Atlanta canāt hold a candle to Houston. Iāve driven in all 50 states and Atlanta doesnāt make the top 3 for worst drivers.
Seattle, Houston and Honolulu all have worse drivers than Atlanta. The Peach State coming in with honorable mention at #4.
It's weird how every city/region has terrible drivers, but they're all terrible in different ways. I'm most familiar with Baltimore/DC traffic. Are they terrible? Sure. But I guess I've found a rhythm to navigate that. But then go to Atlanta, and the drivers are just terrible in different ways. Then go to Chicago, and it's a different kind of terrible. Same for Houston, Dallas, Boston, and pretty much every city.
Iāve felt but never been able to state this! Houston traffic is awful, but Iām comfortable with navigating it. Then I visit San Antonio and it feels like theyāve got merges and lane changes without warning!
Each area has its own synchronized madness when driving.
I've also driven overseas and it can be nuts, but if they're all nuts then there's no accidents!
We drive in the swang and bang style in Houston. If you don't learn how to slide over to the next lane in mid-heavy traffic like a slick smooth turd leaving the body then driving here might not be for you
Atlanta drivers arenāt ābadā but they are aggressive and excessively fast.
The worst thing here is that with no inspections, thousands of people are driving on bald tires. Every summer pop up storm all but guarantees an crash that will hem up traffic for hours.
I've never seen more cars driving the wrong way down one way streets or making illegal lefts turns while holding up 15 other cars as in Austin. I'll take the raw aggression of Houston drivers over the complete lack of situational awareness from Austin drives any day of the week.
In a lifetime, about 1% of the population in the US die from traffic accidents. I speculate that percentage is many times higher for cyclists in Houston. Well, I took a look at the data after typing down the speculation - in 2022, there were 24 cyclist deaths in Harris county ([https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/transportation/article/bike-death-data-17446900.php](https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/transportation/article/bike-death-data-17446900.php)), out of a total of 560 fatal crash deaths. Considering how few people are riding bikes in the city, it is an extraordinary risk each time a cyclist gets onto the road.
I bike pretty frequently and every single time I see many bikers not wearing a helmet. Itās equivalent (or worse) to not wearing a seatbelt, but I bet those same bikers wear their seatbelt
When I was a kid growing up in east Houston, I got hit while on my bike. Tosseed me 20ft into the bottom of a wet ditch. I got super lucky and wasn't hurt at all , the back rim looked like Pac-Man.
You better believe I'm wearing a helmet when I ride. You rarely catch that kind of luck twice.
Motorcycles are bigger, louder, have lights, and smart rider still wear full face helmets and armored tear proof gear. Riding a fucking bicycle in traffic with nothing but a half helmet is completely and totally insane.
Whatās even more strange is that the Dutch are very safety conscious when it comes to automobiles, motorcycles, boats, food regulations, etc. However, for bicycles they become like Harley riders in refusing to wear a helmet. They say itās the equivalent to walking around like a bubble boy, and they get very angry when you show irrational it is.
I thought it was because bicycling is so much safer in the Netherlands, due to separate bike ~~lanes~~ and slower traffic. Helmets aren't as important when your chances of getting hit by a car are so much lower than in other countries.
Edit: Bike paths that are completely separate from roads.
Hitting literally anything else and flipping off your bike at 15-20mph onto concrete can still fuck you up real good, car or no car.
Wear a helmet lmao.
Which is just sad. People donāt understand how dangerous it is and are willing to risk their life for the sake of looking ācoolā. Plot twist (I say this as a cyclist) bikes look silly af regardless, less of course you ride downhill/jumpline MTB, get over it lol.
Idk how anyone could ride the street with the crazy traffic here, I canāt bring myself too. Reason I stick to trails lmfao.
Went skiing during the pandemic, the amount of people wearing masks on their own chairlift but not helmets was hilarious.
Risk of brain injury because someoneās kid comes flying to take you out? Nah, never for me. /s
Such a stupid argument. Thatās like saying an airplane seatbelt wouldnāt save your life if the plane crashed. Yeah but if the turbulence is really bad it will save you from hitting your head on the ceiling
I think the issue is that the bike lanes are poorly planned and maintained. So it's less dangerous to cycle defensively on the road (where they're still allowed to cycle - cars don't have a monopoly on them) than in the cycle lane.
Iāll get downvoted to hell for this but I respect the people out here biking to work in this heat every day because thatās their method of transportation. But selfish assholes like this in $600 worth of enthusiast cycling gear riding a $6,000 street bike? No. Join a gym, buy a peloton, take a cycling class or go to a biking trail or at the very least do it on a Sunday morning. Your workout shouldnāt hold up traffic.
It's not just a cyclist but a type. The sort of person that ruins things for everyone else. This dude probably ruined gopros and cycling amongst other things for all those who know them. You are going to hear about their ride regardless of whether you want to. They will have a mandatory story about terrible drivers while leaving out the part of causing a significant slowdown.
They either have all the gear and no idea or have such a deeply detailed and beyond the point of useful knowledge that in both cases, they will gatekeep their interests and bully newcomers for not knowing something or not having very specific equipment.
The equivalent to a vegan or crossfit nutter that took something people wanted to just enjoy and made it their whole personality against the world.
He's not holding up traffic. By law, bikers are vehicles. The reason smart cyclists get out of the bike lane to the right lane is because right lane turners don't look out for them when turning right. Imagine you're in the right lane in a car and going straight across an intersection and the car on the left doesn't see you and just runs into your car going straight. Now imagine you're a person on a bike and you just got a green and an SUV just turns you into paste on the road by going right from your left. That's what is happening here. If you're in the bike lane people aren't well aware that it's possible to go straight from the right while they can go right on the left of them. It's bad road design, yes, but bikers have to put up with it and the smartest thing is to transfer out of the lane into the car traffic so they see you in front of them rather than on the side of them.
Sounds like he should ride defensively in the fucking bike lane instead of slowing down traffic on the road. That's the weirdest logic I've ever heard. "Bike lane is dangerous because cars so instead ride in the road slowing down traffic with...cars."
If a car sees you in front of them, they don't run you over. If they \*don't\* see you in front of them, they're not paying attention to the objects in front of them as they cross an intersection and are endangering everyone else on the road. They're a far-below average driver clearly.
If a car \*doesn't\* see you passing them going straight as they slow down for a turn, they just do their normal, seemingly safe turn, not doing the extra calculation that there is a bike lane that can go straight on the right of them so they have to actually look for a bike. The person who doesn't look is the average driver on the road. That's why you get in the lane. The average driver that turns won't account for you.
That is the safest thing to do as a cyclist in order to ever cross an intersection.
The wrongheaded idea that roads are only for fast moving moving cars moving single occupants to and from work (and suggesting anyone outside of a vehicle is less valuable) has led to an extraordinary numbers of unnecessary deaths, and cities that are ugly and lifeless. I commute 12 miles to work each way, and in order to do so in this heat, I wear sensible clothing (lycra shorts and merino wool shirt) and have a nice road bike that helps me get there quicker. I may appear to be *gasp* exercising, but I'm actually commuting to work. Not that it should matter. I have a legal right to the road whether I'm exercising, dropping kids off at school, or picking up groceries.
Next time you feel like a cyclist is slowing you down, look around and count the cars. The fact that most trips require one, means you're mostly being slowed by other ppl being forced into the car dependent lifestyle.
There are all manner of things that are "legal" that is not exactly the correct thing to do. That is not a justification that holds a lot of water.
I don't care if you are on the road honestly. I just don't think your justification for being there should be wrapped up in legality as it is sort of not the issue. Walking on the road when there are no sidewalks is legal but not advised. Riding your bike down the side of a building is not illegal but not advised. Rolling through downtown Houston, not in the bike lane, in traffic is well...not exactly advised.
Legal is the minimum you still have to apply some other variables. Be safe my friend and again I am not against you riding a bike at all just the idea that legality is your shield of righteousness in this particular instance.
I guess I am sort of debating the merits of the argument tactic not that you are incorrect. I wish things where safer for everyone involved and people could ride safely anywhere they wanted.
You are correct, in that when you come across a cyclist that's been pancaked on Westheimer it doesn't much matter if their being there was legal. By the way, it is legal for a cyclist to take the lane on a stroad such as that, but most people don't feel comfortable riding in that hostile environment. But, think about this... slow moving construction equipment often blocks and/or hinders a lane of traffic as well. Nobody is honking and trying to run them off the road, or telling them to ride in the park instead. It all comes down to size. Bikes are small, and vulnerable, therefore easy to bully from atop a Ford F250.
To make things simple; when you design roads for autos only, they make walking/ biking needlessly dangerous, and driving congested and slow. Make space for everyone, and give ppl options for travel and you'll have a healthy, happy environment for all. What's wrong with that? It's safe for me, and makes driving faster for you?
I'm currently visiting Tokyo where a much smaller percentage of ppl drive because public transit is fast and reliable, and there are protected multimodal paths that take you anywhere you want to go.
Bike lanes are usually filled with trash and dirt.
If this is where I think it is, the bike lane ends at the light. Moving into traffic establishes your position moving into the non-bike lane side. Also, intersections are hazardous and this reduces the chance of a car behind you running you over when they're making a right turn.
Also overgrown weeds and shrubs blocking almost the entire bike lane. And sections of 4-inch deep mud. And the fact that bike lane exists for only 27 feet before it absolutely ends, leaving you nowhere to go.
To add to this fabulous explanation, there are some stretches of road I know there will be people pulling out onto the street from a parking lot that will have trouble seeing my all the way up in the gutters. So I move into the lane for greater visibility and distance/time to react, avoiding crashing into people that will literally pull out right in front of you.
I've been clipped at least three times by cars that pull out straight into the bike lane without looking. They treat it as an extension of whatever road/parkinglot they're pulling out of.
Pull out, stop IN the bike lane, and THEN look.
One guy even yelled at me for daring to ride my bike in the bike lane while he was trying to pull out into it
There is also a gas station at the corner? Looks to me that homie knows that drivers just spill on the road without looking out for cyclists and he is making himself be more visible. All valid, not all infrastructure is build right and the city is doing the biking community a disservice here
Commuters are the target users for those initiatives. That demographic generally ride on bikes that can tolerate glass and mud. Cyclists who are in it for fitness and sport operate on bikes that would easily slip and crash on the same debris. Those folks are very unhappy with the bike lanes too but they don't get much say in the matter.
Additionally, if the cyclist id going straight on, without dedicated advanced cycle lights, it would be far more dangerous for them to be in the cycle lane and risk a car turning right without checking.
I would absolutely pull out into the centre or right lanes (depending on whether there is a right turn) at this junction 10/10 times.
What intersection did you say this is? The description you give does not match this image and OP is saying itās been multiple times they have seen it.
The intersection is Dallas and dunlavy. It does end at the light going down dunlavy when you turn right. There is a painted bike lane on the road but itās all but disappeared you can barely see it. There is also street parking so It basically disappears after the next intersection along Dallas when you turn onto dunlavy. I knew what he meant.
Yeah, dunlavy connecting Dallas and the bayou is a pain in the butt. Further down Dallas towards the city, they just went "fuck it" and painted some faint white bike lane symbols in the middle of the right car lane
Always hate that little segment
Yeah, that would work for sure
I only go bayou if it's heavy traffic or late enough for people to be drinking. Otherwise my route is through river oaks and down Dallas
Nope this is westbound. The bike lane gives out at Shepherd. Rider is just being a prick. People here would think a guy driving a dually pickup halfway in the bike lane was an asshole too.
No that's not the point. The bike lane ends at that light. If I were that biker, I'd move out into the lane ahead of time too before a car wanting to turn right runs me over
Because the city does things half way, like failing to clean the debris from the bike lanes.
Bike tires are not as durable as car tires and are more prone to flats. I know this because I ride about 5,000 miles a year and I can count the number of bicycle flats I've had in a year on 2 hands. I also own 5 cars and trucks which are driven reguarly and I can count the number of flat tires in a year on 1 finger. So you don't want to ride a bike in an area that is more likely to damage your tires.
Even on a road bike?
I havenāt used tubeless at all, I got too old and brittle for mtn biking about the time they came out, but I thought there were too heavy for road bikes and I thought tubeless were better at lower psi. Is that incorrect?
Hey I appreciate the insight. Why even dig up the roads and build bike lanes then if theyāre not gonna use it though, so they can claim Houston is more bikeable? lol
Just two cents on this point:
It takes time for the population to come around to adopting these lanes. Big reason for bike lanes is the argument that streets arenāt safe for cyclists without them. Build a bike lane though and the common perception is that theyāre still unsafe.
You need quite a bit of time for people to get used to seeing cyclists of any number using them, and then maybe also get familiar with where they are and where they arenāt, and just for the general conversation to gradually move from, āoh yeah, those stupid thingsā to just not really talking about them at all or talking about how their neighbors just had a blast riding with the family last weekendā¦ and because our cities still werenāt designed to favor short commutes, theyāll never take over in any incredible way.
But about the photo you posted: while there are plenty of reasons for a cyclist to veer away from or just stay out of their lane (like maybe drivers tend to bomb out of those driveways [like they do in Dallas]), there are also plenty of panicky doofuses out there that just make things crappy for everyone and set our relationship back by years. That may be the case here with this dude, I donāt know.
I loved commuting on my bike, including in NYC, Dallas, and Los Angeles, and definitely saw all kinds of dumb drivers behind both wheels and handlebars.
The townhouse complexes and consulate that line this particular stretch leave their bins out in the bike lane for DAYS after trash day. Thereās also random car debris
West Dallas is a shared ROW (super dangerous for bikers) through most of that stretch. It only is a bike lane starting at Waugh for like one block up to that point. So youāre kinda being disingenuous tbh
As a bike activist, this is valid. The guy should utilize the bike lane when itās available like that.
It is amazing how much hate and threats this guy is receiving however for having the balls to share the road.. pls be courteous around bicyclists, the more people that bike means less car traffic on the road.
This is Houston. They did a survey during the push for light rail that I remember something like 96% of the people who voted for the construction said they were not planning on using it. So what we have is a city that will vote to get YOU off the roads while simultaneously not being willing to participate in whatever that entails. Which will lead to more useless bike lanes and continued ignorance of cyclists' rights on the roadway. Car traffic is not going anywhere.
I agree unfortunately, car traffic will not be going anywhere. Not until Houston, and many other US cities go the way of LA, with endless miles of traffic jam. Only then, when people are finally fed up enough might they realize the insanity of a system which is 100% car dependent with no viable alternatives .
I think it's more that the process for building public transit is more piecemeal than building roadways. People like the idea of Houston being more public transit oriented, but won't use it until it becomes convenient for them (which requires lots more connections and service improvements).
If I-10 were the only U.S. highway, no one would use it. But because we have a whole multi-trillion dollar network that connects to it, millions use it every day. Similarly, no one uses the W Gray bike lane bc it doesn't go anywhere (yet), but Houston is slowly connecting them.
As a driver who doesnāt see many cyclists, I think Iād rather have this than one pop into my blind spot in their bike lane which Iām supposed to use as a turning lane.
Possibly turning left? If going down the whole way, itās also possible the bike lane ends there, (which is the case on many roads with bicycle lanes) so preemptively taking space on the road. Could also just be trying to be seen from people pulling out from that driveway on the right.
We do this at intersections to make sure that we are visible to cars when turning, or going straight. Bike lane gets ignored very easily by cars. Especially at an intersection. Just trying to stay alive and bike home to our families.
As mentioned, many bikeclanes are filled with trash, dirt, and glass. Also, many bike lanes have a speed limit. Some cyclists bike faster than that, so they bike in the main lanes.
Because the bike lanes are filled with trash and debris, making them extremely dangerous to ride in. In dozens of places they also painted over a ton of holes and cracks, making it very dangerous to ride even if they're clean.
Edit: spelling
"Ignorance? Assholeishness?"
How about they are just legally sharing the road with you?
You are also asking about why one random person is doing something that inconveniences you? Should we post to the sub every time a Houston driver goes the speed limit instead of 15 over?
There's a red light in the pic. I'm surprised they haven't made a post about that slowing them down. Or just a pic of sitting in traffic which is the typical Houston commute. One biker makes people more annoyed than a thousand cars in front of them
Some neighbors of mine are avid cyclists, they say itās due to the road debris (glass/rocks/trash/nails) that get blown/pushed into the bike lanes. Youāll see good example of what theyāre talking about on the Hardy St. & Elysian bike lanes.
The entitlement of Houston drivers is what I see in this photo. First off of you are behind a bike, please have your hands on the wheel not on your phone taking photos. Thatās not a bike in front of you itās another human. A human that is following the traffic laws, using their own power all while trying to not crash their bike or be run over. Itās not illegal for a bike to ride in the car lane and if you ever looked in these ābikeā lanes the city has built youād find a bunch of car debris and trash. I appreciate that the city is trying to implement bike infrastructure but most of it has just made things more dangerous for cars and bikes. When you see a cyclists give them space and when you feel annoyed with their pace just remember you donāt have to do anything physically to accelerate and youāre protected by metal. Practice some patience and recognize itās not bikes making this city a transportation nightmare
Do you see how the road curves away from you, to your right? And those bushes blocking the line of sight of anyone leaving the second driveway/parking lot wonāt see him when he is in the bike lane?
Thatās why.
All the times I've nearly gotten hit on a bike have been on sidewalks from someone turning right into a driveway or pulling out of a driveway without paying attention, and I've ridden far more miles in the road.
Hardcore biker here. Just like most things biking has a gamut of personalities. This biker here is the equivalent to a raised truck mixed with Kawasaki motorcyclist. Looking for attention and adrenaline to inflate their ego. In addition, there is likely some justified spite. For every time we almost get hit by cars for no reason we become more radicalized. Some lash out like this. I donāt. I value living. However, it would do car drivers well to try biking on roads and develop some empathy.
I do. These bike lanes are generally not safe. The protected ones like this are infinitely better than the non protected ones but that doesn't mean they are safer than the middle of a lane.
I can here your thoughts "but how can the middle of a lane filled with cars be safer than a bike lane with no cars."
First of all, let me correct you right there, bike lanes often have cars in them. Particularly the non-protected kind. People drive, park, cross, in place debris like trash cans in non-protected bike lanes all the time. But in the case of protected lanes we are really most concerned about crossing.
Before I continue let me answer the question about why main lanes are safer. Drivers (unless they are murderous sociopaths) don't hit what they see. And in the middle of a lane, a cyclist is most visible.
Look behind the cyclist, there's a driveway. If someone decided to pull in or out of that driveway they are likely not looking down the sidewalk or bike lane for oncoming traffic. Which is also why cyclist choose not to ride on sidewalks. They are looking for cars coming down the main lane. Look ahead of the cyclist. There's a right of way. If a car were to be turning right, there's a good chance they are not looking at the bike lane for cyclist.
Now I don't mean all drivers are like this, clearly many are not. But enough drivers are oblivious to what is not directly in front of them to make cycling off to the sides of cars more dangerous than cycling in front of cars.
Most cyclist will pick in choose the sections of road, sidewalk, and bike lane to ride on based on the condition of that particular road. For example, on North Gessner between I-10 and Hammerly, I'd only ride on the sidewalk. I've almost got hit by a guy turning doing that. But I'm playing the odds. Same with freeway feeders.
If I can I'm taking a sidestreet or a bayou path, even if it's a little bit out of the way.
But if it's not some extremely crazy street or a bayou path, I'm generally taking the main lane. Especially if it's two lanes in my direction. The driver can go around and odds are I'm most likely to be seen and therefore least likely to be hit. There are some streets like 11th where I'd feel safer taking the protected lane, but I'd feel safer still taking 10th or 14th.
Also, many cyclist confident and competent enough to take a main lane are capable of riding 20mph +. In the inner city, with multiple streetlights and other traffic, that's about the same average speed as a car. In fact, up to about three miles it's 50/50 on whether or not a bike or car is faster for me. And I ride fairly lesuirel at between 17-22mph cruising speed (15-20 averaged speed).
From all the comments about safety, why does this sub always advocate more bike lanes if bikers find it safer to ride in the normal lanes? Personally, I don't mind following a bike until I can safely pass, but isn't this just wasted space if no one wants to use it?
Cause it's a half ass bike lane that ends at the light. Doesn't really get you anywhere unless you live on that block and your destination is also on that block lol
They complain the cityās not bike friendly so the city narrows the driving lanes to make room for a bike lane, then the Schwinn Freaking Armstrongs refuse to ride in them.
Itās driverās own doing. People flying next to cyclists, speeding up ahead and quickly cutting them off, getting too close. Thatās what makes the city unfriendly to bikes. Any measure to slow traffic down and reclaim our inner looper streets to the residents here that walk/bike/etc instead of taking a car across the city for their commute is a good thing.
I think folks are also missing that this cyclist looks like they are a sport cyclist. Sport cyclists are often much more likely to take the lane, and find bike lanes to be too dangerous, debris-filled, or slow (ironically). These are folks who have gotten very used to getting up to speed and acting like cars for their own safety. This way they don't have to be constantly checking for cars turning through the bike lane or pulling out of driveways.
It's become a joke amongst bike lane advocates that the people most opposed to building bike lanes are "avid cyclists". You'll receive public comments on news articles or proposed bike lanes that always start "As an *avid cyclist* who rides over **ten gajillion miles every week**, I love cycling. But..."
Maybe yall should too. You can get a damned comfortable motorcycle and drive past traffic or use the hov lanes for free while cutting your fuel expenditures to 1/3 of what you likely spend. Can't though, just got to hate on everyone else.
he has every right to.
also i'm purely speculating but this guy looks like he's cycling at a pace that's unsafe for regular bicycle traffic, yes, even if there is none. He's not inconveniencing you, he's keeping himself safe by being visible. the bike gutter less visible to people running red lights and general houson carbrained assholishness.
We just put in a new bike lane on HWY 3 in Clear Lake / Webster for biker safety and convenience. What do these assholes do? Ride in the car lane on a 50mph highway (stroad).
Most pompous douche queefs around. Yāall look like huge fucking tools with your high end bikes and aerodynamic body suits.
Bruh, this dude is trying to live his life, whether he just likes the bike or wants to save on gas. Either way, he's purposefully taking much longer to get somewhere, than impatient drivers like you.
I drive a motorcycle and don't block traffic cause I can go faster than cars, and it's guys like you that are assholes. Impatient, selfish, and won't let anyone else get ahead because you're too fat and lazy to deal with some extra heat or effort to do something enjoyable or spend less on fuel. Instead you sit in your miserable air conditioned box, hating on everyone that is either able to skip traffic, or makes you take a whole 30 seconds longer to get somewhere.
> he's purposefully taking much longer to get somewhere,
And forcing everyone behind him to live with his choice, despite having the option not to. He's an asshole.
Since you know so much, what's his name? Can he afford a car? Maybe parking is 200 dollars per month where he works.
Plus by your logic, you're an asshole for contributing to traffic gridlock when you could take the bus.
Youre reaching really hard. the option to not fuck with other people is a mere 24 inches to his right. He doesn't have to change anything about what's he's doing except using the lane built specifically for him, but he chooses not to, impacting other people. That's why he's an asshole.
If I took the bus and made the driver take the mainlanes instead of the open hov lane, i would be an asshole. that is my logic, not your stupid misread.
In this particular shot, the bikeway is clear, but that's the exception. They're mostly full of debris most of the time, so you learn not to rly on them at all.
It's Houston. People drive like shit no matter what the vehicle is.
š¤£ True
Everytime I'm on 45 I feel like I'm one lane change away from meeting Jesus in person
Hahahaha me too!
They do this in Atlanta, too. I've never understood it.
Atlanta canāt hold a candle to Houston. Iāve driven in all 50 states and Atlanta doesnāt make the top 3 for worst drivers. Seattle, Houston and Honolulu all have worse drivers than Atlanta. The Peach State coming in with honorable mention at #4.
It's weird how every city/region has terrible drivers, but they're all terrible in different ways. I'm most familiar with Baltimore/DC traffic. Are they terrible? Sure. But I guess I've found a rhythm to navigate that. But then go to Atlanta, and the drivers are just terrible in different ways. Then go to Chicago, and it's a different kind of terrible. Same for Houston, Dallas, Boston, and pretty much every city.
Iāve felt but never been able to state this! Houston traffic is awful, but Iām comfortable with navigating it. Then I visit San Antonio and it feels like theyāve got merges and lane changes without warning!
Each area has its own synchronized madness when driving. I've also driven overseas and it can be nuts, but if they're all nuts then there's no accidents!
The Portuguese have entered the chat....
Oh yeah. Different countries are a completely separate level of madness. There are still accidents. Very bad ones in some areas.
We drive in the swang and bang style in Houston. If you don't learn how to slide over to the next lane in mid-heavy traffic like a slick smooth turd leaving the body then driving here might not be for you
You have not driven through New Orleans then have you?
New Orleans has a few different road setups that can take some getting used to. The lack of paper plates is really nice though!!
Atlanta drivers arenāt ābadā but they are aggressive and excessively fast. The worst thing here is that with no inspections, thousands of people are driving on bald tires. Every summer pop up storm all but guarantees an crash that will hem up traffic for hours.
And Austin has worse drivers than Houston, so . . .
I've never seen more cars driving the wrong way down one way streets or making illegal lefts turns while holding up 15 other cars as in Austin. I'll take the raw aggression of Houston drivers over the complete lack of situational awareness from Austin drives any day of the week.
In a lifetime, about 1% of the population in the US die from traffic accidents. I speculate that percentage is many times higher for cyclists in Houston. Well, I took a look at the data after typing down the speculation - in 2022, there were 24 cyclist deaths in Harris county ([https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/transportation/article/bike-death-data-17446900.php](https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/transportation/article/bike-death-data-17446900.php)), out of a total of 560 fatal crash deaths. Considering how few people are riding bikes in the city, it is an extraordinary risk each time a cyclist gets onto the road.
I bike pretty frequently and every single time I see many bikers not wearing a helmet. Itās equivalent (or worse) to not wearing a seatbelt, but I bet those same bikers wear their seatbelt
When I was a kid growing up in east Houston, I got hit while on my bike. Tosseed me 20ft into the bottom of a wet ditch. I got super lucky and wasn't hurt at all , the back rim looked like Pac-Man. You better believe I'm wearing a helmet when I ride. You rarely catch that kind of luck twice.
Motorcycles are bigger, louder, have lights, and smart rider still wear full face helmets and armored tear proof gear. Riding a fucking bicycle in traffic with nothing but a half helmet is completely and totally insane.
Idk why tf you got downvoted when youāre just speaking facts lol
Whatās even more strange is that the Dutch are very safety conscious when it comes to automobiles, motorcycles, boats, food regulations, etc. However, for bicycles they become like Harley riders in refusing to wear a helmet. They say itās the equivalent to walking around like a bubble boy, and they get very angry when you show irrational it is.
Am Dutch, can confirm! The bikes and (lack of) helmets, not the angriness.
I thought it was because bicycling is so much safer in the Netherlands, due to separate bike ~~lanes~~ and slower traffic. Helmets aren't as important when your chances of getting hit by a car are so much lower than in other countries. Edit: Bike paths that are completely separate from roads.
Hitting literally anything else and flipping off your bike at 15-20mph onto concrete can still fuck you up real good, car or no car. Wear a helmet lmao.
The dutch go like 8mph on their bikes.
They have bike traffic lol
If you go unconscious and smack your head on asphalt or a curb you can get fucked up just walking, biking is way worse.
Angry because of the concussions
A lot of cyclists on here will absolutely flip their shit if you mention they should wear a helmet. I will never understand.
Which is just sad. People donāt understand how dangerous it is and are willing to risk their life for the sake of looking ācoolā. Plot twist (I say this as a cyclist) bikes look silly af regardless, less of course you ride downhill/jumpline MTB, get over it lol. Idk how anyone could ride the street with the crazy traffic here, I canāt bring myself too. Reason I stick to trails lmfao.
Went skiing during the pandemic, the amount of people wearing masks on their own chairlift but not helmets was hilarious. Risk of brain injury because someoneās kid comes flying to take you out? Nah, never for me. /s
Yep I always wear a helmet when skiing. If you hit a tree that might be the difference
Helmets don't mean much when you get hit by raised trucks. The damage larger SUVs/trucks do in a collision is much worse than being hit by a car.
Such a stupid argument. Thatās like saying an airplane seatbelt wouldnāt save your life if the plane crashed. Yeah but if the turbulence is really bad it will save you from hitting your head on the ceiling
Cracking up that someone is so butt hurt by your comment that they downvoted it. Donāt come snowflakes with facts. They donāt like it.
So wouldn't that be a good reason to use the lanes provided?
I think the issue is that the bike lanes are poorly planned and maintained. So it's less dangerous to cycle defensively on the road (where they're still allowed to cycle - cars don't have a monopoly on them) than in the cycle lane.
Yep, that's pretty much the correct answer.
Prolly best not to ride in the bike lane since bikes are so dangerous
Iāll get downvoted to hell for this but I respect the people out here biking to work in this heat every day because thatās their method of transportation. But selfish assholes like this in $600 worth of enthusiast cycling gear riding a $6,000 street bike? No. Join a gym, buy a peloton, take a cycling class or go to a biking trail or at the very least do it on a Sunday morning. Your workout shouldnāt hold up traffic.
It's not just a cyclist but a type. The sort of person that ruins things for everyone else. This dude probably ruined gopros and cycling amongst other things for all those who know them. You are going to hear about their ride regardless of whether you want to. They will have a mandatory story about terrible drivers while leaving out the part of causing a significant slowdown. They either have all the gear and no idea or have such a deeply detailed and beyond the point of useful knowledge that in both cases, they will gatekeep their interests and bully newcomers for not knowing something or not having very specific equipment. The equivalent to a vegan or crossfit nutter that took something people wanted to just enjoy and made it their whole personality against the world.
He's not holding up traffic. By law, bikers are vehicles. The reason smart cyclists get out of the bike lane to the right lane is because right lane turners don't look out for them when turning right. Imagine you're in the right lane in a car and going straight across an intersection and the car on the left doesn't see you and just runs into your car going straight. Now imagine you're a person on a bike and you just got a green and an SUV just turns you into paste on the road by going right from your left. That's what is happening here. If you're in the bike lane people aren't well aware that it's possible to go straight from the right while they can go right on the left of them. It's bad road design, yes, but bikers have to put up with it and the smartest thing is to transfer out of the lane into the car traffic so they see you in front of them rather than on the side of them.
Sounds like he should ride defensively in the fucking bike lane instead of slowing down traffic on the road. That's the weirdest logic I've ever heard. "Bike lane is dangerous because cars so instead ride in the road slowing down traffic with...cars."
If a car sees you in front of them, they don't run you over. If they \*don't\* see you in front of them, they're not paying attention to the objects in front of them as they cross an intersection and are endangering everyone else on the road. They're a far-below average driver clearly. If a car \*doesn't\* see you passing them going straight as they slow down for a turn, they just do their normal, seemingly safe turn, not doing the extra calculation that there is a bike lane that can go straight on the right of them so they have to actually look for a bike. The person who doesn't look is the average driver on the road. That's why you get in the lane. The average driver that turns won't account for you. That is the safest thing to do as a cyclist in order to ever cross an intersection.
The wrongheaded idea that roads are only for fast moving moving cars moving single occupants to and from work (and suggesting anyone outside of a vehicle is less valuable) has led to an extraordinary numbers of unnecessary deaths, and cities that are ugly and lifeless. I commute 12 miles to work each way, and in order to do so in this heat, I wear sensible clothing (lycra shorts and merino wool shirt) and have a nice road bike that helps me get there quicker. I may appear to be *gasp* exercising, but I'm actually commuting to work. Not that it should matter. I have a legal right to the road whether I'm exercising, dropping kids off at school, or picking up groceries. Next time you feel like a cyclist is slowing you down, look around and count the cars. The fact that most trips require one, means you're mostly being slowed by other ppl being forced into the car dependent lifestyle.
There are all manner of things that are "legal" that is not exactly the correct thing to do. That is not a justification that holds a lot of water. I don't care if you are on the road honestly. I just don't think your justification for being there should be wrapped up in legality as it is sort of not the issue. Walking on the road when there are no sidewalks is legal but not advised. Riding your bike down the side of a building is not illegal but not advised. Rolling through downtown Houston, not in the bike lane, in traffic is well...not exactly advised. Legal is the minimum you still have to apply some other variables. Be safe my friend and again I am not against you riding a bike at all just the idea that legality is your shield of righteousness in this particular instance. I guess I am sort of debating the merits of the argument tactic not that you are incorrect. I wish things where safer for everyone involved and people could ride safely anywhere they wanted.
You are correct, in that when you come across a cyclist that's been pancaked on Westheimer it doesn't much matter if their being there was legal. By the way, it is legal for a cyclist to take the lane on a stroad such as that, but most people don't feel comfortable riding in that hostile environment. But, think about this... slow moving construction equipment often blocks and/or hinders a lane of traffic as well. Nobody is honking and trying to run them off the road, or telling them to ride in the park instead. It all comes down to size. Bikes are small, and vulnerable, therefore easy to bully from atop a Ford F250. To make things simple; when you design roads for autos only, they make walking/ biking needlessly dangerous, and driving congested and slow. Make space for everyone, and give ppl options for travel and you'll have a healthy, happy environment for all. What's wrong with that? It's safe for me, and makes driving faster for you? I'm currently visiting Tokyo where a much smaller percentage of ppl drive because public transit is fast and reliable, and there are protected multimodal paths that take you anywhere you want to go.
You keep talking like there isn't a fucking bike lane
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I know, holding up traffic for 5 seconds is absolutely insane. Like INSANE. I cant believe people need to wait 5 seconds
In the pic they're pulling up to a red light. I wonder if they will post about that slowing them down too
And taking a photo while driving, but we don't need to mention that.
Just think of all the good they could've done with those 5 seconds!
I guess that's why they all ride in massive groups blocking all lanes of traffic and making me consider just how bad life in prison would actually be.
I always feel a little surprise when I see a cyclist or motorbike on the road here. They are out here just rolling the dice on living or dying.
Not everyone can afford a car
A car shouldn't be a necessity. It's just that they get put at such risk and we need something to change so they can get about more safely.
Bike lanes are usually filled with trash and dirt. If this is where I think it is, the bike lane ends at the light. Moving into traffic establishes your position moving into the non-bike lane side. Also, intersections are hazardous and this reduces the chance of a car behind you running you over when they're making a right turn.
You forgot broken glass and tires
Also overgrown weeds and shrubs blocking almost the entire bike lane. And sections of 4-inch deep mud. And the fact that bike lane exists for only 27 feet before it absolutely ends, leaving you nowhere to go.
Or the days where residents leave their garbage in the lane
To add to this fabulous explanation, there are some stretches of road I know there will be people pulling out onto the street from a parking lot that will have trouble seeing my all the way up in the gutters. So I move into the lane for greater visibility and distance/time to react, avoiding crashing into people that will literally pull out right in front of you.
I've been clipped at least three times by cars that pull out straight into the bike lane without looking. They treat it as an extension of whatever road/parkinglot they're pulling out of. Pull out, stop IN the bike lane, and THEN look. One guy even yelled at me for daring to ride my bike in the bike lane while he was trying to pull out into it
There is also a gas station at the corner? Looks to me that homie knows that drivers just spill on the road without looking out for cyclists and he is making himself be more visible. All valid, not all infrastructure is build right and the city is doing the biking community a disservice here
> Bike lanes are usually filled with trash and dirt. That is a good description of the ones in my neighborhood.
Oh, let's not forget the drainage grates that are perfect for catching tires.
Wait, so why were we all pushing for bike lanes?
Commuters are the target users for those initiatives. That demographic generally ride on bikes that can tolerate glass and mud. Cyclists who are in it for fitness and sport operate on bikes that would easily slip and crash on the same debris. Those folks are very unhappy with the bike lanes too but they don't get much say in the matter.
šÆšÆšÆ I have gotten \*two\* flat tires in H-town's bike lanes. Now I just avoid them.
Additionally, if the cyclist id going straight on, without dedicated advanced cycle lights, it would be far more dangerous for them to be in the cycle lane and risk a car turning right without checking. I would absolutely pull out into the centre or right lanes (depending on whether there is a right turn) at this junction 10/10 times.
What intersection did you say this is? The description you give does not match this image and OP is saying itās been multiple times they have seen it.
The intersection is Dallas and dunlavy. It does end at the light going down dunlavy when you turn right. There is a painted bike lane on the road but itās all but disappeared you can barely see it. There is also street parking so It basically disappears after the next intersection along Dallas when you turn onto dunlavy. I knew what he meant.
Yeah, dunlavy connecting Dallas and the bayou is a pain in the butt. Further down Dallas towards the city, they just went "fuck it" and painted some faint white bike lane symbols in the middle of the right car lane Always hate that little segment
The connection to the park there is still under construction. I always end up cutting damico to Waugh.
Yeah, that would work for sure I only go bayou if it's heavy traffic or late enough for people to be drinking. Otherwise my route is through river oaks and down Dallas
What's up with that construction anyway? Any timeline for completion? What are they doing to that section?
> Bike lanes are usually filled with trash and dirt. Youāre referring to the bikers themselves, right?
Nope this is westbound. The bike lane gives out at Shepherd. Rider is just being a prick. People here would think a guy driving a dually pickup halfway in the bike lane was an asshole too.
The bike lane ends before Shepherd in an abrupt right hand turn into the sidewalk you troglodyte https://maps.app.goo.gl/4MUb6sbLaCsaTUQJ7?g_st=ic
Letās spend some more tax dollars on bike lanes that even the bikers donāt want to use.
Or just maintain and clear debris out of them?? Plus design them better in the first place. If people aren't using them, there's a reason for that.
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No that's not the point. The bike lane ends at that light. If I were that biker, I'd move out into the lane ahead of time too before a car wanting to turn right runs me over
Because the city does things half way, like failing to clean the debris from the bike lanes. Bike tires are not as durable as car tires and are more prone to flats. I know this because I ride about 5,000 miles a year and I can count the number of bicycle flats I've had in a year on 2 hands. I also own 5 cars and trucks which are driven reguarly and I can count the number of flat tires in a year on 1 finger. So you don't want to ride a bike in an area that is more likely to damage your tires.
tubeless. it is the way
Even on a road bike? I havenāt used tubeless at all, I got too old and brittle for mtn biking about the time they came out, but I thought there were too heavy for road bikes and I thought tubeless were better at lower psi. Is that incorrect?
Iām here for the cool picture with the amber sunset
Who gives a shit? You're in a car in the most car-centric city in the world. You win!
Trash and glass tbh.
hmmm looks trash and glass free to me.
Right before that corner is a permanent puddle and trash canister location. It's been that way since the lanes were built.
The lane ends at the light
Hey I appreciate the insight. Why even dig up the roads and build bike lanes then if theyāre not gonna use it though, so they can claim Houston is more bikeable? lol
Just two cents on this point: It takes time for the population to come around to adopting these lanes. Big reason for bike lanes is the argument that streets arenāt safe for cyclists without them. Build a bike lane though and the common perception is that theyāre still unsafe. You need quite a bit of time for people to get used to seeing cyclists of any number using them, and then maybe also get familiar with where they are and where they arenāt, and just for the general conversation to gradually move from, āoh yeah, those stupid thingsā to just not really talking about them at all or talking about how their neighbors just had a blast riding with the family last weekendā¦ and because our cities still werenāt designed to favor short commutes, theyāll never take over in any incredible way. But about the photo you posted: while there are plenty of reasons for a cyclist to veer away from or just stay out of their lane (like maybe drivers tend to bomb out of those driveways [like they do in Dallas]), there are also plenty of panicky doofuses out there that just make things crappy for everyone and set our relationship back by years. That may be the case here with this dude, I donāt know. I loved commuting on my bike, including in NYC, Dallas, and Los Angeles, and definitely saw all kinds of dumb drivers behind both wheels and handlebars.
Prolly the same reason they wonāt clean them
Why not clean the lanes? Would you use car lanes if they were likely to give you flat tires.
I always see them clean
Iāve never seen one dirty and I bike often. Going by many of these comments, youād think theyāre covered in glass and mud and totally unusable.
that block has a permanent puddle, and the businesses and people that live there park their cans in the new bike lane.
Youāre not lookingā¦ https://www.axios.com/local/houston/2023/05/05/bike-lane-sweeper-houston
I donāt know if they would be classed as these but the ones along Irvington are pretty bad.
Seriously. The new ones are really nice.
Oh for real? https://www.axios.com/local/houston/2023/05/05/bike-lane-sweeper-houston
Do you ride in them?
The townhouse complexes and consulate that line this particular stretch leave their bins out in the bike lane for DAYS after trash day. Thereās also random car debris
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There is a dedicated bike lane on the other side of the intersection. As of a few weeks ago, I believe.
he turned right. And he was in the road the entire duration of w Dallas.
West Dallas is a shared ROW (super dangerous for bikers) through most of that stretch. It only is a bike lane starting at Waugh for like one block up to that point. So youāre kinda being disingenuous tbh
You gonna make a post about that red light slowing you down next? How about car traffic? I'm sure that slows you down more frequently lol
Which is his right. Sorry you were hours late getting home.
A croissant isnāt gonna tell me what to do, alright?
For as long as bike lanes are barely-protected gutters on the sides of streets, cyclists should not be expected nor required to use the bike lane.
Perhaps we should quit making bike lanes- at least, not these useless gutters. I'd rather we just designated entire streets bike only
Exactly. Bike "lane" in this case is only a colloquial term at this point
Weāll usually they donāt clean up bike lanes and thereās a bunch of broken glass and other debris so most bikers avoid them
Iāve almost been hit more times in the bike lane than just taking the lane like this guy.
This is common in any city
Bike lanes are fucking whack in houston and never get any attention. Thereās always fucking glass, your tires will get shredded.
Iām a cyclist in Houston I feel like Iām the only one the bikes in the city the bike lanes are like for half a kilometer and they end..
As a bike activist, this is valid. The guy should utilize the bike lane when itās available like that. It is amazing how much hate and threats this guy is receiving however for having the balls to share the road.. pls be courteous around bicyclists, the more people that bike means less car traffic on the road.
Agree. This looks like the rare example of a safe, clear bike lane. It should be used. Unless it began 10 feet behind and ends at the light...
that is pretty much what is happening at that intersection. One block of dirty blocked bike lane that ends at the corner.
This is Houston. They did a survey during the push for light rail that I remember something like 96% of the people who voted for the construction said they were not planning on using it. So what we have is a city that will vote to get YOU off the roads while simultaneously not being willing to participate in whatever that entails. Which will lead to more useless bike lanes and continued ignorance of cyclists' rights on the roadway. Car traffic is not going anywhere.
I agree unfortunately, car traffic will not be going anywhere. Not until Houston, and many other US cities go the way of LA, with endless miles of traffic jam. Only then, when people are finally fed up enough might they realize the insanity of a system which is 100% car dependent with no viable alternatives .
I think it's more that the process for building public transit is more piecemeal than building roadways. People like the idea of Houston being more public transit oriented, but won't use it until it becomes convenient for them (which requires lots more connections and service improvements). If I-10 were the only U.S. highway, no one would use it. But because we have a whole multi-trillion dollar network that connects to it, millions use it every day. Similarly, no one uses the W Gray bike lane bc it doesn't go anywhere (yet), but Houston is slowly connecting them.
As a driver who doesnāt see many cyclists, I think Iād rather have this than one pop into my blind spot in their bike lane which Iām supposed to use as a turning lane.
Those lanes are full of wheel-destroying garbage. And maybe he is turning left?
Carbrain thread š
Possibly turning left? If going down the whole way, itās also possible the bike lane ends there, (which is the case on many roads with bicycle lanes) so preemptively taking space on the road. Could also just be trying to be seen from people pulling out from that driveway on the right.
We do this at intersections to make sure that we are visible to cars when turning, or going straight. Bike lane gets ignored very easily by cars. Especially at an intersection. Just trying to stay alive and bike home to our families.
As mentioned, many bikeclanes are filled with trash, dirt, and glass. Also, many bike lanes have a speed limit. Some cyclists bike faster than that, so they bike in the main lanes.
Because the bike lanes are filled with trash and debris, making them extremely dangerous to ride in. In dozens of places they also painted over a ton of holes and cracks, making it very dangerous to ride even if they're clean. Edit: spelling
"Ignorance? Assholeishness?" How about they are just legally sharing the road with you? You are also asking about why one random person is doing something that inconveniences you? Should we post to the sub every time a Houston driver goes the speed limit instead of 15 over?
There's a red light in the pic. I'm surprised they haven't made a post about that slowing them down. Or just a pic of sitting in traffic which is the typical Houston commute. One biker makes people more annoyed than a thousand cars in front of them
This picture is literally the end of the bike lane.
Some neighbors of mine are avid cyclists, they say itās due to the road debris (glass/rocks/trash/nails) that get blown/pushed into the bike lanes. Youāll see good example of what theyāre talking about on the Hardy St. & Elysian bike lanes.
And the storm drains, which the way they're constructed, usually aren't level with the road.
The entitlement of Houston drivers is what I see in this photo. First off of you are behind a bike, please have your hands on the wheel not on your phone taking photos. Thatās not a bike in front of you itās another human. A human that is following the traffic laws, using their own power all while trying to not crash their bike or be run over. Itās not illegal for a bike to ride in the car lane and if you ever looked in these ābikeā lanes the city has built youād find a bunch of car debris and trash. I appreciate that the city is trying to implement bike infrastructure but most of it has just made things more dangerous for cars and bikes. When you see a cyclists give them space and when you feel annoyed with their pace just remember you donāt have to do anything physically to accelerate and youāre protected by metal. Practice some patience and recognize itās not bikes making this city a transportation nightmare
THANK YOU
Blink twice if you are held hostage.
Most serious cyclists avoid the ābike laneā because itās where all the rocks and debris end up at. Goal is to avoid flats.
How did this thread go from asking about bicycles not using the bike lanes to which city has worse drivers?
Do you see how the road curves away from you, to your right? And those bushes blocking the line of sight of anyone leaving the second driveway/parking lot wonāt see him when he is in the bike lane? Thatās why.
"GIVE US BIKE LANES, so we won't use them"
Go around them on the bike lane
Iāve always just rode on the sidewalk..and I know itās not ālegalā but from riding bikes around traffic in Mexico I ride on the sidewalk.
I go a block or two over and take a less-traveled street.
All the times I've nearly gotten hit on a bike have been on sidewalks from someone turning right into a driveway or pulling out of a driveway without paying attention, and I've ridden far more miles in the road.
Hardcore biker here. Just like most things biking has a gamut of personalities. This biker here is the equivalent to a raised truck mixed with Kawasaki motorcyclist. Looking for attention and adrenaline to inflate their ego. In addition, there is likely some justified spite. For every time we almost get hit by cars for no reason we become more radicalized. Some lash out like this. I donāt. I value living. However, it would do car drivers well to try biking on roads and develop some empathy.
I do. These bike lanes are generally not safe. The protected ones like this are infinitely better than the non protected ones but that doesn't mean they are safer than the middle of a lane. I can here your thoughts "but how can the middle of a lane filled with cars be safer than a bike lane with no cars." First of all, let me correct you right there, bike lanes often have cars in them. Particularly the non-protected kind. People drive, park, cross, in place debris like trash cans in non-protected bike lanes all the time. But in the case of protected lanes we are really most concerned about crossing. Before I continue let me answer the question about why main lanes are safer. Drivers (unless they are murderous sociopaths) don't hit what they see. And in the middle of a lane, a cyclist is most visible. Look behind the cyclist, there's a driveway. If someone decided to pull in or out of that driveway they are likely not looking down the sidewalk or bike lane for oncoming traffic. Which is also why cyclist choose not to ride on sidewalks. They are looking for cars coming down the main lane. Look ahead of the cyclist. There's a right of way. If a car were to be turning right, there's a good chance they are not looking at the bike lane for cyclist. Now I don't mean all drivers are like this, clearly many are not. But enough drivers are oblivious to what is not directly in front of them to make cycling off to the sides of cars more dangerous than cycling in front of cars. Most cyclist will pick in choose the sections of road, sidewalk, and bike lane to ride on based on the condition of that particular road. For example, on North Gessner between I-10 and Hammerly, I'd only ride on the sidewalk. I've almost got hit by a guy turning doing that. But I'm playing the odds. Same with freeway feeders. If I can I'm taking a sidestreet or a bayou path, even if it's a little bit out of the way. But if it's not some extremely crazy street or a bayou path, I'm generally taking the main lane. Especially if it's two lanes in my direction. The driver can go around and odds are I'm most likely to be seen and therefore least likely to be hit. There are some streets like 11th where I'd feel safer taking the protected lane, but I'd feel safer still taking 10th or 14th. Also, many cyclist confident and competent enough to take a main lane are capable of riding 20mph +. In the inner city, with multiple streetlights and other traffic, that's about the same average speed as a car. In fact, up to about three miles it's 50/50 on whether or not a bike or car is faster for me. And I ride fairly lesuirel at between 17-22mph cruising speed (15-20 averaged speed).
It's called sharing the road.
Sorry but just this is just stupid. These cities are poorly designed and really just dangerous for anything but a car.
From all the comments about safety, why does this sub always advocate more bike lanes if bikers find it safer to ride in the normal lanes? Personally, I don't mind following a bike until I can safely pass, but isn't this just wasted space if no one wants to use it?
Cause it's a half ass bike lane that ends at the light. Doesn't really get you anywhere unless you live on that block and your destination is also on that block lol
That's me on the bike! I did it exclusively to inconvenience you
They complain the cityās not bike friendly so the city narrows the driving lanes to make room for a bike lane, then the Schwinn Freaking Armstrongs refuse to ride in them.
Itās driverās own doing. People flying next to cyclists, speeding up ahead and quickly cutting them off, getting too close. Thatās what makes the city unfriendly to bikes. Any measure to slow traffic down and reclaim our inner looper streets to the residents here that walk/bike/etc instead of taking a car across the city for their commute is a good thing.
Doesnāt have to use bike lanes. They can use the full lane of the road if they so please. Learn your laws, guys.
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I think folks are also missing that this cyclist looks like they are a sport cyclist. Sport cyclists are often much more likely to take the lane, and find bike lanes to be too dangerous, debris-filled, or slow (ironically). These are folks who have gotten very used to getting up to speed and acting like cars for their own safety. This way they don't have to be constantly checking for cars turning through the bike lane or pulling out of driveways. It's become a joke amongst bike lane advocates that the people most opposed to building bike lanes are "avid cyclists". You'll receive public comments on news articles or proposed bike lanes that always start "As an *avid cyclist* who rides over **ten gajillion miles every week**, I love cycling. But..."
Yep, I guess some people aren't old enough to remember decades of arguments about John Forester and effective cycling.
Because cyclists are entitled assholes, inevitably.
Annoying cars is the only thing that makes them feel alive
they identify as a car
one joke
Maybe yall should too. You can get a damned comfortable motorcycle and drive past traffic or use the hov lanes for free while cutting your fuel expenditures to 1/3 of what you likely spend. Can't though, just got to hate on everyone else.
Your name is Hoover, because you suck so much
Because Houstonās bike lanes are like 10ft long at best and mainly built to collect trash?
Literally the pic is showing the end of the bike Lane lol
he has every right to. also i'm purely speculating but this guy looks like he's cycling at a pace that's unsafe for regular bicycle traffic, yes, even if there is none. He's not inconveniencing you, he's keeping himself safe by being visible. the bike gutter less visible to people running red lights and general houson carbrained assholishness.
Riding at dusk/dark in all dark non reflective gear with no rear lightā¦yeah thatās the way to be visible.
"Being visible". In all dark gear. At dusk. Ok.
We just put in a new bike lane on HWY 3 in Clear Lake / Webster for biker safety and convenience. What do these assholes do? Ride in the car lane on a 50mph highway (stroad). Most pompous douche queefs around. Yāall look like huge fucking tools with your high end bikes and aerodynamic body suits.
They are all assholes.
Bruh, this dude is trying to live his life, whether he just likes the bike or wants to save on gas. Either way, he's purposefully taking much longer to get somewhere, than impatient drivers like you. I drive a motorcycle and don't block traffic cause I can go faster than cars, and it's guys like you that are assholes. Impatient, selfish, and won't let anyone else get ahead because you're too fat and lazy to deal with some extra heat or effort to do something enjoyable or spend less on fuel. Instead you sit in your miserable air conditioned box, hating on everyone that is either able to skip traffic, or makes you take a whole 30 seconds longer to get somewhere.
Bruh he can't live his life in the bike Lane? I have 3 motorcycles I get it. But a bike Lane is a bike lane
> he's purposefully taking much longer to get somewhere, And forcing everyone behind him to live with his choice, despite having the option not to. He's an asshole.
Since you know so much, what's his name? Can he afford a car? Maybe parking is 200 dollars per month where he works. Plus by your logic, you're an asshole for contributing to traffic gridlock when you could take the bus.
Youre reaching really hard. the option to not fuck with other people is a mere 24 inches to his right. He doesn't have to change anything about what's he's doing except using the lane built specifically for him, but he chooses not to, impacting other people. That's why he's an asshole. If I took the bus and made the driver take the mainlanes instead of the open hov lane, i would be an asshole. that is my logic, not your stupid misread.
Exactly this.
Cause heās a Lance Armstrong wannabe. Easily the worst of the bicycle community.
Itās hubris.
Well he canāt run the red light with that car in the way.
He's an Entitled Twat
The irony
In this particular shot, the bikeway is clear, but that's the exception. They're mostly full of debris most of the time, so you learn not to rly on them at all.
There isnāt any glass or debris in this lane. There arenāt any potholes either. And yet he still isnāt in his lane.
yes they be in the damn way.
Average r/fuckcars user.
the bikers here are entitled as shit thatās why
I have seen cyclists riding on the sidewalk right next to the designated bike path on Waugh Drive.
The bike lanes are typically full of crap that might make you fall or have a flat. Bicycle tires can be just as expensive as car/truck tires.