This was just a shade to long for twitter…but on my bike ride into work this morning, I was thinking.
I live in Boston, and am both a driver and a biker. And depending on which set of wheels I am behind at the time, I am known to curse out each camp equally for their respective idiotic behavior. But I do understand that as an idiot driver, I am in a position to do far more harm to a biker than an idiot biker may do to me and my 2,000 pound car. And as such, I try to be hyper-aware of the city bikers as I drive around in my SUV.
The recent addition of the bike lanes on Commonwealth Ave, and other main streets around the city, are fantastic. They force motorists to respect the space and rights of the cyclists, and I think it just makes things safer for everyone. And if you read the papers, watch the news, or just generally talk to anyone with an opinion and a bike these days, you hear lots of chatter about how bikers in Boston are finally getting some respect and some protection from the awful and law-flouting local drivers.
But if bikers want to really get some respect and protection, there is a trade-off here. There is something the bikers need to start doing in return. The lanes and the bike-boxes, and the signage are there to provide rules that will give you clearly outlined rights, and keep you safe from being steamrolled by mini-vans. So bikers of Boston, in return, it’s time to start following the rules of the road. No more picking and choosing pedestrian rules or vehicle rules based on which suits you better in that moment. No more buzzing through red lights, throwing the middle finger at everyone, and no more weaving in and out of traffic like a bozo, causing everyone to freak out for fear of giving you the fender up the backside that you technically sort of deserve.
It’s a give and take bikers. If you want to be treated like an equal part of the traffic ecosystem, and if you want rights and protections, you too need to step up and set the example of how cars and cyclists can function together safely.