Bikers cycling through Jones have noticed uptick in citations | OKG Scene.com (http://www.okgazette.com/p/12776/a/4599/Default.aspx?ReturnUrl=LwBkAGUAZgBhAHUAbAB0AC4AYQB zAHAAeAAslashAHAAPQAxADIANwAyADkA)

I bet most of us did not know there are such laws for bikers.

Cyclists have the same rights and obligations on the road as cars.

I don't buy the peeing on the side of the building story... I'm an avid cyclist and have never seen anyone do this.

For whatever reason, lots of people hate cyclists because they see them clogging 'their' roads. Then, they look for excuses and isolated incidents to portray them as some sort of Hell's Angels.

Communities should be doing more to promote cycling, especially when obesity and heart disease is nearing an epidemic.

And the reason people in Jones are up in arms is that cycling is just starting to take off in Oklahoma; cyclists, motorists and residents have been peacefully coexisting for a very long time in places like Colorado and California -- not to mention Europe.

Cyclists should stick to back roads and bike trails as much as possible. The trouble with Edmond is that all of the roads which can take you anywhere are on the section lines and that the residential additions are difficult to navigate and often the streets don't go all the way through.

At any rate, cyclists need to use some common sense. Riding on a crowded road during peak hours at speeds of about 1/4 of the rest of the traffic with nothing but (hopefully) a styrafoam helmet to protect you is unsafe regardless of whether motorists are accommodating.

Further, riding on 2-lane hills in an area like north Edmond (where there are no passing lanes), forcing a line of cars stretching from behind your bike and into the horizon to idle up and down hills is completely inconsiderate.

Cyclists are not exactly blameless here.

A typical ride for a serious cyclist is 30 to 80 miles, and you need to be able to get up to a decent speed (around 20MPH) and hold it for long periods of time. You can't do that on side streets and even the few bike paths, as they are clogged with families and people generally not paying attention.

As I said, this is just now becoming an issue in OK because cycling is just starting to catch on there. People have been riding the narrow, hilly roads of Texas and many other states for a long time.

If you have to wait briefly in order to pass a cyclist, I can't imagine that really makes an impact on your day. It's really more about the "they have less right to be here" mentality and people are simply going to have to change their thinking because you are going to see lots more bikes out there, not less.

And that's a good thing.

One thing really missing (at least downtown where I ride) is traffic light sensors that will respond to bikes. It is a pain and sometimes dangerous to have to get to a pedestrian push button.

One thing really missing (at least downtown where I ride) is traffic light sensors that will respond to bikes. It is a pain and sometimes dangerous to have to get to a pedestrian push button.

Traffic Light Trigger for your Bike (http://www.instructables.com/id/Traffic-Light-Trigger-for-your-Bike/)

That is just one idea that somebody came up with. There are quite a few things you can do to make your bike trigger those traffic lights just like a car would. Some (like the one above) are in your shoe, others mount on the bike its self.

While I agree that bikes have as much right to the roads as anyone, the fact that they are out there going half the speed of the other traffic causes traffic congestion. Cars having to slow down and maneuver around bike riders wastes gas and creates a sefety problem. The very obvious flaw with any justification they could come up with is that they could obtain better benefit from their time & effort by riding an advanced, programmable, stationary bike in the comfort of their homes.

I regularly drive on a winding, hilly road for a 9.5 mile stretch with no shoulder, and trees up to the edge of the road on both sides. It is treacherous in a car. The speed limit is 45 MPH on the "straight away," slower the rest of the way. Most people go about 43 MPH and if you don't go that fast, there is a a line of cars behind you. On this stretch, there is only one place to pass for the entire 9.5 miles and at 45 MPH, you have less than 15 seconds to accomplish it. If there is oncoming traffic at that point, you can't safely change lanes anywhere.

On a regular basis, especially on pretty days, we get lone bikers on this road. They frequently pick Friday afternoons during "rush hour" and I think they are stark raving mad. No only is there no place for them to get off the road, a car trying to pass them has to pull into the oncoming lane and frequently, there are cars coming from the opposite direction and you simply can't see the until seconds before they appear. The cyclists can't keep up the pace and a car topping a hill is liable to run right over them if there is an oncoming car that keeps them from swerving.

The fact is that cars shouldn't be driving so fast that they can't avoid a slow moving vehicle. That being said, that sure won't help cyclists struck by cars or approaching cars run into when a car swerves into their lane.

We've had a number of accidents on this road so it can't possibly be something they don't know about. Moreover, the cyclists always have their helmets, nice bikes, expensive gear, etc., so I'll give the benefit of the doubt that they have enough intelligence to hold down a job that pays well enough to pay for toys.

The road runs parallel to a National Forest Park that has over 14 miles of black top road dedicated to bicycles. On the opposite side of the Forest Park is a black top dedicated to hikers and bicycles that runs nearly 20 miles. Yet they drive on this one.

I think some cyclists are nuts. I always have my lights on while I drive the windy road and flash oncoming cars to give them warning.

> I think some cyclists are nuts.

I'm not inclined to disagree with you.

While I agree that bikes have as much right to the roads as anyone, the fact that they are out there going half the speed of the other traffic causes traffic congestion. Cars having to slow down and maneuver around bike riders wastes gas and creates a sefety problem. The very obvious flaw with any justification they could come up with is that they could obtain better benefit from their time & effort by riding an advanced, programmable, stationary bike in the comfort of their homes.

I rode a bike to and from school. It was faster (never spent any time searching for parking) and cheaper (didn't spend a dime on gas). Can't traverse that distance on a stationary bike, and the scenery is much worse.

But drivers had a rather serious problem following the rules of the road. People were often inattentive and spent more time talking on their phones or text messaging than they did paying attention to the road. In my mind, cars were the bigger problem by far.

Fell in love with cycling in the 80's -

In my twisted mind, bike riding should take precedent over cars - but realistically? In OK - ride off-road or around and around the lake for your own safety!!!

Even if legal - on most any street in OK cars and bicycles should not mix. Growing up - my momma made sure i *always* walked my bike across the street!

In a perfect world bike paths would never cross streets and neither bikes nor cars would ever have to cross train tracks! :smile:

The number one problem I have with cyclists is I see them all the time in my area, and probably one out of ten times will they actually stop at stop signs and lights. I'm not sure if they don't realize traffic laws apply to them or what, but it's concerning because I tend to think it's only a matter of time before someone accidentally gets run down.

Most cyclists I've come across are folks I do not mind sharing the roadways with. But there are a few that are just so blasted ... oh well, same is true of some car and truck folks too.

I rode my bike to and from school when I went to OSU. It was cheaper and faster than driving, because you could spend the better part of an hour looking for a parking spot, but I couldn't tell you how many close calls I had with inattentive drivers who were more interested in making phone calls while they turned into traffic than paying attention to the road.

I'm personally glad to see cyclists who break the rules/law get ticketed. I'm a cyclist myself, though I prefer to mountain bike, I hit the city streets often.

What I hate seeing is cyclists riding the wrong direction, running stop lights/signs and when stopped they think they have a right to zoom to the front of the line on the shoulder. When you honk they give you a GTH look.

However, I would also like to see undercover cops on bikes that then have patrol cars ticket drivers who drive to close, cut off or otherwise endanger cyclists.

On a different but similar topic, I wish the cops would crack down on pedestrians downtown too. Every time I'm downtown people seem to think "Don't Walk" doesn't apply to them.

i rode my bike to and from school when i went to osu. It was cheaper and faster than driving, because you could spend the better part of an hour looking for a parking spot, but i couldn't tell you how many close calls i had with inattentive drivers who were more interested in making phone calls while they turned into traffic than paying attention to the road.

x2

I just found this thread and – as a cyclist who rides several thousand miles per year – I wanted to weigh in with some well-intentioned perspective on this subject and the previous posts.

First, and in the interest of full disclosure, yes, I run stop signs when there are no cars present, but when other cars are there, I slow down and we all take turns floating the sign (honestly, nobody stops completely at a sign unless a police officer is present).

Second, cyclists are subject to almost all of the same traffic laws that apply to cars, and with the exception of a few delusional knuckleheads, cyclists don’t ask for special treatment. The City of Jones is enforcing traffic laws and citing bicyclists because citizens complained to the police, the officers issued several written warning to cyclists without substantial effect, and so the citations began. Makes sense to me and all of the other cyclists I ride with.

Third, the law permits cyclists to ride “no more than two abreast,” we must ride “as far to the right as is safe,” and we must ride with (not against) the flow of traffic. Yes, cyclists running two abreast at 15 mph in a 40 mph zone is inconsiderate (see “knuckleheads” above), but the law allows it. I ride as far to the right as I can, as I did last night on Coffee Creek and Covell west of Edmond, and even to the right of the solid white line for most of my ride. I moved left when I encounter potholes, glass, gravel, road kill, trash, etc. (you don’t notice how much junk there is on the side of the road until you’re forced to ride a bike through it – take a look sometime).

Fourth, distracted motorists scare the **** out of us. DWT (driving while texting) kills and injures more motorists every year, but cyclists don’t stand a chance when a teenager in an SUV is updating his Facebook page at 40 mph. Please don’t text and drive.

Fifth, road rage is real, and I’ve seen it inflicted on more cyclists than motorists (I’m 50 years old, so I’ve been around the block). I’ve heard lots of hypotheses on this, but the most widely-accepted is that a motorist is running late for something, he gets caught behind a pack of cyclists doing 15 mph, they then blow through a stop light right in front of him and he goes nuclear. An enraged motorist will very rarely challenge another motorist because his target isn’t defenseless: He’s in a motor vehicle, he can speed away, he might be armed, etc. But an enraged motorist has no qualms about challenging a fully-exposed, vulnerable and obviously unarmed cyclist. Again, I’ve seen it, and I’ve had it done to me, and I’ll only say that I rose to the challenge and gave as good as I got.

Sixth, cycling is not only a great workout (we get in “the zone” on our bikes just like you do in the gym, on the court or on the field), but it’s also a competitive sport and a lot of fun. But sharing the road with certain motorists can be truly frightening, so many quit the sport because of this.

Finally, and on a lighter note, what’s with the tight shorts and bright shirts that motorists find so easy to ridicule? They both serve a purpose: The shorts contain a piece of padding in the crotch called a chamois (it used to be chamois, but is now foam), and the tight spandex holds – um – everything in place while being aerodynamic. Yes, we ride commando, if you must know. The shirts (we call ‘em “jerseys”) are either part of team uniforms (called “kit”), are brightly-colored to increase visibility, and have pockets in the back to hold food, a cellphone, an extra water bottle, and a few bucks in cash.

Just as cyclists don’t group all motorists together because a few exhibit road rage or drive while distracted, we only ask that you don’t group all of us together because a few are inconsiderate or don’t comply with traffic laws.