Originally Posted by
I-Like-To-Bike
Maybe. I suspect more likely he had no problem maneuvering around the parked vehicle but decided to make an issue of it anyway. Just as a minute later the older couple made an issue out of his activities.
There is a lovely little old lady who crosswalk guards for a school near here. She rides a bike that she's very fond of, an old fashioned Schwinn -looking cruiser with all the bells and bobbles that you could ask for. Her son bought it for her after her first bike died. She was so afraid she's be house bound without her old bike..bought that one in the 60s if I remember her story right. She's 70-something. No car.
So, her kid fixed bike.2 all up with a bell and fenders and a squishy seat and spray painted it blue just like her first one. She rides that bike everyday. Slowly, but she's on it and riding very carefully along the sidewalks and side roads doing whatever it is 70+ women do.
I complimented her bike and got the whole story. She still waves when she sees me. It really is a cute bike. Teal and bright blue. She says a blue bike is her 'signature' thing.
Point of all of this is that bicyclists come in all sorts of skill and ability levels. A slower rider like her would probably feel safe riding in a bike lane with some dividers. She would have every right to expect that bike lane to not have a car parked in it. A slower bike rider may even be put into danger if they would have to nip into traffic to go around it. You want more people cycling, better cycling laws and infrastructure, the works... than these are the sorts of people you need to make welcome. That means busting the hell out of buttheads that park in cycling lanes.