Ride Friendly:
A Few Courtesy Tips for Bicyclists
April, 2005
last updated 2007-03-27
Common Courtesy - How We All Get Along
- On a bike it's a key to safety.
- Cycling needs more friends - rudeness makes enemies!
"Ride Friendly"
- Imagine - see things from the other person's point of view.
- Do unto others as you would be done by.
- What if it was your mother driving that car - or crossing the street?
Some Tips for Riding Friendly in Berkeley - Or Anywhere
Riding Pedestrian-Friendly
- Walk your bike on sidewalks and in crosswalks. Those places are the pedestrians' turf - don't ride there, especially in busy areas such as downtown. And note that downtown it's not only inconsiderate, it's against the law. (The duties of the Berkeley Police Bicycle Detail require some sidewalk riding - the law specifically allows that.)
- If you need to use the crosswalk to get across a busy street, walk your bike.
- Be considerate of people crossing the street. You have the same responsibility as a motorist to yield the right of way to pedestrians.
- Always cut pedestrians a bit of extra slack - even if, technically, they're wrong.
- Assume that pedestrians don't see or hear you. You'll usually be right.
- When it's pedestrians, they're the little guys and we're the heavies. Don't be a bully!
- Watch speed, especially on residential streets and downhill. 20 mph looks like 40 mph to a person standing in the road.
- People cannot hear you behind them. Try never to scare anybody - slow down and call out - for example, "Excuse me, on your left, please." (Don't forget "on your left" when passing another cyclist, either!)
- Passing a person is not the same as passing something inanimate like a traffic cone. Closer than 6-8 ft. at a high speed, what the person will say about the experience is "That #$#%&* crazy bike rider almost knocked me flat!!" They aren't saying that to be "anti-bike" - that's really how it seemed to them.
- Above is doubly true if you surprise them from behind.
Riding Motorist-Friendly
- Practice what you preach - make it a point to be as law-abiding as you want the drivers around you to be - like, say, at STOP signs???
- Always make it crystal clear what you're doing;
- Signal your intentions clearly using standard arm signals.
- When it's your turn to yield, do it, and make it perfectly clear that you are yielding - if people hesitate, wave 'em through (that includes pedestrians and other cyclists, by the way).
- When you take the lane, do it, clearly and definitely. Get in the lane and go. Don't invite pushy behavior by others.
- Acknowledge courtesy with a wave, or a smile, or a "thank you," or all 3!
High-Performance Riding Friendly
- It's good to go to ten-tenths out in the boonies - but not downtown, or in residential neighborhoods.
- Returning home from a fast training ride, you're stoked and it's fun to keep the fast pace - but there comes that point where you have to re-enter society. Be aware of that and make a conscious effort to shift modes.
- Common re-entry points in Berkeley -
places to start cooling it - are:
- Downhill on Russell from Claremont.
- Top of Spruce St (going downhill).
- Top of Euclid Ave (ditto).
- Wherever you come out of the hills???
- Remember, just because you're stoked doesn't mean everyone else is - don't expect the people around you to seem sharp, on the ball, or even particularly attentive.
- Your racing/club jersey tells the world who you are. If people are upset with you they're likely to spot your affiliation and let your club or sponsors know.
David Coolidge has served on the BFBC Board of Directors since August 2003. A version of this article appears on page 6 of the May-June 2005 issue of the BFBC newsletter.