mgw4jc

Hello, I'm a Newbie, but you can call me Matt. "Hi Matt." I'm not a newbie to bike commuting, nor am I a newbie to forums, just a newbie here. I looked a bit for a Pet Peeve thread before posting this. Anyway...

I find it really odd when a car is catching me as we are approaching a stop sign and they initiate a safe pass. However, we are on pace to reach the stop sign at the same time. This puts them awkwardly in the middle of the road at an intersection. What are they thinking here?

It doesn't happen if I'm turning left because I'll signal and/or take the lane in time to prevent this. But if I'm going straight or right, they somehow think they can get around me before the stop sign.

Is this a common occurrence for other riders? What are some of your pet peeves?

Leebo

Uhh, it's not a safe pass then. take the LANE, esp. approaching an intersection.

MMACH 5

I usually take the lane while approaching an intersection. Actually, the majority of roads in the Dallas area are sub-14ft, so I take the lane most of the time.

Having said that, there's about a 10-mile section of my 52-mile commute that is on a road with wide lanes. It allows cars to safely share my lane. However, at intersections, I usually merge into the lane to prevent right hooks.

CommuteCommando

My big one is cars turning right at a signal where there is a bike lane, staying to the left of the bike lane as a "courtesy" so the bikes can pass. They are usually surprised to see me pull up on their left to wait for the light. I am waiting for one of them to roll down the window to tell me they left me room, so I can tell them the I am not insane enough to put myself to the right of a right turning car.

In California, and I suspect most other places, the bike lanes go from a solid 6" white line to a dashed 6" white line a hundred feet or so before an intersection so cars turning right can get next to the curb, and bikes can leave the bike lane to take the through lane and go around. There are descriptions in the vehicle code and drivers hand book that actually describe this as the proper way.

robert schlatte

Some drivers just have this pig headed notion that bicycles are impeding their progress and need to be passed at any location, including right before a stop. I have even had drivers try to overtake before a stop sign when I have taken the lane. Boy, they look stupid sitting in the middle of the street!

Rick@OCRR

My pet peeve isn't concerned with drivers but rather people who stand in the "bike area" on the Metro train. These areas are marked for strollers, luggage and bicycles. not for JSA (just standing around).

Sometimes when I roll my bike up to the "bike area" the "standers" do move (most of the time there are seats available on the train too!) but other times they just keep standing there, pretty much oblivious or maybe it's territorial, I don't know.

Anyway, that's my pet peeve.

Rick / OCRR

fietsbob

the J hook .. driver passing you then turning immediately, in front of you, rather than just slowing for a moment,
then making the same turn after you pass the corner..

They would not do that with a Truck, or Train ..

CommuteCommando

+1 I ride the Metrolink trains and the limited seating in the bike storage area, where cyclist could sit to watch their bikes, are all too often filled with "civilians" who don't realize that there are five of six other cars on the train without specialized bike storage.

teddywookie

Two days ago a pickup passed me on a residential street, and I could almost see the thought bubble above the cab, "if I slow down for this speed table, the bike will pass me." BUH-BAM SQUEAK SQUEAK SQUEAK. I smiled.

teddywookie

Hi, Matt! I am also fairly new. Peeves, peeves, peeves ... well, two nights ago the freezing rain and snow locked up the lateral motion of my rear derailler. Couldn't change gears. That sucked. And motorists. I would appreciate a lot fewer motorists.

gregjones

They think that you are supposed to be "running in place" so as not to cool down during the train ride.

mgw4jc

Good stuff.

How about the pedestrian dog-walker that does not look when crossing a neighborhood street? I'm guessing that because they do not hear a car coming, they are able to cross. They are usually quite startled to realize a silent cyclist is upon them.

JacobKinsella

I was also looking for a thread like this!

Mine is probably when cars stop at traffic lights and sit in the ASL (advanced stop line) made for bicycles only.

Another is when I see other cyclists riding on the pavement!

devianb

I also hate it when they have really long leashes and allow the dog to wander all over and hog the road or MUP. When riding through campus it irritates me when people walk in the bike lanes when they have a 12 foot wide sidewalk right next to it.

CommuteCommando

Dog walkers on Bike Paths that let their dog pull their trip wires. . . er leashes across the path.

lhbernhardt

I am annoyed by drivers who don't signal their turns, or start signaling after they have started their turns. Cyclists quite often need to know the driver's intention prior to the action in order to position properly. A lot of drivers don't really think about what they're doing. I'm convinced that this is why they get into traffic jams. Traffic for cars would flow much more smoothly if drivers thought about the entire system, and how their individual actions would impact the entire system, but of course, they don't. They just don't think. And this act of signalling after the turn initiated is proof of this - the signalling is not to let you know what they're going to do, it's to be in compliance with some law that says they have to signal. Idiots!

My other pet peeve is "sloppy driving." This manifests itself in drivers taking "the racing line" on left turns, where they take part of the opposing lane in completing their turn. Very sloppy. And very dangerous if you happen to be in that part of the opposing lane, waiting to make a left turn.

Luis

fietsbob

Riding thru Pet Poop that is just left there, and not picked up by the owner, is a pet peeve.

plastic bag in your back pocket whenever you walk the dog, People !

mgw4jc

Does that make it a pet pet peeve?

mstraus

I have had some really determined drivers try to pass me at odd and sometimes unsafe times, and I often then wind up catching them as its on roads that are not that fast moving. A few times I have even passed them again when there is a bike lane...that really gets them mad.

spare_wheel

Surly cross checks, brooks saddles, showers pass jackets, gatorskin tires, sks fenders, and ks salmon pads irritate the @#$% out of me.

CommuteCommando

A good example of this was pointed out by a friend, and experienced traffic engineer. On multi-lane highways when the traffic starts slowing a little, a lot of drivers start changing lanes to get into one that is moving faster. As more people do this, that lane slows due to higher volume, and people start moving back into the previously abandoned, and now faster moving lane. A driver with the skills of a Mario Andretti or Dale Earnhardt may get ahead doing this. Mots of us it gets no where. In addition this makes the entire system flow slower.

I am also annoyed when cruising on a long open multi-lane, when some clown in a Beemer passes to my right, pulls in front and slows down, causing me to disengage my cruise. I am amazed that someone with the resources to afford a BMW, does not have the wherewithal to figure out how the cruise control works.

Back on topic.

Salmon.

xtrajack

My pet peeve(s) are, in no particular order;
Salmon
Ninjas
Folks (over the age of 12) riding their bicycles on the sidewalk

thermalattorney

I can't really see this thread going anywhere productive but I'll flame on with some minor pet peeves about my fellow NYC cyclists (who are usually pretty good to each other):

1) Cyclists who leave their lights set to blink/flash while crossing bridges. There's no traffic to warn so turn those puppies on steady!
2) Getting shoaled by slower cyclists repeatedly over the course of several lights. If someone is faster than you, don't stop in front of them.
3) Cyclists circling slowly at lights. Do everyone a favor and put a foot down or trackstand.
4) Cyclists that get mad a cabs or other drivers. I've totally seen some road-rage incidents involving truly petty stuff and if you can't get over the small things then the city isn't for you. Save your anger for when something actually happens.

illdoittomorrow

Once, while stopping at a stop sign (though I didn't take the lane when I did), the driver behind me gunned it, swerved, and blew the stop sign on the wrong side of the road. It beat sitting there in the middle of the road, I suppose.

They would, and do, here. It just doesn't result in fatalities often enough for anyone to do anything about it.

caloso

These.