Is Pedestrian Target Practice Under Threat?
The City of Victoria is going to look at the situation and blow $30,000 on a study of how to improve bus stops and sidewalks. Here's one way:
GET THE MOTOR VEHICLES OFF OF THE SIDEWALK. (yes, I know that counts as a shout to geeks). How could I tell that the weather was improving in Victoria? Simple. The number of idiotic bicyclists on the sidewalk. They have this artificial sense of entitlement that they can bicycle up and down the sidewalks. They ring their bells. They bleat out plaintiff, "excuse me" and "on your right". Fuck off. Under the Motor Vehicle Act, bicycles have one place: on the roads. The problem is the bike mafia. It's environmentally conscious to bike instead of drive. So, if you fault them you're to blame for global warming. Government workers can reek to high heaven without rebuke, so there is no disincentive to bike to work them plunking yourself at your desk. The Tour De Rock was peopled by a bunch of police officers who bicycled around Vancouver Island. When a bicyclist with a gun drives by in a police cruiser, they have a bias to ignoring that cyclist pelting through pedestrians-- some aging, some toddlers, some physically disabled so they cannot drive or bicycle themselves. This isn't about the police. When they have made an effort to ticket offenders, they got heckled by the media who thought there was more important work to do. I say that the City of Victoria police were on target when they focussed on bicyclists. I have had my car broken into twice in 18 years. I have to dodge bicyclists daily. My wife and I have both been hit by bicyclists while walking on the sidewalk and in both instances, they were hit-and-runs. When one person breaks the law, they're a criminal. When 100,000 break the law, they're a citizen. Forget the popularity of bicycling. Forget the environmental aspect. We license and punish bad drivers. We need to punish bad bicyclists.
What amazes me is that John Luton, formerly of the Victoria Cycling Coalition is now executive director of Capital Bike and Walk. In a city where bicylists bully pedestrians out of the way, melding Bike and Walk advocates together is like the KKK co-opting the NAACP. The organizations that he has been a part of do nothing to promote or enforce bicyclist responsibility. They push for cycling safety, more bike lanes and an increased presence of bikes in the regions. When challenged, they say, "Oh, there are a few bad actors in every bunch." C'mon John: step up and hand out pamphlets to the bicyclists as they jet across the wooden planks of the Johnson Street bridge walkway. Inform them that they are breaking the law. No. No, that's not what Bike and Walk is all about. Besides, if you piss off bicyclists you lose traction. If you lose traction, you lose grant money. If you lose grant money, you have to work for a living.
In that council meeting, the likes of C. Joe Richards brought up this issue. And City Hall has anted up $30,000 for the production of an Engineering report: Sidewalk Policies and Standards. If this is anything like the City of Victoria traffic crippling of Douglas Street, you can expect more pedestrian fatalities.
Of course, this is certainly not by first rant on bicycling: Click here
GET THE MOTOR VEHICLES OFF OF THE SIDEWALK. (yes, I know that counts as a shout to geeks). How could I tell that the weather was improving in Victoria? Simple. The number of idiotic bicyclists on the sidewalk. They have this artificial sense of entitlement that they can bicycle up and down the sidewalks. They ring their bells. They bleat out plaintiff, "excuse me" and "on your right". Fuck off. Under the Motor Vehicle Act, bicycles have one place: on the roads. The problem is the bike mafia. It's environmentally conscious to bike instead of drive. So, if you fault them you're to blame for global warming. Government workers can reek to high heaven without rebuke, so there is no disincentive to bike to work them plunking yourself at your desk. The Tour De Rock was peopled by a bunch of police officers who bicycled around Vancouver Island. When a bicyclist with a gun drives by in a police cruiser, they have a bias to ignoring that cyclist pelting through pedestrians-- some aging, some toddlers, some physically disabled so they cannot drive or bicycle themselves. This isn't about the police. When they have made an effort to ticket offenders, they got heckled by the media who thought there was more important work to do. I say that the City of Victoria police were on target when they focussed on bicyclists. I have had my car broken into twice in 18 years. I have to dodge bicyclists daily. My wife and I have both been hit by bicyclists while walking on the sidewalk and in both instances, they were hit-and-runs. When one person breaks the law, they're a criminal. When 100,000 break the law, they're a citizen. Forget the popularity of bicycling. Forget the environmental aspect. We license and punish bad drivers. We need to punish bad bicyclists.
What amazes me is that John Luton, formerly of the Victoria Cycling Coalition is now executive director of Capital Bike and Walk. In a city where bicylists bully pedestrians out of the way, melding Bike and Walk advocates together is like the KKK co-opting the NAACP. The organizations that he has been a part of do nothing to promote or enforce bicyclist responsibility. They push for cycling safety, more bike lanes and an increased presence of bikes in the regions. When challenged, they say, "Oh, there are a few bad actors in every bunch." C'mon John: step up and hand out pamphlets to the bicyclists as they jet across the wooden planks of the Johnson Street bridge walkway. Inform them that they are breaking the law. No. No, that's not what Bike and Walk is all about. Besides, if you piss off bicyclists you lose traction. If you lose traction, you lose grant money. If you lose grant money, you have to work for a living.
In that council meeting, the likes of C. Joe Richards brought up this issue. And City Hall has anted up $30,000 for the production of an Engineering report: Sidewalk Policies and Standards. If this is anything like the City of Victoria traffic crippling of Douglas Street, you can expect more pedestrian fatalities.
Of course, this is certainly not by first rant on bicycling: Click here
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