SF to allow stop and roll for cyclists
 

Interesting news: cbs5.com - New Plan May Let CA Cyclists Ignore Traffic Stops

Yeah lets do that in SF of all places. A place where cyclists already don't follow traffic rules and you have a bunch of ticked off people driving cars in a very confined area. Its just asking for an accident.

Agreed. SF? OK, as a former biker back in college I've got two problems with this:

1) Why? Sure taking off from a dead stop is slow... but only for a few seconds and if you have the right of way or pedestrian/crosswalk cover, its more than enough time.

2) Because there are more cyclists? Does this mean that where I live now, that since cars outnumber bikes that cars can blow through stop signs but bikes must stop? OK, maybe that's too extreme/stupid but I don't see (or feel) the need to create a legal loophole just for bikes. Worst case, car drivers will misinterpret a bikers actions and do it themselves unaware of the new law... uh oh.

The potential for chaos is high and how often will there be no cars around to allow this to happen? Maybe I've been away from SF for too long... but its busy in the wheel traffic last I saw.

Let's be serious: does anyone actually come to a full stop at a stop sign, if there's no traffic?

If I can see traffic I rarely drop below 17 mph for stop signs (unless I need to stop for a car), but I never stop, :p. I think it's a good idea, but I do think we need safer riders in general. A lot of commuters I see around here have no idea how to ride.

So what if a bike rolls a stop sign when there are no cars around?!? Yah, good idea, one less silly thing needing enforcement.

I always slowed down to the point of almost stopping, give the left-right look because "me vs car" is not a fight I want, and advance. In Davis (go Aggies!), police were pretty tight on bicyclists in terms of moving violations so I didn't want to roll the dice and break the law so blatantly. But that was Davis. Not SF or that kind of traffic scenario.

I'm just not sure why they did it at all (Idaho or elsewhere) for the stipulated reasons. Were cyclists taking too long to get through an intersection? Were too many getting burned on tickets for blowing through empty stops? Were they eating road trying to stop at the stops?

Bad Idea.

IMO there are two ways to do things:

1.) segregated bike infrastructure. Seperate lanes, signals, etc. (the Copenhagen model)
2.) integrate bikes into car infrastructure. Same rules & rights for everybody.

AndrewJ -

I'll agree with this. Today, at a *busy* residential intersection, a bicyclist never feigned stopping, and a huge SUV cop car just sat there and did nothing.

CarloSW2

As a cyclist I never regarded a stop sign as anything but a hazard against which I might hit my head. No cop ever stopped me, either.

I think the trouble with stopping as a cycling is this: cars always yield to you when they're not sposed to, so oftentimes when I unclip and stop I am expected to be moving, even though the car has to right of way, so I need to switch modes and get going again, which is troublesome for myself and for the drivers that have to wait.

I guess it might be different for people without clipless, but I find it very annoying to have to unclip and then clip back in while crossing an intersection, *shrug*

Cars are inconsistent with bike riders because bike riders are inconsistent. Making bikes follow car rules doesn't work because cars don't treat bikes the same. Take a look at Youtube for cyclists using the bike lane. It's scary.

Cyclists really need their own infrastructure.

I'd love to say that I rode really consistently, but I switch between sidewalks and roads all the time. Generally, I'll ride on sidewalks if the streets are too busy (and therefore unsafe), follow all the street signs, and walk my bike across intersections with traffic lights.

Sidewalks is one thing I think should be enforced...it's so dangerous to ride on the sidewalks (and slow), I don't know how people can do it, :)

I don't know. I've been on the street and had passing vehicles give me a solid 2 inches of space when I was passing a parked vehicle. I've never come close to that level of danger on a sidewalk.

Well, the danger with sidewalks doesn't come until someone hits you as you're crossing a street or walks out in front of you, *shrug*

The rules I ride by, cars have the right of way on streets, and pedestrians have the right of way on sidewalks.

I'd guess that if someone hits you as you're crossing a street, they wouldn't have seen you regardless whether you were on a street or sidewalk in the preceding seconds. There is plenty of video evidence on youtube to support this.

Also, if you're on a sidewalk and you're a danger to a pedestrian, you're going too damn fast.

I'm not saying this is right for everyone, or everyplace, obviously it's not, but I think there's a balance that can be struck if you pick your paths carefully and ride responsibly.

Here in beautiful, sunny Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, there are dedicated bicycle paths and wide bike lanes on the shoulder of the roads (if no dedicated bicycle lane). They put up separate stop signs at every intersection and even have crosswalks for people in the bike lanes (sometimes). They are used heavily, and seem to work much better. On the main drag, the bike lane is about 20 or so feet back from the roadway. No bicyclists in the driving lanes, no cars in the bike lane. It works wonders for everyone.

This just means they will look for cars not stopping at signs that much harder. its all about income.

I've never seen a cop pull over a cyclist other than the ones dealing drugs, or homeless pulling a kiddie trailer full of their junk.

I've been pulled over for blowing a stop sign on my bike. :p

I'm all for the law change and wish they would do it here. I've have several spots where the lights go off sensors. I've sat there as much as 10 minutes waiting for a car to come to trip the sensor when I could easily have made it across while red. The way the law is suppose to work is the lights and signs are treated just like normal when there is traffic around just because a light is red does not mean you can blow through it regardless of traffic. I do wish there was a way for more education among the rider and non riders alike. There are lots more people picking up bikes that have no idea of any kind of legal requirements or laws that are in place for bike riding.