Originally Posted by JoeyBike

After a two year break from working and commuting through/in the city grid (New Orleans, USA) I have been pleasantly surprised upon my return by the actions of motorists while playing with/talking on their smart-phones and iPhones. The very same actions of these folks that annoy me behind the wheel of a car just delight me so when cycling in heavy city traffic. I have a fairly fast, aggressive riding style. I split lanes, run lights and stop signs, and only slow down or stop to grant right-of-way to motorists and sometimes pedestrians. So why on earth would I LOVE it when motorists are distracted with their phones? Ah...let me count the ways!

1. Many motorists drive slower when yacking, texting, messing with GPS, Google Maps, whatever. Since I cruise around town between 20 and 25 mph, the slower auto speeds almost assures that motor vehicles will NEVER catch up to me. Some people can't walk and chew gum at the same time and it is now my experience that they can't drive and talk simultaneously either. The slower yacker then slows EVERYBODY down! I can just follow in their draft or leave them in the dust while enjoying a nice car free gap in front of them. Since they never catch up, I am not too concerned with getting "steam-rolled" by their lack of attentiveness. I have actually found that motorists on their phones give me more cushion when behind me in traffic.

Originally Posted by JoeyBike

2. Over the past three months I have been shocked at how the iFools respond to crossing traffic including bicycles. Since iFools are generally not paying close attention to the road or road markings, every time I encounter an iYacker or iTexter at an intersection, even if they have the right of way, they slap on their brakes assuming they missed seeing a stop sign. At first I thought it coincidence, but now after literally hundreds of encounters I have to conclude that my life is better, and my ride less interrupted by motorists because so many people are on the phone behind the wheel, and they slap on the brakes at every active intersection. It has gotten to where I almost never have to stop.

I split lanes a lot. Probably pass 1000 cars each way to work and back. I have noticed that:

3. Yackers are not going to change lanes. It just never happens. When yackers are on "auto pilot" they just stay put in their lane and follow the bumper in front of them. They become slower and more predictable when on the phone.

Originally Posted by JoeyBike

4. If a Yacker is going to change lanes, he/she must turn their heads more degrees of radius thanks to the blind spot created by their hand and phone pressed to their ear - most often their left ear (driver's side of the car). This is way better than a turn signal because I can SEE their heads turn when I am next to their vehicle out of sight of their rear lights. Simply - I get more cues before cars change lanes.

Originally Posted by JoeyBike

5. When a light turns green I can be sure that many drivers will be slow off the light because they are looking at their device. This makes it very easy to find a gap to get into while splitting lanes. In other words, as I split lanes past dozens of cars stopped at a red light, sometimes the signal turns green before I get all the way to the front. In order to "merge" into the line of cars that has begun to move through the green light it is so much easier to find an opening when people are delayed in getting started. The gaps between cars are now enormous and easy to find.

Originally Posted by JoeyBike

6. Last but not least, motorists stuck in traffic just seem happier. They can talk to friends, get work done, shop the internet, look at porn, whatever. The phone is like a crack addiction, so those with smart phones (one-third of all mankind in the USA) are ALWAYS playing with them and tickling whatever pleasure receptors are available in their brains. And we all know when staring into a computer screen (or phone screen) all sense of time vanishes. No one on a phone seems to be in a rush. I love happy motorists - especially when they wave me through an intersection where they have the right-of-way! It happens all the time now.

Originally Posted by JoeyBike

I have been strictly against cell phone laws for motorists for some time. No one obeys laws. Set your cruise control on EXACTLY 70mph on the freeway and see what happens. There are laws - the speed LIMIT is clearly posted. People just ignore the law unless there is a cop in sight. Same with cell phone laws. Those crackheads are never going to stop texting behind the wheel. I prefer they text on top of the steering wheel - not in their laps as they try to hide their actions. Cell phone laws would only endanger all of us further UNLESS they draw the exact same penalties as drunk driving. Still, they will yack just like drunks still drive. They cannot help themselves. I can't imagine how brutal the penalty would be to make iFools hang up and drive.

Originally Posted by JoeyBike

Now don't get me started on pedestrians on the phone! Those Meanderthol Zombies are getting killed right and left these days as they stroll in front of moving traffic more and more. I must be on the highest alert when cycling anywhere near an iZombie.