On my way home today, I saw a work truck run a red light. I see vehicles run this red nearly every time I am at this light. Despite the ample warning of a yellow light, and a short but steep rise in the road that requires you to be actively accelerating at a red light to run it, and that occasionally they swerve into the left turn lane to gun it around a stopping vehicle, it occurs to me that the design of this intersection could use some work to allow drivers to navigate more safely at extra-legal speeds. I’m thinking a redder light? Maybe more lights! Maybe a light-up sign along with the yellow light that says “RED LIGHT INCOMING”. Or perhaps the light could just be permanently green in that direction - just some ideas
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Maybe a speed bump that destroys tires/rims if you hit it at >20mph
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But realistically, is solar glare an issue at certain times of day? Traffic lights can have “back plates” added that improve contrast of the lights relative to the surroundings.
Hmmm conceivable as the light is oriented westward but I’m hesitant to give anyone here benefit of the doubt
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There’s a road in the neighborhood that is known as one of the most dangerous roads in the city. 30mph speed limit but nobody goes under 50mph. There are crashes every day.
There’s a plan to put in a new bike lane for a mile or so, in an area where a teenage cyclist was killed a few years ago. Part of this proposal included barriers to protect the bike lane. Those got vetoed because “drivers may hit the barriers.”
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every red light should have railroad-style protected crossing gates
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That’s great until you come to an intersection with an inductive loop or camera that hasn’t been tuned for bikes. Then you’re trapped!
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well since you’re on a bike you can just go around, under or over it.
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And your typical red light runner will just go through and then sue the city.
This morning a cop van pulled out of an alley, stopped in front of me and blocked the southbound bike lane and both auto lanes of Lincoln Ave just north of Fullerton as he attempted to turn into the northbound auto lane. Before I realized it, I’d yelled “you’re blocking the street, ya fuckin asshole!”
I’m sure my white priveledge kept me safe but he looked like he honestly felt like a dummy for driving stupidly and blocking the entirety of Lincoln Avenue for no reason.
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As long as you’re using privilege for good and not evil, flex away.
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I am not anti-ebike, the kind that people have to pedal but I am getting really fucking irritated about all the people zooming past on our local rail-trail on 70-lb electrified mopeds that require no pedaling at all. This is bullshit, they are on electric motorcycles and should stay on the street. A guy went past on a jailbroken monster e-bike at easily 25 mph yesterday and I had to step off the trail and into the grass, which I do not like because of ticks. This is not the first time this has happened. The trail is barely 2 bikes wide and in some places just a 12-inch wide path, someone is going to get really hurt.
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Yeah eff that noise. It first annoyed me cycling in Amsterdam like a decade ago. I think I read that they were eventually banned from lanes there. Then they started proliferating here.
You should come check out the streets of Chicago where two stroke Frankensteins and actual gas powered mopeds and motorcycles use the bike lanes all the time. But you guys are from NYC so you know how it be.
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Followed a two stroke down the Williamsburg bridge last night riding my brakes and sucking fumes because he needs to go around the corners at 3mph but then hammered the throttle on the straight
In NYC it is usually a delivery person so although I wish they weren’t doing it, I give them a break in my mind because their job sucks. No such exceptions however for dudes in body armor and full face helmets blasting edm on their single wheel things and electric scooters and such.
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Cyberclowns!
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Man this makes me want to murder people. I’m not a fan of the single wheel things to begin with, but blasting edm would defo be punishable by death in my kingdom.
He didn’t bother to mention the headlight arms race