Originally Posted by
jdriver
Pedaling down the bike lane, a car pulled out and hit me. I saw her and was 100% sure she saw me. But she didn't. I've got some major muscle bruising but otherwise am fine.........
.......What we do is incredibly dangerous,.....
Odds are she did see you. People really don't remember everything they see and do [as people once believed they did... decades ago]. People don't store mundane events in even short term memory. They discard the events as if they are operating on autopilots. Motorist are acclimated to the speed of normal traffic... and she merely discarded the memory of seeing you too soon. This memory malfunction is the cause of MANY cyclist accidents involving cars.
I used to feel comforted when I could make "eye contact" with a motorist. But that isn't enough.
A motorist will look you in the eye... turn their head for a second... and completely discard any memory of having ever seen you. Unfortunately... bicycle lanes, new laws, signs, education programs, and new taxes do NOT change the way the brain functions. A cyclists own situational awareness is his/her best protection.
Ride as if you're invisible.
Originally Posted by
nogods
Flags, high visibility clothing, blinking lights etc ain't going to help when the driver isn't even looking at the road.
You are correct! Only it isn't the looking... or seeing. It is a human memory malfunction. This is a built-in function as how our human brains work.