Advocacy & Safety - Go ahead Punk...Make my day!

:D Oh happy day, Oh happy day:

Yesterday, according to the local rag, 200 of Berlin's finest policemen and women were out and about in the east side of the city. Their aim? To crack down on the number of Red-Light-Rambos who generally cause distress to the other law-abiding folk. The results of their efforts were published today:

50 drivers ran red lights.
313 were driving too fast.
1 blew through the city at 92kmh!!
5 didn't have driving licences.
1 was drunk.
246 were given fines/points.
130 were warned.
All this in just 4 hours.

Imagine what goes on during the whole day when the police are not there. In 2001 65 people died in accidents on the streets of Berlin, though it neglets to say how many of which were cyclists.

The reason for this, according to a police psychologist is because of todays hectic lifestyle, rushing from appointment to appointment and making deadlines. It's enough to make you shudder.

The reason for this, according to a police psychologist is because of todays hectic lifestyle, rushing from appointment to appointment and making deadlines. It's enough to make you shudder.
I agree. In the place where I work, most of the people cannot even resist the urge to walk up a moving escalator (like that really saves time....). There are thousands of these harried, distracted, frustrated people in this building that will all be getting in their cars at 5pm and racing home.

regards
Dan

Welcome to the Forums Dan. :)

Originally posted by DanFromDetroit

I agree. In the place where I work, most of the people cannot even resist the urge to walk up a moving escalator (like that really saves time....). There are thousands of these harried, distracted, frustrated people in this building that will all be getting in their cars at 5pm and racing home.

regards
Dan

Hey, I used to be an escalator walker. I say "used to" because I think there's only one escalator where I live now, and it's at the mall, so I don't even see it much. I always walked because I feel like I'm cheating when I use the elevator. I would much rather use stairs. But at the dorm that I liked to eat in when I was in school, the only way to get up to cafeteria was the escalator.

andy

Ya know, some day I would like to get a written speed 'warning' for bicycling too fast on a normal road.

That would be neat. Maybe I can get a policeman friend to do it for me. I would frame it and put it on my wall.

I am a statistic. I was speeding.

In my neighborhood, there is this hill...(there are plenty, actually...)

Since I got my drop bars back, I hit 40 in a 25 mph zone. I was feeling really proud, when some ding-bat in an SUV whooshes past me.

:eek:

("Hey buddy, don't you know this is a 25 mph zone? Heyyy!!!")

I've been a baaaad boy! :(

Weasel, the results above don't surprise me. I have often said that if every motorist breaking the law on the Gold Coast in a day was caught and fined, Australia could use the revenue to abolish all forms of taxation for the next 25 years. Heck, they got a guy doing 232km/h last week (I am not joking). :eek:

Originally posted by mike
Ya know, some day I would like to get a written speed 'warning' for bicycling too fast on a normal road.


A friend of mine got a warning for riding too far from the curb. He was out five feet or something like that, and the [alleged] law in Appleton, Wisconsin, [apparently] states that a cyclist may only ride three feet from the curb. Why the cop knew this (or why he had nothing better to do...), I'll never know. It's not really the same thing, I guess.

He put it on his wall anyway. :)


(btw - the cop listed his bike as a "Boy's Bianchi, color: green." Idiot.)

Originally posted by Weasel
Yesterday, according to the local rag, 200 of Berlin's finest policemen and women were out and about in the east side of the city. Their aim? To crack down on the number of Red-Light-Rambos who generally cause distress to the other law-abiding folk.

This is such a great idea! Other cities should follow the lead and do the same thing. I doubt it would have any real effect on the way people drove in the long run, but at the very least, I'm sure a good number of people would find it amazingly satisfying.

Now, if the police kept doing this, is random different places, then I could see how it might start to make people think about their driving skills, or lack there of, a little more. Many retail stores have 'mystery shoppers;' people employed by the company to evaluate the performance of the sales staff. One never knows when one might be 'shopped,' so the idea is to give your all to every customer. This could be the same sort of thing. I bet the money from fines would even cover the costs of the program.

Of course, the motoring primates would never stand for this sort of thing. They would claim it was a violation of their constitutional rights or some crap like that, and the local political puppet, fearful of not being reelected and having to actually work for a living, would cave, and we would be back to where we are now.

It's a nice idea though.


I have often thought that it would almost be worth it to become a police officer, just so I could ticket every single person I see that does those little driving things that piss me off. This includes but is not limited to: turning without signaling, 'California' stops (or none at all, for that matter), driving on the shoulder to avoid traffic, trying to force your way back into traffic after driving on the shoulder to avoid it, cruising, and driving one of those stupid looking souped-up Civics.

I'm an escalator walker from way back. However, I don't jog in place in elevators any more.

I got pulled over on my bike, but it was for blowing off a stop sign (twice). No ticket, fortunately, just a well meaning warning. Let's be safe out there.

By the way, I got a speeding ticket (in my car) last week. $95 down the drain. Flow of traffic, you know...

I confess I have been guilty of speeding on my bike, but it was downhill, only a couple of miles over the 30 mph limit and I was overtaken by every single car that came down behind me...

Richard

I did 96km\h in a 60 zone once, but I didn't get a ticket. I did get a ticket once for running a red light (it was on ped only), but that's nothing to be proud of.

Originally posted by aturley
Hey, I used to be an escalator walker.
I like this topic. ;) I’m an escalator walker. It’s not because I’m stressed, but because I, like Andy, rather use the stairs. I have legs! I don’t want a cubicle lifestyle! ;)

Originally posted by swekarl

I like this topic. ;) I’m an escalator walker. It’s not because I’m stressed, but because I, like Andy, rather use the stairs. I have legs! I don’t want a cubicle lifestyle! ;)

Me too. Heck I walk up stairs two at a time. I read somewhere that this helps one's climbing ability.

Driving is such a miserable experience anymore. I really wanted to give an idiot( it was a woman in a SUV) the extended finger. Felt sorry for older driver ahead of her. . We were both on a corner, first older driver was making a right. The Suv mom was having a hissy fit, expected the first car to make a right on red. The on-gong traffic was insane and fast. I would not make the right turn on to a bike lane !, the traffic was so crazy.
The woman was screaming with her head out the window, shouting profanities. She was such a fool, I had to restrain myself from siding in with the first car. See such actions, I think we should start tearing up the roads and bring back the trollies, before all go nuts.

Originally posted by DanFromDetroit

I agree. In the place where I work, most of the people cannot even resist the urge to walk up a moving escalator (like that really saves time....). There are thousands of these harried, distracted, frustrated people in this building that will all be getting in their cars at 5pm and racing home.

regards
Dan

I don't consider myself a hectic, on the go type of person, but stepping onto an escalator and allowing it to cart my arse up (or down) what are....Stairs...strikes me as funny. I walk up and down escalators all the time, providing no one is in the way, because it just feels normal, kinda....Stairs were made for climbing on, not standing :) Maybe it's just the little kid in me. I don't walk up the stairs in the building where I work. I like to take them two at a time because it's fun....