Chris and I have been bicycling a lot so far this summer and really enjoying it. We’ve been mostly biking to work. There has been a lot of fru-fru in the news about cyclists, presumably because more and more Ottawans are biking. Whether that is true or not, I don’t know but the coverage in the news is annoying me. I have yet to read an intelligent op-ed piece about this topic. It almost makes me want to write one.

Cyclists who
– roll stop signs
– run red lights
– cycle over 20km/h on NCC recreational paths
– cycle two abreast
– cycle on sidewalks
– cycle in the opposite sense from traffic
– do not use appropriate cats eyes and lights at night
are breaking the law. I’ve personally committed the first four offenses, some of them quite often. Do I feel bad for rolling a stop sign on a T intersection with separate bike path – heck no, but I do deserve a ticket if I get caught, just as I would if I got caught speeding while driving the car on the highway. The fact that it is safe or convenient does not make it OK. It merely makes it worth your while to risk a ticket, just don’t whine when you get one.

On the other hand, ti is quite often that cyclist in Ottawa get honked at for doing completely legal and safe maneuvers such as taking the lane or cycling on NCC parkways.

An example of taking the lane is when you’re biking towards an intersection on the right side of the road and approaching an emerging right turn lane. If you want to keep going straight, you have to take the lane to make sure you have enough time and space to avoid being pushed into the right lane by cars turning right.

NCC parkways are scenic roads intended for causal driving and enjoying the scenery. They are usually parallel to commuter roads prefered by people who what to get places fast. They are also parallel to NCC recreational paths intended for walkers, pets, rollerbladers, cyclists etc as long as they do not exceed 20km/h. A cyclist, depending on their fitness level, trying to get from A to B will ride between 25 and 35km/h. This is illegal on the pathway and they are better advised to use the parkway where people honk at them and write angry letters to the newspaper. For crying out loud, I am not athletic at all and while pregnant and pulling a trolley with my two year old in it, I usually bike about 22km/h. If I was on the path I would get (or at least deserve) a ticket. Just slow down and pass when it is safe to do so, you honking complainer!

What I think is at the root of the problem is that people, including cyclists and motorists, are just not educated enough about sharing the road. There are situations, such as taking the lane example, where, even if you are pretty familiar with rules of the road it is not quite obvious to most people what a cyclist should do and how a motorist should respond. There are other cases where it is not clear how a cyclist should behave. For example, if you’re approaching a four way stop sign with a line-up and you want to turn left. Do you ride up to the front of the line, as you would if you were going straight or right and wait your turn, or do you stand in line behind the last car in the line-up and wait your turn to turn left? You obviously should not pass the stopped cars on the left. Or can you safely and legally get away with it?

I wish, instead of this stupid fru-fru in the media with stupid idiots who know nothing of law or safety or sharing the road, we had interviews and op-ed pieces by people with a clue who would encourage people to cycle and drive safely and legally. Perhaps having volunteers on bicycles demonstrating safe maneuvers and proper road etiquette to other cyclists and motorists would do more to make Ottawa a better place for commuting. A lot of these issues can be resolved through commuter education.

And of course, cyclists will just have to suck it up and drive in single file while the motorists suck it up and slow down until they can pass safely. There is no way of going about it without sacrifice.

Edited: Apparently it is legal in Ontario to cycle two abreast, but not in Quebec.

Also comments are now enabled 😉