Stop at Red

Feedback received:

How regularly do cyclists run the red? 

I have an hour or two of counts done in Wellington. Cyclists were a bit worse than cars, but not as lawless as pedestrians. The level of compliance changed dramatically from one intersection to another. It could be argued that an engineering solution should be considered where compliance is particularly poor (e.g. If 75% of riders are heading through red along the top of a T intersection, then put in a cyclist bypass (especially if the riders happen to be going up hill, or there is a seldom used footpath available, like opposite the Karori fire station). 

The issue of lights not being triggered by bikes is something that needs to be addressed. Electromagnetic sensors designed for bikes don't work with carbon fibre. I know this complicates the issue, but it's such an easy out for riders that I think you need to counter it at the outset.

Bums on bikes
Why do bums on bikes not have to obey traffic lights like us real people?
This morning on the way to work one of them – without a crash hat I might add – snuck through our traffic jam, wobbled on his bike while he waited for a gap in the traffic and then rode right through the intersection against the red light which was holding up the rest of us .
I see it often, and they irritate me.
Jenny Mathes, Wainuiomata.

http://www.capitaltimes.co.nz/page/8/Letters.html

A counter view:
A new campaign has been launched in the UK called Stop at Red encouraging cyclists to sign up to ‘pledge' their obedience to traffic signals. This campaign raises a whole host of issues for me. I think it is well intentioned but unfortunately wholly misguided. I guess I should start out by saying that I run red lights all the time, routinely, and I'm not ashamed of it and I won't apologize for it. Of course I never take anyone else's right of way, and I only run the light if there's no one coming. There are a hell of a lot of lights in Bristol that seem to stay red for no particular reason. Everyone just sits and waits. We're very well trained.

The sponsors of this campaign are confusing safe behaviour with law-abiding behaviour. You can follow every law and still put yourself in a terribly dangerous position (i.e. in the door zone). By the same token, you can slow and look around carefully at red lights and stop signs and proceed when no one is coming and you'll likely never get into trouble. Blindly following the law is a recipe for getting hurt on your bike. Better to trust your own hearing, sight, and instincts than the government's rigid idea of ‘health and safety' which is quickly spiraling out of control, as evidenced by the recent replacement of a Guy Fawkes Bonfire with a video of a bonfire in Devon.

http://onthelevelblog.com/2007/11/07/stop-at-red-the-ethics-and-politics...

I have always been very conscious of cyclists on our roads, especially in Wellington where I live.

I have always given them space. I have even picked up them and their mangled bikes after incidents, and taken them to hospital and returned their bikes to their homes.

No more.

Coming home tonight, I allowed a cyclist plenty of space to watch in horror how he then ran 2 red lights, one of once pedestrians were crossing. When I was along side him further down the Parade in Island Bay ( a nice wide street) I suggested that he obey the road rules. He called me a c*** and to f*** off.

That is it for me. I have watched plenty of cyclists disobey the road rules, cut in front of pedestrians, etc... and have still defended them to other motorists I know.

Not any more.

I will no longer allow them the space bubble. I will not intentional threaten but neither will I support.

Regards
(name withheld)

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Stop-at-Red/166585216739766

Why Cyclists Do What They Do

Cyclists often have valid reasons for behaving the way they do, paralleling the reasons that motivate pedestrians and motorists. Behind most of these actions is a sense that since the city denies cyclists the barest minimum of space or respect, cyclists must carve out their own safe and efficient path as best they can. This is not to excuse cyclists who are reckless or inconsiderate and those who frighten people needlessly - they deserve public scorn just as does a rude or reckless motorist (they also deserve an education in better riding habits).

Some cyclists ride briefly on the sidewalk when double-parked vehicles block the street because it is safer and more passable than the clogged roadway. Some cyclists ride against traffic, particularly on the avenues, because the choice of routes in the correct direction is limited. For instance, only cyclists with rugged mountain bikes dare ride regularly on Sixth Avenue, which has been a virtual mine field of steel plates, huge bumps and deep holes since it was torn up for reconstruction in 1989; the next logical choice, narrow Madison, is choked with diesel-fume buses.

Cyclists and Red Lights

New York cyclists are notorious for running red lights. By now, going through red is an ingrained cycling tradition. Big-city impatience and the desire to maintain hard-earned momentum discourage bicycle riders from stopping fully when the law dictates - the same is true for pedestrians. But, though it may seem surprising for non-cyclists, many riders point to health and safety as reasons to disobey red lights.

For one thing, going through a Manhattan red light gives the cyclist a block or two of respite from the exhaust fumes of accelerating cars and trucks. More importantly, bicycles and cars accelerate differently. Motorists waiting behind a stopped bicycle are in no mood to wait for the cyclist to reach cruising speed. Pressure from impatient drivers is especially unnerving for novice cyclists, who need a modicum of open street space to start up. Because motor traffic occupies that space, the only way bicyclists can start up safely is by getting in front of the traffic, which often entails running lights.

Reducing the frequency and danger of bicyclist red-light running will probably require the following steps: educating cyclists; educating motorists about bicyclists' right to the road and need for safe distance; enforcing laws forbidding intimidating and dangerous driving; and, at certain intersections, reconfiguring streets and traffic signals to give bicyclists a head start when the light turns green.

In some European cities, bicycle lanes have separate traffic signals with their own phasing. These give cyclists and pedestrians 5-10 seconds of green time in advance of motorists waiting at the same intersection, thus helping non-motorized road users establish secure presence in the roadway. This enhances comfort and safety while engendering respect (among cyclists) for traffic control devices

source: http://www.transalt.org/files/resources/blueprint/chapter3/chapter3d.html

As sad as this is - what will it take for cyclists to realise they are NOT invincible and need to adhere to the road rules just like everyone else?! Given the way some of the cyclists around town behave I am surprised there are not more fatalities - other than for the grace of drivers with lightening reflexes. Yes this is sad but road rules are there to protect people - we need to follow them.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/waikato-times/news/5086420/Cyclist-killed-in-crash

know one of the things that most riles drivers is when cyclists believe the road rules do not apply to them. Thus I endeavor to obey them whenever doing so does not result in undue danger to myself or others.

At first set of Thorndon Quay/Train Station lights, travelling into town, a guy steams through the red while I wait. I catch up a few light sets down Customhouse Quay and say
"Hi buddy, when you run red light like that you make the rest of us look like idiots"

More at http://www.vorb.org.nz/bad-apple-commuter-shame-list-wellington-t111467....

I have tweaked the logo. I removed "Use your head" and replaced it with "Give respect, get respect."
Telling people to use their head will turn people off. A big no-no in campaigns.

WCC will paint diamonds the road indicating where the induction loops are, later this year. Some people say their bike doesn't activate traffic lights.

ou2lunch #11 9:47am

I was crossing the road at a T-junction in town the other day and nearly got taken out by some crazy cyclist. The light was red and all the cars had stopped for the pedestrians crossing in front of them. I crossed the road between the cars when he came screaming out of nowhere obviously trying to get to the front of the traffic. They don't get the message do they? they think they are riding the tour de france and have total rights to the road around them. Sensible cyclists are a minority in this country

More at http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/5343819/Cyclist-queries-worth-...

In a bid to make cyclists feel safer, one US town has installed motion sensor technology that can extend a green signal for a cyclist if he/she is approaching an intersection at speed.

The motion sensor technology, which is called The Intersector, uses microwave motion sensors on a mounted intersection pole to recognise a bicycle and then sends signals back to the traffic signal control box to prolong the green light so the cyclist can pass safely through.

Based on military technology, the town of Pleasanton in California is the only place in the world to use the system at the moment.

The motion sensors distinguish between bicycles and vehicles passing through street intersections by measuring the length and speed of an object approaching the intersection pole.
Extension for cyclists

When a traffic light is already green, a cyclist typically receives an extension pass-through time of about five seconds. For vehicles, the extension time is two additional seconds.

Bicycles stopped at a red light receive 14 seconds of green light time to pass through, whereas vehicles stopped at a red light receive only four seconds.

Pleasanton council officials has so far installed six Intersector devices on a selection of intersection poles in the town and plan to install four more in the next few months.

http://www.goinggoingbike.com/blog/detection-technology-helps-protect-cy...

Not all cyclists run the red. Cyclist traffic offences total less than 1% of all traffic offences per year - a negligible figure.

I was interviewed by National Radio's Bryan Crump at http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/nights/audio/2499675/cyclin...

Letter to DomPost, 2 Dec 2011

Cycling myths debunked

There's no evidence that we are facing a rising tide of traffic crime by people on bicycles, contrary to a recent claim (letters, 2 Dec)

I agree that we shouldn't tolerate breaking the rules or lack of courtesy, but let's keep this in perspective. Data is not the plural of anecdote.

For every errant cyclist, I could point to 99 examples of unlawful or dangerous driving or jaywalking.

Indeed, Ministry of Justice figures show that cyclist traffic offences total less than 1% of all traffic offences per year. Is this really the top priority for Police?

The Cycling Advocates Network promotes respect through its Stop at Red campaign,

Regarding the situation Mr Cunneen describes, perhaps he should freshen up his knowledge of the Road Code: a right turning vehicle is required to give way to traffic going straight through.

The fact remains that we all win when more people ride bikes more often. People are healthier, traffic congestion is cut, road building bills are lower, our air is cleaner, and remaining drivers can always find a parking space.

What we need is smart investment in attractive and safe cycle facilities, not finger wagging.

Patrick Morgan
Cycling Advocates Network

at http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/afternoons/audio/2508210/th...
from 8:10 - 10:00.
The Panel with Chris Wikaira and Tony Doe (Part 2), 27 Jan 2012

"If cyclists want to share the road with motorists, and be respected by them, they need to play by the same rule book. Cycling organisations evidently endorse this; check out the www.stopatred.org.nz site. Perhaps then other road users might have more regard for cyclists and fewer would be maimed or killed on our roads."

http://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/motoring/blogs/the-car-club/6751965/Cy...

17 April 2012