Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Running red lights

Here's a video of a cyclist running a red light. Naughty naughty, cyclist! Shame on you!



Now watch video of a pickup truck running a red light.



I don't run red lights as a cyclist and don't condone it at all, but tell me: Where should law enforcement focus its safety efforts? And where do motorists get off on telling cyclists to clean up our act and obey the rules of the road? Motorists have a huge beam to dig out of their eyes before they can even begin to whine about the mote in the cyclist's eye.

See also:

10 comments:

darren said...

here's my favorite take on the issue....
http://washcycle.typepad.com/home/2008/07/the-myth-of-the.html

Yokota Fritz said...

Very good, Darren -- I've added it to the "See also" section.

Anonymous said...

Excellent. "I try not to say that such-and-such action was wrong because it was illegal, but because it was dangerous."
Jack

Adrienne Johnson said...

I will admit it- I run red lights. If there is no cross traffic and I will not impede anyone's right of way, I will go. I slow down and make damn sure it's clear, but if it is safe, I'm off.

Yokota Fritz said...

Shame, Adrienne! Report immediately to the nearest re-education camp.

Anonymous said...

As one of the few cyclist who stops at all lights and stop signs and who actually waits for the light to change before going I feel cars breaking the law are so much worse. That much steel kills. Plus how much further do they even get any way.

CarFree Stupidity said...

Couldn't agree more. Cyclists don't kill people. And when a cyclist does something stupid, if anyone gets killed its most likely the cyclist.

Michael A. Lewis said...

Wrong is wrong. Police should stop and ticket all vehicle operators who violate the rules of the road.

I am not a motorist, so I have little to say about motorist's behavior. I am a bicyclist and I loudly and vehemently decry scofflaw bicyclists behavior.

Tony Bullard said...

I regularly run stop signs in empty neighborhoods. Mind you I make sure no one is even in sight of me, other wise I'll stop, but none-the-less, I'm know I'm breaking the law.

HOWEVER, I'll probably never run a light. seems to stupid and dangerous to me.

But I have to disagree with CarFree Stupidity: "Cyclists don't kill people."
A cyclist running a red light can cause a car to swerve, causing a major accident. Yeah, the cars are huge and heavy and dangerous, but they were made more dangerous by the actions of a cyclist. Just cause the cyclist himself isn't running into people and killing them doesn't mean he's not at fault.

Yokota Fritz said...

I also get annoyed at cyclists who run lights and stop signs. Just yesterday I was nearly clobbered by a girl on a bike who coasted through a stop without looking when I had the right of way.

But I also ran a red light yesterday, though granted I sat through a full cycle before learning the light wouldn't detect me and my bike. :-(