[SDCBC] Fwd: ghost bike

[John Eldon]

Does anyone here know whether the left arrow in question responds
consistently to bicyclists? Would a bicyclist tucking in behind a
left-turning motorist (as most of us presumably would have done) be assured
of getting through the light, or would it change too quickly because it
"saw" just the motorist? (I have been in this situation many times.)
Non-responsive traffic signals and short green light cycles arguably
reinforce bad cycling practices.

John E.
  -----Original Message-----
  From: sdcbc-bounces at bikesandiego.org
[mailto:sdcbc-bounces at bikesandiego.org]On Behalf Of JonIsaacs at aol.com
  Sent: Wednesday, July 23, 2008 3:20 AM
  To: serge at issakov.org; execdir at sdcbc.org
  Cc: sdcbc at bikesandiego.org
  Subject: Re: [SDCBC] Fwd: ghost bike


  Serge:  Some good thoughts.   Here's a few thoughts of my own:

  - As Kathy said, this is senseless tragedy, someone has died, now
apparently as the result of their foolishness.  I think we all see people on
bicycles who do these sorts of things, truthfully,  I am surprised that
there are not more such accidents.

  - As you say, I think there is a sometimes a tendency to sometimes jump to
the conclusion that the motorist is at fault.   Personally I have the
opposite initial reaction simply because I see so many people riding
bicycles that seriously disobey the basic rules of the road.  Overriding my
skepticism is my concern that the silent cyclist needs an advocate to speak
up.  ( (thanks Kathy)

  - I agree that accidents like this point to the fact that we are in
control of our own fate.  But we also need to be careful not to let such a
tragedy lull us into to overconfidence, it is easy to think:  "I don't ride
like that so I needn't be concerned, that couldn't have been me out there."
This is a good time to reflect upon what is to learned here and in general
consider what each of us might do to improve our own riding skills.

  - Indeed, at the appropriate moment, approaching Trader Joe's as well as
other employers is a good idea.

  Jon
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