Originally Posted by cooker

submitted as a letter to the editor:

Dear Sirs:

Re: Do cyclists need to stop at a stop sign?, August 2, 2009.

Whether intended or not, the article feeds the myth that cyclists disregard traffic laws to a greater degree than motorists do. However, the “Idaho Stop” (cruising through a stop sign at what the driver judges to be a “safe” speed) is the usual behaviour for motorists too. I wasn’t able to duplicate your experiment at Baldwin and Beverly Sts. this evening as there was too much pedestrian traffic, so I couldn’t tell if those car drivers that stopped completely did so out of good behaviour or because their right of way was blocked. However, at nearby Cecil and Huron Sts., over the course of a few minutes, only 2 out of 18 drivers brought their cars to a full stop. Also, the bulk of motorized traffic usually exceeds the speed limits on both city streets and highways, and you can routinely see drivers running red lights at any controlled intersection you choose. In short, motorists flout the law every bit as much as cyclists do.

The main difference is that the motorists are far more likely to kill somebody when they do it.