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Old November 27th 16, 05:55 AM posted to rec.bicycles.misc
Frank Krygowski[_4_]
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Posts: 10,538
Default AG: I rode on a sidewalk

On 11/26/2016 9:39 PM, Joy Beeson wrote:

I tell you not to ride on sidewalks because it's unsafe, impolite, and
illegal -- but today (18 November 2016) I saw that the light ahead of
me would be red when I got to it, and rode up a driveway onto a
sidewalk so that I could go around the intersection instead of through
it.

The sign saying Heritage Trail made it legal to ride on that
particular sidewalk, but such signs only aggravate the other two
problems.

Rude: there wasn't a soul on the sidewalk, and there rarely is --
this is the end of a trail that doesn't go anywhere. If I had
happened to meet or overtake walkers, it would have easy to avoid
worrying or inconveniencing them. After all, if all else fails, I can
get off and become a pedestrian.

Which leaves "safe". Sidewalks are unsafe because of the
intersections. Since the walkway is part of a beachfront park, there
are no front walks or driveways, and the first parking lot I come to
is the one that I would have turned into had I taken the street...


There are two sections of sidewalk I ride regularly, both about 50 feet
long, both within about a quarter mile of my house. In one case, the
sidewalk saves me two left turns and waiting out a traffic light. In
the other case, it provides a much easier left turn. In neither case
have I ever encountered a pedestrian; but if I did, I'd pass at walking
speed or slower.

The primary danger is, indeed, the intersections, and I'm careful to the
point of paranoia about even the one intersection with a driveway. You
never want to surprise a motorist by coming from an unexpected direction.

But there are other hazards, at least in most cases. There can be
poles, signs, street furniture, pedestrians popping out of doors, bumps,
cracks, etc. In almost every case (including the two I ride) dropping
one's front wheel off the concrete can trigger a crash, since sidewalks
have no shoulders.

The main problem is that the untrained think "sidewalk = safety." It's
just not so.


--
- Frank Krygowski
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