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Sunday, April 08, 2007
This just in!!
From:
http://www.news.uiuc.edu/ii/07/0405/traffic.html
"In the coming weeks, UI bicycle patrol officers also will step up enforcement of traffic laws applicable to bicyclists. 'If you’re riding your bicycle on the street, you need to behave as a vehicle: You need to travel the right direction on one-way streets, signal when you turn, obey signs and signals, and yield to pedestrians when they’re in the crosswalks,' said Lt. Skip Frost. 'A lot of the bicyclists aren’t complying.'
However, cyclists say that the existing bike path system is not conducive to compliance with traffic laws because it is confusing, doesn’t connect with the cities’ bike paths and doesn’t exist on some streets, Frost said.
The UI and the cities hope to develop a bike master plan in the near future, along with adopting 'complete street' design and signage standards for the University District, said Pam Voitik, director of campus services."
Interesting that it's those of us riding in the streets that will have to ride as vehicles - and the "however" refers to the paths. I have to wonder if the reporter was doing some creative conflation (a word that my linear brain has a lot of trouble wrapping around so I hope it applies:)). Getting both ideas out in writing seems like a good idea to me, especially since the first one rather implies that cyclists at least have the *right* to go to the street if we want to. (I'm not sure what referring to us as "the bicyclists" and not "bicyclists" means. Probably the usual lumping of all of a minority group together and assuming they share more characteristics than they do.)
From:
http://www.news.uiuc.edu/ii/07/0405/traffic.html
"In the coming weeks, UI bicycle patrol officers also will step up enforcement of traffic laws applicable to bicyclists. 'If you’re riding your bicycle on the street, you need to behave as a vehicle: You need to travel the right direction on one-way streets, signal when you turn, obey signs and signals, and yield to pedestrians when they’re in the crosswalks,' said Lt. Skip Frost. 'A lot of the bicyclists aren’t complying.'
However, cyclists say that the existing bike path system is not conducive to compliance with traffic laws because it is confusing, doesn’t connect with the cities’ bike paths and doesn’t exist on some streets, Frost said.
The UI and the cities hope to develop a bike master plan in the near future, along with adopting 'complete street' design and signage standards for the University District, said Pam Voitik, director of campus services."
Interesting that it's those of us riding in the streets that will have to ride as vehicles - and the "however" refers to the paths. I have to wonder if the reporter was doing some creative conflation (a word that my linear brain has a lot of trouble wrapping around so I hope it applies:)). Getting both ideas out in writing seems like a good idea to me, especially since the first one rather implies that cyclists at least have the *right* to go to the street if we want to. (I'm not sure what referring to us as "the bicyclists" and not "bicyclists" means. Probably the usual lumping of all of a minority group together and assuming they share more characteristics than they do.)
