The dangers of dooring

B' Spokes: You'll note that a featured story here shows a cyclist in a bike lane getting doored. I like bike lanes as much as the next guy but if they can't be fully out of the door zone something different should be done. And no I don't think "You can always bring a civil suit." Is much of a deterrent nor does it serve much in the way of informing the general public about the issue.

And the bigger issue is we have motorists who want us to ride far right in the door zone and think we are being very rude, if not illegal when we ride out of the door zone. In a discussion with our Director of Bicycle and Pedestrian Access who does have some background in law said that a car door is only considered a hazard (the lawful requirement we need in order to avoid) when a person is present in the car. There is a lot I can say about that but this news report should suffice as a good enough rebuttal.

<a href="http://www.cbc.ca/player/News/TV%20Shows/The%20National/ID/2412614582/">http://www.cbc.ca/player/News/TV%20Shows/The%20National/ID/2412614582/</a>;