Worknomore

To quote Moe Howard; "It was my idea but I don't think much of it"

alcahueteria

Drivers, in theory, don't want to hit a cyclist. Adding width to the cyclists means the driver then have to drive that much further away to avoid the cyclists. The key is making the cyclist seem larger, they don't necessarily even have to be. We tried a literal way first making a physically larger footprint, the size essentially enabling us to actually take a lane (those these only protruded about about 18" to each side).

I speculate that the motorists appreciated it because they could treat us more like a car. We were thus unable to squeeze between them or easily cut them off, and so they treated us likewise.

Now that we've determined that with a visual affordance we require and not just need or want more space, we actually get it, we are hoping to improve the design. However to do that we'd like to reference other attempts at something similar. Internet searches turned up little, so I thought some people here might have seen something addressing a simliar issue in the past. It doesn't really seem so though.

The process we employ is a method of failing fast to quickly learn and create better more effective designs. This, clearly a failure in the bikeforum's eyes, a mere proof of concept is thus is getting iterated.

KCNEWF

This thing looks almost as effective as the late Dr. Kevorkian's very effective suicide machines!

What a idiotic idea. . . Go ahead a ride a lot with this thing on . . . You will eventually get the Darwin award for 2012! . . . Clearing the human gene pool of idiots who also try to ride bicycles

rawhite1969

At that width, you can just get a surrey. Then at least you can have more people pedaling. If a car doesn't hit the wide load, you'll hit a pedestrian with it and be in more trouble.

wphamilton

https://www.lightlanebike.com/ is a similar idea.

zonatandem

The 3 or 4 ft law has been in effect in AZ, it has made ZERO difference. There is no possible way to enforce it.
Cops are too busy trying to enforce other laws that are equally unenforceable.
30 years ago was hit by a car while we had a dayglo orange flag on our tandem . . . 'didn't see you' was the excuse.
Yes, he got a ticket, we got a trip to the hospital and $2,200 worth of damage to our tandem!

Seattle Forrest

Putting the immense safety concerns aside, and ignoring what this will do to the maneuverability your bike used to enjoy ... it looks like a good way to prevent someone from getting their bike into or out of their home.

Please don't EVER use something like this in an urban environment.

Look at it this way. Right now, you want 3 or 4 feet of space between your bike and a passing car. If a driver doesn't give that to you, they could possibly hit you and cause serious problems. With this death trap, you need 4 feet and want 7 or 8 feet, on all sides of you. If a car doesn't give you 4 feet, they'll hit your contraption, and your bike will go down. All you've done is increase your exposure; now you have a wider catchment area for trouble to find you.

Plus your bike is weighted funnily, less agile, and everything else. But that's less important than the fact that you've given accidents more opportunity to meet up with you.

Blood washes off.

dynodonn 

A lot of things looked good on paper.

If you had made it out of a Nerf type material that can easily bend, spring back, and the whole thing was made rectangular rather than an X'd, you might have had something going. Right now, you can be snagged by anything, an opening door, sign post, front fender, etc, plus you look like you're ready to enter a bike jousting match.

alcahueteria

Thanks for all the responses, some were clearly, clearly more productive than others. I'd say the general sense is that the current iteration is ridiculous and dangerous and ridiculously dangerous. Thankfully all the riding it will see is in the past, or any of the many wonderful futures that have been outlined here may come true.

We are continuing to look at how to improve the cycling situation in Philly and this is only one of many potential actions that we may end up suggesting/doing.

I know one commenter said that comments were turned off on our documentation website, however it simply requires a login so as to avoid spammers. I am glad that I was able to pique some interest today. If you have any other suggestions or questions feel free to contact me. Again, thanks for the input.

Looigi

This is intentionally obstructing traffic. If the law is 4' clearance, that's 4' beyond the ends of your frame, which basically blocks an entire lane for no reason.

Hey, I know! We should outfit everybody on a critical mass ride with these things.

RaleighSport

I think I'd sooner use the grinder on a pole version over this one.. but I do have some questions, how squeaky is it? How much added weight is it? Has it begun to flop around yet? Is it set up in any way to break away if a car hits it, rather then allowing it to drag you along with the car? I don't know what schedule of pvc you used, but some of that stuff is pretty tough... Did you put this on a bike that was originally short for yourself?

squirtdad

Ok specifics:
Dangerous to the cyclist first and foremost. All it takes is a light touch by a passing car or the cyclist catching a stationary object to cause the bike to swerve, lose balance, be distracted, etc.

Zero practicality. Can't filter up to the front of a light. Can't walk bike on side walk. Parking will be close to impossible. In the video it was a problem to even get the rig out of the shop.


Lots of speculation but no facts. Did you ride and then interview drivers? I understand the rapid prototype theory of development and it has it's place, but in by observation it is often used as an excuse for not having good requirements, which often happens because there is not a good knowledge of the base problem.

It feels like you are saying thanks, but still ignoring all your input.


I would say you are to be congratulated though, this thread has the most unified consistent response of any thread I have ever seen in in A&S. That is saying a lot and you should really take that under advisement.

wphamilton

You can hook them all together, have a really big critical mass train!

Rimmer

You wouldn't catch me dead in that thing. I have nothing else to add.

iconicflux

Does it come in carbon?

SweetLou

It is not similar at all. The light lane puts some light on the ground in hopes that cars don't cross the line. The contraption by alcahueteria only makes the bike wider. You'd need to put that light lane so that the line is another 4' away from the end of the contraption.

SweetLou

No it isn't. Where in any state does it say a bike can only be x feet wide? Are cars blocking the entire lane when only one person is in the automobile? How about the Amish when only one person is in the buggy?

wphamilton

It's similar in that it has similar aims: to create boundaries. The bars of course is a non-starter, while the laser is probably ineffective, but both attempt to address the same concern.

weshigh

I don't know about all the passing laws, but I thought that they were from the end of the person or widest part of person/bike?

BHOFM

Zombie repellant!

I want to see it go across this little bridge on our local bike path...



I would think a two feet wide CF bar with some flashing lights would be about a zillion
time more effective and ten times that in the safety factor. Mount it on the seat tube
with a moveable mount so it doesn't effect the bike if it is struck, car or light pole
or person.

Darth_Firebolt

seat tube? have fun pedaling.

BHOFM

Sorry, seat post, just behind and under the seat!

prathmann

Here's a safety flag with the same goal that would seem far more practical. It sticks out horizontally from the bike but is on a spring-loaded pole so if it does get hit by a passing car it'll just bend out of the way and won't cause a crash. It also has a clip on it so it can be clipped downward along the seat stay to keep it out of the way when you're riding with a group of other cyclists or in other close quarters where it could otherwise cause problems. And the flag is reflectorized for night visibility.

https://nollij.blogspot.com/2007/02/f...them_1576.html

noisebeam

Does it flap so you can fly over traffic?

BHOFM

That's what I was talking about!