OhiOH

I know this exact post exist elsewhere, but I gotta vent!

Email I just sent the Miami Valley Regional Transit Authority:


On January 26th 2005 I was traveling north on Valley Street near Children’s Hospital at approximately 8:20 AM when RTA bus #9211 passed me on my left and immediately pulled to the curb to pick up passengers at a stop thus forcing me into an emergency stop to avoid hitting the bus. The fact that the bus overshot the stop by approximately 100 feet demonstrates the operator’s actions were so flagrant they can only be construed as discourteous as well as reckless. I assume your drivers are required to pass the Ohio drivers exam and are familiar with Ohio law. Just in case I have copied a section from page 61 from the Digest of Ohio Motor Vehicle Laws:

SHARING THE ROAD WITH BICYCLISTS
A motorist must:
• Share the road with bicycles. The bicyclist has the same right to use the public road as any other driver, except freeways.
• Maintain a “safety zone” of approximately three feet between the car and the bicyclist.
• Pass a cyclist only when it can be done safely.
• Leave ample room when turning right after passing a bicyclist so the bicyclist is not cut-off when the motorist slows for the turn.

Your operator willfully failed on every one of these points.

I sincerely hope you can manage to teach your operators the law as well as common courtesy for my safety as well as others.

For some reason the operator also felt it necessary to sound their horn every time they passed me (3). That is within their right, but hardly necessary or courteous. As a cyclist riding in traffic I expect to be passed by motor vehicles.

With the Findlay Street bridge being closed until May 2006 I will be riding on that stretch of Valley Street Monday through Friday twice a day. I am sure you will want your operators to treat me with more courtesy in the future.

Regretfully

billh

god, don't get me started on busses. Arg. I feel your pain. Why are paid "professional" drivers the worst? School busses, metro busses, tour busses, all the same. They suck. Big bullies.

dee-vee

Get an really loud air horn and give them a honk back everytime.

noisebeam

Excellent to send the letter.

Round here all the city busses I have encounted are very courteous, the give a very wide berth when passing and have on occasion choose not to pass if even if there was room as they know they will be stopping in 1/4mi. They also pick up and transport cyclists as there are racks for bikes on the bus, maybe this is why they are bike friendly or aware.

The school busses on the other hand are terrible and I have had several indidents of them overtaking and merging suddenly into me, of pulling out of schools in front of me, of u-turning in front of me. I guess these are the drivers that don't meet city bus dirver criteria

Al

lala

Yo! That sounds like a Cleveland bus I know!

powers2b

Happens to me at least once a week.
Hazard of city riding.

Camel

Good for you for writing! Please post the response-should you get one.

I've read of some folks getting decent, thoughtfull, active (ie-operator counseling/training) responses from the MBTA (our area transit)-following a written notice. These seem to be particularly helpfull if the bus#, time and location are included (as you have).

alanbikehouston

In my town, skilled, experienced cyclists avoid streets with bus routes, because those streets are bumper to bumper with crazed Suburban and pick up truck drivers driving ten miles over the speed limit. Only the most inept, hapless cyclists wander onto those streets. Bus Drivers do honk their horns when coming up behind such cyclists, because some of the ineptitude of this "class" of cyclist includes wandering from lane to lane without looking behind them.

The bus drivers in Houston tend to be very cautious. I do not know of anyone injured due to an error on the part of a bus driver. They even avoid causing injuries downtown, when messengers do their "famous" move of passing a bus on the left side of the bus, and then turning directly into the path of the bus. If only the OTHER drivers in Houston had the skills and alertness of bus drivers.

Bekologist

There's always an angry bus driver in the pool, in my experience. Same with taxicab drivers. You may not see them every day, but they are out there.

bostontrevor

I've been hit by a T bus. I included all the appropriate info and contacted them in a respectful and appropriate fashion. I never got anything other than, "It's being handled by the super of the garage that dispatched that bus." I even sent it receipt certified and go no response.

I woud recommend CC'ing your local bicycle advocacy group and anyone at the local paper that might deal with such issues. I've seen that receive a more immediate response.

powers2b

You need a lawyer.

BostonFixed

I've been hit by a few T busses also.
Once, pulling around a T bus to pass on the left at 23mph, bus pulls out into my lane, pushing me into the opposite lane (oncoming traffic), but luckily there wasn't much traffic. A SHARP left turn, and I pulled off the main street and down a sidestreet, avoiding death that day.
Another time, I was squeezed between a bus and the line of parked cars, and when the bus pulled off to the right for a bus stop, I was sandwiched between the bus and parked cars. I clipped and took off a car's mirror before I stopped.

I've never bothered to write letters, usually a few sharp blows with my U-lock on the side of the bus suffices.

powers2b

I doubt the driver cares and hitting the bus just incurs more cost for the tax payers.
A complaint letter is great for venting but if you are hit get a lawyer that specializes in bicycle cases.

ofofhy

Not to defend them, but I am sure that one of the few joys they have is pissing people off. Think about it. They are stuck in traffic all day long. That has got to wear on a person.

OhiOH

Thanks for all the sympathy folks. Ranting helps sometimes. If I hear back from the RTA I’ll update you.

bostonrover I’d be really pissed if I got hit and all I got was a ‘too bad’. I’m with powers, get a lawyer.

As for those that may question my route/skills/experience: While I’m in a ranting mood:

We’re talking Dayton Ohio here. If you have to wait for more than 1 traffic light cycle it will be on the news or maybe even interrupt scheduled programming for a ‘Live from News Center 7’ report. I’d love to take another route and normally do, but they closed a bridge for repairs and it has forced me to change. There are only so many bridges. I already have mixed feelings about adding 2.5 miles each way to a 13.5 mile commute. Especially this time of year; due to 6” of snow/ice/slush on the bike path it takes me 1.5 hours to ride what takes 45-50 minutes in the summer, but I do like the extra miles even though they aren’t very nice miles.

And I really don’t mind honking, but there is a polite “I’m back here” honk and there is a “get the #$*@ off the road” honk. Maybe that’s a Midwestern thing.

As far as experience, I have been commuting off and on since 1988 with the last 5 years being year round. In 2004 I logged over 4,200 commute miles missing a grand total of 4 days and 12,200 commute miles in the last 4 years. I’ll admit at 51 my skills aren’t what they were at one time, but I fantasize making up for it with savvy.

bostontrevor

Unfortunately (?) there were no damages.

To fill in the story, I was riding down the street, the bus pulls out to pass me (across a solid yellow line at that), the light changes and traffic was oncoming. The driver wants to merge back in but there's no place for me to go other than into a line of parked cars. I give the driver the "stay back" hand and he taps me with the bus. I almost lost control but didn't.

So I suppose I can sue for assault, but it doesn't seem like I have much of a case without any damages.

Essy

Ah yes, the joys of Boston T busses. I was nearly sandwiched between the #1 on Mass Ave and a tractor trailer truck when the bus driver decided to pull out from a stop without looking/signling. Since I was already by his window at the time I got to bang on it furiously with my hand...I think I scared the sh*t out of him actually.

darkmother

I must say, I have been quite pleased with the vast majority of bus drivers in toronto. I have run into one or two that were a real pain, but on the whole they are surprisingly competant. Can't say that for the cagers.....grrrr.

genec

Excuse me... you were using VC riding techniques AND a professional driver then threatened you... with a bus?

KrisPistofferson

That is one problem I'm glad to say I don't have. Bus drivers are pretty respectful here.

swifferman

unrelated but, I was riding the bus today and we got rear ended by an SUV.

True facts.
Good letter, not too angry, and just enough information not to piss them off too much.

grolby

You may not have been able to press charges for damages, but at the very least shouldn't you have sent an email reporting the incident to the MBTA, CC'd to a bicycle advocacy group or two, maybe a Globe journalist just to round it off? That kind of action is just beyond the pale - in my opinion, it amounts to threatening your life. Not something to just shrug off.

bostontrevor

It does happen.

As the light had changed, I went over to my man's window and said something along the lines of, "what the f*** is your problem?"

He told me he had to get back across the yellow line.

Dunno, seemed like it was his problem. But then he made it mine.

blendingnoise

I just moved to the suburbs and the cars here scare me more than the buses. A bus will hold its line and speed on by while you hold on for the wind to hit, but the cars slow to a crawl and then go by, all the while looking straight at you so as to not hit you. Unfortunately target fixation happens and they generally tend to swerve into me more often than none.

Seamless

You're not by any chance wearing red cycling team shorts?