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to "On the Road" editor, Kelly Kearsley
[see:
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/htm...heroad05e.html. After reading this column, I wrote the following question to Kelly:] Q. There are so many motor vehicles now, and many seem to ignore traffic signals and stop signs. My biggest fear is that I will be riding my bike on day and be hit by a motorist who has ignored a stop sign, and I will be blamed. Are there rules for motor vehicles? -- Warm Regards, Claire Petersky please substitute yahoo for mousepotato to reply Home of the meditative cyclist: http://home.earthlink.net/~cpetersky/Welcome.htm Personal page: http://www.geocities.com/cpetersky/ See the books I've set free at: http://bookcrossing.com/referral/Cpetersky |
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On Sat, 06 Nov 2004 00:06:21 GMT, Claire Petersky
wrote: [see: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/htm...heroad05e.html. After reading this column, I wrote the following question to Kelly:] Q. There are so many motor vehicles now, and many seem to ignore traffic signals and stop signs. My biggest fear is that I will be riding my bike on day and be hit by a motorist who has ignored a stop sign, and I will be blamed. Are there rules for motor vehicles? I hear that loud and clear. About 6 months ago I was nearly hit by someone who didn't even bother to slow down for an obvious stop sign, but went through at around 35 MPH, in a 25 MPH zone. Would I have been in the wrong because I was riding and not walking in the crosswalk? Where is a cop when you need one? Bill Baka -- Using M2, Opera's revolutionary e-mail client: http://www.opera.com/m2/ |
#3
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Bill Baka wrote:
On Sat, 06 Nov 2004 00:06:21 GMT, Claire Petersky wrote: [see: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/htm...heroad05e.html. After reading this column, I wrote the following question to Kelly:] Q. There are so many motor vehicles now, and many seem to ignore traffic signals and stop signs. My biggest fear is that I will be riding my bike on day and be hit by a motorist who has ignored a stop sign, and I will be blamed. Are there rules for motor vehicles? I hear that loud and clear. About 6 months ago I was nearly hit by someone who didn't even bother to slow down for an obvious stop sign, but went through at around 35 MPH, in a 25 MPH zone. Would I have been in the wrong because I was riding and not walking in the crosswalk? Where is a cop when you need one? What I find most disturbing is when cops ignore blatant violations happening right in front of them. One day in lovely Newport Beach, CA, I was sitting at a red light, next to a motorcycle cop. 4-5 cars ran a red light right in front of us, in the most blatant way. I don't mean yellow-to-red, I mean red for a second or so already. They almost clipped cross traffic that had started on the green. There was no excuse for this cop to not give chase to at least one, but he could have gotten all of them easily -- they were headed right to another red light. So I glared at the cop, like, "Aren't you going to do something about it," but he glared right back, like, "Don't even look at me or I'll throw *you* in jail." Red light running has really gotten out of hand in CA in the last 10 years. A friend who's an actuary for AAA agrees. Apparently, claims due to running red lights are way up. While I'm against speed traps and some other things, I'm all for those red light cameras. Matt O. |
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On Sun, 7 Nov 2004 12:31:23 -0500, Matt O'Toole wrote:
Bill Baka wrote: On Sat, 06 Nov 2004 00:06:21 GMT, Claire Petersky wrote: [see: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/htm...heroad05e.html. After reading this column, I wrote the following question to Kelly:] Q. There are so many motor vehicles now, and many seem to ignore traffic signals and stop signs. My biggest fear is that I will be riding my bike on day and be hit by a motorist who has ignored a stop sign, and I will be blamed. Are there rules for motor vehicles? I hear that loud and clear. About 6 months ago I was nearly hit by someone who didn't even bother to slow down for an obvious stop sign, but went through at around 35 MPH, in a 25 MPH zone. Would I have been in the wrong because I was riding and not walking in the crosswalk? Where is a cop when you need one? What I find most disturbing is when cops ignore blatant violations happening right in front of them. One day in lovely Newport Beach, CA, I was sitting at a red light, next to a motorcycle cop. 4-5 cars ran a red light right in front of us, in the most blatant way. I don't mean yellow-to-red, I mean red for a second or so already. They almost clipped cross traffic that had started on the green. There was no excuse for this cop to not give chase to at least one, but he could have gotten all of them easily -- they were headed right to another red light. So I glared at the cop, like, "Aren't you going to do something about it," but he glared right back, like, "Don't even look at me or I'll throw *you* in jail." Red light running has really gotten out of hand in CA in the last 10 years. A friend who's an actuary for AAA agrees. Apparently, claims due to running red lights are way up. While I'm against speed traps and some other things, I'm all for those red light cameras. Matt O. The police around here mainly patrol the populated areas, and this is not, yet. There is a 1,000 house development being built and it may take someones' kid getting hurt for the police to start patroling. Sometimes reality sucks. Bill Baka |
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Sun, 07 Nov 2004 11:21:58 -0800, ,
Bill Baka wrote: The police around here mainly patrol the populated areas, and this is not, yet. There is a 1,000 house development being built and it may take someones' kid getting hurt for the police to start patroling. Sometimes reality sucks. Bill Baka If it had been built for people instead of their cars, a community of 1000 people could pretty much police itself. -- zk |
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On Sun, 07 Nov 2004 12:20:30 -0800, Zoot Katz
wrote: Sun, 07 Nov 2004 11:21:58 -0800, , Bill Baka wrote: The police around here mainly patrol the populated areas, and this is not, yet. There is a 1,000 house development being built and it may take someones' kid getting hurt for the police to start patroling. Sometimes reality sucks. Bill Baka If it had been built for people instead of their cars, a community of 1000 people could pretty much police itself. Very true. Real estate is crazy aound here, and these houses are being sold before they are even finished. I wouldn't buy one just because I have seen how they are built, el cheapo. No bike paths either, but it is all 25MPH zone. Last year it was just a nice open field to ride across. My short cut has been paved over and clogged with houses. I think the police will start patroling shortly and follow the money, err, um, higher income types. Bill Baka -- Using M2, Opera's revolutionary e-mail client: http://www.opera.com/m2/ |
#7
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Zoot Katz wrote:
If it had been built for people instead of their cars, a community of 1000 people could pretty much police itself. Good point! Matt O. |
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Bill Baka wrote:
On Sun, 07 Nov 2004 12:20:30 -0800, Zoot Katz wrote: Sun, 07 Nov 2004 11:21:58 -0800, , Bill Baka wrote: The police around here mainly patrol the populated areas, and this is not, yet. There is a 1,000 house development being built and it may take someones' kid getting hurt for the police to start patroling. Sometimes reality sucks. Bill Baka If it had been built for people instead of their cars, a community of 1000 people could pretty much police itself. Very true. Real estate is crazy aound here, and these houses are being sold before they are even finished. I wouldn't buy one just because I have seen how they are built, el cheapo. No bike paths either, but it is all 25MPH zone. Last year it was just a nice open field to ride across. My short cut has been paved over and clogged with houses. I think the police will start patroling shortly and follow the money, err, um, higher income types. The problem is not the prices, etc., or where the police choose to patrol. It's that we build houses too far from everything else, so most people feel the need to get in their cars to do anything. Communities can and should be built so children can walk to school and other activities, so that adults can walk to stores, etc. While completely eliminating commuting to work by car may not be practical, eliminating a major portion of the 80% of car trips that are less than 3 miles certainly is. Matt O. |
#9
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On Sun, 7 Nov 2004 20:14:50 -0500, Matt O'Toole wrote:
Bill Baka wrote: On Sun, 07 Nov 2004 12:20:30 -0800, Zoot Katz wrote: Sun, 07 Nov 2004 11:21:58 -0800, , Bill Baka wrote: The police around here mainly patrol the populated areas, and this is not, yet. There is a 1,000 house development being built and it may take someones' kid getting hurt for the police to start patroling. Sometimes reality sucks. Bill Baka If it had been built for people instead of their cars, a community of 1000 people could pretty much police itself. Very true. Real estate is crazy aound here, and these houses are being sold before they are even finished. I wouldn't buy one just because I have seen how they are built, el cheapo. No bike paths either, but it is all 25MPH zone. Last year it was just a nice open field to ride across. My short cut has been paved over and clogged with houses. I think the police will start patroling shortly and follow the money, err, um, higher income types. The problem is not the prices, etc., or where the police choose to patrol. It's that we build houses too far from everything else, so most people feel the need to get in their cars to do anything. Communities can and should be built so children can walk to school and other activities, so that adults can walk to stores, etc. While completely eliminating commuting to work by car may not be practical, eliminating a major portion of the 80% of car trips that are less than 3 miles certainly is. Matt O. You are most likely correct in that there is a park and a school 'planned' but not yet built, and a farmer down the road is convienetly offering a parcel for a shopping mall or whatever, which probably will get done as soon as a few more people move into the area. Even when I go to do some shopping now it is about 4 miles to get to a semblance of a town. If the school in planning does get built it will be in the middle of the new houses, so with eventual 1,000+? houses built there will probably be plenty of kids riding bikes. I just wish they had at least planned bike lanes at a minimum since all these houses are family sized, 1,500 Sq. feet or more, and that most likely means a few kids per house. I guess I can just ride through it all. Bill Baka -- Using M2, Opera's revolutionary e-mail client: http://www.opera.com/m2/ |
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"Matt O'Toole" wrote
The problem is not the prices, etc., or where the police choose to patrol. It's that we build houses too far from everything else, so most people feel the need to get in their cars to do anything. Communities can and should be built so children can walk to school and other activities, so that adults can walk to stores, etc. While completely eliminating commuting to work by car may not be practical, eliminating a major portion of the 80% of car trips that are less than 3 miles certainly is. I live in a neighborhood where just about everything is within walking distance. People still drive almost all the time. |
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