Commuting - Commuting and fear.

Do you fear for your life while commuting. Not sure as the weather gets colder and the road condition gets nastier, I begin to fear for my life on my commute, especially at night and the 5pm to 6pm rush hours. Stuff going on my mind like being doored (don't talk to me about vehicular riding since I am riding slower than the traffic). Stupid motorists blocking the bike path while I am trying to beat the lights. Man, do I go through a lot of red lights.

Get life insurance. I did.
My fear is not that I might get hit. My fear is if I die, how is my family going to survive?

Get life insurance. I did.
You're in good hands with allstate...

I'll have to say that I'm pretty fatalistic much of the time. But once in a while I get a little freaked when there's little to no shoulder on the canyon road approaching home at night and I have to depend on a driver or two to slow down a bit and take up a little of the slack. To that end; I light my rear like a christmas tree (one red and two amber flashers). At least I know that if someone runs me down they meant to do it.

DanO

There are stats on the web that say it is safer to be on a bike than in a car. I'm not sure how accurate they are, they don't take into account where you are riding. Still I feel safer riding on Mass. ave in Boston than driving. But then I drive to work on Storrow drive and if you know anything about Boston you'll know that is nasty.

In Atlanta, I feel safer on the bike than in the car (I never thought I would say that). Down here, when I'm in a car people routinely pull out in front of you, swerve at you, run red lights and crowd you. I have had one close call on my bike in the last six months, and I can't count the number of times that people have gone out of their way to give me extra room. I'll choose two wheels any day of the week.

Nearly everybody rides slower than the traffic and the techniques behind vehicular cycling make the assumption that you are going slower than the traffic. There is a lot of evidence indicating that this style of riding is the safest.

I ride using VC and do not fear for my life. In fact, I enjoy riding in traffic, by and large.

I ride in the bike lane and on streets without bike lanes about 50-50, or it might even be less for the bike lanes. I don't fear for my life. It's a delight to ride. I'm probably more likely to die from high cholesterol or from being too fat and lazy if I don't ride.

I don't particularly fear for my life, but I don't know what your road conditions are like. It sounds like you haven't been commuting very long? I'm getting more comfortable the longer I do it. It may be worthwhile reflecting on the parts that scare you the most (as opposed to just piss you off, like cars in the bike lane) and what you can do to not be as scared. Don't just be scared, do something about it!

First off, you don't say what you have for lights, but it seems like more can never hurt! Also, you might be helped by reading the Safety & Advocacy board (although beware, there be vehicular cyclists!), and maybe even posting questions about the specific circumstances you encounter on your route. They can point you to good resources, such as How Not to Get Hit by Cars (http://www.bicyclesafe.com/).

When you say you go through a lot of red lights, I hope you don't mean that the way it sounds.

When you gotta go, you gotta go. Whether you're commuting on a bike or commuting on an SUV (that tends to rollover).

I used to fear, now I don't, so I'm worried. Fear is a good thing, it keeps you in check.
As long as u watch out for doors, remember to fall in if you have to get doored, look for pedestrians, remain aware of cars around you, and remain very visible, you should be fine.
You ride in manhattan right? Around 5-6 pm, you should be moving in traffic, with traffic, as traffic, if not much faster than traffic.
When I first started, I used to get that worried sinking feeling in my stomach before I left everyday. Now I can't wait. I go through a lot of red lights and stop signs too, in fact, all of em. What's the point of waiting. Most cops and cars treat me like a pedestrian when I'm slow and when I'm fast, I'm fast enough to be in traffic and I get right in the lane with my blinding rear light and 27 watts up front, they treat me like a car. It's the best of both worlds. I slow down, check, then run the red or stop.

I've already been t-boned by a car and it totaled my bike as i rolled across the hood. So ya, i have some fear. ;)

I have to admit I'm a bit spooked most places I ride. So much so that I limit where and when I'll let my 12 YO boy ride with me. If I was commuting on a regular basis I'd light up the rear of the bike like the 4th of July and proudly have old glory waving for all to see. ALso, I'd buy a HID headlight... expensive but factor in a tank or two of fuel and a couple of oil changes and you've paid for it. One of those bless the troops stickers plastered to our back probably wouldn't hurt either... we can call it bikepsyops.
Doug

Sorry, I just don't buy that you can't practice vehicular cycling because you're slow moving.

Give it a shot, you'll find that it's remarkably effective. Remember that it involves cooperating with other road users where possible and asserting your rights where necessary. Too many cyclists only practice one or the other of these techniques.

I've spent nearly the last week spinning around the streets of Boston in a 61" gear and I haven't had any problems. It Works! [tm]

In any case, if you're going to insist on riding in the door zone, I would seriously recommend that you just stop bicycle commuting. Getting thrown into heavy urban rush hour traffic is a good way to get killed or seriously injured and it will happen to you sooner or later.

The only condition which really spooks me is riding on a wet road into a bright low winter sun. I get the feeling that drivers coming up behind me are all squinting to cut out the glare and that I'm hardly visible.

One of those bless the troops stickers plastered to our back probably wouldn't hurt either... we can call it bikepsyops.


There was actually a column in the Boston Globe (I think) a while back, where the author tried this sort of thing. He went through several things with no luck, until finally he put a sign on his bike that read "ex-wife took car".
This worked, but his (non-ex) wife was not amused :)

I knew a guy that refered to his fiance as his "future ex-wife"! She was not amused either. Sorry, for the hi-jack!

Any fear I might have is buried under layers of anger. I know I'm riding safely and legally so when that car looks like it's going to left hook me, I hold on tight and think . . . "F you . . . hit me if you want, I don't give a damn"!!! Of course, I haven't been hit for awhile and the memory of pain has faded. Usually, about four weeks after a collision or fall, I am very jumpy.

I am not fearful of commuting: experience lessens the fear. However, that same experience teaches one to be more vigilant and aware of every hazard, potential hazard and the unexpected than everyone else. It's a gradual process though.

There's plenty to fear while riding. I guess it's not riding that I fear more.

I guess that if I was that scared I would take a bus. You don't have to ride a bike if you don't like it! Before giving up, you might want to take some lessons or just ride with someone who is a bit more experienced at riding in traffic and get some pointers. It really doesn't have to be frightening.

That said, I do sometimes find myself in scary situations. You must stay calm enough to think and ride your way out of these situations. Can you change your route or the time that you ride, just temporarily until you get your nerve back?

One more thought: Do you have a decent bike that you feel comfortable riding? That can make a big difference in your confidence level.

Do you fear for your life while commuting. Not sure as the weather gets colder and the road condition gets nastier, I begin to fear for my life on my commute, especially at night and the 5pm to 6pm rush hours. Stuff going on my mind like being doored (don't talk to me about vehicular riding since I am riding slower than the traffic). Stupid motorists blocking the bike path while I am trying to beat the lights. Man, do I go through a lot of red lights.

See the thread entitled "Freedom From Fear" (http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=84051) under Advocacy & Safety.

You misunderstand what is meant by "vehicular cycling" since you say, "don't talk to me about vehicular riding since I am riding slower than the traffic". VC does not require you to ride as fast as traffic. You can ride vehicularly at 15 mph while cars are going 50mph. Do not confuse VC with one of the VC techniques referred to as "taking the lane" (although you can take the lane even when going slower than traffic which forces traffic to slow down for you - typically you only do this when the lane is too narrow, you're preparing for a left turn, you're avoiding an obstacle, etc.).

Again, check out that "Freedom From Fear" thread: http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=84051.

And, of course, pick up the book "Effective Cycling" at amazon.com or perhaps your local library (I recommend owning your own copy unless you're really strapped for cash).

Also, try to take a Road 1 course as soon as you can. See bikeleage.org (http://www.bikeleague.org) for more information. In San Diego they are being offered for free for a few months. San Diegans should check out sdcbc.org (http://www.sdcbc.org) for more info on that.

Serge

The results of a new pole are in... One out of one people die. If you're secure in the existance of Heaven, as well as secure in your admission to the place, all is cool. WWW.TOURDEPANTS.COM .

Be thankful you feel it. Many motorists do not realize the danger they are constantly in. Since you have the advantage, use your fear- Follow the road rules, make yourself as visible as possible to motorists, make yourself completely predictable to everyone, and always stay alert.

This comes up at an interesting time for me and encourages me to share some thought that I have been wanting to for the past two days.

I have a daily commute that I feel safe and confident on and have been doing it since April. I am calm as do VC, watch for all situations, know the traffic patterns welland have very good bike handling skills. It involves both calm residential streets as well as some stretches of 5-7 lane suburban main roads with traffic around 50mph. There are stops every 1/2 to 1mi on these roads.

There is one intersection that occurs just after another one about a 1/4mi away - this is a busy intersection with a multiple (several in sequence) right turn lane and several go straight lanes. Very soon after the intersection that is 1/4mi away I need to merge left to get out of this multiple right turn lane. Since April this has been relatively easy as I almost always clear the first intersection on yellow and the traffic is therefore light and it is easy to merge left.

Since Monday the light timing has changed so that I now stop at the prior intersection and find myself in thick agressive traffic all merging left and right to position themselves for next intersection.

On Monday there was a school bus approaching 100yrds. behind me. I looked over left shoulder and noted it had right turn signal on - I then fully took right turn lane in front of bus ready to merge left into go straight lane. Then as I was merging the school bus also merged left, I stopped by merge, the bus then swerved back into right turn lane after a honk at which point I clearly signaled left and merged left. Keep in mind during this situation speed limit is now 35mph and light 100yrd ahead is red with traffic stopped. Now the school bus is on my right, but the driver stops beside me and opens window and says "You better learn to signal otherwise you will be killed" On one hand I perhaps did not hand signal my intentions as clearly as I should have at first, on the other, he had signaled his intention, changed his mind deciding to go around me in 100yrd of space and was likely traving too fast. I choose not to signal left initially because I wanted focus on bike handling and preparing for other cars, obviously not a good excuse, but the reality of my mindset at the time.

Anyway on Tuesday and today I also had to deal with much thicker traffic approaching this intersection, requiring me to take my position for merges and merging left between moving cars while watching for right turning cars in front of me. Not the most pleasant and certainly higher risk than the rest of my commute.

It all stems from this previous light timing change and there are not any good alternatives (sidewalk is very busy with students and entering/leaving right turning cars - not to mention its a sidewalk)

So I have this image of the school bus driver looking at me saying "you will be killed' etched in my mind and yes for the first time I am fearful of this stretch of my commute.

Al

On Monday there was a school bus approaching 100yrds. behind me. I looked over left shoulder and noted it had right turn signal on - I then fully took right turn lane in front of bus ready to merge left into go straight lane.

These situations are always very difficult to describe in words, but you did an excellent job, and, if I followed you correctly, I think your only mistake was not clearly and visibly signalling left when you move left to take the right turn lane. It also sounds like you were maybe riding in the center of the lane when you took it. Since your intent was to continue merging left, you should have been riding along the left edge of the right turn lane and again signalling left before moving across the stripe into the thru lane. Afterthought: Riding along the left edge of the right turn lane and repeatedly looking over your left shoulder (until the thru lane was clear) would probably have been enough, though an arm signal can't hurt.

If the road is well designed, then that right turn lane is wide enough to safely share, even with a bus. If so, then ithe bus should have been able to pass you on the right within the lane, which you would have invited it to do if you had been riding along the left edge of the right turn lane (and repeatedly glancing over your left shoulder) instead of taking the whole lane by riding in the center of it.

Does that make sense and apply? Or did I misunderstand something?

These situations are always very difficult to describe in words, but you did an excellent job, and, if I followed you correctly, I think your only mistake was not clearly and visibly signalling left when you move left to take the right turn lane. It also sounds like you were maybe riding in the center of the lane when you took it. Since your intent was to continue merging left, you should have been riding along the left edge of the right turn lane and again signalling left before moving across the stripe into the thru lane. Afterthought: Riding along the left edge of the right turn lane and repeatedly looking over your left shoulder (until the thru lane was clear) would probably have been enough, though an arm signal can't hurt.

Does that make sense and apply? Or did I misunderstand something?
Actually I think I was to the left side of the right turn lane after I fully took it - of course there is a transition period between being on the right side, going to center and then being on left side while preparing to merge into the next lane - and honestly I can't tell you exactly where I was during this transition.
The other part prehaps missed was the the school bus driver was being an agressive ass. This often happens when the bus is empty of kids just after leaving the school like this one had. Like you said, if he was paying any attention he would have noticed me repeatedly looking over left shoulder and moving to the left and slowed and taken a few more seconds to get to the red light ahead.
Finally as to signalling - I can ride endlessly and go straight one armed, but I just feel better in unpredicable traffic with two hand on bars - this is compounded as the transition between right turn lane and straight lane has these plastic bumps, sure I can signal, then grab bars, then move over bumps. In fact that is what I did Tuesday and today. These bumps (and right turn lane) start perhaps 300yrds before intersection due to multiple right turns so I can't exactly merge left before them. Also I can ride over bumps one handed if needed.

Your advice of taking left side of lane when taking it did have a good effect - I appreciate it. I think I can learn how to safely manage this new traffic flow given some thought and practice - There is the element of being annoyed at change, especially one that is for the worse on an otherwise fairly pleasant commute.

Al

I'll be interested in hearing how you're doing after another month of experience.

I predict it will become easier and easier, and you will soon be accomplishing the merge smoothly and with no conflicts. Let us know.

ive been doored once a few months back and today some nutter in a white van accelerated directly into my side forcing me off the road while i was changing lanes (he almost hit a car also). So i have some fear in certain areas on my commute!