Rick,

First, I would like to say I appreciate what you have done to bring
attention to important issues from "outing" molesters that live in our
midst, to the border problems.

But I am writing today because I heard you say on the air (3/21,
around 9:40 am???), "I hate bicyclists that ride in the road". I also
listened to the podcasts of the 3rd and 4th hours of your program from
yesterday.

I am an X year old married father and ? engineer who regularly
bike commutes from home in [one SD area] to work in [another SD area], a
member of the San Diego Bicycle Club (sdbc.org), and a member of
the San Diego County Bicycle Coalition (sdcbc.org), the body that
advocates for all cyclists, particularly for our rights to ride in the
road, in San Diego County. I sometimes ride in groups, particularly
on the weekends, for all the reasons that you recognized yesterday.
I'm one those bees that you see buzzing around in "pods" from time to
time, sometimes taking up a whole lane. Along with all the other
drivers of slow moving vehicles in the road that may cause you to slow
down, including vintage cars, moving vans, busses, any vehicle slowing
down to park, horse and buggies, parking meter attendant carts,
bulldozers and cement trucks, sorry about that! But please don't hate
us for slowing you down a bit now and then. Please try to understand
why it is often necessary and legitimate.

I agree with you that outlaw cyclists are a big problem. I understand
that the vast majority of car-bike crashes could be prevented by
cyclist behavior. But, perhaps surprisingly, the behavior that needs
changing to prevent crashes does not include cyclists riding in the
the road. It does include cyclists running stop signs and red lights.
It does include cyclists riding on the wrong side of the street, or
on sidewalks, where they are unexpected. It does include cyclists
swerving out in front of faster traffic without yielding. It does
include cyclists riding in door zones, where, despite what the law
says, it is unreasonable to think everyone will remember to look, and
manage to see, a 15 mph cyclist approaching from behind before they
open their door right in front of them. It does include cyclists
passing slow or stopped traffic on the right in a bike lane, too
quickly, where they are unexpected by cross traffic. But, again, it
does not include cyclists simply riding legally in the road, where
they have the same rights and responsibilities as any other driver of
a vehicle. A cyclist simply riding in the road slowing you down is
not necessarily someone doing something wrong, illegal or
inappropriate.

Cyclist behavior that should be prevented or discouraged most
certainly does not include cyclists riding in the middle of a lane as
they approach any intersection where they are not turning right.
Riding too far right in such a situation is a major contributing
factor to so-called "right hooks", where right-turning motorists pass
and turn in front of, or into, a through cyclist riding only as far
right as it would make sense to do if he was turning right. This is
why bike lane stripes, as you may have noticed, change from solid to
dashed at intersection approaches. The change to dashing is to
encourage right-turning motorists to merge into the bike lane (as they
are required to do by law), and through cyclists to merge out of the
bike lane, so that their paths do not cross at the intersection.

Riding too far right at intersection approaches is also a major cause
of "left hook" collisions, where oncoming motorists who are turning
left into or across the cyclist's path do not see the cyclist because
he is riding where right-turning traffic is expected, not out in the
middle of the lane where they are looking for oncoming traffic. For
similar reasons, through cyclists staying in the bike lane as they
approach and cross at intersections is a major contributory cause to
"right crosses", where drivers in traffic coming from the right
(perhaps making a right on red) again, are less likely to pay
attention before entering the intersection.

The only reasonable interpretation of your "I hate bicyclists that
ride in the road" statement in the context that it was made, was that
you hate bicyclists who get in your way when you are driving a motor
vehicle. The problem I have with that statement is that you made no
concession for all of the countless legitimate situations for cyclists
to be in your way.

The obvious implication of such a statement is that bicyclists have,
or should have, some kind of obligation to get out of the way of motor
traffic. If there is no such obligation, then what would be the basis
for hating those who do not get out of your way?

Like all drivers of slow moving vehicles, cyclists do have a legal
obligation to keep "as far right as practicable" in certain very
specific situations: only between intersections, when same-direction
faster traffic is present (not vehicles that have the potential to go
faster, but vehicles that are actually moving faster), and only when
it is safe and reasonable to do so. The implications of the
exceptions of VC 21202 are not well known, much less understood, as is
made evident by statements such as yours. Here is the relevant
portion of the law, and a link to the whole thing, in case you're
interested (more comments below).

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
21202. (a) Any person operating a bicycle upon a roadway at a speed
less than the normal speed of traffic moving in the same direction at
that time shall ride as close as practicable to the right-hand curb or
edge of the roadway except under any of the following situations:

(1) When overtaking and passing another bicycle or vehicle proceeding
in the same direction.

(2) When preparing for a left turn at an intersection or into a
private road or driveway.

(3) When reasonably necessary to avoid conditions (including, but not
limited to, fixed or moving objects, vehicles, bicycles, pedestrians,
animals, surface hazards, or substandard width lanes) that make it
unsafe to continue along the right-hand curb or edge, subject to the
provisions of Section 21656. For purposes of this section, a
"substandard width lane" is a lane that is too narrow for a bicycle
and a vehicle to travel safely side by side within the lane.

(4) When approaching a place where a right turn is authorized.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

https://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/vctop/d11/vc21202.htm

Please pay particular attention to the exceptions. They are in there
for good reason. Yet most cyclists, much less motorists, are not aware
of them.

More often than many drivers realize, the slow lane may be too narrow
to be safely shared side-by-side, the bike lane may be full of glass
and other debris, I may be preparing for a left turn, moving further
right may be unsafe due to poor sight lines (in any situation where as
a motorcyclist you would not ride, say, 3 feet from the curb, even at
15-20 mph, because of poor sight lines, it is not reasonable to expect
a bicyclist to do so), I may be approaching a minor intersection, even
just a driveway ("a place where a right turn is authorized"), or
riding further right may put me into the "door zone" of parallel
parked cars (such as along some sections of La Village Drive, which I
heard you mention yesterday) where it is unsafe to ride closer than 5
feet to the parked cars, all of which are not only situations where I
am allowed to "take the lane", but often are situations where "taking
the lane" is the most appropriate place for me, even if you're
impatiently driving a car behind me. So, please, try to be patient.
And, please, don't hate me for riding in the road.

Making statements on the air like, "I hate bicyclists that ride in
the road" reinforces the ignorant notions about cyclists rights to
ride in the road that are already far too prevalent.

I, for one, would appreciate it if you took the time to look into this
issue further, and report to your listeners accordingly, rather than
flame the passions of their ignorance. I know the executive director
of the San Diego County Bicycle Coalition, Kathy Keehan
(execdir@sdcbc.org), and Jim Baross, our local traffic cycling guru
(the instructor of instructors), have already offered their time and
other resources, should you be interested in obtaining more
information on the topic of cyclists riding in traffic on the road. I
hope you take them up on it, and pass on what you learn to your
listeners.

Regards,