JoeyBike

Well, if someone were strangling me at a location where it would be impossible to find a parking space, I would be happy for the cops to park wherever they can rather than circle the block a few times before coming to help me. Membership has it's privileges. Cops don't want their cruisers with trunks full of shotguns and ammo to be parked down the block where they can not easily keep an eye on it. So I don't have any issues with cops parking in the bike lane even just to run in and grab a doughnut and some caffeine.

Also, people who drive delivery trucks are in a catch 22. UPS, USPS, FedEx, Drinking Water Inc., and all of those guys who tend to "serve" us as well or better than cops really need a break on parking laws too. I don't have any problems getting around them - that's why I ride a bike everywhere in the first place - freedom from stopping.

rebel1916

Yeah sweetie, except the law exempts emergency vehicles. So when the driver of an emergency vehicle does something that would be against the law for you, he is not necessarily breaking the law. Because he is EXEMPT from the law. Additionally, virtually everything legal you do on duty is in fulfillment of your duties. Further, emergency vehicles have to be positioned so that they can easily get out, in case of an emergency. Some vehicles, specifically fire, probably ESU, etc. can't be parked on the edge of a road safely. And I'm not sure why all you want to talk about now is double parking. Is it specifically mentioned in the law? Perhaps you are a Brownie and have deep knowledge of the ins and outs of parking statutes? Either way, is double parking so you can pick up a cup of coffee a doosh move? Most of the time yes? But not as dooshy as worrying about whether official duties are being carried out when ever you see an emergency vehicle parked somewhere you can't.

kickstart

As I drive for one of the mentioned, I can say for a fact that the right to reasonable access and commercial parking permits allow delivery trucks to park "illegally" when loading zones are not available.

dynodonn 

I don't care about the ratio of one to the other, just pointing out who is the real danger on the streets.

punkinevil

Given that I just had a little head to head confrontation with a woman who insisted that she was perfectly allowed to salmon and that I should get out of her way, I am more than a little happy at the prospect of some these scofflaws being ticketed. There! I said it.

dynodonn 

If I had to stop and confront every cyclist/pedestrian riding/walking against traffic and causing me to move out of my current line of travel, I'd easily increase my commute time substantially. If given plenty of notice, I just move right or left and treat them just as another person to pass.

FBinNY 

You and I are about the same here. We just want to get to our destinations. Others, apparently, want to change the world along the way.

punkinevil

Except in this particular case there was the confluence of heavy traffic and a double-parked car leaving less than 2 feet of space between traffic and the curb. One of us had to move into vehicular traffic...meaning one of us was going to be at risk. I do resent when someone does something reckless and endangers me. If we decide to just accept that some people don't think the rules apply to them or don't even bother to learn them at all, then we accept a state of anarchy... and why bother with rules at all? From an engineering standpoint... that leaves unsustainable society.

FBinNY 

Easy fix, bear tight to the outer edge, and let the salmon swing out into the opposing traffic to get around you. Sometimes a good scare is more powerful than a lecture.

BTW- this is one of many reasons I don't ride the bike lanes and avoid all avenues that have them. For experienced cyclists NYC was much safer when we weren't forced into dangerous bike lanes.

punkinevil

To be clear, this happened in less than 10 seconds ( more like 5), so it wasn't a sitdown. Also, I don't think I would have any right to every complain about salmoning if I didn't say something when I saw it. I also say something to people I see litter. If you find behavior completely acceptable, then fine, but if you see it as werong but don't say anything, you are complicit.

punkinevil

And odds are she would have opted for a head-on with me rather than a cab.

kickstart

Just curious, my time in Manhattan predates bike lanes. Whats the issue with them? the cyclists? encroachment by motorists? poor engineering? all mentioned? Do you think the issues could be solved?
While not always faultless, over all my experiences with bike lanes in many cities has been positive. On a side note, Governors Island was a hoot to ride on with all the twisting brick paths and waterfront streets.

FBinNY 

It's some of all of the above. Possibly the biggest single issue is that while cars are created sot of equal and can move at similar speeds in laminar flow (not that NYC traffic resembles laminar flow) bicyclists aren't, so a decently fast rider that can sustain speeds in the 20mph range does well among the cars, but badly when mixed with bicycles moving erratically at all kinds of speeds.

There's also the issue of turning. When headed down an avenue, I'd switch sides at an opportune time up to a few blocks in advance to be on the right side for my planned turn. Not possible with bike lanes, and if the cops decide to enforce the "must use" rule, I could get a ticket for being where I should be when making a right (most bike lanes are on the left, so as not to affect buses which are on the right).

There are other issues, but in general it was far easier to navigate NYC's busy avenues before bike infrastructure.

While I believe that bike lanes have their place, I'm firmly convinced that it isn't where there are 11 intersections with crossing/turning traffic per mile.

kickstart

Sounds like removing the "must use" stipulation would be a productive change. Personally I'm a strong proponent of bike lanes and other infastructure, but equally against mandatory use except in locations where bicycles would typically be excluded.

FBinNY 

That would address my personal objection, but it doesn't address the inherent issues of intersection confusion that happens 11 times per mile, or some of the other problems that bike lanes add.

It'll take some time to see if the lanes actually improve things or not, or simply change the nature of the problems. Unfortunately whatever statistical data is gathered will tend to be muddled because there's too much going on to draw meaningful conclusions.