Rule breaking cyclists...?

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Permalink Reply by Adrian Tritschler on December 6, 2008 at 6:40pm

Speed limit; 84km/hr in a 60 zone.
Why? Because I could

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Permalink Reply by Stavros on December 6, 2008 at 8:49pm

It wasn't me.......honestly!

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Permalink Reply by Hielke on December 7, 2008 at 5:44pm

Anonymously? I break the red light rule, occasionally. I break this usually only at T-sections. I would be hugging the left curb, and a road would join up from the right with the road I'm on. Since I am hugging the curb all the way on the left, I feel I can just continue without inconveniencing or endangering anyone. Same thing with turning left. I just keep on hugging the curb. Actually, in North America traffic usually can turn right on red after making a complete stop (here it would be left turn on red of course). Its not that crazy a concept. The other time I ignore red lights is if it is safer to do so. Safer??? you may ask. Well, yes. The light I am talking about is at the corner of Arden street and Lloyd street. Hopefully this shows up in google maps (with foto?). They recently installed a traffic light that always has a green left arrow because 99.99% of car traffic indeed turns left. If you have the green light to go straight as a cyclist (or driver), drivers feel they have the right to go left on the same light because they are so conditioned to turn left and virtually always have the light in their favour. This already produced 1 nasty road rage incident with hefty honking. So now I just ignore the light to clear the intersection as quickly as possible.

So maybe I can just summarize by saying that I ignore red lights (or other rules) if i feel its in the best interest of my safety (and children's safety) or if stopping really wouldn't serve any purpose (other than obeying the law). Therefore, if they would change the rules I would still break them if I think they make me less safe or I think they are plain meaningless.

Also, one pet peeve I have with writings on breaking traffic rules while on a bike is that they get equated with cars breaking rules. I strongly feel there is a clear link between breaking incidence and seriousness. So pedestrians jay walk all.the.time. Cyclist regularly run red lights and motorised traffic seldomly. I think that is proportionally to the damage they can do and the 'dangerousness' of the action.

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Permalink Reply by ChrisS on December 7, 2008 at 5:54pm

Here's my half-baked theory from earlier.

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Permalink Reply by Ken Bird on April 16, 2009 at 10:10pm

'Cyclist regularly run red lights and motorised traffic seldomly.'

In Darwin motorists too regularly run red lights. They're only advisory for some people in this town.

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Permalink Reply by Ritsardo on December 8, 2008 at 5:54pm

Mmm, the 40 kmh limit is easy to break on a tandem downhill in Brunswick Street. Done that coz I could, but then slowed down for my own safety!

I sometimes turn left (if safe and clear) through a red light. Why? Well if there's no vehicle traffic, theres no other reason to wait.

Sometimes I don't press the button at a ped/bike crossing either, and cross anyway if clear and safe. Why? To not stop the cars unnecessarliy, but there's always one driver who thinks I'm a f***wit. I know differently :)

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Permalink Reply by Doddsy on December 12, 2008 at 1:17pm

I break any and every road rule while cycling.

The reason being is that pretty much all of my near death experiences have been when i am obeying the law.

If i get a chance to get out the way of Motor vehicles i take it! Irrespective if its to ride the wrong way down a street or run a red light i do whatever is safest.

im not going to cross four lanes of busy traffic just so that i can obey the road rules and then cross another four lanes of busy traffic a few hundred meters up the road.

The road rules are.

Stay out the way of motor vehicles when possible (don't get hit).
be cautious around pedestrians.
The rest is all good manners.

I'd like to obey road rules but they are inadequate. Cyclists arent cars and the road rules need to acknowledge that. We should be starting by following the Australian Bicycle Councils agenda. http://www.austroads.com.au/abc/index.php?type=main&id=8
a) Change law to allow riding across crossings
b) Change law to give cyclists riding on paths priority at side streets
c) All states should allow footpath cycling at least for children, accompanying adults, adults with children on their bike (e.g. child seat, trailer bike) and those with disability exemption.

Making motorists accountable for risks they impose to pedestrians and other road users would be a step in the right direction also.
eg Europe http://europa.eu/bulletin/en/200501/p103062.htm

Heres a discussion regarding the road rules from Sydney Cyclist...
http://www.sydneycyclist.com/forum/topics/1321712:Topic:24625?id=13...

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Permalink Reply by matthew on December 28, 2008 at 1:57pm

I don't see traffic lights and all the traffic lights and paraphenalia of roads on shared paths, or cycle paths, so clearly its all there just to make things easier and safer for motorists. They have an advantage- I am balance on a few kilos of bike, they are safely strapped inside a partial collapsable steel box.

The only way that I can balance this is to do anything I can, including ignoring pointless rules made up by people who are only really considering car drivers. Its about me being safe, and if I'm not endangering anyone else I will be damned if I will keep to the rules just for the sake of it.

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Permalink Reply by vx255 on December 28, 2008 at 5:43pm

Not as far as I'm aware, there is possibly the odd stuff up here and there but nothing deliberate.

I'm a professional driver for a living (well, office bound these days, but still paid as one), I drive according to the law, and to within the conditions of the road ahead. why should I behave any different as soon as I change my mode of transport.

I can understand and even empathise with the others, I guess being outer suburbs, I have less of the issues they face everyday.

That said though, If I find one more urban hipster in the inner city with his spoke card, fixie and rockabilly haircut deciding to try and carve around the back of my vehicle to continue up the middle of the road, only to run his pedal up the side of a 50k vehicle I'm responsible for, I will open the door and use his fructus fruit waxed gelled head to inflict enough damage to the vehicle to justify the 7 pages of paperwork I have to do when that happens. (3 strikes you're outta here policy at work)

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Permalink Reply by ChrisS on December 28, 2008 at 6:15pm

Being fashionable does not cease to make the universal laws of "cause & effect" apply.

Although some folks believe they're above all of this stuff, sadly.

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Permalink Reply by vx255 on December 28, 2008 at 6:46pm

so true Chris, It's easy to generalise, Drivers do it, Cyclists do it, hell even Pedestrians do it.

My choice is to take the moral high ground and lead by example (Is the office "positive reinforcement" course showing yet heh)

I've found "generally" the commuters are good, they just want to get from A to B, they're predictable, visible and give signals, Maybe me being a cyclist as well I can read those signals and intentions better than a regular driver, so I've never had an encounter, maybe, dunno, I'm just guessing there, or maybe I've just been lucky.

My encounters have always involved someone trying to do the blatantly wrong thing, both from a legal and karmic point of view.

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Permalink Reply by LongLoad on December 30, 2008 at 3:21pm

I agree, you have to fight generalisations. I always stop at red lights (with one recent exception, which was about the lights, not my choice of vehicle- either way it cost me $275) especially pedestrian lights. I can't demand respect in traffic and then put myself above the universal laws. I do often push the boundaries of the footpath law, riding while towing children rather than accompanying them is a grey area, but I feel safer in some areas on the path not the road. Consious of this I am sure to give way to all foot traffic. However most people stand aside and smile when they see the see the kids on board.

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