Advocacy & Safety - NYDOT to Cyclists: Don't be a Jerk

http://www.nyc.gov/html/dot/html/bicyclists/dontbeajerk.shtml

http://bikesnobnyc.blogspot.com/2011/05/jerkier-than-thou-psas-and-holy-wars.html

Don't worry, as our numbers increase the police will look the other way just like they do motor vehicle offenses.

I am however troubled by the NYC government's labeling of bad cyclist as "Jerks" in a PSA campaign. I am worried the general public won't be able to discern a bad cyclist from a conscientious one and just call all cyclist "Jerks". I mean nothing bad has ever come from calling someone names; right? :rolleyes: Especially in a friendly little city like that.

By the way randya, you are such a "Jerk" for posting this :D. And I'm such an A$$h@!* for saying that ;). Yeah, no one would be offended in the least.

Don't be jerk huh? Tell that to the people who laid those bike lanes in the third video.

I am however troubled by the NYC government's labeling of bad cyclist as "Jerks" in a PSA campaign. I am worried the general public won't be able to discern a bad cyclist from a conscientious one and just call all cyclist "Jerks". I mean nothing bad has ever come from calling someone names; right?

You mean like calling drivers JAM's and "cagers"? :-)

I agree. Jerk is too much, and will have the affect of those wanting to ride and learn correct VC to forget it - lest they be labeled as so.

I was driving and a lady on a bike was hogging, (err waiting) in a right turn only lane when she should have stayed in the right continuing lane. One car scooted around her to make his turn, to her annoyance.

I certainly didn't think of her as a jerk - just wished I was there as an example of how to "flow" better at a big intersection.

In addition to fear or traffic and not taking their lane, now people that don't have as much confidence as regular commuters will worry about being seen as selfish and jerks.

You mean like calling drivers JAM's and "cagers"? :-)

Jerk :D!

Seriously though, I'm more worried about pedestrians yelling that to cyclists in NYC. I know cagers do it because they feel safe hiding in a big metal box.

May not appreciate the language but I do like the fact that they're trying to educate cyclists not to be salmon or sidewalk riders.

there are so many other New YawkISH catchphrases that could've been implemented.

"WHAAAADAAAYAAADOOOOWIN!?"

"YO YO YOOOOOOOO?!!?"

"UM.... YOOOOHEEELLLLOOOOWWW?"

This can work for boston too:

"heY CHOWDAHEAD!?"

I was amused by the third video showing/stating that cars stop at red lights. That must have taken quite a few reshoots.

I was amused by the third video showing/stating that cars stop at red lights. That must have taken quite a few reshoots.

on my 30 minute lunch time walk today I saw the following motorist violations: a couple failures to stop on red, several failures to signal a turn, and the ever-ubiquitous talking on cell phone while operating a motor vehicle.

about typical, although there are often a few failures to stop for or yield to pedestrian in a cross walk, as well.

I was amused by the third video showing/stating that cars stop at red lights. That must have taken quite a few reshoots.one of my favorite pastimes is riding through the Penn State campus and stopping at all the stop signs. Drives all the jerks from New York absolutely nuts. The cops around here should probably just stop all the drivers from New York on sight and give them a speeding ticket. That's generally the least of their crimes.

Lol at the guys butthurt over the video using the word "Jerk." I just think it's a humorous way to say "hey, it's great you're riding a bike but lets not be an ******* about it yea?" There are definitely a lot of ****** bag bikers out there who have a holier than thou and above the law attitude because they are "greener" or more fit or know more about traffic laws/patterns...ugh. I thought these were great, especially the one with John haha

Lol at the guys butthurt over the video using the word "Jerk." I just think it's a humorous way to say "hey, it's great you're riding a bike but lets not be an ******* about it yea?" There are definitely a lot of ****** bag bikers out there who have a holier than thou and above the law attitude because they are "greener" or more fit or know more about traffic laws/patterns...ugh. I thought these were great, especially the one with John haha

I simply think it is irresponsible of the NYC government to promote or label a group of people a term with an associated negative connotation. They could have done the same commercials without the use of the term. Would they have a PSA about corrupt cops with the term "pig"? (Something along the lines of "The NYC police department does not tolerate corruption. The "pigs" must go").

I doubt that would go over well with all police, and not just the corrupt ones. Next time you see a police officer call them a "pig" and see what happens. Let them know you only use that term to refer to corrupt ones and see if they chuckle.

I see a bit of a disparity between using a well established derogatory term aimed at a beacon community safety and calling someone who is acting with disregard for other people as a "jerk." The term "jerk" doesn't refer to bikers across the board, it simply refers to people who act without thought for others and cause problems in doing so; in this specific context we're talking about bikers who act in such a fashion. They're not connecting bikers to thoughtless action so much as pointing out a that ones who do things like ride the wrong way in bike lanes or on sidewalks are doing things with disregard for others are being...well...jerks!

Not everything is so serious, ya know? Since you're concerned with responsibility, wouldn't it be irresponsible to make a boring PSA that doesn't stick in your mind instead of using some harmless humor to elicit a better response from the viewer? Bikers have much more power to dictate how non biking members of society view them by the way they ride and conduct themselves in everyday riding than some PSA that airs on tv maybe once per hour.

Speaking of someone who's only ever seen NY on TV, I sorta thought that "jerk" was how everyone referred to everyone else there :)

They had a campaign here in San Diego that pointed to all road users and said something like don't be a jerk... essentially telling everyone to "chill."

Can't find the campaign right now... but the message was similar to NYC, only to all road users.

I see a bit of a disparity between using a well established derogatory term aimed at a beacon community safety and calling someone who is acting with disregard for other people as a "jerk." The term "jerk" doesn't refer to bikers across the board, it simply refers to people who act without thought for others and cause problems in doing so; in this specific context we're talking about bikers who act in such a fashion. They're not connecting bikers to thoughtless action so much as pointing out a that ones who do things like ride the wrong way in bike lanes or on sidewalks are doing things with disregard for others are being...well...jerks!

Not everything is so serious, ya know? Since you're concerned with responsibility, wouldn't it be irresponsible to make a boring PSA that doesn't stick in your mind instead of using some harmless humor to elicit a better response from the viewer? Bikers have much more power to dictate how non biking members of society view them by the way they ride and conduct themselves in everyday riding than some PSA that airs on tv maybe once per hour.

Don't get me wrong Boozerguyzer, I understand they were trying to use a generic derogatory term aimed for only cyclist who break the law :thumb:. However, like other terms given to a minority group of people under a specific set of circumstances, it is often transformed and applied to all people within that set.

I do think the term "pig" given to police fits that description. While the exact origin is probably unknown I usually see it referred to corrupt, "dirty", or those that abuse their power. However if you call any cop a pig I doubt they say "i'm not corrupt so that term does not offend me".

I also agree that "not everything is so serious", but the NYC government needs to consider the potential ramifications of using generic derogatory terms to refer to a specific set of actions by a relatively small group of people.

PSA's don't need to use derogatory terms to be effective. Think about "Don't Mess with Texas". It was a slogan designed to stop people littering. It has now become a term associated with Texas pride :).

A simple "Hey New York, Bike responsibly" would have sufficed. The PSA could have shown pedestrians simply saying "be responsible" and gotten the message across. Instead it resorts to name calling.

If the PSA showed SUV drivers doing something illegal and have other people refer to them as "jack-a$$", how long will all SUV drivers be referred to as a "jack-a$$". (Besides on BF ;))

I love the one with the kid and John Leguizamo. Seriously, I hope they have a companion series on auto drivers being less than considerate too.

Well said, Exile. I definitely see what you mean (I'm also surprised by the maturity shown on these forums...the usual MMA one I go on is atrocious lol). But yea, it makes sense that instead of drawing attention to negative aspects of cycling they could instead highlight proper riding. I despise one of my managers because she only talks to me when I screw something up and will just stand silently if I'm doing ok, and based on how you put it this seems similar.