Intrepid blogger (and community organizer) Mez was the only media at the press conference for the Toronto Police's "Share the Road" bike safety campaign launch on Monday. Being the only one meant he had plenty of time to try to convince the police present to do a better of job of targeting the worst offenders both on bike and in car, and not just the everyday cyclist. Mez can't help but to inject a bit of activism into his reporting:
1. Don’t set-up ‘sting’ operations in locations where cyclists are breaking rules in a harmless way, just to hand out more tickets. For example, a favorite spot is College and Augusta, ticketing cyclists who are turning south. Technically, it’s a one way street (northbound), but everyone knows that cyclists go both ways in the Market, and it works just fine. Handing out tickets there does not increase safety. It increases anger. (Especially when the police are giving tickets to customers of Bikes on Wheels who are taking a bike for a test ride on Augusta – This happened last year). Riding two-ways on a one way street is considered safe practice in many cities, and in some places it’s actually written into the law.
2. Let cyclists use a ‘rolling stop’ at stop signs. This means that they slow down, look both ways, and proceed. Again, this is common legal practice in some jurisdictions and for good reason: it works and it’s safe. Toronto’s Bike Blitz often sets up on Beverly, north of Dundas, where officers give tickets to any cyclist who does not come to a complete stop (by putting their foot on the ground). No discretion. No warning. $110 fine. Please, please tell me how this increases awareness or safety? It’s annoying, immature, petty and fits my description of ‘harassment’ to a tee.
3. Don’t just go after cyclists. You want to “reduce the potential for cycling related injuries”? Then put tickets on all those cars that are parked in the bike lane! They are the people who are putting lives at risk, not the cyclists who slow down at stop signs, or bike slowly south on Augusta.
Comments
Alison (not verified)
Most people that I know that
Tue, 06/23/2009 - 14:26Most people that I know that have got tickets while on their bikes were in neighbourhoods. Now I'm not saying that cyclists should be allowed to wreak havoc in neighbourhoods, but the dude coming to a rolling stop on a residential street with no other traffic in the area is far less of a problem then the guy on king running the red light as I start to cross on Church and almost sending me to the hospital. Or the guy on the crowded sidewalk that knocked my friend over.
I think stuff like that should be the focus of the cyclist-targeted part of the campaign - cyclists acting irresponsibly on crowded streets where there are real consequences. A guy going the wrong way test driving a bike is not the problem.
There also shouldn't be "hot spots" for them to target over and over - people learn that that's the spot they need to come to a complete stop, but never stop at any others. It also seems like the only time that anyone gets ticketed is during these blitzes - do the laws only apply for one week a year?
Random law-abid... (not verified)
Agreed
Tue, 06/23/2009 - 15:50I'd much rather see bad cyclist behaviour (running red lights, riding on downtown sidewalks) targetted year-round than one weekend of tickets doled out to people not coming to a complete stop on a car-free street in a residential neighbourhood. And not just because I'm guilty of the latter, but not the former...
Not only would it be more effective in terms of stopping bad behaviour -- I'm never going to stop my
"Idaho rolls" -- it could, theoretically, help the city figure out where people are committing the most grievous traffic violations. A lot of the road infrastructure & rules are geared toward motor vehicles, and this probably encourages cyclists to break the law in certain places. Whether this justifies illegal behaviour is a matter of personal opinion, but if we can fix the laws & infrastructure so that cyclists don't feel the need to break the laws, we'd all be better off.
For example, if we noticed that a large percentage of sidewalk riding tickets were happening on one particular street, that's good evidence that the street needs bike lanes.
Ben
Contraflow
Tue, 06/23/2009 - 20:40You can't really fault the police for giving tickets for those going south on Augusta. Maybe it should have a contraflow lane; considering the amount of cycling traffic there — and the crappiness of Spadina — this might not be a bad idea.
The police could surely sit at College and Augusta and hand out kilotickets to the westbound cyclists not stopping for the red light. Of course, if the police were up on College, they could camp out in front of any of the computer stores and get a steady stream of bike lane parkers too.
Cyclists and motorists both seem to follow the rules a lot more up in cycling utopia, Harbord. It's the jewel in the dollar store tiara that is the Toronto cycling network.
Random cyclist (not verified)
Contraflow-- and accidents
Tue, 06/23/2009 - 21:38Check out the B.C. report on serious bicycle accidents. http://onteba.blogspot.com/2009/06/innatentive-riders-top-cause-of.html .
In accidents when it was ruled to be the bicyclist's fault, the number two cause is being on the wrong side/wrong way.
Ben
link
Wed, 06/24/2009 - 09:07Nice link, but I thought that something like 70% of bicycle accidents happen when a cyclist is coming off a sidewalk (i.e. going through an intersection while sidewalk surfing). I think that there was a post about this recently on here.
Tom Flaherty
Collision Types
Wed, 06/24/2009 - 09:38The Bicycle / Motor Vehicle Collision Study published in '93 ranked the various types of bicycle + motor vehicle collisions.
You can see the results on this link (page 8):
http://www.toronto.ca/transportation/publications/bicycle_motor-vehicle/...
herb
The collision study is from 2003
Wed, 06/24/2009 - 11:09That's 2003 and not 93, Tom
Tom Flaherty
Corrected
Wed, 06/24/2009 - 12:17Thanks Herb
john park (not verified)
i couldn't agree more
Tue, 06/23/2009 - 21:56I live in bloor west. people cycle in the slow neighborhood streets north of bloor going east west. And yes they roll the stop signs. If you have to stop at every stop sign it takes forever and it's silly because you can see if there is no traffic present, or alternatively you could cycle east west on bloor and really take your life in your hands.
Tom Flaherty
Broadview and Danforth
Wed, 06/24/2009 - 10:03A week long Bike Safety blitz does little to correct dangerous cycling behaviours.
Me and some of the guys at Ward 29 Bikes spent a few afternoons on the SW corner of Broadview & Danforth to hand out flyers to cyclists prior to our meeting on June 17. The number of cyclists rushing the yellow or red light to cross Broadview was pretty shocking.
Considering also that: the Bike Lane terminates at this intersection, there is fast moving cyclists passing on the right of right turn traffic, and the curb side lanes on Danforth switch to parking spots at 6:00pm, I'm surprised there aren’t many more accidents in this location.
dash (not verified)
How did the police respond to
Wed, 06/24/2009 - 13:29How did the police respond to the blogger's requests?
Ticketing in those areas shouldn't be avoided necessarily. The law is the law, no matter how ridiculous it may seem. Actually, the more tickets put out for ridiculous things, the more ire and political speed a fight against them will develop. However, this is about making an effective blitz - and following the blogger's suggestion would go a long way towards having an effective campaign that changes minds and hearts, not just produces great ticketing stats.
I am also very heartened to know that police DO ticket motorists and cyclists doing the truly crazy stuff. They're ticketing the motorists who cut off cyclists, the cyclists running red lights, the people going full speed down side walks.
The only incidents they seem to avoid like crazy are the motorists parked in cycling lanes. There's so much time and paper work involved that they have slotted that into "could be doing better things with the tax payers' money" spot. I want to focus on forcing the parking enforcers who have the time, will and slimmed down bureaucracy to deal with it.
andrew d (not verified)
The only incidents they seem
Wed, 06/24/2009 - 13:57That's one possible explanation for why those tickets are so seldom issued (a charitable one, I think). Another may be that cops simply don't think parking in bike lanes is such a big deal (like the majority of motorists, I'd bet). I'd wager that cops, no less than rolling-stoppers, don't quite subscribe to "the law is the law."
The Pedaller (not verified)
June Bug
Wed, 06/24/2009 - 18:42Cut off at Carlton & Parliament running the red heading north; zipping up the right of turning traffic at Winchester; up the sidewalk at Castle Frank to avoid a line of cyclists, and then back down into the bike lane; Blowing the red at Chester; all at roughly 40 kmh often with no hands, but flipping the bird to me was a special touch when I finally remarked on the last red light blown - with pedestrians ready to cross at the curb.
All on display for my entertainment (and others) on my ride home today.
Why the safety blitz happens for a mere week in June is beyond me, and I'm pretty sure the point of it is also lost on the cyclist I rode behind tonight.
Martin Reis (not verified)
Getting reports about cops
Thu, 06/25/2009 - 10:34Getting reports about cops giving out ticket for not putting both feet down at a stop sign.
James Anderson was riding his bike dutch bike on Edward street when he and two other cyclists were
ticketed for going through the intersection with coming to a complete stop. They rolled through.
The cop defended his actions by saying that he 'hat to issued the tickets and that Jaaes did not put both of his feet down
Bullshit!
http://respect.to/wiki/pmwiki.php?n=LegalInfo.HowToFightTrafficTickets
10-4
tino
Claire (not verified)
the idaho stop and red lights
Tue, 07/07/2009 - 14:13In my short experience riding downtown To (from the Go station to U of T) I am beginning to see the motorists point of view. I ride at off peak hours yet see numerous cyclists blow through red lights and passing streetcars everyday. I was sure they were exaggerating, but sadly there are some really bad cyclists out there.
IMHO, having to put your foot on the ground at a stop sign is the equivalent of requiring motorists to put their car in park. I am stopped when I am no longer in motion / moving forward. The laws of physics should be the ones applied here.