Originally Posted by galen_52657
Hi everybody. Just a few comments and back to my break from bikeforums...
I'm concerned as to the number of posters in that thread who have expressed surprise that the motorist apparently did not see the cyclist in the bike lane. Here are some samples:
- "but it's a fact of life to be taken into account everytime we ride."
- "He did everything right...It could happen to anyone of us. Seems so hopeless..."
In addition, the notion that somehow penalizing the rare motorist who, due to inattention, kills a cyclist who was doing nothing legally wrong is going to make cycling safer to some significant degree is expressed a number of times.
On the other hand, there is this insightful post from biker7:
Originally Posted by biker7
Don't believe there is a loud enough voice to change the laws from cyclists. Nor would that keep another stupid or drunk driver from running down a cyclist out on the road. Guys...since this whole thing is quite common, will give you my $0.02. Cyclists that ride along side of a road are at big risk. I make every point to minimize my riding on fast traveled roads...above 25 mph. Those who ride in bike lanes in particular that are part of the road get run over all the time. I believe that cyclists that travel this type of lane are lulled into a false sense of security or they feel secure because they are riding in a dedicated bike lane adjacent to the road. Truth is...they may be even more liable to getting run over then cyclists that share the road with cars...with no adjacent bike lane. Would love to see the stats on this...believe A to B...there aren't nearly as many bike lanes adjacent to the road as compared to cyclists who ride on the road. That said, I try to spend most of my time riding my bike on dedicated bike trails....well off public roads. They aren't safe either...but worse case is head on with a bicycle or hitting a roller blader or runner and you likely won't die from any of those occurences. Biggest issue is getting run over from behind...again, I believe that dedicated bike lanes "that share the road" are more dangerous then riding out on the road. This is because these so called dedicated bike lanes on the road are construed by the driving public as nothing more then a shoulder to their right of way.
George
George is right. And you can't be safe out in traffic if you're surprised when they don't notice you while you're riding "out of the way".
To be clear, it appears this cyclist did nothing wrong and the motorist should be totally responsible in the eyes of the law. However, if we are to take responsibility for our own lives while cycling in traffic, there are things we can do to protect ourselves even when the motorists are totally at fault. That's what this is about.
The cyclist was in a bike lane as he was approaching an intersection.
Bike lanes, especially in most locations in most of the U.S., are unoccupied most of the time.
The latest research in the new cognitive science field of inattentional blindness indicates that many drivers are likely to not notice something or someone right in front of them that they do not expect to be there.
Because bike lanes are usually unoccupied, you can count on drivers to develop the expectation that bike lanes will be unoccupied. Expecting bike lanes to be unoccupied makes one much less likely to see you in the bike lane. Ride accordingly: assume the bike lane stripe marks the edge of an invisibile field:
when you're inside of the bike lane many are likely to not notice you.
Bicyclists in traffic, certainly more than motorists, and arguably even more than motorcyclists, should have very keen situational awareness. In particular, if you're riding in a bike lane, especially as you're approaching an intersection, be aware of who is approaching from behind (a mirror helps a lot), and whether they are exhibiting signs of having noticed you. This is much easier to develop into a regular habit than you might think.
The bike lane slaughter will continue until cyclists understand how the human mind works, including the human driver mind, and act accordingly.
Cognitive conspicuity (being relevant to the driver) is at least as important as sensory conspicuity (lights, bright clothing). When you're in a bike lane you're irrelevant to the driver he expects the bike lane to be empty and, so, does not even notice you.
Position yourself in the road to maximize cognitive conspicuity.
If you have much experience riding in traffic and experimenting with both positioning that makes you more conspicuous and positioning that tries to get you "out of the way" (including riding in bike lanes), especially if you have a mirror and high situational awareness, then you probably know first hand how much more drivers are aware of you and notice you when you're riding conspicuously then when you're not. The difference is so stark it's probably impossible to imagine until you experience it yourself.
That's all I'm going to say on this topic.
Reference:
http://hubel.sfasu.edu/courseinfo/SL..._blindness.htm
Excerpt:
"Most people believe that if our eyes are open, we are seeing.
Cognitive scientists once thought the same way. They thought our
visual perception acted much like a videotape recorder with the mind
recording everything the eyes take in. We now know that this is not
the case. More and more, perception studies are demonstrating how
little people actually see when they are not paying attention
(Carpenter, 2001). "