Originally Posted by operator
Yak yak, you're assuming all motorists are also driving within the law, painting the cyclists as the bad guy.
I'm not doing any such thing. I've never suggested that cars OR cyclists have the moral high ground here. That was the entire point of my post. BOTH sides need to respect the other. Cars and cyclists need to respect the rules of the road. That means cars should respect cyclists, and cyclists should respect the same rules that govern cars.
I'll never forget seeing an incident where a cyclist was weaving through traffic between the lanes, and when a car changed lanes he nearly creamed himself on the rear of the car since he was flying through traffic while the cars were crawling. This cyclist had the audacity to bang on the car window and scream at the driver, who legally had the right of way. I, on the other hand, was on my bike, sitting two cars back, working my way though traffic like everyone else.
As an aside, I tend to find that I get more courtesey and respect from drivers when I ride with traffic like everyone else. Perhaps the fact I'm in the same position (relatively speaking) makes my presense easier to distinguish. Whatever the case I've never had a close call in heavy traffic when I behave lke a car, whereas I used to have close calls often in my younger (novice) years when I had little respect for rules of the road.
Originally Posted by JavaMan
Cyclists don't have the same rights as cars because they say so or they want to! It's the law!!! It has nothing to do with respect.
I never said that cyclists don't have a legal right to use the road. What I did say was "people can't say they should have the same rights as any other vehicle on the road and then expect not to have the same responsibilities as any other vehicle on the road." Rights and responsibilities go hand in hand. You have the right to be on the road
AND you have the responsibility to obey the rules of the road. They're a package deal, and you can't have one without the other.
Regards,
Savant