Poll: Do you think Lawrence is a safe town for cyclists? / LJWorld.com

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Response		Percent	Votes
No		67%	322
Yes		22%	109
Unsure		9%	46
Total	477

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jhawkinsf 7 months, 1 week ago

Drivers don't pay attention. Plain and simple. Not for bicycles, not for pedestrians, not for other cars. There are too many distractions inside an automobile.

midwestmom 7 months ago

I saw a guy driving a Kia yesterday on K-10 SKYPING at speeds between 50 and 75. I'm sure he thought he was doing a great job driving - he wasn't obviously. Man, I wanted him ARRESTED.

RoeDapple 7 months, 1 week ago

Not unless they're packin'! Which brings up the question. Does a biker with a CCW permit really think he's concealing anything in those tights? Inquiring minds . . . .

local_support 7 months, 1 week ago

I think the absence of bike lanes across town makes the situation more dangerous for both cyclists and drivers.

FlintHawk 7 months ago

yes.

You can't change bad driving habit, but you can add bike lanes.

SouthWestKs 7 months, 1 week ago

Bike riders should have to pass a written & riding test before they get a license to use the roads.. The license should cost $125.00 and be good for 2 years, then another test before renewal.. That would help a lot with there "it's my road" get out of my way attitude.. Have a good day & stay warm..

jhawkinsf 7 months, 1 week ago

Since the weight of the vehicle is directly related to the amount of destruction caused by said vehicle, to roads, environment and in accidents, how about a simple charge per pound per year. A simple $1 per pound per year should suffice. I wonder how much that bicycle weighed as opposed to the SUV in that accident yesterday.

mytwocents 7 months, 1 week ago

Alot of people ride bikes because it's an affordable transportation for a low income person. $125 every 2 years would be impossible for poor people to pay. Working minimum wage, 40 hours a week, you can't even afford a 2 bedroom apartment in this town. Let's penalize the poor some more, shall we?

lawrenceguy 7 months, 1 week ago

Can you generalize a little more?

boltzmann 6 months, 4 weeks ago

Davis, California is a pretty good city for cyclists, so I would disagree.

lawrenceguy 7 months, 1 week ago

I've ridden thousands of miles in and around Lawrence. It's a fine place to ride. In fact cycling is why I moved here. Accidents happen sometimes. Choosing where and how to ride is what makes cycling more safe or unsafe. There are plenty of low traffic routes through town.

I'd say the advent of cell phones has made cycling more dangerous for everyone everwhere.

5 minutes after I drove past the scene yesterday a cyclist (looked like a student going to class) with no lights, black shirt, black pants pulled right out in front of me going head on. He was trying to get on the sidewalk. Bad move on his part I almost ran him over he pulled out from behind a moving car. In this case he would have been at fault. You can't regulate stupidity.

KevinBacon 7 months, 1 week ago

I don't think it's particularly safe OR unsafe. Of course it depends on location, but the biggest factor is the cyclist. You need to know where it's safe to ride on the street, where there's stretches of wide, quality sidewalk, and when you need to find an alternate route. Visibility is important too, I wear blinking lights on my front and back when I'm riding in low light conditions, but even still I ride like I'm invisible to cars. Finally, you need to know your bike, most importantly the brakes, and most most importantly the front brake. Practice emergency stops until you've programmed into muscle memory exactly how hard you can pull the brakes before the tires start to skid. The front brake can be scary for hard stops but the rear brake alone really isn't sufficient for emergencies, if you're lucky you'll lock it up and low-side before you run into something.

midwestmom 7 months ago

My daughter & I were talking about the accident yesterday (she's a young driver) while we were driving north on Naismith and we had a pedestrian walking in the roadway (east side didn't have a sidewalk nor does it have a bicycle lane -if there is one area that ought to be a priority for pedestrian and cyclist safety, you'd think it would be adjacent to any of our schools) and our conclusion was that there are distracted drivers and riders, but Lawrence was a DISTINCTLY UNFRIENDLY pedestrian/bicyclist town. There are sections that are good for pedestrians/cyclists, but we also have roundabouts in which everyone seems to take someone else's life in their hands, narrow one way roads that don't have adequate width for cars and parked cars let alone, parked cars, cyclists and walkers/joggers, etc. - Kentucky, 11th, Tennessee, etc., etc.

The weather is great and there are a lot of people out and about, trying to get that one last day of sunshine in before winter weather makes any sort of transportation riskier - and our city/county's lack of dedicated lanes/sidewalks make it more dangerous and frustrating for everyone.

My question is, does anyone know if it's illegal for bicyclists to ride 2 or 3 or 4 abreast on a public road where the speed limit is posted as 55 - thereby impeding faster moving traffic? If it is - I've never, ever seen a cyclist stopped for illegal riding.... wider, smooth (safe) riding lanes would definitely be something greatly appreciated in my life. :)

jafs 7 months ago

Yes it is.

Cyclists who are going slower than the prevailing speed of traffic are supposed to ride to the right as far as possible, single file.

Many cyclists don't seem to know that.

Ron Holzwarth 7 months ago

Crazy Comment Corner:

I wanted to go to a bar that's a few blocks away a while ago, so I called the police station and asked a police officer if it's legal to ride a bicycle on a sidewalk in Lawrence while intoxicated.

His answer was that it is perfectly legal to ride a bicycle on a sidewalk while intoxicated, but it won't be legal to cross any street. He added that he would not recommend doing that. That ruined my plan to ride my bicycle to the local bar.

He discussed that just a bit further, and explained that it's illegal to be on any public street at all, ever, while intoxicated. The thought crossed my mind that would totally ruin the designated driver concept, because there is no way to get into a car without stepping onto the street, and thereby breaking the law. But, I didn't mention that, thanked the officer, and headed off to the bar on my bicycle, riding on the sidewalk.

On my way home, I checked very carefully for any traffic, especially police cars, every time I crossed a street.

pizzapete 7 months ago

Seriously Ron, you called the police before you went to the bar to see if you could legally ride your bike drunk? Really? Don't you know that driving drunk is illegal and dangerous, period. It doesn't matter what mode of transportation you choose? And no, getting into a car parked on the street with someone sober to drive you home is not breaking the law. Come on, use some common sense.