On 7/6/2017 11:00 PM, sms wrote:


What most of us have found is that using adequate lighting causes a
change in behavior of motor vehicles because the cyclists is much more
visible. You have fewer close calls. You have fewer vehicles turning
left in front of you as you approach a traffic light, and fewer vehicles
exiting parking lots or driveways in your path because they can see you.

I've seen no evidence that those claims apply to "most of us here."
Instead, what I've seen is evidence that you (i.e. Stephen M. Scharf)
and Joerg firmly believe that.

And I'll admit that it may be true for you two, for these reasons. If a
person rides as a gutter bunny, staying near the curb, he will be much
less noticed and respected by motorists. I can certainly imagine that a
person riding that way might get plenty of close calls. (I've witnessed
close calls for riders behaving that way.)

It's possible that if such a gutter bunny installs blinding lights, some
of those motorists who don't otherwise notice him might spot him.

But I'd also expect that the motorists who don't respect cyclists would
still be willing to do close passes, right hooks and left hooks.

My solution (and the solution taught by every legitimate bike education
program, and AFAIK sanctioned in most state laws) is to ride prominently
in any lane too narrow to safely share. Doing this, I get so few close
passes and other close calls that any reduction would be undetectable.

So yeah - ride in ignorance, and use lights as a partial kludge. Or
ride the way the law allows and all cycling education recommends, and
avoid the problem in the first place.

--
- Frank Krygowski