HBxRider

It's clear that many motorists have indifference, annoyance, distain, and even animosity, for cyclists. It could be because of preconceptions they have about cyclists, or because of conflicts they've experienced with unsafe cyclists that have influenced them to have a negative attitude towards us.

I believe that trying to remedy this by informing and educating motorists isn't very effective, just as giving a Yankees fan more knowledge on baseball statistics isn't going to lead them to be kind and courteous to Giants fans. It's mostly emotional and personal.

I believe the only effective way to get drivers to be safer towards cyclists, is for them to cycle themselves. Even if they do it very sparingly for recreation.

I know that when I started cycling, I became much more aware, patient, and respectful towards cyclists when I would drive my car. I'd give them more room when passing by, I would always look both ways when exiting a parking lot, I would be sure to check my blind spots when making a right turn at a red light, etc...

I think that a mutual understanding, and empathy between a motorist and a cyclist is more effective than a "Share the road" slogan, or a simple bike lane sign.

I would also bet that many drivers who almost hit me, but acknowledged they did something wrong, and apologized, probably road bikes themselves.

When i've visited Japan, i've always seen commuter cyclists and motorists coexist with very little conflict. I don't think it was because of signs and protests and other efforts to promote awareness being drilled into motorists heads. It was just the natural result of bicycling being so prevalent everywhere.

Hopefully with the skyrocketing gas prices, more people will take up bike riding, and that would lead for less of an "us versus them" mindset.

Frankly i'm surprised ideas like "bikecar", and a total unenforceable "3 ft rule when passing" law, are even considered to have any kind of significant impact. Basically, I don't think you can teach drivers how to be aware and respectful. It's a personal realization they have to reach on their own.

Getting more people to take up cycling, and cities building more infrastructure to encourage cycling is the only way to make the road safer for us.

Chris516

I agree with this, ONLY, when I am out for a bike ride. But if I have to be somewhere by a certain time, I won't have the time to devote to a momentary legal lesson on the traffic code. If I tried to do that in one particular city in my county, I would have to apprise the idiot motorist of the state, county, and city, codes. Also with the state's 'three foot passing' law. As for the 'three foot passing' law, I ignore it because a lot of motorists' also ignore it. But I don't ignore it the way motorists' do. I 'take the lane'. If a motorist wants to put their life in danger passing a cyclist by crossing the double yellow line, that is their choice. I am not going to let them force me off the road.

So educating them is a great thing. But when time is of the essence, education takes a momentary back seat.

Worknomore

Education might be effective for the majority of cagers if you deliver your lesson while holding a baseball bat. (sarcasm emoticon)

dynodonn 

My only trying to educate motorists is when I they make a poor passing distance decision, depending on the distance is to what level I take in trying to educate them, ranging from a polite informing to reporting the motorist to local law enforcement.

kjmillig

Education about bicyclists and pedestrians has to start when people are first learning how to drive, and must continue as they gain experience. Make it a big part of driver education, the initial driving test, and continue it with regular public service announcements, then vigorously enforce the law with drivers who infringe on bicyclists, pedestrians and other slower road users. Changing the laws to allow harsher punishments may also help when people start seeing mandatory jail time, hefty fines and restitution payments, and loss of license and vehicle.

UnsafeAlpine

I wonder what the initial driver education and subsequent education is like in Japan. Over here, it's nonexistent.

Digital_Cowboy

Agreed, and as we've said before in the past. Drivers education needs to start well before anyone actually gets behind the wheel of a car. Start it in grade school with bicycle safety, continue it into middle/junior high school with classwork and simulators before they get to high school and get their learners permit.

Add doing something like Florida does and tie the ability to get a learner's permit/drivers license with school attendance/performance.

As has been way too many times not only is driver education (here in the states) a joke, but so is law enforcement and the justice system. As there is no real incentive for motorists to learn new laws as they relate to cyclists. There also is no incentive for motorists to learn how to operate their vehicles around cyclists.

Everyone needs to learn that the streets are for EVERYONE not just the operators of one type/class of vehicle over another, but ALL types/class of vehicle operators.

B. Carfree

I'd like to agree with the OP, but the frequent postings both in A&S and in the 50+ subforums leads me to suspect that a lot of sometime cyclists manage to maintain a fair amount of animosity towards other folks on bikes. It's as though they think the only way to ride is the way they are riding, and since most of them are just out for a bit of leisurely rolling on bike paths, they are upset at those of us who have the nerve to use our bikes for local transportation, long-distance transportation and training.

I have had numerous instances where I have asked motorists why they had chosen to break the law in a way that put me at risk. The vast majority of the time the first thing they say is, "I'm a cyclist..." as though that means something. I suspect that kjmillig has the right idea with increased education coupled with realistic fines/prison sentences for scofflaw motorists.

unterhausen

I think education would help, but unfortunately it can't come from us. I'm pretty sure a lot of the really hair-raising incidents I've been involved were mainly because the person thought I was breaking the law, and they were just doing their part as junior deputy. The only training most people have had on cycling was what they learned from their parents when they were 5.

DX-MAN

U-H, you hit it; it's kind of funny that other people feel almost 'obligated' to 'correct' someone else, but ABSOLUTELY REFUSE TO ACCEPT THE SAME FROM ANOTHER PERSON!

Much as it pains me, I have to say that WE WILL NEVER, FROM OUR POSITION ON THE ROAD, EDUCATE SO MUCH AS ONE PERSON. People must be OPEN to learning, and they are certainly NOT so while behind the wheel. Nor will they accept 'teaching' from another road user, especially one they consider 'inferior'. I have yet to meet a driver who doesn't think there's something deficient about me because I ride.

The pervasive philosophy of "car ownership=status" is SO ingrained in the American psyche that ANYONE who doesn't buy into it HAS TO have something WRONG with them. Immature, unmanly, *****exual, derelict, homeless....the list goes on.

Maybe it's about time the CDC and the FDA put their heads together and decide that "cyclosis" is in fact, a mental disorder, much like ADHD, nonthreatening but nevertheless a disability, so we can all CASH IN.

I'm kidding, of course.

It's up to the powers that be behind the DMV/BMV (according to the state in question); THEY have to stress the importance of drivers knowing the traffic laws as they relate to bikes. Testing must also become more rigorous, and more frequent.

Looigi

It won't change human nature, but driver ed is all good and can do nothing but help. Kind of silly to argue against it.

Chris516

I happen to stop by a local driving school the other day, to find out how much importance they themselves place on future drivers knowing the traffic code. They told me, they go by the criteria set forth by the state. Which means no importance at all.

Chris516

Even before a new driver can be an idiot behind the wheel, they learn their idiocy from the driving schools'. The driving schools go by criteria set forth by the state, as to which parts of the traffic code to focus on, and which parts to ignore. Cyclist's rights falls under 'preferred ignorance', not just by driving schools. But by the states' too.

sauerwald

Most drivers are fine, it is a small minority of drivers who drive like idiots. In my opinion, the problem is that we as a society are not willing to revoke the driving privilege of that minority. Then end result is that we have a minority of drivers who vastly degrade the safety of our entire road system, not just for cyclists, but for motorists. If we had much stronger enforcement of existing laws, with revocation of license being a real consequence, then I believe that we would get the worst of the drivers off the road, and improve the behaviour of many of the others.

The issue is not so much the lack of education, it is the lack of any incentive for a driver to either educate themselves, or to drive responsibly.

mnemia

There are a lot of motorists out there who are genuinely ignorant about the laws as they pertain to cyclists. As many have said, we simply don't bother to educate them or require that they educate themselves. This is because American society doesn't believe that motorists knowing the traffic laws is a big priority. Most motorists believe that they already do know the laws, and that they are above-average in driving skills, and so they don't see the need. They mistake the frequency with which they engage in the activity of driving for actual skill at driving. And this is understandable; in most areas of life, people are better at things that they do a lot of. But they forget that repetition doesn't automatically equal skill if you aren't practicing the correct behaviors (such as safe driving around cyclists). People need to actually be told/shown how to drive correctly, and THEN put that knowledge into practice.

I agree with the people who said that the education effort needs to start young, before people are even old enough to drive. It also should be done in schools and not just by observation of parents. Learning by watching is one way that young people learn to drive, but it's also a way that they may pick up the bad habits of their parents. So it needs to be supplemented by an actual skills development curriculum over a long period of time. While I understand the reasons why schools have largely shifted away from practical education (like home economics, drivers education, civics, etc) I think that much of this shift has been a mistake. Learning things like good driving skills are at least as important in our society as learning things like how to do math and write essays. Yet they have been totally deemphasized, in a very short-sighted way.

mnemia

I don't really agree. I agree with you that a small minority are responsible for most of the problems on the roads, and that most drivers are pretty safe. But I don't agree that this is evidence that lack of driver education isn't a problem. The reason most drivers are pretty safe is because most people aren't sociopaths. So they try to "figure out" the best way to drive safely, by experience. In other words, they aren't TRYING to drive aggressively and dangerously, and most of the time they do okay. And I agree that the small violent minority who show no regard for the safety of others simply need to be removed from the road. But that doesn't mean that education wouldn't be beneficial for the rest. Many people don't know the laws, and don't know how to handle "unusual" (in their experience) situations such as how to handle passing a cyclist on a narrow road or how to watch for and avoid dooring someone. So while we could certainly greatly improve the situation just by getting the dangerous minority off of the road, we could also improve it by working on the driving skills and knowledge of the majority who don't really WANT to hurt someone, but don't necessarily know the best way to avoid it sometimes.

genec

The best situation we could ask for is a two tiered approach that involves proper bicycle use as a prerequisite to motor vehicle training. These classes should be the 4th R in school... Road Use. The motor vehicle training should build upon the bicycle in traffic training with simulator time, exploration of laws and responsibilities and ethics behind the privilege of driving.

WolfsBane

I agree that education needs to start at the time that a person is going through the process of obtaining a driver's license and at the time a cyclist intends to take to the road. It needs to be concerted, and delivered using various forms of printed and broadcasted media. And it should be the responsability of all parties involved.

For starters, the concept of "Share the road" is grand in theory. But it does not drive the message home strongly enough. The message should be that with a few exceptions, bicycles have the same rights AND RESPONSABILITIES on the roads. Unless this point is driven home, this country will still have problems with motor vehicle operator believing that bycicles have no business being on the roads, and chosing to use their motor vehicles as a medium to force that opinion on cyclist that they encounter.

DX-MAN

I'm reminded of the conversation I had with the local Public Info Officer some time back....

I ran down my theory for him:
On any given day in this city, there are 50,000 drivers on the roads;
35,000 have NO CLUE about bike traffic laws;
10,000 would have a problem with bikes on the road;
2500+ would be willing to 'make their point' with sheetmetal.

He conceded that those numbers were likely accurate....

mjsocal

I like this reply. If I had been given this, I do believe I would have retained it as part of my training and driving behavior.

As to the OP, I understand what you are saying and would add a few more things that may (but not always) inadvertently lead to safer driving around cyclists...being in a major car accident that threatened your life, almost being injured by a car as a pedestrian, or losing someone in a cycling accident. These tend to make some people aware of the fragility of others' lives around them, not an easy way to learn.