Being a bike enthusiast in a small provincial city..
There's basically no cycling population around here, so half by choice and half by circumstance I mostly ride solo as my hobby..
News about the N/A club pack-riding incident has spread not just on Dosa but across several bike-related communities,
and seeing bike enthusiasts themselves lamenting and self-deprecatingly criticizing the situation stirred up some unnamed anger in me, so I'm writing this.
A lot of people criticize hobby cyclists and even the media isn't exactly friendly toward us,
but I want to ask the opposite question back.
"So have you actually built an environment where we can ride with peace of mind? Or even tried to?"
Let me post a few photos showing the situation in the area where I ride.
First photo. This is a riverside bike path.
But.. notice how the people are positioned oddly?
Yep, that's right. There's a pedestrian walkway on the right, but there are more people on the left, on the bike-only lane.
Even more are just standing still, stopped.
The reason is simple.
The city turned the empty lot on the left into a flower garden, and it's become a spot where citizens and nearby residents come to see the flowers and take photos.
On top of that, because of its location, you literally can't get there without crossing the bike path.
So once the main riding season kicks in, that bike path is completely covered with people who came to see the flowers.
The reality is even toddlers who just started walking are wandering freely across the bike lane with zero restriction,
and what you see in the photo is actually the light version—during peak hours the bike path is completely covered with people and overflowing with people taking commemorative photos right on the road.
Not a single one of them ever thinks "ah, this is a bike-only path, so I should try not to get in cyclists' way." You can see it in the photo too, right? The person standing blankly in the middle of the path while a bike is trying to pass.
There's even a food truck now, set up right next to the bike path, targeting exactly that kind of stroller.
Because of thoughtless administration by public authorities, the cyclists and pedestrians in that neighborhood are living out a precarious coexistence with zero control, yesterday and today alike.
Second photo.
Lately, for whatever reason, this neighborhood has been installing those center dividers on pretty much every road, whether it's one lane each way or two.
Probably to prevent jaywalking accidents?
But that area doesn't have a bike lane.
Meaning bikes have to travel on the road itself..
But because of that center divider, bikes have to squeeze through—and I mean really precariously squeeze through—the gap between parked cars and moving traffic.
Or ride on the sidewalk, knowing full well it's illegal.
This neighborhood is spending its budget like it's on a mission to seal off every single road with dividers like that, doing more of it every single day.
Honestly, speaking for myself,
rather than riding out of a desire to never inconvenience others,
my bigger motivation is just riding in a way that lets me somehow avoid accidents and survive.
Honestly, the reality is that the law, the administration, the social infrastructure, and even the general public's perception are all thoroughly screwed against people getting around by bike,
and yet only cyclists get singled out and beaten down for it?
I think that view has completely lost any sense of balance.
Riding two-abreast?
I'm saying this genuinely prepared to get flamed for it,
but honestly, I can understand it maybe 1% of the time.
If you've actually ridden on the road, you'll know—setting aside the fact that the outer edge of the lane tends to have worse road surface conditions, potholes, manhole covers, and other hazards compared to the inner part—there are genuinely cases where, just to protect my own safety, taking the lane and riding it seems like the better option.
Reflection and self-restraint about cycling enthusiasts' bad manners is absolutely necessary,
but instead of getting cowed by these critical articles or the general social mood,
don't we also need the attitude of saying what needs to be said—criticizing and demanding what needs to be demanded from the cyclist's own perspective..?
If we want an enthusiast culture on par with Europe or other developed countries,
shouldn't the social infrastructure and the laws also be brought up to that same European/developed-country standard?
