I generally follow traffic rules---just because I don't want to get squashed----heck-most of my riding is on the trails anymore.

BUT-"technically"---traffic laws don't apply to cyclists----otherwise-wouldn't I need a bicycle operators license? proof of insurance?? go through an examination process in regard with my ability to safely operate a bicycle???

Not that I've lost my license or anything---but wouldn't a drunk driver who lost their license---who's cycling instead of hoofing it---be banned from cycling if traffic laws applied to cyclists???


As to who has the "Most" right of way on a road:
1.Pedestrian
2.Cyclist--Skateboarder etc
3.Motor-vehicle

In the eyes of the law at least----although it doesn't usually work that way in reality.

As I pointed out earlier .. in the United States communities, states and counties have quite a bit of freedom when it comes to laws for bicycles and pedestrians. The Feds can throgh their weight around by withholding funding to accomplish certain things (speed limits and drinking age), but I think many riders would be surprised how leniant the laws are concerning bicycles. Not ALL but some.

For me, it depends on the situation.

Stop signs with great view: coast up to the sign while covering brakes. As soon as I know it is clear, I go.

Stop signs without good view: I slow to a pace that I can stop within inches of applying the brake.

Stop lights: I ALWAYS OBEY. I will watch the light and when the crossing light is about to turn red and is clear of traffic, I will get a rolling start before my light turns green. Even if the light has no traffic, I sit there until the light changes. I sometimes have to hit the crosswalk button to get the light to change, but I always obey the light.

I stop at stop signs. I try to ride as safely as I can, but I follow the law. That way, if all my safe riding fails, at least I will have the law on my side. I don't want to get hit by some crazy guy going down the road at 100 mph and then find out that I still have to pay my medical bills myself because I ran a stop sign.

andy

I stop at all red lights, regardless if traffic is coming or not i'll wait till its green, i run stop signs all the time if no traffic is coming my way... and i'm scared to admit i often do the same with stop signs when i'm in my car... and just for those who are curious its $150 fine if your run a stop sign in Houston anyways.

This one will get you in trouble.

From Nebraska Statutes Search, on this page:

As far as I can understand, you are legally obligated to follow the same rules as cars unless otherwise stated.

I think a lot of cyclists need to start by taking a good look at the laws that apply to bikes in the areas where they live. At least that way you will know if something is against the law before you do it.

andy

I don't think actual stop signs are as common over here as in the US. I voted depends, but that means generally stopping. |Red lights I always stop for, stop signs, I always slow down for, but won't always come to a complete standstill if on a quiet road with a full view of both sides for a good distance.

Richard

True this can be dangerous. But I make the driver very aware of of the fact that I am there. And I do not use the car as a blocker if it is turning right. If it is going straight or turning left I do. When I use a car as a blocker it is always a car that comes up from behind me, so the driver already knows I am there and I allow the driver to pull up along my left side. To where the driver and I are even at the intersection. But again if the driver is turning right I do not attempt to use him or her as a blocker. Never had a problem with this so far. The intersections I do this at are in residental areas where the speed is 25 mph.

Now at a intersection with lights if it is green I of course proceed through but in the middle of the lane so a car can not zoom up on my right side to make a right turn and hit me in the process. I think this is called the right hook. And if the light is red I stop in the middle of the lane so a car can not get beside me, again to make the right hook turn cause they are in a hurry and do not want 5 seconds added to their commute time. This is part of my defensive riding.

I've never had a problem with cars turning left, even if it is from a cross street onto the street I am riding and going straight through on. Up until I developed my defensive riding style I always had problems with drivers making the right hook turns.

if the traffic light is is located in an intersection that is not busy, I make a right turn then ride maybe 10 feet then look back and make a U-Turn, then make right turn again, I am back at the same direction, at the Downtown Core, I don't do that kind of riding, but in the suburd, it depends, ......

I saw a guy do one of these on Bike to Work Day last week. He rode up (wrong way) a one-way street, turned right at the light up another one-way street, made a U-turn, then turned right again and kept going. At least the street that he finally ended up on was two-way. Kind of made me laugh.

andy

Yes, I was wondering if someone would mentin this ... i sometimes do the same thing if the far lane is busy. On a one way street though? sheesh

That's interesting because where I live, there are virtually no stop signs either. At most of our intersections 1 road is designated the main and has right of way while the other is the minor and has to give way. eg the North/South road is the main road and can drive straight through while the East/West road has to give way.

I have never seen a 4 way stop intersection, sounds like it could create some confusion with drivers when all 4 cars roll up at once. A bit like our round-about system, which are 4 way give ways, and VERY dangerous for cyclists.

There is only 1 stop sign on my commute and I always slow to do a trackstand for .5 sec then continue.

Also, bikes here are regarded as vehicles, and the same penalties apply as for driving.

CHEERS.

Mark

from my experience the US seems to have more stop signs than anywhere else... for whatever reason (over-zealous traffic engineers or incompetent drivers) almost every intersection in the US must be fully regulated with a traffic light, 2-way or 4-way stop sign... the yield sign is usually only seen for lanes merging and rarely at intersections and a completely unmarked intersection (except for in the country) is almost never seen.

i think most of Europe has rules for unsigned intersections (in germany the 'right-before-left') and then usually has signs marking who has right of way at most intersections (yeild sign for the smaller road) as well as far more round-a-bouts... traffic lights are also much less common in Europe.

on many smaller roads in the US, every other intersection has a stop sign ever few hundred feet or less (inner-city Portland Oregon for example)

the first few times i drove in Europe i was surprised when i came to unregulated intersections b/c you just don't see them in the US...

stor mand

as to driving a car the same way (slowing, maybe stopping and then riding through only if safe): that's totally different in a car b/c if i were wrong about nobody coming and screw up i could kill someone with that huge vehicle - i stop at all stop signs when i drive and rarely run red lights (i think i have maybe 15 times in 16 years, always at like 3am on Monday morning when i haven't seen a car in 15 minutes...)

in other words, not obeying or bending the laws in a car is threatening the lives of OTHERS and bending the laws on a bike is for the most part only endangering yourself - you pay the 'costs' with your injuries or your life if you go through a red light and a car hits you - the likelihood of a cyclist killing a car-driver is remote.

unregulated intersections??? thats madness, how do you know who has the right of way?

I have to say that I do not stop at the vast majority of stop signs simply because of the energy wasted in doing. So, if nobody is around I go strait through. If other cars are around, I slow down and take the automotive order of priority.

Just today, I was going strait along a road (for those who know, its the one parallel to the Lachine Canal), I was about 100 feet in front of a stop sign with hands on the brakes, a driver of a school bus (female) making a left turn, went forward a little bit and actually stopped and waved me through the intersection!

It seems to me that it you at least appear to obey the rules, most cars (at least in my area) will actually wave you though. -- ignore this remark if you are in or near the downtown core.

S

I guess I still kind of worry about this kind of reasoning. I mostly worry about it because I don't see much of a reason that cars couldn't apply the same standard.

andy

I do to a point apply the same standard in a car. But remember that the converse would have to be true as well. If the car saw a cyclist he would make the stop and follow the order of priority as well!

Usually do stop, because that one time you dont is when a car clips your ass, and you're still riding, except its a wheelchair.

Well, just for my 2 cents worth, I feel that:
1. With no blind spots, I feel I have much more reliable field of vision than a driver in the same situation, and:

2. Having already slowed down considerably, I probably have a much better stopping distance than a car would under the circumstances.

For the record, I would NEVER run a stop sign in a car!

(And the unadmitted #3--I could get a hefty fine and points off my license for a roll-thru in a car, but I believe the standard fine for bike violations is $25 in my area...and much more likely, just a yelling-at by a cop, if one ever happened to see me.)

Whenever crossing or entering another lane, when there is no sign or signal of any kind, you should ALWAYS yield to all traffic in that lane.

Sounds a bit dicey without regulation, though...

There is an Unconsious regulation with 4 way intersections with no stop. Whichever car was there first, goes first...They are usually intersection where little traffic is found, so rare occasions make for 4 cars there at once.

Auto Audio

there's always some rule... in Germany it's 'rechts vor links' or 'right before left' which is like the US 4-way stop rule where if 2 cars stop at the same time the one on the right has the right-of-way. most major roads have an indicator sign (usually a yellow and black diamond) that designates that they have the right of way or an inverse yield-sign and then smaller roads usually have a yield sign...

i don't know if this is 'international' on the Continent here or what? i guess our Sweedish and English and Dutch members can answer that one...

but it works pretty well, except about 2 months ago on a road i ride almost every day home from my work commute, i have one of the right-of-way signs and the cross-road has a yield, so i continued on at 30kmh or so as a car approached from the right. then he kept coming at like 35kmh or so... i slowed and he locked up the brakes and i stopped about 2 feet before him. the guy starts yelling at me in German and screaming 'rechts vor links' - i'm consufed b/c my German is OK but not great and i don't know all the road laws, but i thought i understood this one. i pointed to my sign and tried to explain that 'rechts-vor-links' didn't apply, but i wasn't completely sure i was right, so i didn't assert myself like i would have otherwise. Then his wife (he had 2 kids in the back too) rools down the window and starts calling me an idoit cyclist and how i should know how to ride, etc. etc. etc. anyway, i rode off and questioned myself the whole day. went back the next day and examined all the signs and THEY had a huge YEILD sign in addition to my sign indicating I had right-of-way, plus i asked a few locals --- so THEY were the idiots who didn't know how to pay attention to signs... (annoys me b/c they could have killed me and THEN criticized MY actions) ---- anyway, the only problem was that these people THOUGH it was unregulated and thus right-before-left when in fact there was a huge YIELD sign there --- so no problem with the law, just their inability to pay attention...

mikew305

as far as i know that is not quite true... OK, i guess i learned in Texas, so maybe it's different in your state.

but as far as i know, the rule at a 4-way is whoever arrives first goes first, but with a simultaneous stop the car on the right has right of way - i guess if you have 4 cars all stop at the same time, someone has to wave the others on... i think it's actually a law (but this may vary by state)

So you come to a complete stop at every single stop sign in your car ??? That is rare. In Quebec, almost nobody stops for stop signs because there are so many of them.

In all my time cycling I have never seen another bicycle do a complete stop when other cars are not around.

s