Neighborhood Notes

Hi Joe,
The video is part of a story that appears on Neighborhood Notes, here's a link to it: neighborhoodnotes.com/news/2011/06/bicycle_safety_concerns_in_ladd_circle_gain_new_energy/?page=2#comments

The story reports on residents' concern about how bikes behave at Ladd Circle, and the video is meant illustrate that behavior for our readers. In the video you also see cars rolling through the same stop sign. You can't deny that many bicyclists are not in compliance with the law. But I think the question should be, given the high non-compliance rate, is a stop sign at this intersection the correct solution? And I think the video supports those who say that yield signs, not stop signs should be used.

But as bicycles increasingly become a standard mode of transportation and the City spends tax dollars on bike infrastructure, obeying the law is essential for gaining the respect of others who share the road.

When I ride I experience many bad drivers who won't share the road, when I drive I experience many bikes who flagrantly run stop signs, ride the wrong way down one way streets, and cut me off. Every group has bad apples. But if we want to move beyond this us vs them mentality, everyone has to let go of the attitude that "they are the ones who are wrong" and recognize that the law says we share the road, and sharing the road means obeying the laws. When something like Ladd Circle has the wrong control features, then we need to work with the City to get it changed.