kmac27

Do you run stop signs when you see nobody in sight or someone hundreds of feet away? I ran one the other day and some fat lady yelled theres a stop sign to me. I pulled out when no car was within 200 feet of me. Would you have done the same and why do drivers expect us to obay every law perfectly when none of them ever obay little things like speed limits? I mean if I run a stop sign I am not endangering anyone elses life. If I'm in a car then I am endangering somene elses life. I only put my life at risk and no one else, so why all the fuss?

climbhoser

I run stop signs when I deem it appropriate. I do the same with lights.

I had a paramedic in an ambulance yell at me one day, in passing, "Nice stop!" I pulled up next to him and had a 'chat' about his comment.

It was 5:15 a.m., no car in sight, he was waiting at the light and I just went through. He said "It's illegal. What would you think if cars did that?" and I said at 5:30 am, no car in sight and a red light that's taking forever I would do it in a car and would expect anyone else to as well!

Just because it's illegal doesn't mean it's wrong

DataJunkie

I stopped to discuss this very item with a stop sign the other day. I was wondering if it hurt the sign's feelings that I frequently roll stop it. No answer. Boy did I look like a fool standing there for 10 min having a discussion with a stop sign.

acortez

I run lights and stop signs when I deem it safe. I see nothing wrong with it since most people jay walk or run across the street where there is not a cross walk. If I get a ticket, everyone on BF will know about it.

envane

If I have to yield the ROW to someone, I stop. Otherwise, I slow down.

d2create

lol, reminds me of steve martin in LA Story

ShadowGray

I slow down to the point where I can stop if there's a car... and then I make a decision from there. I do the same when driving.

maddyfish

Not true. What if you run a stop sign and a VEHICLE (car or otherwise) avoids you and runs into another vehicle or pedestrian?

harleyfrog

I will stop and track stand if there's no traffic, then move through. That way, I can start back up faster then if I put my foot down.

habernac

If we want fair treatment on the roads, I think it's a good idea to stop when a sign is posted or a light is red.

paul emick

+1, I couldn't agree more.

daintonj

So if car drivers see us needlessly making our lives harder they'll stop overtaking when there's not quite enough space and they'll magically start seeing cyclists? Run them when it's safe and stop when it isn't. This advice is coming from someone who'll drive through red lights on a pedestrian crossing if no one is on it. If I'm allowed to drive 1500Kg of metal at 70mph I'm sure I can work out when it's safe to go through a red light on a straight road with no entrances. That is the only type of red light I run as a driver, as a cyclist I take a more liberal attitude to which rules of the road I ignore.

project15

I stop at them all, but my wife doesn't. I stopped taking her on my rides for our safety.

CMY

Does she also not speak english?

mattm

yeah i run 'em - after checking for police, and other cars, first

why not? cars do it all the time.

lil brown bat

Can we please just have ONE thread for this stupid wank?

kellyjdrummer

No, I don't run signs or lights. It's illegal. I don't break laws that are there for my protection and the protection of others.

BA Commuter

Stop signs = Yes Lights = No... unless the light doesn't change, then I peel out when no one is looking!

sean000

I won't say that I stop every time, but I try to represent cyclists as responsible law-abiding users of the road whenever possible. If it's absolutely safe, and I have clear visibility in all directions a car or pedestrian could approach from, I will sometimes roll through a stop-sign with a slight slow down. Most of the time I at least come to a rolling stop, if not a complete stop. I obey probably 99% of the red lights I come to, but there is one particularly pointless one on my way to work that I sometimes slowly ride through. It's a one-way street that almost never has any traffic, and the light stays red for what seems like minutes.

Rolling through stop signs and lights when any cars are present is very risky. I had a near miss the other morning right by my house. There is a residential stop sign that I often roll through with just a slight slow-down because there are almost never cars approaching the intersection at the same time I am. It's a low-traffic neighborhood. Well the other day I approached the intersection heading North while a truck hauling lawn mowers was heading South. We approached the intersection at the same time. Since he did not have his turn signal on, I assumed he would go straight...continuing to head South. He assumed that I would stop. Guess what? We both surprised each other! I rolled through the stop sign just as he stepped on the gas to turn left right in front of me. We both hit the brakes just in time to avoid an accident (I had slowed down just enough to stop in time... but if either of us had hit the brakes any later...). He was nice about it and waved me through. I felt embarrassed for doing something stupid and illegal, but I also felt angry that he didn't signal his turn. We both did something wrong, but fortunately the consequences were not as bad as they could have been. I'm still a bit mad at myself, because after 25 years of cycling I should know better than to do something that careless. It was early in the morning and I hadn't had my coffee. But I think the real problem is that rolling through that stop-sign had become too normal of a routine for me. If it had been any other intersection, I would have stopped. As a general rule I never trust drivers to do what I think they will do...even when they signal their intentions. But the familiar routine had clouded my judgment as much as the need for caffeine probably did. So I'm back to stopping (or at least rolling to almost a complete stop) at every stop sign. Rolling through while barely slowing down is a dangerous habit to get into... because sooner or later you might forget that you're actually supposed to stop when you really need to.

Sean

madavis25

I, also, couldn't agree more. However, I run stop signs when no one else is around and even the occasional light. The lights I run usually have to do with the fact that my bike and I don't trigger the light to change and I have to go over to the pedestrian signal button to get the light to change.

SSP

The law in Idaho is that bikes (but not cars) can treat Stop signs like Yield signs. Bikes are also permitted to go through Red lights, if they first come to a stop and there's no other traffic about.

I think that's a great idea.

But, it's not "Politically Correct" in the cycling community, and gets push-back from the VC crowd, so most bicycle advocacy groups avoid discussing it.

PaulH

What if you hit another cyclist or a pedestrian?

Why do I always stop? Because it is a habit, formed in childhood. Habits are hard to break, and I see no reason to train myself out of this particular one.

Paul

caloso

I'll slavishly follow every requirement of the Vehicle Code when motorists do the same.

PunkMartyr

I jaycycled and almost got run over a couple of weeks ago. I thought I looked all around but as if by magic a car appeared about to run me down. Since then I have been giving the signs and signals more respect.

YULitle

I've done it a couple times. I make an effort to slow as much as possible. When cars are around, I put the foot down and do my part, but often times I end up sitting there until they are gone, as if they don't see me(perhaps they don't.)