MassBike Releases New “Go By Bike”

You have probably seen these brochures, as they are all over the place, and now MassBike has updated them!
Great for people who want a quick overview of safety, or for new cyclists looking for tips. (via massbike)
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If you’ve stopped by the MassBike tent at an event, chances are that you left with a Go By Bike brochure in hand. After years of use and tens of thousands printed, Go By Bike has been updated to be even more useful, with improved information, new traffic laws, better graphics and a more readable layout. It’s a great resource for everyone from the first-time commuter to the veteran rider.

A big thanks goes to our partners at MassDOT and the Registry of Motor Vehicles for working with MassBike to make this possible. Please download Go By Bike FOR FREE and print to your heart’s content!

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2009 One Of the Safest Years On Record For Bikers

2009 was almost the safest year on record if you drove, cycles, or walked in America, at least that is what the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) numbers show.

In 2009, 33,808 people died in motor vehicle traffic crashes in the United States – the lowest number of deaths since 1950 (33,186 fatalities in 1950). This was a 9.7-percent decline in the number of people killed, from 37,423 in 2008 to 33,808, according to NHTSA’s 2009 Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) (see Figure 1). Fatalities declined among all categories of vehicle occupants and non-occupants as shown in Table 1 below. Motorcyclist fatalities broke the continuous 11-year increase with a large decline of 850 fatalities (24% of the total decline of 3,615). Motorcyclist fatalities now account for 13 percent of total fatalities. Passenger car occupant fatalities declined for the seventh consecutive year, and are at their lowest level since NHTSA began collecting fatality crash data in 1975. Light-truck occupant fatalities dropped for the fourth consecutive year, and are at their lowest level since 1997. The largest percentage reduction of people killed was among large truck occupants (26%) compared to any other vehicle category, followed by motorcyclists with a 16-percent reduction.

There was also a reduction in Pedestrian and Cyclists Fatalities.

You can read the full report here (pdf)

Alcohol still plays a large part in crashes and fatalities, but overall the roads are safer than they have ever been, so go ride your bike!

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Mayor Announces Safety Summit/Changes To Policy

As I mentioned earlier today this is the mayors announcement:

press release below

I will mull this over tonight, and post more thoughts on it tomorrow, but so far it looks good.

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Mayor Menino Convenes First-Ever Bicycling Safety Summit

Mayor and City Officials Call for a Shared Respect When Traveling Boston’s Roadways and Encourage Helmet Use

Today, Mayor Thomas M. Menino announced the city’s first-ever Bicycling Safety Summit at 5:30 PM on Wednesday, April 21 at Boston University’s Morse Auditorium. The Summit will gather area bicyclists and high-ranking city officials to discuss ways of improving safety for everyone who uses Boston’s roadways. The Mayor’s announcement comes in the wake of a third recent bike accident and ahead of Boston Bike Week next month.

“This is about the need for a shared, common respect amongst everyone who uses Boston’s roads,” said Mayor Menino. “We have to come together and recognize that everyone is responsible for keeping our roadways safe and that we all have the right to safe passage through our beautiful city. We can start by fulfilling the personal responsibility of wearing a helmet.”

Mayor Menino has ordered the Boston Police Department (BPD) to immediately launch a focused enforcement effort aimed at both cyclists and motorists in an effort to assist them to better share the road. Officers will more proactively seek out and fine for safety violations committed by those on a bicycle and those operating a motor vehicle. This effort will include the strict enforcement of Massachusetts laws dedicated to bicycle and pedestrian safety. The BPD is also researching the possible implementation of an enhanced reporting mechanism to document all accidents involving bikes.

Two years ago Mayor Menino developed Boston Bikes to increase cycling safety around Boston through the use of marked bike lanes and various educational campaigns. Since, Boston has seen much improvement including:

* the installation of 15 miles of bike lanes with another 20 slated for this year;
* the publication of the first-ever Boston Bikes map;
* the installation of more than 500 bike racks;
* the formation of the Boston Bikes Advisory Board designed to advise city officials on how best to implement proven safety measures such as dedicated bike lanes;
* and the passage of a city ordinance making it illegal for cars to be parked in bike lanes, the enforcement of which will be heightened by Boston Transportation Department ticket writers.

In light of the recent accidents, however, city officials encourage people to:

* Visit the Boston Bikes fanpage on Facebook or join the Boston Bikes Twitter feed to learn more about the program and share concerns about specific roads in Boston;
* Call the Mayor’s 24-hour Hotline at (617) 635-4500 if they notice a safety concern that needs immediate attention including roadway obstructions like potholes or debris;
* Visit the Boston Bikes homepage at www.cityofboston.gov/bikes to receive updates on the Cycling Safety Summit;
* Visit www.massbike.org to register for classes on bicycling safety conducted by MassBike on April 22, May 6 and May 19 at City Hall;
* Wear a protective helmet at all times when riding a bike (helmets can be bought for $5 at the Boston Medical Center gift shop);
* Come to the Bicycling Safety Summit on Wednesday.

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Running Red Lights: Not Safe

A while ago I wrote an article about my views on running red lights and speed. Basically I came to the conclusion that running red lights in no way made you faster, but being a faster cyclist (even when stopping at red lights) did. At the end of that article I said that I would write another one about the other common reason I hear for why running red lights is better, people will often say to me “Running the red lights is safer.” As stunning a statement as that is (breaking the law, and violating the rules of the system is safer!?) many people actually think this.

(this is a pretty common sight here in Boston).

We will set aside for a moment the other consequences of running red lights and deal solely with the safety aspect of it. As far as I can tell, the main thrust of the argument for why running reds is safer goes something like this:

“When I am on my bike, if I stop at a red light and wait for it to turn green all the cars take off really fast, and I am taking off slower so I feel in danger from these cars, so If I run the red light I can avoid this situation.”

I have heard other variations on this from “I feel a little wobbly when I start” to “I feel strange about making the cars wait for me to get going” but mostly it boiled down to the idea that a co-start, in which the bikers and the drivers all leave the line at once, is in some way dangerous.

The problem is that this argument breaks down for a couple of logical reasons.

1. If you position yourself properly at a red light you should not be competing for space with cars as they get going.
2. If you are worried about cars passing you as everyone starts because of a speed difference, how will that be less dangerous when the cars pass you moving much faster further down the road?
3. By running the red light you put yourself in the very real danger of being hit by a car going through the intersection at high speed.
4. You potentially endanger pedestrians and other cyclists crossing with the light.

Before we move on, let me just say, the stuff I am about to tell you, could be, in some situations, not completely totally legal…That being said what I am about to tell you is only very slightly illegal, and I feel it does nothing to garner ill will of other road users, or place you in danger. Thus I am comfortable with it. So what is this slightly illegal thing I am gonna propose you do to address the points made above?

When you stop at a red light, pull in front of all the cars and park yourself in front of them. Plop yourself down right in front of the cars, even if this means you have to go slightly past the stop line (that is the slightly illegal part). When you are doing this remember that because cars don’t always stop on the stop line by putting yourself in front of them you may be in the cross walk, this is also slightly illegal, but if you position yourself as far back as possible you should still leave plenty of room for pedestrians.

We will cover how you get to the front of the line in another article as “filtering” as I like to think of it, is it’s own special skill. For now just slow down, watch for opening doors, and watch for people walking between cars. You will also want to keep a keen eye on the light itself, as nothing is more annoying than seeing someone spaced out far after the light has turned green, and by putting yourself in front of all the other cars you are now “that person.” Don’t be that person.

The reason for doing this, as apposed to say staying over on the right, is that when the light turns green, you can control the lane until you cross the intersection and then you can move over and let the car pass you. Cyclists should really stop thinking about the road as a place they borrow from cars, and instead think of it as a place they control until they are ready to let cars use it. By controlling the lane through the intersection you get to choose when and where the car passes you. If you don’t dawdle too much, and make it clear you are moving over to the right after you get through the intersection the person behind you will pass you easily and safely.

I do this almost every time I stop at a red light, literally hundreds of times a week. Let me present a couple of common scenarios.

1. There are already cars parked at the red, I want to go straight:
I approach the line of cars from the right, and then move slightly to the left so that I am directly in front of the car in the right lane. The light turns green, I stay in the center of that lane until I make it to the other side of the intersection and then I move to the right. The cars then pass me, I am up to speed (and thus more stable on my bike), and I have delayed the cars roughly 5 seconds. They get a good look at me because I am directly in front of them at the red, so there is no “I didn’t see you” bull shit. I am also protected against people making un-signaled right turns off the start line, as I am in front of them. Be aware that at “right on red” intersections people might be turning right before the light turns green.

2. The light is red, the lane is empty, I want to go straight:
I check behind me, signal a left move, move to the center of the right most lane, and wait for the light to turn green. If cars approach from behind and it is a “right on red” light, I will move further over to the left to allow them to turn. The reason why I put myself in the middle of an empty lane, is because empty lanes don’t stay empty. There is a good chance that cars will line up at that red, and if I let them they will try and squeeze past me (actually dangerous), if I am squarely in the center of the lane when they arrive they have no choice but to line up behind me. When the light turns green I proceed across as in the situation above.

3. I want to make a left but get stuck at the light:
Usually when I make a left I will check behind me and make a series of moves over to the left side, thus getting myself into the left turn lane. Sometimes however when doing this I get stuck at a light. In this case I plop myself right in the middle of the left turn lane, when the light turns green I stay in the center of the left turn lane until I am completely through the intersection and then move over to the right to let cars pass. This lets cars that are lining up behind me know that I plan on controlling the left lane, and keeps them from pushing past me.

The secret to all of these situations is that you have to be directly in the middle of the lane, you can’t leave space or they will try to edge past you. This can be a hard thing to get used to. You are not in danger by being in the middle, if anything you are keeping the cars from squeezing past you (which is dangerous), but your mind is not going to realize this. Your brain is going to say “holy shit there is a big car behind me!!!” but after a while you get used to it and it’s old hat.

The issue here is that with a little lane positioning, and some practice you can remove all the “danger” from stopping at red lights. I say “danger” because there really wasn’t that much danger to start with. Even if you position yourself way over to the right, people do not do squealing tire starts when they see the green light, you are not going to get killed by a car going from 0 to 10 miles per hour (average speeds for moving through intersections from a stop). The real reason I think a lot of people feel so confident that running red lights is “safer’ is because they like having a non-selfish excuse. The idea that they are breaking the law “for their protection” rather than “because I didn’t want to stop” sits better in their head. Lying to yourself can be very easy, which is why so many of us do it.

In my opinion, running red lights is neither safer, or faster, yet people still do it. If we are being particularly honest with ourselves we will have to admit that the reason we run red lights is because we don’t want to stop. It’s the bicyclist manifestation of the same behavior we all get so pissed about in motorists. If you have ever been on your bike and gotten mad because a motorist honked at you for “being slow” or screamed “get on the sidewalk” or passed you going too fast, or found yourself saying “why are they in such a hurry to get to the next red light?” you know what I am talking about.

Yet this same impulse, to go as fast as possible, damn the consequences, is what I think is driving most people to run red lights. If we were being super honest with each other we would have to admit that stopping at red lights is only going to slow us down a little (plus why are you in such a hurry?), and is far safer, and better for everyone, than running them.

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How To Use A Door Zone Bike Lane

Many times when people start talking about bike lanes, some cyclist in the back pipes up and says “yea but they are no good cause you are in the door zone!!!!11!1!” These people area almost allways confident experienced cyclists. They have no problem ridding down any road. But to a brand new rider, or to people thinking about riding (you know the people currently in cars that we would love to see on a bike) the bike lane offers the promise of “safer” biking. Bike lanes on the street might be just that little extra that gets them riding.

We could argue all day and night (and a lot of people do) about bike lanes, and if they make you safer, but really that isn’t the point. The point is people don’t “feel safe”, you can argue all day and night about that, but no amount of logic or well thought out study is going to make people “feel” different. Many people need an actual physical “something” to make them feel safer, if a little stripe of white paint will do that, well then by god paint some white stripes on the ground! If hanging waffles around their neck made them feel safer I would do it…I want to see more people out on the streets on bicycles, and less people in cars.

Experienced cyclists fail to realize that they would be driving down the same exact street even if there was no bike lane on it. They also fail to realize that bike lanes are to keep cars OUT not to keep bikes IN. Let me say that again…bike lanes are to keep cars out, not to keep bikes in.

You are allowed to leave a bike lane whenever you want. In fact you are encouraged to leave the bike lane for safety, or if you want to make a left hand turn, or if you see some debris in the bike lane, or if you want to pass a slower rider, or some jerk pulled half into the bike lane, or if someone is getting out of their car, or if someone looks like they might be getting out of their car, or if a pedestrian is walking out, or…well you get the idea.

Boston and surrounding towns are absolutely in love with on street parking, and it is very unlikely that they will fall out of love anytime soon, so here is how you use a “door zone” bike lane. By door zone I mean, “the area by which an opening car door would cause a biker to be struck by said opening door.” An easy way to find out if you are in the door zone is to ask yourself the following question “if that car door opened would I run into it?” If the answer is “yes” you are in the door zone.

Here is an example of a typical bike lane in this area.

So let me clarify where the door zone is.

and here is where I personally would ride in this bike lane.

Right away new cyclists are going to balk at this suggestion, stating something like

“But how can being over on the left hand side with the moving cars be safer than over on the right near the parked cars, surely moving cars are more dangerous than parked ones!”

I would respond them by saying that while this might seem true, it isn’t. Parked cars have a nasty habit of sprouting doors, and pedestrians like to sneak out between them. If you ride in a nice straight line (this is actually really important), and are predictable (signal your turns, stop at red lights etc), being on the left hand side of the bike lane allows cars to plan for what you are going to do. They will move over a bit, go past you, then continue on there way. It might seem loud, as cars often give it some gas to get past you faster, but they are not being malicious they are just trying to get by.

You are going to have to trust me on this, but having two predictable vehicles (car and bike) interacting in a predictable and planned way (bike stays in a straight line, car moves over slightly passes then resumes position) is MUCH MUCH safer, than a car door randomly opening and breaking your face, collar bone, or worse. People get tossed into traffic and run over by doors opening, people swerve into cars and are run over when doors open. There is no easy way to predict when a car door will open, and getting doored is horrific (even at low speed) so the best method of dealing with it is to STAY OUT OF THE DOOR ZONE.

Imagine would would happen to this person if the car in front of them opened the door…

Would they end up under the wheels of that truck?

You can see that the truck has moved over to go past the cyclist ahead of the one closed to me (click the image for the bigger version). The person in the foreground is smack in the door zone. You will also notice that they would be just fine (even with this wide truck) and have plenty of space if they were on the left hand side of the lane. It would take some getting used to but by moving over to the left they would avoid the door zone, and still have plenty of space to use the bike lane. Giving them the best of both worlds the safety (perceived or actual) of the bike lane, without the danger (real) of the door zone.

It took me a couple of weeks of riding to get comfortable with the feeling of being on the left hand side of the lane. But in that couple of weeks more than a few people opened their doors in front of me and I never had to swerve into traffic, or even really make any avoidance maneuver at all. Being on the far left of the bike lane has saved my skin more times than I can count.

So the next time you hear someone complaining about bike lanes because they have parked cars next to them simply explain to them that they are allowed to leave the bike lane, and that the far left of the bike lane is the safest place for them to be. If they are not happy with that tell them to lobby for the removal of on street parking, or perhaps ride down streets without bike lanes on them.

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