Originally Posted by
kmv2
I'm nearly at a point where I can just tune them (drivers/cagers) out as almost a background noise.
I still laugh when I do a hand signal for a right turn and a driver passing by thinks I'm waving "hello" and then waves back at me. I've seen a few people around town do sort of a "heil hitler" to show they are going straight, so I do that sometimes also.
Which brings up another point on both sides of the argument.. As a cyclist, when I first started cycling in an urban environment, I had no idea it was illegal to ride on the sidewalk, I didn't know how to signal a turn, I didn't know about blinky lights for visibility. Now this may seem like common sense things to everyone in here, but a lot of new cyclists just do not have the knowledge. Maybe the proper advocacy and education is not there yet, who knows. The only "education" we seem to get are police crackdowns and ticketing.
As a driver, hand signals are a blip of your driver's ed training, quickly forgotten like mirror checks, speed limits and courtesy/respect/patience. Also there is the assumption that roads are made for cars and only cars, or that car licensing fees somehow pay for road construction (when in most cases they don't even come close). I hand signal hoping to be understood but I always assume that the driver has no idea what I mean and approach any interaction cautiously yet confidently (no swerving, predictable movements, etc).
And can we stop talking about "illegal aliens"?
In any case, I find when someone makes a comment like that about cyclists in general like "they're all transients!", you can just as easily make a comparison to them about car drivers. Just about anyone who can breathe is allowed to obtain a license. Visit some poor rural community, everyone has a car somehow (or how would they get to Wal Mart?). If all cyclists were transients, that could make all car drivers rusted out no muffler Pontiac Grand Am driving trailer trash.
There are several good points in this interesting post.
I agree that a lot of the "ignorance" you see among everyday cyclists is a failure of the bicycle community to embrace newcomers and the diversity of cycling. Outside of major cities, bicycle advocacy and education is mostly still in the hands of bike clubs, whose main focus is organzing races and club road rides. These well-meaning folks unfortunately discriminate between "serious cyclists" and "butts on bikes." Many club activists see cycling as a sport, expensive hobby, and/or form of exercize. They don't think deeply about bicycling also being a "serious" mode of transportation for many people.
As for hand signals, I have thrown out the vehicle code in my own riding. As you suggest, a lot of motorists no longer understand the old hand signals, and even if they do the signals can be misinterpreted as a wave or crazy hand-flailing.
I just point, literally, to where I'm going, and even stab my arm in that direction several times. If I'm taking the lane, I hold my left arm straight out, with the palm to the rear, to indicate to following motorists that they must stay behind me. When I want them to pass me, I turn my palm forward and roll my arm in a circle-- a "c'mon, y'all" gesture. If they still don't pass, I make the gesture faster and more emphatic, and give them an annoyed look if necessary. When motorists do what I want them to do, I give them a wave and a smile.
I think the main point is to increase safety by communicating clearly with drivers. Also, we must be be willing to take charge of the situation when dealing with drivers who don't know what they're doing, or who want to do something that's wrong. Relying on outmoded and ambiguous--but legal--hand signals--increases cyclist danger.