Bumped by a bus

I've been watching with pride as my adult daughter becomes more of a cyclist and cycling advocate in Toronto.
In theory, one of Canada's best cities for cycling. In practice . . .

She e-mailed me this week to note that she had been "bumped" by a bus. She's OK. Cracked fender and damaged rear wheel. Both departing from a stop, so a low-speed incident.

After I was happy to hear she was OK, I was really angry at the bus driver. That bus didn't "bump" a cyclist; it hit one. Buses and bicycles are part of the multi-modal urban transportation future. We are road warriors together. Bus drivers have to take extra care around vulnerable road users, and particularly with cyclists, their eco-brethren.

Generally, I have gotten along well with bus drivers, but have heard critical comments from other cyclists about bus drivers. What's your take on the bus-bicycle relationship? Are we BFF? Or perhaps not.

Comments

[Kaylen]

I've never had problems with buses while I was cycling, but I have had problems with GRT bus drivers when I've tried to use the bike racks. On two occasions, I've had drivers ask me to carry my bike on the bus rather than using the rack, which I consider much more convenient.

Of course I've used the bike racks many more times without incident, but I was still frustrated and confused by those occasions.

[Leslie]

Buses generally pass closer to me than cars do and I don't know if that's because the bus driver isn't as good at sensing how much room there is, or if it's some person anti-bike thing. Maybe bus drivers just need more education about this issue. I read somewhere a couple years ago that how close buses pass versus cars was studied and yes, buses do pass closer more often than cars. I believe, as with cars and was pointed out in an earlier blogpost, there are drivers behind the wheel of both these vehicles--they're not some driverless Stephen King bus/car creation out to get cyclists. Drivers (bus & car) need to take extra care around the more vulnerable users of the roadway: cyclists, scooter-users, and pedestrians.

[Dan R, Waterloo]

I agree with you. Generally, the bus-bike relationship is pretty good. I've been in a bus-bike altercation, though, and didn't escape as cleanly as your daughter.

While cycling in a bike lane, I had a school bus turn right across my path while the bus was passing me. I was OK (bumps and bruises, a couple cuts), but the bike was torn in two. When the driver eventually stopped 100m or so away, he asked if the police should be called. Uh, yeah!

[Bill]

I hear ya, Dan. It irritates the heck out of me when I hear that in some motorist-cyclist collision, there was doubt about whether authorities should be contacted. The attitude seems to be something like, "Well, it's not a REAL accident." What's a cyclist supposed to do in that case? Throw the bike into the car's windshield? Would that make it a "real" accident?

[Jeff]

I generally get along well with buses (or should I say "bus drivers?") Perhaps it's because I'm so low to the ground, that they typically give at least half a lane when they pass. I also tend to scoot over onto the sidewalk if I see they want to pass but can't because of traffic. Finally, since I ride the same route every day, I expect at least some of the drivers recognize me and (hopefully) respect my position on the road.

[mike]

Most buses are OK, but I have had some close calls. A bus attempted to pass me and must have misjudged my speed as before she made it by me she pulled to the curb and squeezed me between the back wheel and the curb. Some heavy breaking got me out of that one. Another time a bus driver successfully passed me and immediately pulled to the curb to let someone off. It was raining heavily and I barely got stopped in time. I would say there is definite room for improvement.