2 cyclists pulled over by police on Cedar River Trail.

[XMcShiftersonX]

Well, it would seem that they are now enforcing that stupid speed limit ordinance on the Cedar River Trail. Another overreaction to one bad incident that wasn't even due to the speed of the cyclists (or the cyclists at all for that matter), and a rule that was probably made by someone who hasn't been on a bike since they were 9. I mean really, I coast at about 12 MPH on that trail without even trying.

Anyways, what happened was I was out walking my dog on the Cedar River Trail this morning and saw two cyclists get pulled over by a motorcycle cop that was parked on one of the "on ramps" to the trail about half way between the community center and that first light at the golf course. The cyclists were probably going between 18-22 MPH if I had to guess and received a ticket for speeding since the speed limit is 10 MPH there.

I hope they don't start enforcing this farther down the trail where it's pretty much desolate except for cyclists, or I'll have to find somewhere else to ride. Which is sad because a big perk to living where I do is having access to this trail.

So, I thought I'd give you all a heads up so you hopefully don't get a ticket. The Maple Valley Highway runs along the Cedar River Trail, so you could always start riding on that. I think that might be my preferred route now at least for that first part.

Also, for the ladies doing the Burly Girl for the Cycle the Wave ride tomorrow, be careful! Slow down at least for that part... Although, they can't give us all tickets can they?

-Jessica

[Zen]

Is this a multi-use trail?

[XMcShiftersonX]

Yes.

[Zen]

Obey the rules.
If you want to ride that fast, find a road.

[LilBolt]

The woman who was hit & died was a friend of a friend. From what I hear, she was a wonderful person, who lived a good life & served others. I'll gladly slow to 10 mph through that area as a tribute to her. And on the MUP's, I get just as annoyed with the people who go 20mph as I do with the people who don't keep an eye on their kids or dogs. Riding on Maple Valley Highway isn't very appealing either, but can be the safest option when the trail is busy.

[XMcShiftersonX]

Speed isn't what hurts people, it's people not announcing themselves, or not giving enough space when passing other people, and people who don't understand what "on your left" means. Basically a lack of communication. I often slow down while passing people as a personal preference just to make sure they're not going to freak out. But, I think it's ridiculous to make people go as slow as 10 MPH on an open trail. I'm going to go the speed I'm comfortable with and have fun with, and that helps me with my cycling goals. What harm is it to a person if someone passes at 20 MPH but they let you know they're coming and they give you enough space? And who makes up the arbitrary number of 10MPH and decides that that speed is "safe" ?

-Jessica

[moonfroggy]

i always go very slow when passing people on multi use trails and when i say "on your left" more often than not people move to the left and sometimes when i am walking on multi use trails and someone says "on your left" my first instinct is to move to my left.

never ridden a bike outside of California no idea what the trail is like that is being talked about but going slow on a multi use trail seems wise to me.

[Eden]

I don't think anyone would disagree that going slow on a MUP when there are others around is a bad idea - but limiting the entire length of the trail to 10mph is nonsensical - especially as the further one gets from the parks the fewer and fewer other people you see period, much less other people who are not also riding bicycles.

Expecting people to slow down near the parks and other highly used areas is not unreasonable. Forcing cyclists to crawl along the entire 17 miles - not so reasonable - especially when the city also supposedly espouses views like this .....supports a city where residents and visitors can enjoy recreation and exercise contributing to a healthy lifestyle, and where commuting by bicycle using an integrated trails/road network, becomes a realistic transportation alternative. C'mon.... if you actually used this trail to commute and went the length of it, it would take almost 2 hours... that certainly doesn't sound like a realistic transportation option to me.

A cyclist was killed in Renton not too long before this - maybe 6 months or so. No one suggested that the street should be closed to cars or that the speed limit might be too fast on it. (of course not, they just blamed the cyclist as usual - even though, if I'm remembering properly, the car ran a light or a stop sign....)

[kelownagirl]

Our multi-use greenway trail is essentially a wide, flat gravel road along the river. The speed limit is 10km per hour. That's only 6 mph. I can hardly stay upright on my bike at that speed. NOBODY goes that speed, not even the people riding slowly. I ride faster and take great care by slowing down when I'm near pedestrians etc.

[OakLeaf]

What I said before ... it's got little to do with absolute speed, and everything to do with relative speed among road/trail users.

10 mph is TRIPLE the average human walking speed, and FIVE TIMES what children and mobility-impaired adults - the kind of people you're likely to find on a MUP - are likely to be doing.

Just as there's nothing inherently unsafe about driving your car at 120 on an empty piece of straight, flat four-lane out west where there's not another car for 100 miles, there's nothing inherently unsafe about riding your bike at 20 on a MUP. The trouble comes when there's other traffic.

Sure it burns me if I get a ticket for speeding in my car or bike when it was obviously safe to do so. But I eat it, because them's the rules and they got me fair and square. It would burn me if I got a speeding ticket on the bici when it was obviously safe to do so, too. One thing missing from the OP is whether or not there was any other traffic. Another thing missing from the discussion is that the cyclists in question were ticketed for doing TWICE the limit and a speed that IMO should just not happen on a MUP.

This goes back to the discussions about the penalties when automobile drivers kill bicyclists, too. I've been thinking a lot about that and the position that a few here - and most automobile drivers - take, that it's "just an accident." Actually, I tend to agree ... if people are doing stuff in/on their vehicles 24/7 that makes it just a matter of LUCK that they don't kill someone, then when they DO kill someone, well, it WAS just a matter of luck, and that's why so many people think they shouldn't be punished for it. The problem happens way before that, when they decide to take their chances with other people's lives.

They ... WE ... should be punished severely when we take chances with other people's lives. Not only when other people lose the bet that they didn't know they were making with us.

[Eden]

Sorry Oak - I don't agree at all about auto "accidents"

Yes indeed there can be true accidents in an automobile. A child can dart out into the road suddenly, someone dressed all in black can be crossing the street in the dead of night, a road can be unexpectedly slippery, but I believe more collisions are caused by aggressive and neglectful driving than are really and truly accidents.

The plain fact is that when you get behind the wheel you need to recognize that you are stepping into an inherently dangerous machine. If you are not prepared to take that responsibility and take *extra* measures to ensure the safety of others, by not driving distracted/drunk/sleepy, not using excessive speed, not being aggressive, by focusing solely on the task at hand, which is driving safely, you shouldn't be driving.

A bicycle is not the same. It is not a machine that kills tens of thousands of people every year. Even an aggressive or neglectful cyclist is unlikely to kill anyone. Fatal cyclist/pedestrian accidents are quite rare - you could probably count on your fingers the numbers that have happened in the last 10 years.... While it still isn't acceptable to ride this way, its just not the same...

[XMcShiftersonX]

One thing missing from the OP is whether or not there was any other traffic.

There was actually very little traffic on the trail at this particular time. It was early in the morning, as it usually is when I'm walking my dog there. The cyclists had just passed me a few seconds earlier, and far in the distance I could see someone walking towards me in the opposite lane. But, they were pretty far up there. I saw maybe a handful of people on the trail in the whole hour I was on it.