the spandex stuff that seems to be the fashion to show you are a serious biker. I bike for fun and, when conditions allow, to work as well and I've never had a problem. I stop for pedestrians when they are in the cross walk - which I have never seen another biker do. It's simple stuff like that, I think that creates bad feelings about bikers.

Many say we need special bike paths for all the bikers to get them off the roads. There are some situations when that makes sense in very urban settings, but do we really need to build even more roads for an activity that is done a few months out the year by a relative few number of people largely for fun?

If there is a real transportation need, our transportation dollars can go much farther designing (and maintaining!) roads to accommodate bike traffic. I think this more than anything would help the situation. Don't count on people to change!

I ride between 100 & 200 miles a week, generally in the suburbs & back roads & can generally say that most people are willing to offer one another basic respect. My biggest pet peeves have to do with motorists who speed & roads that either have no shoulder or when the shoulder is in such poor condition that I am forced to go into the road. Reluctantly! I think the situation could be greatly improved by a general effort at awareness & respect on both sides AND some effort put into making the roads safer for bikes (like how about cleaning off the road sand from last winter, Lincoln?).

Y'all need to move to Western MA.

Put in 20 miles this morning for exercise. Not one issue from the tired angry commuters going to work. I even had a 70,000 lb fully loaded semi slow down to make sure I was safe. But I was on the far right side of a pot hole ridden road. I waived to him as he passed, thanking him and he waived back. I think that is the way it's supposed to work.

Yeah, I've had a couple of angry drivers pass me, throw stuff, etc. But no more or less than normal road rage when I am behind the wheel of my car.

Respect the rules, respect the roads, respect your fellow road sharer and you will get respect back.

This is what we cyclists have to deal with. Go to post #324 from Michelle.
"It is also quite scary to have to move my car across the double yellow line and into the oncoming traffic lane while going around a corner because the bicyclists are in the middle of the travel lane. "

Arrrggghhhh. She's passing people on a blind corner????

On most of the side roads around here, the only way to safely pass a bicycle, pedestrian, baby carriage, etc., is to cross the yellow line(s). People, that's OK, nobody is going to arrest you. A number of drivers have mentioned how they don't want to cross the lines - it's really OK. Just don't do it on a blind corner or crest of a hill.

As for bike trails, build all you want to, I won't use them. They are fairly useless for a good training ride and don't go where I want to go. It's kind of tough to do a 75-100 mile ride on a 5-mile bike path. And they're simply not made for going fast. They're great for families and commuters, but pretty useless for training. The last time I was on Martha's Vineyard, they were in horrible shape, too.

As for the cycling clothes....well, they are goofy looking, but like any sports attire, they are functional and serve their purpose. Hey, when I'm in my car and see a bunch of roadies sitting on the side of the road taking a break, I laugh, too. Of course, I'm laughing at myself, but I can take it. ;-)

I'll be the first to admit that there are a lot of idiot cyclists out there - feel free to yell at them for any bonehead moves they make. I sure do, even at my friends that don't behave. I ride about 5 days a week, and I don't want one of my friends pissing off a driver who might want to take it out on me some day.

As a driver and a cyclist, for every bonehead move I see a cyclist pull, I see at least 50 made by a driver. You people really need to get a grip.

My chevy picks off a few of these cycle-idiots every year. Nothing feels quite as satisfying as hearing that sound the bike makes as it bounces off of a stainless steel grille. Sometimes I feel bad when they crash, but you know what, man up and get the cash for a car. Stop freeloading on my tax dollar.

I can't stand people that ride their bikes through the city. They DRIVE ME NUTS!! Out of all the cyclists i've seen.. they've been the worst in Boston. Seen many people on bikes wear ipods and talk on their cell phones. While driving w/ my husband.. one actually got so close that he banged into the side of our car and left a nice longggg scratch on the passengar side.. nice huh? Obviously, he took off and we had to pay a 500$ deductible, for something that wasn't our fault. They never look before going in front of your car.. they just assume that you'll be the one to stop.. THEY HAVE BIKE LANES FOR A REASON.. dont ride your bike in the middle of the street.. !!

Cyclists break many more laws than drivers.

Okay so I can't stand when cyclist don't obey the laws of the rode and I watch out for them so I don't run them off the rode. Reading this article I was starting to be like yeah cyclist are okay and they deserve some of the rode. Leaving work I was okay with cyclist, on my way home I am driving and come to a red light. The light turns green and as I start to go a cyclist come flying through a red light and I have to slam on the brakes so I dont hit him. That was one story.

So I told my friend about the article and he tells me that last week he was driving (a toyota camry) on a rode speed limit is 45 and he is infront of a truck(F150) and a cyclist is on the shoulder and decided he wants to take a left turn darting infront of my friend and causing him to slam on the breaks which then was followed by a truck hitting him and severly damaging his back end.

And what is the big deal if you ride for charity, does that mean you are better than people who don't do charity. I do charity does it mean I can blow through red lights and take turns by darting infront of people and say its okay i do charity. No, If I get pulled over I am not going to be "Officer I do charity, so you don't have to give me a ticket."

So like the 2nd post says cyclist should have to be licensed to drive on the streets of MA, because some of you don't know how to ride on the rodes.

Speaking from the side of bikers I have personally never experienced more than a honked horn or something shouted out the window. However, I have been riding in Europe, specifically Italy for the last few months and have found that the riding here has been a complete joy even though the roads in general are more congested, people drive faster and there are about 5 times more bikers than found on the most popular Concord and Lexington roads.
On a typical Sunday morning here I will see several hundred bikers, often in packs of 20 or more, all riding 2 abrest. In all my miles here there have been no incidents of hostility towards me or the groups I have ridden in. The way they share the roads is great. On narrow roads, the cars will give a quick toot of the horn to let the riders know they are there and then start moving forward after letting the riders tuck in a bit, (yes this might take 10 - 30 seconds, sorry) a long horn and fist out the window not required.
At stop lights and signs the larger groups stop right in the middle of the road and wait for the lights, smaller groups will move forward through the cars and then slow to a crawl. If the cross street is clear we will definitely go. This is of course personal preference as some riders do wait the full light. Blowing completely through stop signs is just stupid and anyone who does so deserves to get hit at some point.
In the city where traffic is flowing at around 20 mph or so I pretend I am a car, mostly so that I am able to be seen. Riding beside a car or SUV is just asking to be hit. If the speeds get to more than 25 I will pull to the side so that cars can pass.
The amazing thing is that the motorcycles and scooters here act like both cars, motorcycles and bicycles. They weave through traffiic, pass into oncoming traffic, take up lanes and pass up the middle on highways. No one seems to care too much, I guess it is what you are used to.
Speed of trafficrelative to bicycle speed plays a major role in how you should act on the road. Signaling should obvioulsy be always used before turns in an obvious manner, I am a fan of the pointing in the direction of where you want to go, not what they teach in drivers ed, as I don't think most driver know these anymore anyway.
As usual there are courteous riders and drivers and dangerous riders and drivers, although if I was to point out the flaws of drivers I would never finish. Most of the roads that we are complaining about are 30mph roads in which case you are going only slightly faster than I am IF you are going the speed limit. Most people are driving 40 - 45 mph on these roads. What would you do if you came up to a 25 mph Sunday afternoon leafpeeper going 25mph?
Getting us to change the funny outfits is a much more difficult problem. I guess it is similar to everyoune else out there trying to look like their sports idols, when you stop wearing your silly baseball, football, basketball jerseys I will stop wearing my silly shorts and tight jerseys.
Happy riding.

Hey Truckman, those bikes probably cost more than your Chevy, why don't you man up and buy a bike.

Also most bike lanes or paths are about 5 miles long, good enough for about 12 minutes of riding, not really a solution for anyone other than familys with small children.

I've had the pleasure of commuting in the Boston area for the past 5 years and have had 4 car vs bike accidents in that period (where all the drivers were found to be at fault by the police and insurance agencies) . As a motorist who drives both a car, and bicycle, and a motorcycle I have great appreciation for how drivers repond to all these vehicle types and frankly the general consensus is that drivers in ANY vehicle believe that they have the right to the road. Didn't we all learn in Kindergarden to SHARE?

As a bicyclist, I break as many rules of the road as the cars who make right turns from left lane, don't signal, speed, ride my (expletive), blow their horn, motorcyclists who split traffic, swerve around cars, all of whom blow thru yellow AND red lights.

As a bicyclist we DO have the RIGHT to SHARE the road, but it is also a privilage. I recently had a cabbie stop next to me at a light and thank me for signaling and riding safely.

I agree with the "car,truck, motorcyclist people", bicyclists need to get tickets for breaking traffic laws...but so do the vehicles AND PEDESTRIANS. Boston still (expletive) in regards to traffic, pedestrians, and motorists, but the fact is we all are going to be here, so SHARE.

I Have been biking to work for about 30 years and I try to bike on the sidewalks at every opportunity especially on busy parts of the road. I also stay way clear of drivers with cell phones and always go behind drivers when they are pulling out on the road I am traveling on. I also thank drivers who give me a break ( respect goes both ways) and don't consider myself as a mini car on the road. You always have to ride on the defensive as some drivers are so focused on their driving that they do not notice you on the road. ( especially older drivers)

The long list of comments here shows that everyone on both sides of the argument understands precisely the environment that exists in Boston for cyclists and automobiles. There really is no argument. If you understand the situation so clearly, then you understand the risk. It's a free country. Drive an SUV and you are safer on the road. Ride an bicycle and you are less safe. The choice is yours.... make your choice.., but then don't complain about it!

I had no problem with cyclists until I lived in Concord for a year and a half. They are arrogant and ride in packs so you can't get around them. Then they get mad if you honk at them to get out of the way. I understand sharing the road, but come on. Cyclists do not OWN the road like they seem to think they do. This may not be the case in all neighborhoods, but in Concord it is especially bad. To the cyclists, once you learn to share the roads with drivers it will be much better for everyone period.

Wow! We're angry because we're human beings without voice in a world full of mixed messages. We don't feel like we know each other or owe each other the same respect we claim for ourselves. That's all. Bikes or cars, who cares, it's the people that make a mess of any good and peaceful situation. How about slowing down and being more interested in each other than ourselves? Is it possible?

"never blow through traffic lights or stop signs" ??
Every day on my way to work I go by a bike route - the minuteman trail. And every day I see a cyclist ignore the light and cross on the green. Not always successfully. With cars going 40 miles per hour.

"We're out there obeying the rules, getting exercise, and saving gasoline. We've ridden in charity rides that benefit cancer, mental retardation, poor children, multiple sclerosis, and myriad other causes. We stay on the far right side of the lane. We never blow through traffic lights or stop signs. We're cautious because we know that you're out there in mega-ton vehicles, any one of which could flatten us in an instant."

Youhave obviously not driven or ridden in and around The People's Republic of Cambridge. Stop signs? Traffic lights? - Those are applicable to bikers too?

I would love to be able to bike to a commuter rail stop to take the train to work, but sharing the narrow roads with cars and many awful drivers is too dangerous. We need more dedicated bike paths and bike lanes connecting to T stops and commuter rail stations.

I have been riding my bicycle around cities for the past fifteen years. As somebody who moved to Boston two years ago and has lived in over fifteen cities across Asia, Europe, Canada, and the USA, I can unequivocally say that drivers in Boston are far and away the worst that I've experienced in their relationship with cyclists. Sadly, this is in direct comparison with constantly swerving Parisian drivers and the endless bustling scooter traffic of Saigon.

I cannot speak for the spandex wearing weekend warriors who team up and bike around the suburbs. Speaking strictly as someone who uses his bicycle to get to the grocery store and to work around the city, the sheer lack of consideration for other objects legally entitled to their space on the road is startling to experience. Honestly, it's enough that it was a primary concern in deciding to move away from Boston, which I'm doing in a few months. While not a scientific sampling by any means, the vast majority of car-bicycle issues I've noticed over the past two years have been overwhelmingly caused by drivers speaking on their cellphones, expecting everything and everyone to get out of their way. Here's one vote for banning cellphones while driving.

I am a driver and a cyclist. But i cycle more than drive.

For all you drivers complaining about Bikes not following the law. OK sure as soon as all casr never break the speed limit and always signal and never use thier vehicle as weapon I'll be on board with that line of thinking.

Note people like truckman. You should be chrarged for threatening and investiged for all the vehicular homocides you just admiteded to.

Other than that frack it if i take the lane or otherwise use my rights on the road.
You dont like it cest le vie.
Honking is fine a shorty blast a few yeads away is fine i get it.
getting on my wheel and laying on the horn. That trying to intimidate / threaten me. And i'll respond in kind.
maybe instead of complining about gas and bike you should get a bike and use it to go to the store when you need a gallon of milk.

cars make you weak.

The roads aren't wide enough and drivers don't act responsibly towards cyclists or pedestrians...

Here's the deal: If the cyclist makes a mistake, the cyclist gets hurt. If the motorist makes a mistake, the cyclist gets hurt.

But then again with gasoline going over $5 a gallon soon, there will only be more and more and more cyclists on the road. And they won't be out there for exercise, but simply folks getting to and fro.

Get used to it.

As an Arlington resident who frequently walks through the town Center (where the Minuteman path requires bikers to use Mass Ave for a bit), I can't tell you how many times I've had a biker speed by me or swerve to avoid a collision with me or other pedestrians on the sidewalk. I fully support bikers who follow the rules, as I also try to leave my car at home as often as I can. But as several other commenters have pointed out, the bikers who willfully disregard the rules when it suits them tend to ruin it for all bikers.

I agree that most cyclists do not follow the rules but there are some of us who do. It is the same exact thing with drivers. I bike daily, on Comm Ave and I also drive everyday to work (in an SUV so maybe I'm a hypocrite). I stop at red lights and stop signs and I always let pedestrians cross (which every driver in Boston does, right?). I get annoyed with bikers who do not follow the rules, but when I see them doing the right thing, I will go out of my way to slow down, let them avoid obstacles, pass leaving ample room, etc. We all need to be responsible and respectful, wether in a car or on a bike.

In response to #148, Dr T Sanchez, are you kidding me guy? You don't care about whatever stupid charity we're supporting? Over the years cyclists in MA have raised millions to support Cancer, Diabetes, Mental Retardation, etc. What kind of scumbag says he doesn't care about these? I ride the Tour de Cure for diabetes every year, and I've been diabetic since I was 12, in fact I'm riding it this weekend. Why don't you show up and tell everyone riding that you don't care about the stupid charity and see how you make out. The fact that you even say something like this proves what kind of degenerate imbecile you are. I hope you're stricken with one of these diseases some day, we'll see if you appreciate all of these people riding for the "stupid charities" at that point.

In response to comment #152:

Yes, our rickety old Massachusetts traffic requires drivers being overtaken (including bicyclists) to stay in the right lane, but unlike in most states, not to keep as far right as they safely can. That does not always mean keeping far right. Motorists' overtaking unsafely is a problem only worsened by bicyclists' offering them the opportunity to do so. The Bicycle Driver Training classes of the Massachusetts Bicycle Coalition, which I am assuming the cyclist meant, teach claiming the lane only when it is too narrow to share. Motorists who demand that bicyclists to keep far right so they can pass unsafely are, I'm sorry, placing their own convenience above the bicyclists' safety. As both a cyclist and a motorist, I've seen plenty of examples of both good and bad behavior from both sides.

From: Local Driver / Cyclist / Bike Commuter / Father
To: The Driver in all of us.

1) Gas is currently about $4.10-ish per gallon in the Boston area, which mode of transportation uses more gas?

a) An automobile b) A bicycle c) Neither

2) Parking in downtown Boston can run between $10 and $25 per day for a parking space, which mode of transportation requires a parking space in downtown Boston (or anywhere)?

a) An automobile b) A bicycle c) Neither

3) Currently roughly 60% of Americans are overweight and over 30% are obese, which mode of transportation burns fewer calories?

a) An automobile b) A bicycle c) Neither

4) If a car and automobile collide at considerable speed, the operator of which vehicle is likely to be unharmed or not injured?

a) An automobile b) A bicycle c) Neither

5) In Boston the operators of which mode of transportation are known for "being the worst" around the country?

a) An automobile b) A bicycle c) Neither

6) Which mode of transportation typically weighs (with operator) more than 20 times the other?

a) An automobile b) A bicycle c) Neither

7) Which mode of transportation when braking the law or operated improperly is more likely to cause considerable injury/damage to person and property, or even death?

a) An automobile b) A bicycle c) Neither

8) When traveling along a roadway in which mode of transportation is the operator more likely to feel safer?

a) An automobile b) A bicycle c) Neither

9) When traffic is backed up or brought to a stand-still on local roads and highways which mode of transportation is more likely to be the cause?

a) An automobile b) A bicycle c) Neither

10) To date which mode of transportation has killed more people, consumed more petroleum, polluted more air, violated more traffic laws, caused more road-rage, cost more to operate and maintain, contributed less to the operator's health and well being, and will likely continue to do so for the foreseeable future?

a) An automobile b) A bicycle c) Neither

For those whining about the charity rides that seem to absolutely ruin your day....

The next time a loved one, close friend, or even yourself contracts MS, cancer, CF, or any other life threatening disease, let me know again how you feel about these rides that raise millions for research. I personally have never done such a ride, but have contributed a lot to others that have

I have been commuting and riding in the recreational road bike areas for a couple of years now and I would say that SOME of the driver's arguments are valid, as are SOME original poster's, but in both cases they are more the exception than the rule.
Generally speaking, I have found drivers to be respectful of cyclists, allowing us to merge with traffic, not straying into bike lanes when they exist (thank you Cambridge, Somerville, and Brookline), and definitely found the behavior above to be rare. Yes, some bicyclists run red lights or go through stop signs... but so do pedestrians. (have you ever driven by South Station at 5:15?)
Bottom line is that if a cyclist is breaking the law and getting in your way, they deserve a honk on the horn (or a ticket if they're caught). Conversely, if a full beer can is thrown at me while i'm riding, I'm going to take down your plate # and call the police.

PS: with regards to folks complaining about cycling attire? Wearing a standard pair of shorts and a t-shirt on a 50 mile road ride is about as functional as playing a basketball game in workboots and jeans.

If cyclists want to be respected by drivers, then they need to also respect PEDESTRIANS!!!!!!!! I cannot tell you the number of times I am nearly hit by cyclists walking in the city. They do not pay any attention to crosswalks! RUDE!
So if you want the respect and want to act like a car....then STOP just like cars do...it is the LAW to stop for pedestrians in a crosswalk.
I think cyclists in the city are nothing but a nuisance!

As a pedestrian I was hit and injured by a biker on the sidewalk on the jfk street bridge in cambridge, he knocked me down and rode off, said nothing, so I have a grudge aginst bikes. it really hurt!!

Things to understand:

It's hard to propel a bike with your own energy. Sorry if we weave between you at red lights. You guys do the same thing sometimes (when someone is turning left and you pass them along the shoulder to avoid waiting).

Bikes ride far from the shoulder oftentimes because there are cars parked along their right side. If something goes wrong on a biker's left side, and they are too close to the parked cars, they have nowhere to escape to. Or, if they ride too closely to parked cars, they might 'win the door prize' as someone leaves their car.

Just to clarify, except for the exceedingly rare psychopathic individual, most drivers are not out to get bike riders. On the contrary, drivers get annoyed at bike riders when they violate the traffic laws NOT because they are worried about damage to their cars, but because they don't want to kill the bike rider. When there is a collision, the car always wins, and as even the safest driver knows, accidents happen. That's why when bikers violate the traffic rules, or swerve out into the road (not necessarily even crossing lanes) without full awareness of a car approaching from behind, drivers get frustrated.

I think it's also worth mentioning that while cyclists do reduce the number of cars on the road, they also can have a negative effect on traffic. When drivers are slowing down to try to safely pass a cyclist, it has a ripple effect on the traffic behind them. I don't think that's a good enough reason to argue that cyclists shouldn't ride, but I do think it's something cyclists should understand in terms of the frustration some drivers express.

Taking all that into account, I think the real problem is that the roads are not currently designed to accommodate both motorists and bikers. Cars, therefore, need to take care when approaching bikers, and certainly shouldn't act aggressively. But bikers also need to take responsibility for their behavior on the road. I think the maxim that one of the cyclists quoted above that you should act as if you are invisible is a good one. Unfortunately, it's not one that is followed by many (I might say a majority) of cyclists. It's not necassary because the vast majority of cars aren't trying to avoid you. It's because the roads aren't wide enough and people make mistakes.

Biking is great exercise and a great pasttime but when you ride on busy, crowded roads with vehicles, you are a nuisance and you're putting yourself at unnecessary risk.

Biking is also a great form of transportation. It's also the most energy efficient form of transportation.

When you drive on busy, crowded roads with bicycles, YOU are a nuisance and you're putting US at unnecessary risk.

But I suppose this is the kind of logic you would expect from folks who are okay with shelling out $4 for a gallon of gas.

As long as the law says we have the right to ride on the roads, you're going to have to deal with it. And when the cost of gas reaches a point where you can no longer afford to drive, we hope you'll join us!

OK, everyone just, "share the road". I'm a bicyclist and yes, I have not always obeyed each and every road rule/law. I'm also a HOG member, "Harley Owners Group" and yes, I have not always obeyed each and every road rule/law. It is safer to ride in a group of bikes!! I'm also a licensed MA. driver and yes, I have not always obeyed each and every road rule/law. But nowadays, with more bicycles and mopeds and pedestrians, why don't most of you drivers try getting out of your cars?

I take the ferryboat to work, downtown Boston, or the train, even the Red line....I just can't see why anyone would drive into the city. Cost of gas, parking and stress of traffic. No thanks to the rude drivers on the cell phones, drinking coffee and driving a stick shift.... and people w/ipods not paying attention to bicycles and mopeds and pedestrians? Don't even get me started with no license for mopeds?

Yes, the roads here are awful, but why can't we just "share the road."

In my experience, and this has been repeated in the previous comments, I have all too often encountered cyclists who have a bit of arrogance to them. Cyclists who refused to stay to the right and allow traffic to pass them, who do not obey stop signs, who do not use turn signals, or weave in and out of traffic. I have encountered way too many cyclists who think that the road is theirs and that motorists should yield to them at all times. Those riders are the ones who bring out the worst in motorists and give all cyclists a bad name. I, myself, ride often and try to always obey the rules of the road. Sometimes I have transgressions, but most times I try to be courteous. I think the solution is to have more dedicated bike lanes so that there is a blatant delineation of where cyclists should be and where motorists should not.

I love the drivers that wizz by us cyclists that honk and scream and yell at us. and guess what we are at the same red light or stop sign a hundred or so yards up the street. Yes there are bad drivers and there are bad cyclists. In this day and age where we all have to be 10 places at once and all have a million things to do just try to get to where you have to be safely whether it be bike, car, scooter etc.

Life is not a practice round we all have just one shot at it.. Do unto others....

Peace

I haven't read all the posts, so I may have missed a key one. One problem, it seems to me, is that US society continues its downward slide toward rudeness, intolerance, anger and outright stupidity. For evidence, one needs only to read many the of preceding posts.

I spent a year in a northern Finnish city where, line most Scandinavian cities, an elaborate network of bike-walking trails exist entirely independent of the automotive road system. Finnish taxpayers (incidentally the best educated people in the world by almost any measure) are willing to support this. Here, it's a struggle to achieve political agreement that simple bike lanes on roadsides make decent sense.

Nowhere in the world do bicycles and automotive vehicles mix safely. At top speed, most bicycles move well below the posted speed limit for cars and trucks. Add to this our chronic national shortage of courtesy, and the result can be catastrophic. Many bikers are anything but law-abiding saints. They can be as rudely arrogant as the worst driver. But as a society we need to get out more, reduce gas consumption along with our waistlines, unclog the automobile roads, and save lives. Separate bike networks have been proven to achieve this for cultures smart enough to pay for them.

Oh, I forgot, as Americans, we don't want to pay for our public benefits. We just want them handed to us.

Thank you Al (#317), can't we all just get along. I respect the bikers and appluad them for helping the planet as they commute to work. Cars need to be aware of bikers and pedestrians. Bikers need to be respectful of cars and pedestrians. In Cambridge many of the walk lights are timed with the green lights. Let the pedestrians safely cross the street. I have had many bikers go through a red light as I was legally crossing the street- this does not help the negative perception of bikers.

Hey Matt S, it is spelled ROAD, next time you are in your car go to the store and get a dictionary.

It's amazing that people from the same city have so much anger towards each other. People can't handle the slightest disruption to their own little world and fly off the handle all too easily.
Bikers have to physically work very hard to get where they are going, plus they have the mental stress of the possibility that any car can kill them.
Drivers sit in a seat and push a little pedal a few inches with their foot.
If you can't have some patience as a driver, you should evaluate your life and think about how you fit into a society.

I ride my bike to commute to WORK to EARN my living (no freeloading) and PAY TAXES in Mass. I also have a car I prefer not to drive if I can avoid it, but it is legally registered and insured.

I think the problem here is that cars know their lifestyle is unsustainable and are already making sacrifices to defend it. Cyclists are just making it that much harder for them to stay insulated.

This is a somewhat new conflict and I think we should look to history to see how similar issues are solved. I recently took sailing lessons and, as Boston has a long history of seafaring, this might resonate.

A boat that is under human power, like a group rowing crew, has priority over a boat under sail, which has priority over a boat with a motor. None of these vessels go out of their way to aggravate each other. So there should be a set of rules for Pedestrians, a set of rules for Bikes, and a set of rules for Cars. I firmly support that these rules be enforced. Fines can go to improve these abysmal roads.

I would have to say I'm heartened by the amount of comments and sheer passion that people have for this issue, even despite the hostility. Alot of us haven't wanted to deal with our traffic problems for a long time (I'm guessing like I said before that this is from our generally stubborn and prideful attitude). Maybe this is the beginning of some real improvements and real progress in Boston which as many have said is a great place to live.

I am all for bicycles. However they need to obey the laws. I don't know how I missed several of them while trying to get on Memorial Drive in Cambridge as they drove which ever way they wanted through construction.

Obey the rules.

First, cyclists wouldn’t ride in the center yellow lane if the roads were properly taken care off. The potholes and rough roads are hazardous and I have scars to prove my point. Second, I’ve had drivers beep at me to get out of the way at red lights when I am obeying the signals because they want to turn right at ‘No Turn on Red’ lights. I’ve seen plenty of cyclists who have not practiced safe riding, but it goes both ways. MA drivers in general are inconsiderate and unsafe.

Here's a scenario...I'm driving down the street with my 2 year old daugther. 2 bikers are in my lane riding side by side so they can talk about their new sweaters they just bought so they can wear around their necks to the cape. Do I (A) go into the other lane to pass them and risk getting into a head on collison with my 2 year old in the car or do I (B) put them up on the sidewalk where they belong?

I always choose B

get on the sidewalk you elitest D-Bag

The more of these comments I read the more I think I should wear full body armor while I ride my commute in and out of Boston. There are just way too many ignorant, stupid, angry motorists out there.

Some said to keep bikes off the road but on the bike paths only. To those of you that think that is a good idea talk to the idiots that don't want a bike path in their town (article in boston.com I think about sudbury). The resident actually said that having a bike path is going to bring crime to her area. When was the last time anyone heard of a crime spree that involved bikers? Whether it is a new shopping center, bar/restaurant, playground or bike path there are always going to be a few issues. It's unfortunate but true yet claiming a bike path is going to bring a crime spree and or bodily harm to the residents is utterly ridiculous.

I love the comment about drivers of cars getting off the road and playing a driving video game instead of being on the road in response to having bikers use the gym/stationary bikes. That was priceless. I actually gave up my gym membership to be outside and ride as well as play tennis and go for a walk since we only get a limited amount of good weather here in the northeast I want to take as much advantage as I can.

To the drivers out there that don't like the way I bike around the city and harrass me or harrass any bikers: I can catch up to you at a light and I will turn your plate number in.

BIKERS need to work together to make riding safer. Take plate numbers down, watch out for each other, call your city/town and ask for bike lanes and enforcement of them, call your state reps etc...

The more we unite the better off we are.

"We're out there obeying the rules, .... We stay on the far right side of the lane. We never blow through traffic lights or stop signs."

As a daily commuter from the far edge of Cambridge to Boston I cannot disagree more. The "we" in your statement probably covers 2-5% of the actual cyclists that I see on the streets. And by percentage, I'm willing to bet that there are more drivers that are more aware of cyclists/cycling laws. Let's face it -- there are far more cyclists breaking laws.

A cyclist answered his cell phone in front of me while holding up traffic. Another cut across a line of traffic stopped at a red light and nearly hit me as I traveled in the bike lane. Countless ran redlights, cut me off and gave me lip when I point out that they've just ran a red light and we nearly crashed. Passed so closely with absolutely no warning, that if I swerved from a pothole we'd both suffer. Rode two abreast , on the side walk, cut off pedestrians in crosswalks with a walk signal, and then ran a red light (this was couple of Boston Bike Officers, in uniform, around Downtown Crossing. I've contemplated writing to the Mayor about their embarrassing stunts). Not to mention Critical Mass - once I happened to be in this parade during part of my trip home, I saw how the group purposefully taunted drivers, broke traffic laws, held up rush hour commute. When I finally broke away to be on my own merry way, I had the most dangerous ride ever, because the cars were taking out their frustration on me -- a lone biker. Really, people, I understand your mission, but your execution is terrible.

For all of you cyclists who aren't obeying the law - you're all helping to make it worse. And I for one don't blame the drivers, not until cyclists get our acts together.

Ah, so many comments and strong-minded postings on both sides of the issue. Maybe all this will spur some action for safety awareness and road improvements. If we can spend massive amounts of time and money on bridge repair (have you seen that never-ending bridge project on Rte. 117 in Concord? It goes back to the Celucci administration), then maybe some of those resources can go to avoiding accident, injury, and road rage. I both bike to work and ride my car. For all those of you so definite in your opinions, try doing both to gain some perspective and courtesy in this discourse.

Richard I like your attitude, just a little concerned that "working together" will turn into a militant "we have more of a right to be here than others" attitude. Not to single you out, just a general observation that I'd say to anyone (including drivers and pedestrians).

I'm in an interesting situation where I've seen all sides of this issue. I was hit by a driver while I was a pedestrian and the nature of how I got hurt prohibits me from becoming a cyclist. I've also had two VERY close calls where I almost got run over by bikers while I had the right-of-way while walking but I didn't actually get hit.

I'm just saying this to chime in my $.02 towards the group of bikers who say "everyone should bike ride". Sorry guys, I physically can't. I do my part to save the environment in other ways and I happen to be in quite good physical shape. We're not going to be a motorless society anytime soon which I don't think is a bad thing.

Side note: the guy who hit me is as good an example as any of a rude driver. He swerved into the wrong side of the street, knocked me over, then left me bleeding on the floor so he could make his left turn. Charming. To be fair he probably didnt see me until it was too late. Still...we've earned our reputation as bad drivers here.

Dee (#371): I'm walking along in a pedestrian space with my daughter and a bike comes flying past me at 20 miles per hour?

The only wheels that should be on sidewalks are wheelchairs and strollers. Bikes don't belong on sidewalks, indeed it's usually illegal. Please educate yourself: (Bikes may ride on) sidewalks outside business districts except where prohibited by local ordinance [MGL Ch. 85, §11B] So, ok, on a suburban side street a person may ride on a sidewalk. I don't think that's at issue here.

I don't blame the guy riding a bike for needing to get to work. Chances are he has to go wash your dishes, or some other menial job you'd never take.

I posted yesterday, read through a few more postings and simply must respond again. Why do some people find it necessary to put down people who bike? We wear the proper attire because we want to be comfortable and be SEEN. This has nothing to do with being a show off. Some bikers go fast because they are able to do so and enjoy the speed and the work out. Why does this bother so many people? Most of us wear helmets and utilize the same rules as cars. But, you need to remember a few important things here. If there is an object on the road or something preventing the biker to stay to the right, we will move into the driving lane. This is not to bother the drivers, but to ensure our safety. Would you rather watch a biker go under your tires as he/she hits something? You also need to remember that we need to ride around kids, dogs, slower bikers and walkers who are typically far too self absorbed to care that a biker is approaching. Finally, when someone is riding, we enjoy keeping a certain tempo going. It is not a lot of fun to keep stopping and starting. So, if a biker runs a light, when no traffic is coming, how is that a problem to a car?

I live in a quiet suburb north of Boston where there are a lot of bikers. Here is what happened to me last evening around 7PM. First, I was heckled by elementary aged boys who played chicken in front of me. They even made nasty comments to me. Then, when attempting to cross, at a well marked crosswalk, I had to watch car after car NOT stop for me. I encountered multiple cars oblivous to the fact that they were about to make a right turn into me. All of this on a one hour ride in a quiet town.

Please, those of you who drive carelessly, lose the attitude. Get off the phone and text messaging, and pay attention. Have some respect for those of us who want to enjoy the beautiful outdoors while having a wonderful ride. Maybe if you tried some outdoor time, away from all the noise, phones and other multimedia, you might enjoy our beautiful planet.

Exactly. I do both as well. I see a lot of social group rides who do not obey the rules, and I choose not to ride with them for that very reason. At the same time, I see as many automobile drivers talking on the cell phone, putting on make-up, cutting people off, etc. I guess if you are a bad driver in an automobile, then you will probably be a bad rider on a bike. The difference is, we don't try to kill people in cars who are bad drivers. We are so used to it that most of us don't even waste the effort to get upset. My plea is that if I am obeying the rules on my bike as I do to the best of my ability (I am not perfect), please cut me some slack.

I drive and road bike, and 99% of this is about courtesy which is apparently lacking in great quantity. We are however a car centric society and that will, by necessity, change. So, we'll have to adapt. Too much to dig into here for full response, but my own .02 is...

Earlier poster was right on when he/she noted we do not act so rude (pushing, cursing, cutting people off, throwing things etc) in places such as the grocery store, park, etc. Why then do we believe it acceptable in traffic to do such things?

Difference being, cars/trucks will much more easily kill peds and riders. And riders will hurt more easily hurt peds. We all bear that burden.

"Bike" paths shared with dog walkers, moms with strollers, runners (I run too), inline skaters - these cease to be bike paths and should be more aptly called non-motorized paths.

My personal pledge:

@drivers, if I'm toward the lane center it's for a good reason (pot holes, debris, gravel, parked cars etc). I'll move back toward the right as soon as I can. I will also try to be predictable, signal my intentions, and single up when with other riders and we know a car is near. I don't expect "traffic favors" but do THANK YOU for being courteous when you leave enough space to get by or allow me more of the lane.

@cyclists, I'll give you a wide berth when I pass, and I won't honk because I know how much that makes me jump when others do it to me. I'd request you single up once you know I'm behind you, and that you use hand signals. I'd also request you not conclude all drivers are evil since some of us would love to be out with you!

See, everyone? Courtesy is not that hard to do. Lighten up a little, stop rushing so much...

I think the bigger picture here is that we are all stressed and irritated because commuting anywhere, in any fashion in Boston and its suburbs has become an utterly unpleasant experience. I admit to being irrationally irritated by bike riders sometimes, but I recognize that it doesn't really come from any ill will towards them (in fact, as they have pointed out, they are doing us all a favor by reducing the demand for gas), it's that I am already frustrated by the myriad traffic problems I've encountered along the way. And that's just on the weekend! I take the T to work everyday, and let me assure you, it's no picinic on there, either. People on the T can be just as discourteous and aggressive as those behind the wheel or on a bicycle; pushing, shoving, cutting others in line, and then jaywalking when they get off the T, causing further delays for the already frustrated drivers and cyclists. The point is, we are ALL in a very bad mood, and I think it's because getting around here is so difficult.

If getting from point A to point B were relatively easy, I think people would be much more relaxed and pleasant to one another, regardless of the manner in which they have chosen to commute. I have no idea what the solution to this problem is; the Big Dig certainly didn't help matters any, and the traffic backlog just seems to keep stretching futher and further out into the suburbs. The bikers have the right idea, but I don't think they're going have a safe place to ride anytime soon. Any ideas?

I think a big problem is that drivers aren't paying attention. It happened to me this morning in Davis Square. There was complete confusion there this morning, as usual- delivery trucks everywhere, people pulling into parking spaces, pedestrians who have never heard of walk signals or crosswalks...

and this woman in a car, just decided to change lanes out of nowhere in the midst of this, and was about to plow right into me. Luckily I was able to scream "hey hey hey!" and it woke her up and she hit the break. I can't tell you how many times I've been in similar situations where people are talking on phones or otherwise just not paying attention.

I get really made at cyclists who aren't riding correctly, because they give us all a bad name. But I suggest that some of the drivers who posted here read a book or a web site on bicycle safety because there are a lot of misconceptions posted here, especially like bikes should stay as far to the right as possible. This is a HUGE mistake and causes so much of the dissent...

and can I make a comment on pedestrians? Why do you step out onto the street directly in the path of an oncoming bike??? Some of you do this in front of cars too, but even those of you who would never step out in front of car think it's ok to step out in front of a bike. When I was kid, I learned how to cross the street- look both ways and if no traffic is coming, cross. I cannot believe the number of people who just step off the curb and hope for the best.

This is timely, for me -- just this past week I became a biking commuter. I would never have done it if it wasn't possible for me to ride almost the entire way to work on the Charles Riverway.

I learned to drive in MA. That's made me a cautious, even paranoid driver. I feel that's essential just for self-protection. Always assume that anyone around you is going to do something stupid and/or jerk-like, and be ready for it. (I'm usually not disappointed.)

I've thus become a cautious and paranoid biker. Say hello, everyone: I'm that biker that some of you believe doesn't exist. I not only stop at every stop sign and red light, I GET OFF MY BIKE and WALK IT ACROSS THE ROAD. So far -- and I've only ridden to work 2 days so far, including today -- yes, I get stared at as if I'm an old granny. Do I care? No. (And yes, I had one biker be surprised that I was stopping for a red light and getting off the bike; he didn't hit me, but he exclaimed in surprise.)

So, having been a driver for 10 years, a biker for less than a week, here's what I would say to folks:

BIKERS: do better, yourselves. Remember that you're piloting a fast vehicle, and yes, you can CAUSE accidents that can hurt or kill others. Don't think that you're just "the vulnerable one" -- you are, but you aren't. You can hurt pedestrians if you aren't considerate of them and of the laws. But you can also cause accidents for cars. (Any biker who uses the excuse of "if I hit a car, nothing happens; but if a car hits me, I could be dead" is fooling themselves. A biker can, in fact, cause a car to get in an accident that may have serious consequences for the car.)

DRIVERS: I really am sorry for the inconsiderate bikers who aren't remembering the above point. But there is NOTHING in the world that is any kind of excuse for turning your car into a weapon, or hurling things at anyone, biker or pedestrian. Please always remember that you're the one who can kill someone else most easily. That's the bottom line, and it's part of the responsibility for operating a motor vehicles. I get the feeling that most of you who would do such things, or who advocate it, are doing so because you feel you won't be held responsible. You're moving faster, after all -- a biker can't catch you and you'll be long gone from the scene of an accident. That's no excuse; that's just criminally negligent behavior.

AN OPINION: actually, I would very much support bikers needing to be registered/licensed. I haven't even been biking that long, and it makes me nervous to know that I have no way to identify a biker and no way to track one down, should they do something to me or to a pedestrian that I witness. That's unsettling, and I don't think it's right. If a bike *IS* a vehicle with rights to the road, then like cars and motorcycles, bikes need to be accountable, not anonymous.

Finally, an anecdote: yes, just 2 days into this biking to commute thing, and I've had my first obscenity yelled at me for no reason! Riding in the bike lane (between Watertown Square and Rt. 20), I came up on a guy with his car parked half in the bike lane, his driver door wide open, his trunk open, rummaging in his trunk. I checked carefully and since there was no traffic coming up behind me, I just went out into the traffic lane to pass him. Shortly thereafter, I heard a male voice behind me yell "Please close your door!"; after which, a man on a bike overtook me and passed me (safely on the left).

Not long after THAT, a car came up behind me, and slowed down JUST so the driver could lean over and shout "F*cking b*tch!" You know, it took me moments to figure out why on earth he was yelling at me at all! (I'd only seen his butt, not his face! I didn't even recognize the car immediately.) I could see farther ahead that he also took time to slow down and presumably yell something similar at the man who *had* asked him to please close his door. Nice! No reason for it; I hadn't said a word to the guy, and he WAS in the wrong, but hey, no matter!

The amount of drivers that break laws far outnumbers cyclists. Case in point speeding. 99% of drivers exceed the speed limit. Should they lose access to the roads. For those of you that don't understand why cyclists don't ride to the right, it's because being out in the late or slightly out in the lane forces cars to notice us, slow down and then pass by using the other lane, meaning they have to think about what they are doing and generally check to see if it's clear. That's far safer for everyone than trying to pass a cyclist at full speed squeezing both of you in a lane.
If you're driving please consider that the 30 seconds - 1 minute a cyclist costs you out of your day is hardly worth being angry about or jeopardizing someone else's life who is only trying to get to work or home to hug a wife kid etc.
d

As one person pointed out a limit is the top speed you should be going. As both a commuting cyclist and a leisure driver I feel that often the speed limits are too high on many of our roads (and imagine the gas that slower driving saves). Slowing down to pass one of us (or many of us) is not the most onerous thing you can do in a day.

Admittedly I do clear though red lights on my bike (, but only after I am sure the intersection is clear), and I do speed when I feel it is safe in my car. Either way I am prepared to get a ticket when I break the rules. However, after reading the comments etc. I am going to make a concerted effort not to do this, purely out of courtesy to everyone else out there. Maybe, if we all just remember to come to a complete stop, signa (by hand or by blinker) and remember everyone else has some where just as important to be we can share the road in a more harmonious way.

People who ride bicycles are cyclists not bicyclists.

I have nothing against bike riders, but obey the rules....Red Light for cars = Red Light for Cyclists......wear helmets is this is considered a vehicle and learn the rules of the road....

A cyclist came up along side me today (right side) cut directly in front of me to get to other side of road....excuse me buddy...stop, look and wait....

This is really kind of funny. I recently started commuting by bike from my house in JP to my office downtown, and I realized: The people on bikes are just as rude as Boston's notorious drivers and jaywalking pedestrians. I get yelled at by drivers when I ride on the parkways and by pedestrians when I ride on the bike path. I've learned to just smile and wave and and ring my little bell.

There is a general lack of lawfulness in all modes here in Boston (have you been on the T recently?), so it's no surprise that the bicycle riders are both complaining and being complained about as the price of operating a car increases. Everyone needs to make an effort to live in a civilized society, so just try to stay out of the way of each other and be nice for a change.

Boston needs my father here using his lawyer's voice:

TWO WRONGS DO NOT MAKE A RIGHT.

Just because (cars|bikes) break the law does not mean you treat them any differently. Same with pedestrians. So enough with the "who is breaking the law more often" arguments.

Diane - many cyclists have discovered that cars are actually more accommodating if one doesn't wear a helmet. Sad but true. I guess people really hate recreational cyclists.

Cyclists need to do a better job of obeying the rules and drivers need to do a better job of sharing the road and considering our safety. It would help both groups if the roads were in better shape. Better roads with good shoulders help everyone. Towns like Belmont are absolutely dangerous and have you ever tried riding the bike path on memorial drive? If the pike was that bad there would be a revolt.

Can the police issue a citation to a bicycle? They don't enforce the traffic laws in this state, so its really a hopeless cause. Ten tickets given to cars speeding up at the sight of a yellow light will stop ten thousand people from doing it. A dozen tickets to cyclists for any traffic violation would do the same.

I have ridden across the country and everywhere for over 40 years. When there were no other bicycles, I would break every rule in the book. As bicyclyes increase in popularity, there really is an effort by bike clubs/orgs to clean this up. I now try to obey the rules. Cars used to be really obnoxious; I find them very respectful and have run into very few instances like the ones described.

One place I run red lights is where they don't change unless a car trips the sensor. As bicycles aren't detected, the lights really don't work.

Hi Bella,
I am a 20 year rider in the PAN MASS. CHALLENGE, after a while you get used to THE LACK OF RESPECT (somewhat). We, as a state are not "bike friendly". I think it is imperitave we have more bike trails for a greener society. I live in Randolph and ride through the Blue Hills, less cars, some "nice " hills try riding that. I am glad you have brought this to the forefront and hope YOU CONTINUE! If you like Bella, you can even greaft off of me.

Bella, you can preach all you want about how car drivers SHOULD share the road, and all the posters here can complain about how bikers ignore the rules when it suits them, but then get all pious and sanctimonious about how they are saving Mother Earth, but it just does not matter.

A bike weighs 35 lbs. A small cars weighs 2000 lbs. Physics wins.

#156 izzy

If a driver struck your car door in the situation you described, because you failed to look back before opening it, you'd be at fault.
If you doored a cyclist, your insurance rates would go up and it costs a lot more for medical care than car repair at a body shop.

Just take the time to look, don't be clueless because you are too lazy to turn your head. It is precisely because of people like you that the ONLY way for a cyclist to avoid getting the door prize is to ride an open-car-door distance from all parked cars.

As an avid road and mtn biker, former Greg Lemond wanna-be racer
and someone who likes to drive a fast car on a windy narrow rural road sipping a cold beverage, my only contribution to this heated debate is to #131: mmmmmmm McRib.

Dear Blog Commenter,

This letter is in response to the recent post disparaging bicycle drivers' use of roadways.

Different vehicle types have different advantages and disadvantages, and different people have different needs and preferences. Fortunately, our roadways and traffic laws allow accommodation of a diversity of vehicle types for transportation. If this were not the case, many people would be limited to vehicles they don't need, don't want, can’t afford, or can't use.

An unfortunate reality of our roadway system is that all forms of traffic affect all other forms of traffic. No road user is immune to traffic delays or innocent of creating them for others. Although the cause and nature of the delays generated by traffic may appear different from one vehicle type to the next, comparison of the total induced delays caused by different vehicle types fails to reveal any significant net difference long-term. Time and time again, our free society has found that the advantages of allowing transportation via a diversity of vehicle types outweighs convenience-oriented arguments for prohibition of certain vehicle types on the surface streets that provide essential access to our local destinations. This is especially true for those vehicles that are the most affordable, are the most environmentally friendly, occupy the least space, do the least damage to roadways, generate the least noise, and create the least danger for other innocent road users.

When issues of traffic-related inconvenience arise, the prudent response is to improve or supplement the transportation facility, not ban a segment of the population from travel. If some motorists feel that they are unreasonably delayed by slow traffic, they can lobby for construction of extra road space for passing or promote a redundant system of expressways that slower travelers won't need to use. Many communities have elected to incorporate improved passing facilities into their roadways via construction of wide (14' or wider) outside travel lanes. In other locations, delays caused by slower traffic may be too small to warrant the costs of roadway widening, and taxpayer money may be better spent in other ways.

Some motorists who wish to avoid the responsibilities and occasional inconveniences of motor vehicle travel have claimed that use of slow, open vehicles on roadways is unreasonably dangerous. However, analysis of safety data for bicycle transportation shows this to be untrue. Bicycle drivers who follow the vehicular rules of the road when traveling on roadways enjoy a safety record similar to automobile users, safer than sidewalk cyclists, and much safer than motorcycle users. Our society's respect for the travel rights of vulnerable but lawfully operating road users is what keeps these bicyclists safe. Those impatient road users who treat bicycle drivers with disrespect and make inflammatory statements intent on depriving other groups of their equal right to travel upon our public street system are the ones creating the real danger.

Often we hear claims from very vocal individuals that bicyclists are not taxed enough or regulated enough to deserve to use public streets. Advocates for bicyclists are willing to entertain these concerns when they are presented in a constructive manner, but once a realistic discussion of the costs and benefits of various revenue collection and regulation schemes begins, the vocal complainants usually lose interest. It appears that these individuals are not really interested in ensuring that the system is fair or effective; rather, they are only interested in changes that will discourage bicycling. If these bicycling critics are primarily interested in their own convenience as motorists, perhaps their efforts would be better spent lobbying for improved roadway facilities such as wide outside lanes. Bicycling critics may also point out that some bicycle operators create hazards for other road users by habitually violating the rules of the road. Lawfully operating bicycle drivers share this concern and advocate better education and enforcement of the traffic laws we already have as they apply to all drivers of vehicles.

Sometimes members of the motoring public will express empathy for utilitarian bicyclists who don't use cars, but exhibit anger toward recreational cyclists who use popular roads at popular times. Some of these motorists suggest that the government place prohibitions on recreational bicycle travel. This concept is fraught with problems. First, it is impossible to tell one's trip purpose simply from appearance, since many utilitarian cyclists use the same bicycles and clothing as recreational cyclists, and second, the government has never been granted an interest in the citizens' trip purpose for everyday travel on public streets. Do we wish to open a Pandora's box of civil liberty infringements where our government can stop citizens for their appearance, demand to know their trip purpose, and arrest them for traveling for unapproved reasons? If recreational travel is subject to prohibition does that mean that trips to sporting events and vacations may be prohibited to reduce traffic? May the government ban "sports cars", "sport utility vehicles" and "RVs" in order to spare the public from their impact on roads? It seems far better to allow everyone to use our roadways, and to design and regulate them to make them as safe and efficient as possible for mixed traffic. That way we can continue to enjoy living in a free country, with equal opportunity for all.

Sincerely,

Your friendly neighborhood bicycle driver

I agree that cyclists need to obey the laws (rolling stops, riding between cars). I do 98% of the time. I'll roll through a stop sign when no cars are present.

But then motorists need to do the same (speeding, the lack of using directionals, not yielding to cyclists-typically 3 feet, not stoping fully at stop signs, running red lights, throwing things at cyclists, purposly crowding a cyclist- to make a point...I could go on.

This is America, ¿no? A land of laws. The law says I have the right and liberty to ride in the road as as far to the right as I safely can. I'll try not to roll through the stop sign tonight.
Mark
Michigan

Look, as a person who cares about the environment, I'm all for those who want to commute via bike. I don't bike myself - I walk and use the transit system (with the occasional Zipcar use). I'm also pretty concerned about protecting my physical person, so I do cross at crosswalks and according to the traffic signals. So, if bikers are supposed to follow the same rules as cars - which includes stopping at the light - could someone please explain to me why this evening I came within inches of being hit by a biker...A CAMBRIDGE POLICE OFFICER who plowed through the crosswalk in order to get the jump on the turn?

Massachusetts is a difficult state for bicycling.

-The roads are in generally poor condition, after years of deferred maintenance. And often, when they are repaved the extreme right edge isn't done (cost savings?) rendering them unrideable for a bike, pushing bicyclists further left into the lane.

-The roads are overcrowded. Too many cars on too few, shoddy (see above) roads.

-Drivers are pressurized. The economy is bad. People work long, hard hours with no future security, making money that buys them ever less, while listening to conservative talk radio hosts exhort them to stay the course (and, incredulously, they buy into it).

The weather stinks much of the year.

I wish I knew how to make it better, or even if it can be turned around.

The solution is simple:
1. A LOT of work needs to be done to improve driving and drivers' behavior in MA. This includes cars, trucks, motorcycles, trolleys and buses.
2. A LOT of work needs to be done to educate bicyclists and improve their cycling and behavior in regards to other cyclists, cars, trucks, buses and pedestrians.
3. A LOT of work needs to be done to improve all transportation surfaces and roads and make them more user -friendly for everyone--this includes, by the way, the disabled, the elderly and children--all of whom should be able to share our public spaces, which are created and maintained by our tax money.

About time we are honest and direct about inclusion and create spaces that implement this vision. This is what democracy is about. It's what we pay taxes for. It's how we will be healthier, happier and less dependent on oil. Transportation should be by the people and for the people.

I am a road cyclist and I've seen cyclist and motorist do some very stupid/dangerous stuff. It happens everyday.
Until EVERYONE has to obey the traffic laws it will continue to be like this. Cyclist and motorist will continue to argue about who has the right to be on the road.
I would like to ask drivers to ride a bike on any road of their choice and see if they can stay all the way over to the right.
With the potholes we have here and other road hazards I think you would understand why occasionally we cyclist have to pull out into the road a bit.
I will not defend a bad cyclist but I will ask you to ask yourself why a cyclist might put him/herself out there in the street, in harms way if it wasn't for a damn good reason.

The reality of riding a bike to work and back home again in Greater Lowell is not always worth saving a few cents on gas. I have been riding back and forth to work for the past few weeks and I wouldn’t recommend it for the fainthearted. In the afternoon, I have been twice nearly run over by crazed moms on cell phones pulling out of parks in Dracut and Pelham after dropping their children off. Both moms were talking on their cell phones, yelling at their remaining children, changing radio channels, lighting a cigarette and applying makeup as they drove their SUV’s with their knees. One group of irate Pelham youths tried to punch me or at least touch me from their window of their car and later opened their door in front of me when I caught up to them at a stop sign. Their door would be placed, I screamed, in an area where they would find it somewhat uncomfortable. Today, some other youths (will it be on You Tube?) threw a water bottle at us in Tyngsboro, which whizzed by my head. I was saddened when the school bus ahead sped up enough so that I couldn’t catch them and offer similar implant surgery to those fine young men as well. Tomorrow, I will be having a rocket propelled grenade launcher attached to my handlebars, which will add weight, sure, but will help ensure my safety or at least allow me the revenge which we bike riders sometimes desire.

This was sent to another newspaper in response to a front page article about riding a bike to work

Wow. So many comments. Somehow I doubt many people will read to this point, but I've got to add my two cents.

I am a recreational cyclist, a bike commuter, and a car driver. I am a daughter of a cyclist who was forced off the road by someone playing a game of cat and mouse (and as a result I am a big helmet advocate). I have been forced off the shoulder myself, had my behind slapped when I was stopped at a stop sign, had hot coffee thrown at me out a window (I was far to the right in a 4 foot deep shoulder. He must have been a pitcher, because he had very good aim), had people rush to get around me just to turn right just in front of me, had someone look me in the eyes then turn left right in front of me. I have also had drivers wait courteously for me to ride by before turning into the road, drivers who wait patiently when I have to ride in the middle of the road because the right was so chewed up or filled up with debris I couldn't ride safely, I have had children in the back of cars waving and smiling at me, drivers who generously slow down so I can take my turn from the left turn lane in evening rush hour traffic.
I have also ridden with many wonderful people, mothers and fathers, plumbers, accountants, grocery store clerks, sons and daughters, minivan drivers, programmers, janitors, grandparents, cancer survivors, former runners, doctors, bald men, athletes, truck drivers, weight-watcher members, tiny women, physical therapists, people with freckles, new moms, new dads, football players, and many many more. Most ride consciously. Some not so much. Most are good riders. Some of them are not great riders. Some of them are great riders who test my patience, and ability to keep my comments constructive and not laced with profanity.
I am sorry that so many people have commented that "most" of the riders they see break the law and ride dangerously. I would submit that perhaps they are just not noticing the majority of us who do ride safely, because most people don't take note of the "norm", but only really remember those that cause some sense of outrage or distress.
I get such joy out of riding my bike. On it I felt strong and free when I was sick and we didn't know what would happen next. On it I discovered again why I married my husband. On it I have met many unforgettable, generous and wonderful people (on and off bikes). On it I've actually seen the beauty that is Massachusetts.
We all bear the responsibility to keep one another safe. Sometimes, as a cyclist, it means not taking a particular route, or moving farther to the right, and actually signaling and stopping at stop signs even if it screws with your "average". Sometimes, as a motorist it means waiting a moment for the cyclist to notice you, move over when it is safe, and not racing around pissed off and endangering everybody in the process.
Figure that if 50% of the population fits into the jerk category, then you're going to find half of the cyclist and half of the drivers in that category. You'll also find half of the salesmen, half of the policemen, half of the moms, half of the granddads, and half of the carpenters in that category too.

Yay! Go Cycling Mom! That was a fantastic post!

Why isn't there more bicycle lanes? Boston has to be the worst city i have ever lived in for cycling infrastructure. Simply putting bicycle lanes on main roads solves the "who owns the road" problem straight away.

Also, I think the main thing that a lot of people are forgetting here is that these conflicts aren't just a matter of cyclists or motorists getting annoyed - people get killed.

Agreed. Cycling Mom a very good post. Golf clap.

Most drivers do share the road, but unfortunately, the bad drivers, like the bad cyclists who are referenced in so many of the comments, seem to get the most notice. I've ridden a bunch of years, and can count on one hand the number of close calls I've had. I think it's partly because I obey traffic signals & signs, choose my routes carefully, wear a little extra reflective gear and use a rear view mirror in hopes that I might get an extra second to get out of the way of that car that might be coming too close. Maybe it's also because I understand that the laws of physics (mass, momentum, intertia, etc.) put me at a distinct disadvantage when on the road, and I try to avoid pressing my luck.

I have to admit that sometimes we cyclists are our own worst enemy, however. Too many of us think we're too cool to wear gear (like a relective ankle band) that would make us more visible to traffic (especially some of those "stupid" drivers). Many of us also expect more courtesy than we're willing to give, and don't obey the rules we expect others to follow. We're just too full of ourselves sometimes. I see more than my share of supposed conscientious commuters (and don't get me started on messengers) in Boston going through red lights, taking short cuts on the sidewalk, going the wrong way down one-way streets and nearly hitting pedestrians. When I see these geniuses, I just want to grab them and say, "Moron! You're making things tougher on the rest of us who ride!" For what it's worth, I agree with the poster who noticed cyclists who weave though traffic at red lights to get to the front of the line - if we cyclists want to get treated like other traffic, we should take our place in line at traffic lights like other traffic. I do the charity rides, too, and it seems as though a fair share of riders take on a strange kind of pack mentality. I've seen far too many groups of riders who block traffic (and even other cyclists) when it would be no problem to ease over to the right or ride single file for a few seconds. They're just as arrogant as any driver who thinks he owns the road because his car is bigger than the next guy's.

Despite the faults of some of my cycling brethren (and me, at times, I'm sure), there's one thing I hope you "I hate cyclists" drivers will remember. Letting your temper get the better of you when you're driving and cutting too close to us is not a lot different than taking a gun, aiming a foot to either side of us, and pulling the trigger. If you misjudge your aim, we'll be just as dead.

Tom

In my experience, as an avid roadie, much of the problem boils down to patience. Riders sometimes don't always have the patience to wait at a red light when there are no cars coming in either direction and drivers sometimes don't have the patience to drive slightly slower up to the waiting red light, instead choosing to zoom around a cyclist into oncoming traffic for no apparent reason.

If everyone in their car would just take a deep breath and realize that waiting for a good and safe moment to pass the cyclist will not extend their trip too much; and likewise if cyclists would realize that it is ok to wait a light for a few minutes, then perhaps the world would be a better place.

"Can the police issue a citation to a bicycle?"

Yes, but it's some weird form that's unfamiliar to most cops. There is (I think) legislation in process to simplify this (make it the same as an auto ticket, plus some notation that it is "for a bike") and rationalize some of the other parts of the Massachusetts bicycle code (for instance, make it legal to ride two abreast, since this is what is legal in most other states, is also in the Uniform Vehicle Code, is a proven safety non-issue, and is more sociable than riding in line).

To anyone who has ever honked at a bicycle, unless you are in a hybrid, there was absolutely no reason to do so. (Non-hybrid) Cars are really loud, and we can hear you, and it is a safe assumption that you want to get past us. I've been looking at how people use their horns in the last few months, and I have yet to see one used in a way that actually prevents a collision -- most times, someone is just mad because they had to stop (often to prevent a collision, but it's the brakes that prevented it, not the horn) when they would have preferred to go.

I think a big part of the problem is the attitude held by a lot of young riders that if they do not agree with certain laws, they do not have to obey them. 20 somethings these days (I know, I am one of them) seem to have a blatant disregard for any rules, guidelines, or people who do not conform to their little militant agendas. This is not confined to cyclists, though a large portion of the current counter-culture movements (vegans, punks, hippies, eco-nazis, etc.) have adopted the bicycle as their favored form of transportation. Riding a bicycle is not simply about getting to your destination, it has become a battle flag for "generation-y". While many of these people claim to be extremely open minded and conscious of the world around them, they are in fact some of the most closed off, militantly contrary people you will ever meet (if you are not one of them). It's the whole "if you are not with us you are against us" mentality, which is a HORRIBLE way of going about getting validation for your concerns.

Point being, cyclists, you are not a special, unique flower. Your moral superiority is lost under the wheels of the car that just plowed you after you ran that red light. Act like a law abiding adult, stop idolizing bike messengers, and get a grip. Seriously. It will more than likely your blood on the pavement if you continue to ride like a maniac. No one, not even the tool driving the Hummer, really wants to see you dead, as much as you might think that.

"For what it's worth, I agree with the poster who noticed cyclists who weave though traffic at red lights to get to the front of the line - if we cyclists want to get treated like other traffic, we should take our place in line at traffic lights like other traffic. "

i am a cyclist (mostly city), and i dont agree with this statement... not b/c i don't think bikes should follow the same rles as cars, but simply b/c it is hard to get up to speed after stopping on a bike... especially on a hill. i go to the front at a red light and get right to the side, so that i am visible and so cars can pass me when it turns green. if i were waiting in line, i think i would create more problems b/c i couldn't "gun it" like most cars do at green lights, and the cars behind me would be VERY angry that i was slowing them down and possibly making them miss the light.

just my 2 cents...

You Rock Cycng Mom!!!!

I don't mean to condem all bicycle riders but it seems that the overwhelming majority of bike riders feel THEY own the road and we as motorist are imposing on their territory. On more than one occasion I have been driving in Concord, Carlisle and Acton only to find myself behind a group of 20 to 30 bike riders, who I assume to be from some club are traveling along a road with a posted speed limit of 35 -40 MPH 3/4/5 abreast and even spilling over the line into the lane of oncoming traffic. I have given a courtesy tap on the horn to indicate I would like to pass only to be given the finger and cursed at. On more than one occasion have used my cell to call the local police to report this. I don't know if these calls ever did any good. I am a recreational biker, I ride with my children. When we can we ride on bike paths or rail trials but there are occasions when we must use the road and I tell them to obey the rules of the road, ride definsively, and be courteous. I feel we are clearly in the minority of bike riders. I refuse to believe that Bella has not encountered some of these incredibily rude and arrogant bike riders in her travels. The road runs both ways Bella, motorist are not the only villians here.

There needs to be public service announcements on radio and TV educating non-bike riders of the facts. For example, the fact that bicycles are vehicles and have the same right to be on the road as the cars. Motorcycles have had a pretty good campaign to make others aware of thier presence ("Motorcycles are everywhere" bumper stickers). Time for non- motorizes bikes to get the recognition neccesary for their safety.

Riding a bike in Boston, it's almost like you're offending the drivers. If you're not completely surrounded by metal you have no right to be on the road, apparently. :-P

I'm based in the South End and cycle a lot in the city as well as doing longer rides out of town and competitive long-distance events. I ride a lot. But I think it's important to acknowledge that the vast majority of motorists are responsible and careful. There is a significant minority, fewer than 10%, I'd guess, who are really too stupid or careless or inconsiderate to be safe around cyclists. And then there's the deliberately vicious ones who are rare but extremely dangerous.

I say this because I think that politically we need the safe motorists on our side in denouncing and ostracizing the foolish and mean motorists. To help reduce the frequency of incidents, the bad behavior needs to be treated as socially unacceptable and uncool by the general population, not just by potential victims. We need the good drivers on our side.

Furthermore, to the same end, it would help if we are consistent and denounce also unruly, dangerous and inconsiderate cyclists. They are plenty of those too, especially in the city. You know who you are -- now stop it! You embarrass me and set a bad example.

I grew up in this city, aggressively biked around town to high school and sports practices when I was a kid, and biked long distances on the Cape during summers in college. I still ride occasionally, think the Minuteman trail should be extended to downtown from Davis Square, and enjoy using the paths there, on the Charles and elsewhere.

All of that said, I LOATHE how self-righteous so many cyclists are in this city.

This is illustrated in their haughty, aggrieved, do-as-I-say-and-not-as-I-do attitude towards sharing the road, and the rules of it, with automobiles.

But it is also highly ironic that, in my experience, most bicyclists behave just like their caricature of evil car drivers, themselves, when it comes to anyone else having the audacity to use an urban bike path.

I have personally experienced near-collisions between a speeding bike rider and either me, our young son, or our dog, on a pathway that was caused by the biker riding out of control -- upwards of 25 m.ph. Based on their hyper-reaction in these very frightening situations you would think I had tried to come after them with a bat . If they would just learn to slow down to a speed where they had real control and the ability to swerve or stop (i.e. ride 10 m.p.h.) when in a densely populated area, there would be no issue.

But noooooooo, it is never them, it is always the other guy that is at fault. Please!

One other thing. I have almost had this happen to me and have seen terrible injuries caused by this outrageous situation. Bike messengers speeding the wrong way on downtown one-way streets who collide with pedestrians that are crossing (and correctly not looking for them riding _against_ the legal direction of traffic) should be thrown in jail for 30 days at a minimum.

I'm a bike commuter and I yell at bikers who do not follow the traffic rules too. I tell people to wear a helmet, if its nighttime, I tell them to get lights; I've even seen people riding against traffic down Mass ave.

That said there are a lot of health advantages to riding your bike daily. Exercise takes off fat, and now they are saying that regular exercise cures stress and depression - more of us Bostonians die from obesity, heart attacks and suicide than road accidents, thats for sure.

Drivers can also be very courteous. I've been helped by both civilians and police officers numerous times, from blocking cross-traffic so I can turn left safely to stopping in both directions for the same reason. I've only had one angry driver encounter on solo rides. I've seen more when groups ride, but often this is because the group strings across the road. I get frustrated when I see that, because it is inconsiderate and dangerous. Cyclists need to set a high standard -- be friendly, respectful, and the best example on the roads. Pay it forward.

Last night, I rode up behind a young woman cycling without a light (it was getting late and we were in heavy foliage), riding against traffic, wearing headphones, and no helmet. I stopped in front of her, smiled, and said, "Four things you're doing are dangerous. No light, and it's getting dark. No helmet. Wearing headphones. Riding against traffic. Please be careful. You're young." She looked at me in a bewildered and friendly way, and I left. I hope the advice sticks.

I'm a PMC rider and avid cyclist and I have to admit I've rarely seen a ruder group than cyclists. The arrogance of riders who ride 3 abreast while chatting only to yell at me when I pass them (in my car) is laughable.

Conversely, I've never had a problem with a car / driver when I ride my Trek on the far right, obey the traffic signals, and NEVER wear headphones while riding.

It seems much easier to judge others than observe our own behavior. Let's look inward and reflect, rather than look outward and judge.

This is the funniest thing I've ever seen in my life - Massachusetts drivers complaining about ANYONE being rude and ignoring the "rules of the road"! No wI commute every day too, and agree with many of the Tour De Massachusetts observations, but talk about the pot calling the kettle black! And you bikers - Hello...have you never heard the international fame of the "Boston driver"? It's great you ride, really, but you're riding in Massachusetts, what do you expect to encounter? Sheesh!

Just a question...isn't single file riding the law in MA? As I drove home through Dover this evening I encountered a pack of cyclists heading towards Medfield past DS High. Itravel this road often and this is not unfamiliar to me to encounter what I believe to be a club. Unlike other evenings, this evening the group continued to ride 4 across and would NOT let cars pass. One car attempted to pass and road down wrong side of road, until forced to stop when he encountered a car coming in opposite direction. The bikers would not let him back in the correct lane. Is that legal. As far as I know it was not an organized bike event... as a cyclist too, I have always ridden single file, and would certainly do so if there was someone attempting to pass and oncoming traffic.

I am from India and can vouch that biking after obeying the proper precautions is great. I have commuted 8 yrs on a bicycle in India. Boston drivers are aggressive no doubt and sometimes plain dumb but cyclists here are not saints when it comes to obeying the rules of the road.

I do not own the road as a motorist driver and nor do the cyclists. When are a few cyclists going to realize that? How many times have you seen cyclists zoom at 25 mph and weave through 2 lanes of traffic? Well, if the consequences of a cyclist being hit are severe, should not the cyclist be careful as well?

Why do not the cyclists have a bell to get a motorists attention when trying to make fancy moves (especially passing on the left, yes this happens in Boston).

I was on the car another day turning right onto a 2 lane main road before another intersection. Well, the right lane was blocked due to some construction and naturally all cars turning right have to turn to the left lane. When it was my turn this cyclist was coming down straight on the road a good 30 feet away on the right side of the road. I turned right w/o any problems (slowly of course) and the next thing I know this cyclist has weaved his way to the left and is trying to zoom and pass me on the left and cut in front. He has the audacity to stop me later and ask me to watch the road and saying he has the right of way. Now what is this guy blabbering about? The moment you were 30 feet away from me and I turned right onto the main road, you do not have the right of way anymore as you are 10 feet behind me. Dude, if you can see that the right lane is blocked off and cars are turning into the left lane and some car in front of you have turned, will you not slow down?

I am thankful that he did not get hurt but it was the arrogant behavior of the cyclist who threatened to punch me that was appalling. Such cyclists on the road who believe the road is theirs since they are not liable to anything must be hauled up. There are so many courteous and nice bikers who obey the law and who realize that driving a car will cyclists weaving around you is not easy. Such fools as the one I encountered are a menace and so indeed are some of the aggressive motor drivers. It is people with an attitude who are the problem.

I am from Michigan and I must say..there are alot of nasty car drivers out there. I live off of 12 mile road and Inkster Road in Farmington Hills..if anyone is famillar with the area. I must insist there are alot of rude drivers out there..and clueless. Just this week alone I have been cut off and right hooked by 56 cars..22 of which were SUV's. Why is it so hard to be polite to people on bikes? Why do you people in cars insist that we belong on a sidewalk or not on the road at all? Is it because the fact that you all seem to own the effing road and not to care about anything except you and your precious tinbox of steel? Or is it the fact that gas is so stinking high that you seem to think that cars rule the road..and the road tax and all that bogus. If you seem to keep thinking this..then keep on scareing cyclists off the road..kepp on harrassing them and cutting them off..im sorry to say that as mcuh as you people want cyclists off the road..its not going to happen. We will only continue to ride..getting to where we need to go without being harrasssed by stupid and clueless car drivers.