Commuting - Cross In Front or Behind Cars At An Intersection

Here is the background. The crossing is a 4 lane road with a left hand turn lane (5 lanes total) in a forest preserve, the road is marked with 8' wide diagonal stripes to keep cars out of the crossing. Cars usually ignore this and sit there anyway. On my commute this morning, I was crossing though the intersection. Their light was stone cold red. A cager in the turn lane starts to move forward into the marked area, blocking my crossing. I hit my 115 db Airzound from 15-10 feet away and he continues. I now ride the horn for 3 seconds until about 5 feet away and the idiot finally looks up. I swerve around him yelling "Move your ass!" (sorry, was pissed at that point).

So, the question, should I swerve in front of idiots and risk being hit (slowly) or behind them (which would likely require delicate weaving between cars in different lanes)?

I can't really picture this crossing.
Is it for peds or is it a MUP?
Is it wider than a carlength?

Sorry, MUP and the hashed crossing area is about 8 feet wide. Cars are supposed to stop behind this when they are waiting at the light. I was crossing the 2 open lanes, short median, and then crossing the left hand turn lane and then the two stopped lanes.

I would go behind, but I almost always air on the side of caution. I am never in that big a hurry to risk someone hitting me because they are looking to the left and not in front of them. Good use of the horn though :)

So, the question, should I swerve in front of idiots and risk being hit (slowly) or behind them (which would likely require delicate weaving between cars in different lanes)?

Well that would depend on how much drama you want to add to it. If the guy has a passenger, he's "trainable". I make it as awkward FOR him as possible and as the car rolls off, the passenger is usually reaming the driver out.

If he's alone, after honking, I just stop in the middle of the crosswalk waiting. Other cars usually ramp up and honk also. Let the cagers help you where possible.

If he, decides to waive you ahead after blocking like you said, I just shake head and GO BEHIND him. Meaining dude, you're out of control. I want nothing with you.

Add some drama. Most cagers are teachable.

adding...[on a more serious note]

Don't weave or swerve if you can help it.. Expect that drivers will break the law or screw up esp at those kinds of intersections. Be ready to compensate well ahead of them.

When you have a choice, go behind them. Behind, behind, behind. That's kind of my mantra when riding in traffic. Keep the morons in front of you, where you can see them.

I'm happy in traffic and would pause right in front of him, establishing eye contact, point to the stop line, the light, shake your head in a disappointed manner and ride off. It's not like you are the reason dips*^t rolled into the intersection.

Run into his door. Then act surprised he's there.

Squeeky, once I put my Nokians on my steel trek, I think I will ram the bast#rds. When they get out to ***** I'll say, let's call the police and I'll get you a ticket too. :)

PS, Don't forget to crank the wheel when it's up against the door so that the carbide studs can really do some damage. :)

Run into his door. Then act surprised he's there.

+1

Slightly OT:
I kicked a cager's door when he rolled, unseeing, through an intersection (4-way stop) when my wife & I were crossing in the pedestrian lane. Left a dent. The cager got out of the car enraged. I gave him my contact info. Driver asked why I kicked his car. I asked him why he was so close to my wife & I that I couldn't stop walking and could actually strike his vehicle with my foot. He replied that he thought we had seen him & hesitated to cross. I told him that as pedestrians in a crosswalk, we had the ROW and it didn't matter what he 'thought'.

A few days a cop came to see me. The driver had filed a malicious damage report and complaint against me. I wrote a detailed account of the cager's threatening behavior and evident ignorance of pedestrian crossings at intersections. Assigned the dent to self-defense when the vehicle failed to yield (how else would I have been that close and never broke stride?). Questioned the policeman as to whether he would prefer to have his small children in such an intersection when such a driver slowly cruised through and failed to yield, 'thinking' his 5-year-old had 'hesitated' in the crosswalk.

Reports were filed. Never heard from the cager again.

I'm cautious around all drivers, but I'm truly afraid of the ones with Illinois plates. Some of them really need to stop drinking from the river.

Run into his door. Then act surprised he's there.
Then say "Oh.... I'm sorry I didn't see you....should you be behind the line?";)

I suffer from road rage occassionally. I get in front of brain dead cagers and make a point of slowing them up or giving them the impetuous digitas.

I hit my 115 db Airzound from 15-10 feet away and he continues. I now ride the horn for 3 seconds until about 5 feet away and the idiot finally looks up.

I'm just gonna step in here and point out that the driver could have been deaf or hard of hearing (especially after that first blast of the 'zound, from what I hear :D ). OTOH, that definitely doesn't excuse this cager's actions/disregard for the ROW in a crossing. +1 on pretty much every thing else said here.

Carry on.

When a cager starts to do something stupid that endangers me then they stop and wave me on, I like to freeze and look at them like they are insane and sometimes I shake my head (with fear) to indicate I would never think of going in front of their car after they made that crazy move and wave them on instead. I think this performance tends to show them that they are giant scarry monsters on the road, sometimes drivers forget this and need a reminder.

I have recently learned: The last thing cagers expect in a crossWALK is a WALKER much less a bike. Anticpate the roll. As I was recently retaught, never go in front of a vehicle you aren't positive is aware of your presence and intention. Eye contact with the driver is the only way to know for sure that they see you (and even then ymmv)

In the situation you describe I would make a point of dismounting my bike and walking it around him, giving him the evil eye the whole time. I like to let them know: by not following the rules you have slowed everyone down.

Or bunnyhop and ride over the hood..... I've secretly sooooo wanted to do this. :lol:

I've done a big dramatic stoppie (endo) towards their front fender before.. then planted the rear tire back down and trackstanded at their mirror, yelling at them to get out of my way. I only suggest this if you are comfortable with front tire brake modulation.

At this point they're somewhat sheepish and give me a 'sorry go ahead' wave.. so I go behind their vehicle making sure to slap my glove on their trunk lid as I go around it.

If I've got enough room (and I've already established dominance), sometimes I'll go in front and drag my fingers across their hood.

Its rude but it gets the point across.

(theres actually a 5 way intersection on my commute with a Canadian Tire parking lot right after it where this has happened on more than one occasion)

Ride Strategically. Know when you can win and when you can lose. Expect Stupidity in all it's forms. Go behind and move on.

Trying to teach a lesson to cagers by raging at them only makes the next cyclist pay. Very satisfying, tho.

When a cager starts to do something stupid that endangers me then they stop and wave me on, I like to freeze and look at them like they are insane and sometimes I shake my head (with fear) to indicate I would never think of going in front of their car after they made that crazy move and wave them on instead. I think this performance tends to show them that they are giant scarry monsters on the road, sometimes drivers forget this and need a reminder.

Ha! I do this too, but then I remember that I'm clipped in and haven't learned to track stand yet. :( I'd rather not go into my panicky "get-one-foot-free-quick" comedy show (or fall over for their benefit for that matter either), so I often end up taking their invitation while shaking my head and grumbling about it.

I've done a big dramatic stoppie (endo) towards their front fender before.. then planted the rear tire back down and trackstanded at their mirror, yelling at them to get out of my way...
...At this point they're somewhat sheepish and give me a 'sorry go ahead' wave.. so I go behind their vehicle making sure to slap my glove on their trunk lid as I go around it.

I would pay to see that. Ima do it next change I get.