franklen

Ususally, from my knowledge, mixed use paths require bicyclists to yield to walking pedestrians. These paths are not for racing or training on your bicycle, but rather for transportation and recreational enjoyment. If you want to go fast, get on the road, otherwise you can enjoy and be safe on a multi-use path just as anyone else can, by slowing down and being proactive, instead of thinking that the peds will do so.

megaman

Good point, I find also that not being afraid to yell out "Passing on your left" has stopped almost every issue of people not moving or hearing. I also give them plenty of time.

I've had cyclists pass me without saying a word. To those fools I say "What's your hurry, you'll have an accident soon enough". The vast majority of the time these same people seem to think they own the trail. I always acknowledge when someone calls out a pass.

BTW, I don't think "on your left" is a proper call out. That could mean to the people hearing it that they are supposed to move left. Remember, they're probably walkers and never ride a bike.

ComPH

I preffer not to use "bike paths" for the reasons many here mentioned. Unpredicatable interference, sometimes sombined with rudeness. I prefer the road with bikelanes. One time I had "toed-in" brakes, so that they squeeled. As I approached someone to pass and just touched the brakes, the squeel got their attention and they'd move out of the way.

nick1111

On those paved bike paths I can avoid anyone without notifying them. If that means going off the path to keep a safe distance, I have no problem doing so. As for xc singletrack trails where there are sometimes hikers, I just say "excuse me" and pass slowly. Seems simple enough.

Daily Commute

Wow. Our bike path pedestrians are generally courteous by comparison. When I ring a lever ("brrrrrrring") bell well in advance of passing, the most frequent comment I get from pedestrians is "thanks."

There are a few jerks, of course. People with dogs off leash or on long leashes (but most dog owners hold their dogs by the collar when I pass). I'm thinking about carrying "Halt" for the free-roaming dogs. It worked when I was a kid delivering newspapers. It protects me, doesn't permanently hurt the dogs (it hurts less than getting hit by my studded tires), and teaches the owners a lesson.

GROUPS of joggers are the worst. Sometimes they go in groups of 10-20 four abreast. They seem to think that they have the right to all but 1' of the path (and they only grudgingly give that 1'). They are worst on weekend mornings. I think they are training for a marathon.

The exception to the group jogger problem is the local ROTC. I sometimes pass them marching on the way to work early in the morning. Someone shouts, "Bike!", then they all quickly move over to cover only their half of the path. If everyone were this courteous, the paths would be much more enjoyable.

LittleBigMan

I was always told not to ride on the sidewalk, because sidewalks were for people walking, not riding bikes. I was taught to ride on the right side of the road (US) and obey all traffic laws (stop, yield, signal, etc.) This was for my safety and that of pedestrians. It also gave me a good foundation for learning to drive later on.

Now, we are not only told it's "OK" to ride bicycles around pedestrians, we are told this is for our safety. What has changed?

The only things that have changed are:

1) The perception that bicycles are anything more than recreational vehicles.

2) The value placed on our safety.

Allen H

My favorites:
1) the "clusters" of walkers who KNOW they share the path with bikers, but still take up the whole path, and "scatter" when you call.
2) other casual bikers with smaller kids, also biking, who approach you on the path... one on the right, one on the left!! PLEASE teach them to stay on the same side of the path, at least, for their own safety.

Daily Commute

I'd rather dodge pedestrians on a scenic path than have cars try to dodge me on the street. As long as I still have the street as an option, I enjoy having "multi-use" paths. And we still have the street. Between my home snd office I can take 1) bike paths; 2) a "bike route" which is just normal streets with occaisonal green signs; or 3) make up my own route on the streets.

The "bike routes" are generally wider and less traveled than major streets. They also appear to be priorities for snow and ice removal.

The move to turn bike paths into "multi-use paths" has had an unintended and, as yet, unnoticed implication. Ohio law requires that bicyclists follow the law on the street, as well as on paths "exlusively" reserved for bicyclists. It would be interesting to see if the State could enforce any laws against bicyclists on these paths.

pauncho

Two quick observations about bike path riding:

(1)Individuals are almost never a problem. Even the worst rollerblader swaying side to side down the middle while listening to earphones usually leaves enough space to get around. It's groups of people walking side-by-side to make talking easier who fill the entire width of the path and are oblivious to whatever is coming up behind them.

(2) NEVER say this to a nonbiker because it only makes them mad: The most dangerous people on a bike path, bar none, are the young mothers of preschool children who are taking a stroll and chatting with a friend while allowing the little ones to run in every direction with no awareness or warning. They block the full width of the path, are so focused on their friend's chatter that they barely notice the children and won't notice anyone coming up from behind, and completely believe they're entitled to.

Dchiefransom

Very interesting responses here. If we changed some of them around a bit, so it sounded like a vehicle driver on the road talking about cyclists, I wonder what people would think about that? These are pedestrians on a path, and the law says they have the right of way, just like we do on the road. Do we expect to be required to get out of the way for cars to pass us? I don't like to ride on paths because of this, and because most paths in my area are too narrow to pass one walker without going on the other side. The pedestrians that move out of the way and allow us to go by are doing us a courtesy.

iceratt

Actually it is irritating when pedestrians are on the bike paths around here, because the peds have their own paths that are further from the road and closer to creeks, lakes, and other scenery.

Allister

If cyclists used the roads the way pedestrians used shared paths you might have a point. I follow the rules when I use the road, and as such experience little conflict. Pedestrians, under the mistaken impression that they have right of way whatever they do, act in a way that is a danger to everyone - taking up the whole path: illegal - stepping onto the path without looking for traffic: illegal and dangerous - walking on the bikes only part of a divided path: illegal etc etc etc.

Frankly, some cyclists on shared paths aren't much better, they ride too fast for the conditions, they ride on the wrong side and so on.

All in all shared paths and footpaths are simply too anarchic for safe sharing between two modes with such a large speed differential. That anarchy is quite ok when it is peds only, so I say leave them to it. The road is a much more disciplined environment and the speed differential poses less of a danger simply because of the predictablilty of everyone more or less following the rules.

closetbiker

...except that here, the pedestrian has all the weight of protection of the law but none of the responsibilities of prevention of accidents. On the road, everyone has protection if they follow the rules.

Cyclists must yeild to pedestrians at all times, regardless of the pedestrians behaviour. Hardly a fair or safe arrangement.

Merryish

So that's what that guy was shouting at me yesterday. I heard something and edged to the right, so we were cool, but I had no idea what he said until I read your post. Thanks.

I just call out "On your left!" as loud as I can, as far in advance as I can, and then keep my eyes peeled to see what they'll do. What gets me are the 'bladers with headphones on, weaving all over the path. They only notice me when I cruise back onto the right side of the path.

Erick L

I never say anything, I just pass. There's a yellow line in the middle and pretty much everybody respects it. It's extremely rare that I have to stop, much less making noise to be noticed. When it happens, I point out the yellow line.

MaximusHQ

I bike ride at night when no one is around. I can't remember the last time I was on my bike in the daylight.

Juha

Up here a bell "bling" causes mixed reactions. Some people get startled, some find it offensive, others (maybe 50%) actually realise what is going on. Things may be different in Germany, for example, with more cyclists riding around.

Just a few days ago I met a woman with a small dog. The dog was not in leash and was running a good 10-15 meters ahead of her. She heard me approaching, called for the dog in a scared voice (the dog stopped and looked back), then called for the dog again, raising her voice a bit (the dog was standing still). Finally she run to the dog and grabbed it with both hands. She reached the dog just as I passed them both.

I know nothing about training a dog, but here's what I thought anyway. If she suspects the dog might attack cyclists, she should not let it run unleashed on a mixed path to begin with. And if the dog is as peaceful as it seemed, her actions only teach it to associate cyclists with fear and anxiety, leading to attacks IMO. Next time she may be giving one of those "my dog has never, ever done that before..." -speeches, and be very truthful about it at least in her own mind.

--J

RiPHRaPH

just sing (badly) to your music.loudly.

Allister

I suspect she was worried the dog would dart under your wheels and hurt itself, which again begs the question; why didn't she have the thing on a leash if it's so poorly trained? Apart from anything else, isn't it illegal? I know it is here (something like a $300 fine for an unleashed dog in public).

Chris L

I doubt such a law would ever be enforced. In which case, it might just as well be totally legal.

Allister

Maybe not by the police, but the City Council are mad keen on enforcing that one.

blendingnoise

I prefer yelling watch your left/right as with just a bell I found a lot of people turning around to look and stepping straight into me and getting really startled.

larue

I didn't read all the replies so I don't know if this has been pointed out yet, you said that you tell the pedestrians "excuse me" and you have a problem with them moving. The issue here is your choice of words, "excuse me" is something people hear everyday and it usually means someone wants to bug you for something, however the phrase "on your left" is uncommon in day to day life and people are not likely to have a habit of ignoring it as they do with "excuse me" and they will take notice whether they want to or not. Just try using "on your left" for now on and I'm sure you will see some improvements, just don't forget to be courteous and say thank when you pass them.
If that doesn't work maybe a bell is the answer for you.

formicalinoleum

I usually ride at a recreational area that is a loop around a small lake. On the interior is a pedestrian lane, then outside of that is a bike lane, and outside of that is a car lane (part is one way, part two way). The pedestrians are supposed to go counter-clockwise and cyclists clockwise. This makes great sense because it means that peds and cyclists can see each other and if a ped feels the need to move into the bike lane (e.g., a jogger passing walkers) they can clearly see if there are bikes coming.

But of course, that doesn't mean people always follow those rules. Plenty pedestrians walk clockwise. That's not too much of a problem as long as they stay in their lane. Some pedestrians walk in the bike lane, going either direction. That's highly annoying. The worst is when I encounter someone walking in the bike lane, going the same direction as me (i.e., back to me as I approach), with headphones on! Luckily I encounter them rarely. What I also find annoying is when I keep encountering the same person over and over (short loop, so I do lots of laps) walking in the bike lane. What would you all do? Would you point out to anyone in the bike lane that they are not supposed to be in it?

One of my most annoying pedestrian encounters was when I was mountain biking with some friends. We were on a flat and quite wide stretch of path. Towards us was walking a group of about 4 or 5 people, with a couple of dogs not on leashes. They took up the entire path. We were in a single line and slowed to about a walking pace. As we approached each other, they did not move at all so that we could get through. We couldn't actually get off the path--there was nowhere to go. As they went by us (finally parting at the last moment), one of them said "bikers are supposed to yield to pedestrians!". WTH?? What do they think "yield" means? Jump down into the creek? We were going so slow we were basically at trackstands. Not to mention they were disregarding the law about dogs having to be on leash. Grrrr.

roadie gal

There is one multi-user path around here that I'm forced to use because the road has no shoulder at that point and is much too dangerous. I used to yell "on your left" as I came up on people. Unfortunately, I found that people ended up looking over their left shoulder and then swerved into me. That goes double for small children. Now I yell "coming up behind you" from quite a ways back. That lets them know I'm coming and allows them to decide which way to move. I've found that most people appreciate the warning and move aside, especially if you do give them some time and not yell as you get up next to their ears.

As an aside... I've found that the most dangerous people on the path are the small children on bikes (with oblivious parents). They are completely unpredictable and are liable to swerve in any direction at any time. My roommate was forced off the path into a ditch by a little girl who was watching butterflies and careened into her.