What It’s Like To Get Doored
Written by Boston Biker on Aug 29From the forum
I hate hate hate when cabs discharge people into the bike lane (or into any lane that is not the side of the road). Hopefully this passenger and this cab driver were both issued tickets on the spot, as dooring someone is now a ticket-able offense.
Always assume every door will be opening, if you are riding in a bike lane, or not. Also this guy is wwaaaaaayyyy more calm than I would have been. Way to keep your cool dude.
Add to Reddit. Tags: bike lane, cab, door zone
Posted in education, infrastructure, video | 11 Comments »
11 Responses
to “What It’s Like To Get Doored”
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By William on Aug 29, 2011 | Reply
This is why passing on the right, especially stopped vehicles, is a bad idea and might even be illegal in Massachusetts. (The laws are kind of hard to parse).
By Boston Biker on Aug 29, 2011 | Reply
passing on the right is not illegal, the cyclist in this video didn’t do anything wrong (from a legal stand point)
I personally would have gone around the left hand side…but the cyclist wasn’t breaking the law.
The cab driver/passenger however were breaking a bunch of laws.
By JonT on Aug 29, 2011 | Reply
Scary stuff!
Cabs should never discharge passengers into traffic lanes, which the bike lane really is. However, I can almost hear the cab driver thinking: “I’m not allowed in the bike lane, and if I stop in the bike lane to let out my fare, I’m gonna get yelled at.” It’d be great if the proper procedure for dealing with this situation was better known by everyone.
It’s unclear to me whether passing on the right is legal in the general case, but bicyclists are EXPLICITLY allowed to pass on the right in MA. See http://www.malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleXIV/Chapter85/Section11B
However, practically speaking, it’s almost always safer to pass on the left, all the more so when you see a vehicle that carries passengers (cab or bus) stop at some random spot.
By Brian on Aug 29, 2011 | Reply
Yeah, I wouldn’t have passed this cab on the right (although I wouldn’t have trusted the left doors not to open either), and if I had, it would have been at a speed that would have prevented this. That said, BAD CAB!
By Mike on Aug 29, 2011 | Reply
I would think it would be a bit of common sense not to pass this guy in the bike lane (right) and instead go about on the left. You have a cab, notoriously known for transporting those crazy squirrels that like to dash into traffic, stopped for several seconds and I would think if the biker looks up he can see the cab isn’t stopped behind other traffic.
Wouldn’t the smart thing here be to assume someone is exiting the cab? I agree that the situation isn’t right, but I would rather pass left and be inconvenienced than chance being doored.
By TQuagmire on Aug 29, 2011 | Reply
I’m surprised the passenger (and the cabbie) didn’t get a beat down after that!
By Lyzard on Aug 29, 2011 | Reply
My chest is pounding from watching that.
I probably would have screamed cry of desperation so they know how badly that could have ended.
And, then I would have called the police.
By mtalinm on Aug 30, 2011 | Reply
Mike has it right. seems like someone was trying to force an incident while wearing a helmet cam
By CHouse on Aug 30, 2011 | Reply
@JonT Passing on the right, sure, as long as it is a moving vehicle, which the cab ain’t.
By Paul Schimek on Aug 30, 2011 | Reply
Normally it’s okay to pass on the right in your own lane, since it is illegal for the vehicle ahead to move from one lane into another without first yielding to traffic in the other lane.
But bike lanes are not lanes — at least no motorists treat them as lanes. They can be dangerous when the bicyclist expects them to be a lane.
Everyone here is right that this is a case of passing on the right when it’s not safe. The bicyclist should have expected trouble, given that this not a cars slowed in traffic situation, but at single taxi obviously stopping for a passenger.
So technically yes, the bicyclist is legally protected by the bike lane (good luck) and by the only-in-Massachusetts rule that lets bicyclists pass on the right when it’s not safe — but if you want to avoid injury and death, don’t pass on the right between stopped cars and the curb, bike lane or not. The only exception is if cars are stuck in traffic and can’t move, and then you filter through at walking speed. Even then, in this case, there was plenty of open road to the left and clear danger to the right.
By JJJ on Aug 30, 2011 | Reply
Cyclists take note: This is why yelling at cabs for loading in the bike lane is idiotic.
Thats the safest place for them to load, as far right as possible.
Yes, its inconvenient, but its safer as it forces you to bike around the cab.