It's Citi Bike! - Page 2

[suestorm]

Posted: 7/31/13 at 4:19pm

""And motorists do? ""

not aware of any motorists who regularly drive on sidewalks, go the wrong way on a one way street, blatantly ignore red lights and dare you to hit them with your car, or try to hit you if youre a pedestrian if you dont move. its actually shocking when they follow the rules.

the idea of bikes is great, but the bikers are the problem

Updated On: 7/31/13 at 04:19 PM

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

Posted: 7/31/13 at 4:21pm

I agree, Reg.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 7/31/13 at 4:33pm

So do I, Reg.

[Liza's Headband]

Posted: 7/31/13 at 4:39pm

I'll third that, Reg.

[TheatreDiva90016]

Posted: 7/31/13 at 4:39pm

Reg,

I just watched PREMIUM RUSH and can't I imagine riding a bike like that through any city. It's just crazy.

[Addison D.]

Posted: 7/31/13 at 6:44pm

"Maybe because they don't obey traffic laws or show respect for pedestrians."

Well...sure. To a degree. Why is it that so many people have chosen to demonize cyclists as the "ones" who break the rules?

One can be intellectually lazy and say--with equal accuracy--that pedestrians here pay NO attention to the rules--swarming through intersections against traffic and against the light. Have you ever seen anyone standing on a corner WAITING for the 'walk' sign when there were no cars? What did you think--or mutter--as you sped by? "Freaking tourists", I'll wager.

Automobile drivers pay NO attention to the rules, speeding, swerving, stopping abruptly at the sight of a parking spot, never signalling, double- and triple-parking, etc.

Bus drivers? Those basterds pay NO attention to the rules--running red-lights constantly, changing lanes without signalling.

It's New York, fer crap's sake. If a cop actually wrote you a ticket for exceeding the city-wide 30m.p.h speed limit, you'd be indignant. It's part of the survival-of-the-fittest mentality that city residents think make them "real" New Yorkers.

You can't jump out of the way of the delivery dude racing his bike the wrong way up the sidewalk in time to save your life? Move back to Kansas...

Updated On: 7/31/13 at 06:44 PM

[Addison D.]

Posted: 7/31/13 at 6:51pm

And Liza--the only "name" of which I'm aware is 'NBR'--Naked Bike Ride--which is a pretty well-established pheonomenon, drawings huge crowds of pro-cycling, anti-car (and anti-uptightness, generally...) people to rallys, marathons, etc.

Updated On: 7/31/13 at 06:51 PM

[TheatreDiva90016]

Posted: 7/31/13 at 6:55pm

We have gangs of bike riders that start in Santa Monica and ride all the way to downtown, picking up other bike riders as they go. They don't ever stop for lights and ride as one huge pack, snarling traffic as they go.

The police have now taken to escorting them... They don't seem to want to ticket them, so they are giving them a free pass to screw up everyone else's night... I was sitting in a cab watching my light change through 7 cycles before the riders had passed. It doubled my fare. And the cops don't seem to care.

I asked them when they were going to start escorting get-away cars or murder suspects...

[Jane2]

Posted: 7/31/13 at 6:57pm

"And motorists do?


I have a huge problem with city bikers.

Motorists do not drive on the sidewalk.
Motorists do not ride the wrong way on a one way street.
Motorists do not come within one inch of hitting you.
Motorists stop at red lights. Do the bikers? NO. Therefore, although the pedestrian thinks they have the right of way, and can easily cross the street, THEY CAN'T.

Sorry, but city bikers pose a serious threat to the quality of life and the safety of life.

[Liza's Headband]

Posted: 7/31/13 at 8:29pm

Jane, I'm more playing Devil's Advocate than anything else - I am not a huge defender of cyclists (though I feel they're an easy target) but, let's be real... This list:

"Motorists do not drive on the sidewalk.
Motorists do not ride the wrong way on a one way street.
Motorists do not come within one inch of hitting you.
Motorists stop at red lights."

is mildly inaccurate. Where I am originally from, motorists definitely do NOT stop at all red lights and they have disobeyed the basic driving laws you mentioned multiple times. In the City, aside from the crazy ass cab drivers, the majority of drivers are actually incredibly cautious and skilled. Most likely because of the vast number of pedestrians and heightened sense of awareness needed to drive here. I own a car and regularly drive from the UES to Chelsea... I would know!

But I also get your point. I see what you're saying.

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 7/31/13 at 10:27pm

There are opposing pressures on riders using a city bike share program. Many cities charge per half hour (with my membership the first half hour is "free") and so riders semi-consciously have an incentive to race to the destination rack. Simultaneously, you sign on your rental/membership agreement that you will obey all traffic laws. If the lights seem to be working against you and if jaywalkers and cars in bike lines slow you down and you reallllllllly don't want to incur extra charges, well, that pressure starts to mount.

Me, I stop and wait at all lights and for pedestrians in crosswalks because I am far from a bike messenger. But jaywalkers who dash out when they are about 25 steps from an actual crosswalk, EFF em, they're just going to have to work around me.

[Jane2]

Posted: 7/31/13 at 10:59pm

headband, motorists sure do break the laws, but this thread is about bikers and I have never seen one follow any traffic laws.

I've never seen one stop for a red light.
They ride on the sidewalk instead of the bike lane or street, coming so close to the pedestrians it scares the living daylights out of you. When I'm trying to cross a street, they come out of nowhere, meaning the wrong way, and nearly kill me.

I'm sorry, but in my experience they don't give a SH*T.

[suestorm]

Posted: 8/1/13 at 8:51am

anyone who claims that bike riders are no diff from walkers or drivers with obeying traffic laws has no credibility and we all know it. and again i enjoy riding my bike too.


sure pedestrians walk in the street, a stray driver will go thru a yellow light as it turns red. but the percentage who do this is small. as opposed to the percentage of bikerriders who drive on sidewalks, go the wrong way on a one way street, weave in and out of traffic, dare you to hit them, dare you not to move. I live in brooklyn, school in the Vill, intern in Midtown, and hang out all over and it doesnt matter where you are, its probably 90% of the riders i see that are doing one of the above.

and we all know it.

Updated On: 8/1/13 at 08:51 AM

[ghostlight2]

Posted: 8/1/13 at 9:04am

Hey, Namo, welcome to the club! I'm free-riding myself now. One little trick around the time limit - return your bike and get another one. The time limit is per bike. It isn't like a metro card. No waiting time. Just turn your bike into a station when you're close to your limit, grab another one, and be on your merry way.

No need to rush.

Updated On: 8/1/13 at 09:04 AM

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 8/1/13 at 9:09am

Oh believe you me, I know that, ghostlight! Again, that does add pressure to getting you move from, as David Bowie would say, station to station if the place you are going doesn't have racks nearby. And just yesterday I arrived at a full rack and wasn't sure where the next nearest was and couldn't really make it out on the app that shows them.

[suestorm]

Posted: 8/1/13 at 9:11am

i get a good chuckle out of seeing the guys on the citibikes. why are they all girl bikes without the top bar?

[ghostlight2]

Posted: 8/1/13 at 9:13am

I hear ya, Namo. There are still a few bugs in the system. I remember when they first put the bikes in Paris. Everybody complained - but just you try to take them away now!

This bit on Jon Stewart cracked me up. Stick with it. It just gets funnier as it goes.


"Ain't no citibike in the 'hood" Updated On: 8/1/13 at 09:13 AM

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 8/1/13 at 9:16am

The fact is, people using the various modes of transportation (including pedestrians) have to adapt to each other. I think it's a good thing that major cities in the US are making an effort to become more bike friendly. Of course there are going to be, you should excuse the expression, bumps in the road. And there will always be a-holes of every stripe who flagrantly violate the social contract we have in civil society. There will also be average Joes and Janes, who break the lesser rule occasionally without negative repercussions for themselves or citizens around them.

Updated On: 8/1/13 at 09:16 AM

[suestorm]

Posted: 8/1/13 at 9:19am

this is true, though it seems more flagrant then bumps.

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 8/1/13 at 9:21am

Jane, when I wrote "average Janes" I was speaking generally. I know you are way above average.

[suestorm]

Posted: 8/1/13 at 9:23am

Namo, its a pleasure having a debate without you namecalling. i think we have turned a corner.

[Addison D.]

Posted: 8/1/13 at 9:26am

Ghostlight--thanks for posting the John Stewart vid.

Jane--Let me also add that when I say I think the bike-haters should go back to Kansas, I don't want you to leave.

[ghostlight2]

Posted: 8/1/13 at 9:27am

I was going to call you out on that, Namo. I'm sure Jane knew you didn't mean her, but good to make that clear.

Updated On: 8/1/13 at 09:27 AM

[Borstalboy]

Posted: 8/1/13 at 9:28am

I'm not a city bikerider, but I haven't seen a terrific amount of lawbreaking or dangerous behavior from cyclists in the city. Some a-holes, yes, but...there always will be, no?

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 8/1/13 at 9:38am

Si si.