Moron of the week, #29

I've fallen behind on the moron-citing, but I rediscovered a lengthy email from Christina Mills of Waterloo describing her encounter with one earlier this month, which she calls MOTW.

Seems she was riding west on Columbia Street in Waterloo, when she saw a cyclist who was riding on the sidewalk, until he approached a pedestrian, when he would move off to the adjacent bicycle lane, and once past the ped, would swerve back onto the sidewalk. Mills caught up to the cyclist and a conversation ensued that went something like: "Just curious, why are you riding on the sidewalk when there's a bike lane right beside it?" MOTW replies: "I like the sidewalk." Mills asks, "Do you know it's illegal?" MOTW says, "Yes." Mills says, "Oh, do you also know it endangers pedestrians and gives cyclists a bad name?" MOTW simply shrugs.

So, she passes MOTW only to meet yet another moron going the wrong way on the bike lane she was in. His response to a near collision was to swerve up onto the sidewalk and narrowly miss a pedestrian.

Mills says "So many morons, so little apparent chance of getting through to them."

Comments

[jjv]

Between Columbia St and Seagram Dr, I don't know which has more cyclists going the wrong way in the bike lanes. Who raised these people? Do the bike and diamond symbols now need and arrow and the word only?!

jjv.

[flying pigeon]

so you feel that a person who would rather not have two ton chunks of metal flying within inches of him at 60km/h, and therefore segregates himself by riding along existing grade separated infrastructure while also having the decency to extend courtesy to pedestrians by giving them the full path, should be considered a moron?

[RandB]

Two things that I would like to see. One would be a driver's test for bicyclists. And I am of two minds on this as a test can also be used discourage cycling and to remove the freedom of access to the roads that cyclists are used to.

The other would be that automobile drivers get a reduction of their insurance premiums if they have passed a driver's test for bicyclists. If done properly this test will deal with issues of when to take the lane, how to drive safely in traffic, how to drive on the sidewalk and MUTs, lights and visibility. By giving the automobile drivers a reduction of their insurance premiums to pass the test they have a reason to learn how cyclists should be behaving on the roads. By having cyclists take the test we would have more cyclists knowing to behave that way.

At some point peer pressure and everyone understanding how cyclists are supposed to drive around here would reduce the number of morons on the sidewalks and going the wrong direction on the bicycle lanes.

[jimmy]

I see no problem riding on the sidewalks. In many countries such as Japan, it's legal and commonplace. As long as people ride responsibly and show respect to pedestrians, I see no problem. It appears we as a nation are morons if we can't handle such a simple issue.