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**OixKKcj1** · 08-01-2008, 03:48 PM

This story displays two major problems in this city:

1. Police brutality - you guys have covered this pretty well.

2. Bicyclists - the relationship between bicyclists, the police, and driving and walking citizens of the city is a powder keg. It isn't just Critical Mass, either, although their protests here do routinely end up in some sort of cop/cyclist or cyclist/driver violence. I'm talking about cyclists getting zero respect from anyone and in turn giving zero respect back. Drivers block bike lanes, open doors into cyclists, pedestrians walk out into the street in front of cyclists who have the right of way, etc. And cyclists fail to follow the rules of the road, riding against traffic, failing to stop at red lights, not giving the right of way to pedestrians, riding on the sidewalks, etc. Frankly the situation sucks. It is both recreational riders and delivery riders but the problem is more with the latter. Personally I think bikes need to be given the full rights AND responsibilities of car drivers. That means following every rule of the road but also getting special privileges, obviously including the right to use the bike lanes, which the city needs to keep clear. Actually the laws are already on the books, it's a matter of enforcement.

08-01-2008, 03:48 PM	#32
OixKKcj1 Join Date Oct 2005 Posts 393 Senior Member	This story displays two major problems in this city: 1. Police brutality - you guys have covered this pretty well. 2. Bicyclists - the relationship between bicyclists, the police, and driving and walking citizens of the city is a powder keg. It isn't just Critical Mass, either, although their protests here do routinely end up in some sort of cop/cyclist or cyclist/driver violence. I'm talking about cyclists getting zero respect from anyone and in turn giving zero respect back. Drivers block bike lanes, open doors into cyclists, pedestrians walk out into the street in front of cyclists who have the right of way, etc. And cyclists fail to follow the rules of the road, riding against traffic, failing to stop at red lights, not giving the right of way to pedestrians, riding on the sidewalks, etc. Frankly the situation sucks. It is both recreational riders and delivery riders but the problem is more with the latter. Personally I think bikes need to be given the full rights AND responsibilities of car drivers. That means following every rule of the road but also getting special privileges, obviously including the right to use the bike lanes, which the city needs to keep clear. Actually the laws are already on the books, it's a matter of enforcement.
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