Last winter, my schedule took me by the local High School just before the start of the school day. Sweet, merciful Jeebus that was nerve wracking. Teens are hands down the least attentive motorists on the road, sidewalk, median, lawn, MUP, or ditch. Seriously, the legal driving age needs to be moved to 25. The upshot was that I started showing up to work 15-20 minutes early to avoid the carnival of kiddy carnage.

The drivers that've hit me (two of these were partially my fault): Guy in his late 20s in a Subaru, 17 year high school girl in a lifted Dodge pick-up, late 40s/early 50s man in a Porsche, and a 20-something woman in a new Jetta. Guess you just gotta watch everybody.

They didn't even know you were there.

My commuter rigs shown above!

Just to provide a counter point as a cyclist who does drive one of the vehicles profiled in this thread - I'd love it if commuter cyclists:

- used a front and rear light and didn't wear all black
- used lots of reflective material
- with lights used something bright enough for conditions [not key chain lights or LEDs with nearly dead batteries] and that was aimed somewhere useful...lots of red blinkies point at the ground, the sky or to the side.
- rode predictably in a lane vs. zooming around trying to find holes in traffic [might save you time, but might also get you killed]
- used hand signals to communicate what they were going to do.
- ride the right way down a road.
- don't jump from road to sidewalk and back.
- don't take a hard 90 turn from the right side of the road to a ped crossing and expect me to see that coming and stop for them

Since I commute by bike on the same downtown roads I take a ton of extra care to look for bikes and I still have close calls on many mornings. The totally unlit all black bike ninjas on a dark winter mornings are the worst!

+1

I am terrified of these logoed delivery vehicles. lots of young aggressive male drivers on the phone. I shudder

I don't know if you noticed, but the percentage of drivers who bother to use their signals has dropped dramatically. (I blame it on the cell phone.)

That lady probably doesn't understand what a arm signal is. She's probably still wondering what that stick on the left side of her steering column is all about.

indeed, hybrids kill pedestrians, cyclists, and the blind.

Has anyone mention car with logos that's label:

Driver training
Driving school
student driver

I'll be very careful around those cars.


And now on the sarcastic side. The vehicle I am very watchful for is the parcel delivery truck that is delivering my bike from Bike direct

yeah but those are few and far between while "Joe's Plumbing" pickup and the Comcast installation van are on my tail all the time.

Beware the driver with stickers

Greets from a Prius AND an F-150 pickup owner who talks on a cell while driving. You won't see a plug-in Prius until the 2012's come out. (I don't have a chip on my shoulder or a superiority complex either)

I definitely fear the Pious driver, both because of the greener-than-thou syndrome and because you can't hear them coming (see https://ow.ly/Gjcd)

Heh: "people with > 3 stickers on their car generally have a serious psychiatric disorder"

Dont take what most of us are sayin serious. Most are just having a little fun at others expense. Actually i drive a pickup truck and im one of those dreaded semi drivers.

Statistically, oldsters are the worst. In Illinois, they get their own line when they go to renew their drivers license. I know it's because they vote for the current Secretary of State, but it sure doesn't make sense to make it easier for the most dangerous drivers to renew their license.

Bwhahaha Exactly what I thought but My Mini van is Mid engine and supercharged and has 17's. I bought it for hauling bikes, kids and dogs. It replaced a 454 powered Suburban and My wife stole my 4Runner on 33's from me.

I do have to agree though that Females in Mini Vans and SUV's tend to be the ones that scare me the most. They seem to be the ones that have the hardest time passing me and as a result they back up the traffic and raise the ire of all the vehicles behind them and it gets directed at me when the twits finally do pass.
After that is is young female drivers. I have more girls 17-22yr scream at me to "get on the side walk" then any other driver.

Did a 35 mile ride this morning with the local Advocacy group I am with and got buzzed by a young girl in a Prius.

Busses. In England nothing is worse than busses.

Driving school cars I'm not at all bothered about. Often they give everything a stupidly wide birth.

My bike is covered in stickers. Does this mean that I'm a mentally unstable cyclist?

Get off your phone, or get off the road.

I am not qualified to make such a diagnosis.. hah!

Though if you are concerned...

Prius people "plugging in"? What are you talking about?

Any references for this "factoid"?

He posted it earlier: https://ow.ly/Gjcd

It's not a conclusive study by far, and the authors admit as much.

Good judgment is a wonderful thing that allows us to determine when certain actions are safe or not. I imagine you use this tool yourself quite a bit when cycling. There are idiots behind the wheel who lack good judgment and need hard and fast rules to help them be safer. I encounter many idiots on bikes who are no better. Thankfully, idiots in both cases are the minority.

Your judgement is entirely subjective, and weighted heavily in favor of defending your own actions. Cognitive distraction is not a subjective experience, but a function of how our minds work while we attempt to process multiple stimuli. No one is aware of how distracted they are until they crash.

The argument you level is the same used to justify drinking and driving: I use my personal judgement to determine whether or not I'm capable of driving.

The fact that there are fools everywhere doesn't excuse someone who should know better from acting like a fool.

If you really need to take a call, pull over. Your phone has caller ID, stop your car and call back. There is no more of a legitimate excuse for dialing and driving than for eating and driving or masturbating and driving. Please pay less attention to your phone and more to the road.

I'm fortunate to live in a city where attitudes like that are rare. I know many Prius owners, none of whom brag about how green they are. Environmental reasoning is not what motivates me to drive a Prius or commute by bike.

Whether we are behind the wheel or on our bikes, we have the responsibility to safely share the road and be aware of our surroundings. Many pedestrians complain about silent cyclists nearly mowing them down on multiuse trails. While there is some truth to profiling, it ultimately comes down to the individual.

This debate is covered adequately elsewhere in these forums. Meanwhile, I suggest you heed the prevailing wisdom of the masses and refrain from riding in this dangerous winter season where icy roads, darkness, and snow berms could distract you. (Thank goodness no self-respecting cyclist ever listens to their ipods either!)

Ah a comrade in stickers. Personally I took a page out of anger management and got involved in issues I care about. As I think its the feeling of helplessness and/or hopelessness that makes many act out.