Rules of road for bicyclists proposed
Once again Michael Dresser shows that he is a motorist that "get's it." Job well done Michael!Read the full article here: <a href="http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/news/traffic/2011/05/rules_of_road_for_bicyclists_p.html">http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/news/traffic/2011/05/rules_of_road_for_bicyclists_p.html</a>;
I have a few comments (of course ;) )
I find the comments interesting that a bike horn is near useless because of drivers having music blaring vs the comment on cyclists using music players and "need" to hear things. Which leads me to the thought I wish bills going through Annapolis had options to pick, like: 1) Playing music in a motor vehicle is prohibited because drivers need to hear pedestrians and bicyclists they are about to run over OR 2) Allow bicyclists to wear headphones and listen to music at a reasonable volume. (Under the principle fair is fair and what's good for one is good for the other.)
My point here is not to encourage headphone use but to encourage driving a bicycle just like a motor vehicle so hearing is not necessity. That is to say if you are always running red lights and such,* hearing is very necessary so doing that with headphones, well that's just crazy.
On the subject of horns and bells; Never use a horn on a trail, I know iZombies are a pain but they are out there the same as you to have a pleasant experience away from cars. Don't bring that car honking attitude to the trails but ...
Joggers and walkers please stay right and leave enough space for a cyclist to pass before having to have a horn on the trail becomes a necessity. And Park Services please get this information out rather then put sole responsibility on cyclists. We are willing to do our part but others have to do their part as well.
Avoid busy streets: While Michael's comments are very good on this point I feel it's necessary to point out that bicyclists on average don't like riding busy roads any more the motorists like seeing us there but too often there is no choice if there really was a convenient route with less traffic we would be on it. Or ... Dear motorists look at it this way: why are you not using the freeway where bikes and pedestrians are prohibited? If you have limits on how far out of the way you drive, well surprise, bicyclists have limits too. But the main point is very valid the route you take by car and the route you would take by bike are very often very different and it takes a while to think differently.
So if you are thinking of bike commuting and are unsure of a route, use our forum and we'll try and get a decent bike route together for you.
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