Grey.

I consider myself a pretty relaxed guy, I keep a consistent pace and I stay on the right side of the road / path. So that having been said, I usually don't get upset over the small stuff if somebody has their dog unleashed or is a bit slow to react. Most people on the MUP are pretty nice if you're a bit patient with them, easy come easy go.

But, what I can't stand is either total disregard for common sense or complete ignorance with regard to cycling etiquette. Oh yes, i'm not complaining about some pedestrian who gave me the finger or sent their dog after me, i'm complaining about other cyclists who insist on riding two-by-two or in completely the wrong direction. I frequently encounter people riding side-by-side and usually shrug it off because they arn't going to listen anyway. Well, today I was cruising along and had to swerve into the grass to avoid another rider who was coming straight at me on the wrong side of the path, which caused him to screech to a stop and nearly fall over. Being a bit frustrated I asked him (not so politely) what the heck he was doing riding on the wrong side and he looked at me, completely straight-faced and said "that's only for cars".

I have nothing else to add. Apparently people like this exist.

Grey.

Just to add, i'm grateful to all of the cyclists who do know how to ride and i'm more than happy to nod and smile as the roadies whiz past me, at least they're paying attention.

krobinson103

Try Korean MUPS. No one follows any rules. The rule is to expect.... anything.

Chris516

There is one rule....that there are no rules.

GP

Wait, what?

Grey.

Yeah I realized the contradiction as I was typing it, but whatever. I wanted to make it clear that this jerk represents a very small portion of an otherwise civil group of people.

spivonious

lol, I'm glad I have no MUPs on my route to work.

lostarchitect 

People are dumb, what are you gonna do?

JoeyBike

A select few are just plain dumb. I find the majority to be ignorant, apathetic, and entitled. A dangerous mixture on the MUP or anywhere people share travel space.

howsteepisit

Or perhaps pedestrians who walk on the "wrong" side of a MUP are simple exercising the same right to ignore laws, rules and conventions as several of the commenters in A&S who believe traffic laws are for other, and should only apply to motor vehicles?

noisebeam

Unless a dedicated cycle path, there are no rules, no training and no expectations. Only use MUP if you are a relaxed person and are not in any type of hurry. Stay on high alert.
Note on the U-turn unless dismounting there is no choice but to use the 'wrong' side of the path.

lostarchitect 

Fair enough! I just lump all that under "dumb," and treat them accordingly.

mikeybikes

Meh, ignore the scofflaw and move on.

My favorite is playing chicken in the bike lane with salmon. I've literally stopped in the bike lane and put my foot down and let the salmon figure out how to get around me.

howsteepisit

Sometimes thats the safest thing to do.

bluegoatwoods

Actually, I don't think he was stupid enough to think that 'that's only for cars'.

He was just doing something without using any thought. Even when he could see that trouble was brewing, he couldn't make himself do something intelligent. His mind was blank.

Then when he was called on it he couldn't bring himself to say, "Yeah...I kinda screwed that one up, didn't I? Sorry...I'll try to keep it in mind".

No. The only thing he could do is to just make something up that had the same meaning as, "I didn't do nothing wrong".

You see it all the time in all sorts of different situations. This is why some of us get crabby.

JameB

Same thing happened to me today.

A family of 7 (1 adult, 6 children) decided to use the ENTIRE road for themselves! It's not a small road, it's a divided road with 1.5 lanes for each side. Plenty of room for a cyclist and a car to travel side by side.

Two of the children decided to randomly turn INTO my path from the wrong side of the road as I was going 45km/h .... pissed me off that the freaking adult was basically encouraging them to be completely oblivious on the wrong side of a road

The road sees may be two cars every minute since it leads into a park. And it's a pretty steep road (~6%) that curves a lot in a short distance.

Grey.

This part in particular happens all the time, and I just have to shrug it off.

I came upon the most oblivious man in the world today. In the middle of a bridge where I had nowhere to go around, this guy was in the middle of the path, headphones on, two dogs leashed to one hand running all over the place. When I got close and slowed down one of the little mutts started tugging on the leash and trying to get at me and this dude just had no clue or didn't care.

It has occured to me several times that these people are not intentionally malicious, they genuinely have no concern or thought for anyone but themselves.

rydabent

I agree 100% with the title of this thread. I find it amazing especially on MUPS how many walkers seem to walk on the wrong side of the trail.

JameB

Agreed.

Today. Downtown Toronto. On a busy road on the University of Toronto campus. Arguably the smartest area in Toronto, and this idiot was skateboarding in the bike lane going the wrong way. -_-

Gets honked by at least five cars and still continues...

Jeece

The local MUP network rules allow:
Bikes (including electric-assisted)
Rollerskates
Wheelchairs (electric or not) (seniors on 4-wheeled scooters are a common sight, lots of nursing homes around some sections of the path)
Pedestrians
Kick scooters

Forbidden are:
Animals (dogs, horses)...
ATVs
Motorbikes, electric/gas scooters
Skateboards
Golf carts

Bike groups have to circulate in a single file, as well as pedestrians. But, pedestrians/joggers must walk in the opposite (left) lane, facing incoming cyclists. Probably because of the difference in speed, and to get each others to make eye contact/be aware of each other before crossing each other. I kinda understand that, but who has priority is left in a grey zone and is confusing to some... In an open letter published in the local newspaper last week, a cyclist told about his experience as he was riding on the MUP. He came in front of a couple of women on foot, and both sides refused to yield, stopped and mentionned the signalisation - Hey I'm in MY lane... I personally think the cyclist can simply cross in the other lane, as he would do if he was overtaking another slower rider, but peds should also squeeze the shoulder as much as they can - most do anyways.

Some busier sections of the path have a separate, narrower strip of asphalt for peds only going parallel to the MUP, separated by grass. Another section have a gravel shoulder almost wider than the MUP for peds, strollers, etc. I rarely see it used though, most seem to prefer the asphalt.

I personally never ran into a problem, many peds do walk in the right lane, some right in the middle of it. I just look behind to see if there's faster traffic coming from here, then in the opposite lane to see if it's safe to overtake... *shrug* Those are not much more annoying than a slower cyclist, except you know they (OMG) aren't following the local rules. Some cyclists also ride side by side, if they don't notice me then I slow down behind them, take a few seconds at a slower pace to drink/look at my cyclocomputer, then ask to pass.

Remember, even if it's annoying, it's not always done by neglect or malice... and I'm sure I can annoy other users who have different views! "Look at this guy exceeding the 20kmh (12mph) limit, hey he didn't hand signal his turn..." As long as it's not dangerous and/or on purpose, I'm just zen about the others.

noisebeam

That is posted on some MUPs here as well, works well, but one can't count on it.

Keith99

Ah the advantages of being a prop. With me chicken is rarely a fair contest so I never get to play.