Driver Blindness and "Share the road" signs
#1
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Los Angeles
Posts: 242
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times
in
0 Posts
Driver Blindness and "Share the road" signs
Hi everyone,
So, I just recently started riding again, and have been commuting in via bicycle. Anyway, I've lived in this town since before I could legally drive, and it's only now that I've even noticed the plethora of share the road signs, bike lanes, etc. Now, I'll own up to my own blindness, but the thing is, I used to pride myself on being conscientious and aware. It really freaked me out to realize I was missing 3 foot wide bright yellow signs for years, and I'm not sure what this says about that as a means of really making any impact.
Is this common, or am I just a MUCH worse driver than the status quo?
-- James
So, I just recently started riding again, and have been commuting in via bicycle. Anyway, I've lived in this town since before I could legally drive, and it's only now that I've even noticed the plethora of share the road signs, bike lanes, etc. Now, I'll own up to my own blindness, but the thing is, I used to pride myself on being conscientious and aware. It really freaked me out to realize I was missing 3 foot wide bright yellow signs for years, and I'm not sure what this says about that as a means of really making any impact.
Is this common, or am I just a MUCH worse driver than the status quo?
-- James
#2
Sophomoric Member
I don't know what kind of driver you are, but maybe it's better if they look for the bikes rather than look for the signs.
I always thought the signs were a good idea, but if cagers don't even see them, what's the point?
I always thought the signs were a good idea, but if cagers don't even see them, what's the point?
__________________
"Think Outside the Cage"
#3
Certified Nutcase
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Minnesota
Posts: 14
Bikes: Trek 1000
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times
in
0 Posts
For what it's worth, I never noticed them until I started cycling, either.
I think that if a driver is inclined to not share the road, the signs aren't going to change his/her mind anyway.
I think that if a driver is inclined to not share the road, the signs aren't going to change his/her mind anyway.
#4
Fattest Thin Man
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Directly above the center of the earth
Posts: 2,648
Bikes: Miyata 610, Vinco V, Rocky Mountain Element
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 4 Times
in
1 Post
This is the problem with putting up signs for every little thing... none of them gets noticed anymore.
Az
Az
#5
ROM 6:23
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Coastal Maine
Posts: 1,713
Bikes: Specialized Tricross Comp, Lemond Tourmalet, Bridgestone MB-5
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times
in
0 Posts
The signs are up for too much "interpretation": A JAM who thinks that a cyclist is taking too much of the road believes that the cyclist isn't "sharing" the road. My "interpretation" (as a cyclist): stupid cager doesn't want to share the road with anybody...
#6
Banned
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Ogopogo's shoreline
Posts: 4,082
Bikes: LHT, Kona Smoke
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 3 Times
in
3 Posts
Originally Posted by flipped4bikes
The signs are up for too much "interpretation": A JAM who thinks that a cyclist is taking too much of the road believes that the cyclist isn't "sharing" the road. My "interpretation" (as a cyclist): stupid cager doesn't want to share the road with anybody...
#7
feros ferio
Join Date: Jul 2000
Location: www.ci.encinitas.ca.us
Posts: 21,796
Bikes: 1959 Capo Modell Campagnolo; 1960 Capo Sieger (2); 1962 Carlton Franco Suisse; 1970 Peugeot UO-8; 1982 Bianchi Campione d'Italia; 1988 Schwinn Project KOM-10;
Mentioned: 44 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1392 Post(s)
Liked 1,324 Times
in
836 Posts
Driver blindness is one of my greatest safety concerns on the road -- several studies have indicated that people tend to ignore vertical objects, such as signposts, pedestrians, and bicyclists.
__________________
"Far and away the best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing." --Theodore Roosevelt
Capo: 1959 Modell Campagnolo, S/N 40324; 1960 Sieger (2), S/N 42624, 42597
Carlton: 1962 Franco Suisse, S/N K7911
Peugeot: 1970 UO-8, S/N 0010468
Bianchi: 1982 Campione d'Italia, S/N 1.M9914
Schwinn: 1988 Project KOM-10, S/N F804069
"Far and away the best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing." --Theodore Roosevelt
Capo: 1959 Modell Campagnolo, S/N 40324; 1960 Sieger (2), S/N 42624, 42597
Carlton: 1962 Franco Suisse, S/N K7911
Peugeot: 1970 UO-8, S/N 0010468
Bianchi: 1982 Campione d'Italia, S/N 1.M9914
Schwinn: 1988 Project KOM-10, S/N F804069
#8
Sophomoric Member
Originally Posted by John E
Driver blindness is one of my greatest safety concerns on the road -- several studies have indicated that people tend to ignore vertical objects, such as signposts, pedestrians, and bicyclists.
(It's been years since I studied perception, so I'm probably off on some details.)
__________________
"Think Outside the Cage"
#9
Sophomoric Member
Originally Posted by Az B
This is the problem with putting up signs for every little thing... none of them gets noticed anymore.
Az
Az
__________________
"Think Outside the Cage"
#10
cyclepath
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: "The Last Best Place"
Posts: 3,550
Bikes: 2005 Trek Pilot 5.0, 2001 Specialized Sirrus Pro, Kona Lava Dome, Raleigh hardtail converted to commuter, 87 Takara steel road bike, 2008 Trek Soho
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 1 Time
in
1 Post
Originally Posted by Az B
This is the problem with putting up signs for every little thing... none of them gets noticed anymore.
Az
Az
__________________
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Without music, life would be a mistake."
-- Friedrich Nietzsche
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Without music, life would be a mistake."
-- Friedrich Nietzsche
#11
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Los Angeles
Posts: 242
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times
in
0 Posts
Originally Posted by daredevil
So what are some of the less important signs that the highway dept. should take down because drivers don't have the skill or desire to read them?
-- James
#12
cyclepath
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: "The Last Best Place"
Posts: 3,550
Bikes: 2005 Trek Pilot 5.0, 2001 Specialized Sirrus Pro, Kona Lava Dome, Raleigh hardtail converted to commuter, 87 Takara steel road bike, 2008 Trek Soho
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 1 Time
in
1 Post
Originally Posted by jbarros
Oh, Speed limit signs. No one follows them, they're all over, and simply replacing them with officer discretion tickets for reckless. Now, if only I trusted peace officers enough to really believe that was a good idea
-- James
-- James
BTW, law officers were the first to want a set speed limit.
__________________
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Without music, life would be a mistake."
-- Friedrich Nietzsche
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Without music, life would be a mistake."
-- Friedrich Nietzsche
#13
Not an internet law-maker
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Calgary
Posts: 611
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times
in
0 Posts
Personally I hate the whole 'share the road' thing, I feel like they should say something more along the lines of 'pass only when safe'. There's a lot of drivers (and cyclists for that matter) that don't seem to understand that it's dangerous to be sharing a lane (going at similar speeds).