New Bike Lanes Sound Good in Theory, Painful in Practice I got rear-ended by a Mercedes yesterday. And not sitting in traffic on US-1 or driving down the Turnpike when an immediate car backup started, but rather while riding my bicycle on the street. Amazingly, neither my bike nor myself were injured, and the driver of the car moved along with his day seeing that no damage had been done. But it was a near-death experience I’d have preferred not to have had. IF YOU DON’T SEE OTHER CARS, FORGET SEEING BIKES It is far from the first time I have had an issue while biking in South Florida. Not long ago I was cut off by a  man on Key Biscayne making a right turn that was not using his turn signal. I crashed into the back of his car and he, even seeing I was laying on the ground, sped off. I cursed at him for a while, but for some reason I don’t think he heard me. And let’s not even get into that cab driver who hit not one but 11 cyclists on the MacArthur back in August. Drivers in Miami are rarely cognizant of other motorists and pedestrians, adding bikes to the fray is just a recipe for red asphalt. EVEN GOOD DRIVERS DON’T GIVE BIKES RESPECT  While the city and county seem to be making some efforts to make Miami more bike-friendly, one has to wonder if it is even realistic to think it will make a whole lot of difference. Even in places like bike-loving Gainesville, motorists regularly use the bike lanes as their own person right turn lanes, and drivers will still shoot out into a crosswalk when their light is red, even if a cyclist is attempting to cross. Not to mention the people who think “bike lane†and “parking spot†are synonymous. So assuming that the somewhat-law-abiding drivers in other cities still show cyclists about as much respect as a skinny white boy in felony lockup, I really wonder if some new white lines on the ground are going to make Miami any safer for those on 2 wheels. HELPING TO KEEP PERSONAL INJURY LAWYERS IN BUSINESS  Imagine a cyclist trying to navigate a westbound Coral Way during the height of afternoon rush hour. Or an old man who can barely see trying to make a right turn in his enormous town car as a guy on a bike tries to go straight through an intersection. And cyclists are not the most law-abiding drivers either, as most that I know consider stoplights as things designed for vehicles with motors, and mere safety suggestions for them. Combine this with a population that considers stoplights nothing more than a nice street decoration, and you see where some problems may occur.
So, as a cyclist and someone that is always looking for ways to lighten traffic, I welcome the idea of better bike-oriented transportation in this city. But as someone who has experienced the insanity that is driving in South Florida, I just have to wonder if it’s the best idea for us. It may work well in the rest of the country but, as we all know, Miami is definitely NOT the rest of the country.
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10 Comments on"New Bike Lanes Sound Good in Theory, Painful in Practice"
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Mike V. says:
As a fellow bicyclist I feel for you and I’m sorry to hear that you were rear ended by that Mercedes. I definitely agree that we need more bike lanes in Miami.
Bicyclists need to be careful while riding on the road.
A matter of fact, as we are thought to drive a car defensively, cyclists should follow the same rule of thumb.
Nice article.
Posted on 05/28/2009 at 10:39 AM