Cyclists on Sidewalks

[guest1]

some people ride bikes

some people are cyclists

some people are roadies - they ride on the road

some people are mountain bikers - they ride on trails

there are those who do both while racing -- they are cyclocross racers

there are no sidewalk cyclists

some people ride bikes -- please do NOT confuse them with cyclists!

[snapdragen]

It's against the law to ride on the side walks here. From the DMV Handbook:

Bicyclists:
must ride in the same direction as other traffic, not against it.

must ride in a straight line as near to the right curb or edge of the roadway as practical— not on the sidewalk.

must make left and right turns in the same way that drivers do, using the same turn lanes.

may legally move left to turn left, to pass a parked or moving vehicle, another bicycle, an animal, or to make a turn, avoid debris, or other hazards.

may choose to ride near the left curb or edge of a one-way street.

may use a left turn lane. If the bicyclist is traveling straight ahead, he or she should use a through traffic lane rather than ride next to the curb and block traffic making right turns.

are lawfully permitted to ride on certain sections of freeways, when signs are posted. Be careful when approaching or passing a bicyclist on a freeway.

Drivers must:
look carefully for bicyclists before opening doors next to moving traffic or before turning right.

safely merge toward the curb or into the bike lane.

not overtake a bicyclist just before making a right turn. Merge first, then turn.

[Duck on Wheels]

It's against the law to ride on the side walks here. From the DMV Handbook:

Bicyclists:
must ride in the same direction as other traffic, not against it.

must ride in a straight line as near to the right curb or edge of the roadway as practical— not on the sidewalk.

Of course, this could be because in California, the let's drive there state, sidewalks are kept to a minimum so as not to "steal" space from the road. Whereas in Norway, sidewalks are many places built double-width with a dividing line so that half the sidewalk is a bike lane. That could explain why we're allowed to ride on sidewalks here, but only as long as we're not a nuisance to pedestrians, and are willing to forfeit our right-of-way at intersections.

As for who's a cyclist ... We just had a debate here about the definition of "Norwegian". The chairman of the Language Advisory Board put his foot in his mouth, had to extract it and apologize. The outcome is that anyone who lives in Norway is free to call him/herself a Norwegian. I think the term "cyclist" should be similarly defined: Anyone who rides a bike and wants to call him/herself a cyclist should be free to do so.

[Kalidurga]

some people ride bikes

some people are cyclists

some people are roadies - they ride on the road

some people are mountain bikers - they ride on trails

there are those who do both while racing -- they are cyclocross racers

there are no sidewalk cyclists

some people ride bikes -- please do NOT confuse them with cyclists!

I guess I'm not really a cyclist after all, because I feel like I have to put myself in the "some people ride bikes" category. I can't remember the last time I rode on the sidewalk, but I really hate to be limited as to what surface I can or cannot ride upon. Once I learn how to bunny-hop, I may find I just have to pop over a curb onto the sidewalk and back down just for the fun of it. If that makes me not a cyclist, then so be it

[doc]

some people ride bikes

some people are cyclists

some people are roadies - they ride on the road

some people are mountain bikers - they ride on trails

there are those who do both while racing -- they are cyclocross racers

there are no sidewalk cyclists

some people ride bikes -- please do NOT confuse them with cyclists!

That's just silly. I am a real roadie. I ride with the big boys and often make them eat dirt. However, if I'm out cycling with my 2 little girls, I'll be on the sidewalk. I educate them again and again and again that pedestrians have the right of way. But I'd rather they live and the drivers sure don't care so...

[mimitabby]

That's just silly. I am a real roadie. I ride with the big boys and often make them eat dirt. However, if I'm out cycling with my 2 little girls, I'll be on the sidewalk. I educate them again and again and again that pedestrians have the right of way. But I'd rather they live and the drivers sure don't care so...

Yesterday, I rode my bike 6 miles on the road and 3 blocks on the sidewalk.
when riding on sidewalks, I go slowly and obey all rules for pedestrians (don't cross the street until there is a walk sign, look both ways before going out into the street, yield to people, even stopping and getting off if necessary) Sometimes true cyclists find themselves on sidewalks because there isn't a better way to get from point A to point B (like crossing a busy multiple lane street)

[Grog]

That's just silly. I am a real roadie. I ride with the big boys and often make them eat dirt. However, if I'm out cycling with my 2 little girls, I'll be on the sidewalk. I educate them again and again and again that pedestrians have the right of way. But I'd rather they live and the drivers sure don't care so...

I hope there are no alleys, driveways or similar car exits along your way... A little guy (7 y.o.?) on my old street, riding with daddy on the sidewalk, was almost run over by a car coming out of a driveway, not even especially fast. Kids on bikes are much lower than adults, and as someone mentioned earlier, even careful drivers when they drive out (or worse have to back out) of driveways sometimes have very limited vision. Hence they have to get their front wheels on the sidewalk to see anything in front of them.

Of course it all depends on how your neighborhood is built. But in mine I'd rather ride the bike path with the kids or take them to a park and then ride.

[Deborajen]

In my hometown, it's legal to ride a bike on the sidewalks except in the downtown business district. We also have a "bike path" system (it's not the best), and some of that system is sidewalk. Although I prefer to ride on the less busy streets, you can't always get from point A to point B that way and if there's a short stretch of heavy traffic to contend with - on a street with no shoulder, I'd definitely get on the sidewalk - go nice and easy and watch all around - rather than put myself out with tons of machinery cutting around me by inches.

Although I agree it's a good general rule to ride on the street and not the sidewalk, never say "never." --

Deb

[Aint Doody]

I agree with Deb--never say never. There are some busy, busy bridges with no cycling lanes but sidewalks. I certainly will ride on those sidewalks.

[Kimmyt]

I agree with Deb--never say never. There are some busy, busy bridges with no cycling lanes but sidewalks. I certainly will ride on those sidewalks.

Man, that sounds like my commute! 3 lane on either side, and no shoulder, just a concrete divider between the 'pedestrian walkway'. Even worse, it raises up so that once you chug up it, there's little vision behind you if you need to change lanes. On my commute, I have to make a left after this bridge, so that means I need to change 3 lanes (4, including turning lanes) to get suitably in the left lane to turn, while people are going 35-45 mph up over this hill. If they go too fast (and this is often wall to wall traffic) there's no way in heck they'd see me or be able to brake in time.

I solved this by riding on the pedwalk (and even that is scary, barely wide enough for one bike with cement barrier on one side and 2 story drop to the Schuylkill on the other) and then cutting through the sidewalk and parking lot of the Frosty Falls ice cream parlour. I ride the sidewalk until a point where traffic slows a bit or there is a crosswalk, and then move across the lanes.

I should take a picture of it some time. It is one of the only times I have ridden on the sidewalk on my road bike, since learning better.

It was truly a hair-raising section of the commute until I figured out the sidewalk thing!

K.

[Geonz]

In my hometown, it's legal to ride a bike on the sidewalks except in the downtown business district. We also have a "bike path" system (it's not the best), and some of that system is sidewalk. Although I prefer to ride on the less busy streets, you can't always get from point A to point B that way and if there's a short stretch of heavy traffic to contend with - on a street with no shoulder, I'd definitely get on the sidewalk - go nice and easy and watch all around - rather than put myself out with tons of machinery cutting around me by inches.

Although I agree it's a good general rule to ride on the street and not the sidewalk, never say "never." --

Deb

Sounds a whole lot like Champaign-Urbana and my decision process.

A dogmatic soul is going to find *some* reason to shut me out anyway... if it weren't that trip on the sidewalk, I'm sure there would be some other equally arbitrary label that would suffice. I'm not a cyclist because - oh, heaven forfend! - I actually *think* and decide instead of following The Dogma (Not a law, now... just somebody's dogma). My karma long since ran over my dogma.

[Pax]

Sounds a whole lot like Champaign-Urbana and my decision process.

A dogmatic soul is going to find *some* reason to shut me out anyway... if it weren't that trip on the sidewalk, I'm sure there would be some other equally arbitrary label that would suffice. I'm not a cyclist because - oh, heaven forfend! - I actually *think* and decide instead of following The Dogma (Not a law, now... just somebody's dogma). My karma long since ran over my dogma.

Sue, your commute is NUTS! I can't imagine braving Bradley Ave. every day...I'd be up on that sidewalk in a heartbeat.

[xeney]

Actually, it is legal to ride a bike on the sidewalk in California in some cities. Local laws sometimes permit it. I have heard (but don't know for sure) that it is legal to ride on the sidewalk in Los Angeles. Here in Sacramento, I always thought it was illegal but then found out that it is legal in residential areas.