genec

Driving or cycling under similar conditions... and why?

noisebeam

I give equal when motoring or cycling, but proportioned differently

Patrick_C

Equivalent.

Every vehicle operator (and pedestrian, for that matter) should be acutely aware of every other person on the road(s) around them that has the potential to kill or be killed by them.

The form of driving should differ across vehicle types, not the attentiveness.

timmhaan

maybe i don't understand the question...but there are more situations to be aware of on a bike.

in a car, i'm not as concerned with:

broken glass
loose dirt
uneven surfaces
lack of visibility
etc.

on a bike, i have to be aware of all that, plus everything else i would if i were driving.

crhilton

Cycling because I have to be aware of passing traffic in my lane. It's much more difficult to track vehicles passing you than the vehicle you're passing.

Cycling because I'm more likely to be able to slip in between the lines somewhere instead of waiting, but doing so requires greater care.

Cycling because it's harder to do a track stand than stop a car and restart and it's harder to put a foot down and restart than do a track stand and restart so I have to plan my "stops."

Cycling because when traffic gets moving again I have a half horse power to get started up (if I'm feeling very strong) where in a car I'd have plenty of power for my weight so I can stop and go abruptly.

unterhausen

I have a little problem with the question, because in general you have more SA on a bike than driving a car. However, you need it because cagers do not have as much information available to them, and ignore most of the information that is available to them.

There used to be a section of 2 lane highway near here that interrupted a 4 lane highway. Many people would go significantly lower than the speed limit, even though there was zero cross traffic and the roadway was smooth, wide and had gradual corners. Even then they were not exactly keeping their cars on a smooth trajectory. I finally realized that a lot of motorists are actually having at least a little difficulty keeping their vehicle on the road. It was a sobering realization.

JoeyBike

I voted both the same...

On a bike, the danger of my personal injury from a minor mistake is greater than a car. Falling off of 2 wheels for whatever reason will always hurt.

In a car, even though safer from minor mishaps, there comes the added responsibility of piloting a missile at high speeds while basically insulated from many cues in the outside world.

I drive a car very very differently than I ride a bike. I do not want the hassles involved with crashes - not to mention seriously hurting someone else. My personal "radar" is on full alert bike or car. I take nothing for granted.

-=(8)=-

From years of motorcycle riding my head is on a swivel, always
Car and bike. But with the bike, I know Im going to be in someones blind spot
somewhere in a line of traffic and possibly suffer the wrath of a redneck if I
go vehicular and inconvenience someone, but this is a regional issue.

SlimAgainSoon

Bike -- no contest.

Heck, I see drivers diddling around with phones, CDs, burgers, buddies ... sometimes kinda nodding off.

Doesn't appear to take all that much just to point that Pontiac down the road and hit the gas.

chipcom 

Both...situational awareness is not measured by degrees and is required by both activities.

noisebeam

stop being so sensible chip

uke

Cycling. You can't get away with nearly as much on a bicycle as you can in a car.

chipcom 

So basically you feel that if you are surrounded by that steel cage you can 'get away' with more. Interesting. Perhaps, if you drove with the same sense of exposure you have on your bike, you'd be a better driver.

genec

Yeah, but people don't do they...

Which begs the question... which really requires more situational awareness and why?

chipcom 

already answered. My level of situational awareness does not vary based on the activity, nor is it dictated by the lack of competence of others. I would hope others do the same, for their own sakes.

BarracksSi

If cyclists had a hand free for a burger, or could ride half-asleep, they'd be just as bad. I'm sure you've seen people riding hands-free while holding a cell phone to their head (heh... that's not what they mean by "hands-free cell phone usage".. ).

Bike or car, I've seen people do stuff that I tell myself to never do.

Riding a bike means taking note of more immediate hazards as mentioned earlier -- glass, potholes, etc. Not only is a car less likely to be affected by such hazards, but it's also less maneuverable, and you won't be able to jink out of the way quickly enough or without hitting something else in the process.

Driving a car means taking note of hazards farther ahead as well as nearby. The combination of greater speed and less flexibility means that you need to plan longer in advance and look farther ahead. If you need to switch lanes, you need to be keeping track of other vehicles a good distance ahead and to the rear -- as far as a city block, or maybe even farther on high speed roads.

Zan

people screw me around when i ride a bike.

when i ride 'round in my car, people back off.

when it comes to the intersection, if I have right of way in my car, they give me right of way. If i'm on my bike, somehow they always get right of way.

i feel that when i'm on the bike, i have to constantly be aware of what is in front of me, what is on my sides, and what is behind me. I have to scan ahead EVERY drive that I pass in case some inattentive driver doesn't see me and decides to back out and take me out in the process. I don't mind having to give this extra attention - kinda makes the sport more intense. When I'm in the car, other drivers take me a little more seriously, and have an easier time seeing me.

San Rensho 

In general, I would say that driving a car is slightly more difficult than riding a bicycle, since when you are driving a car, you are going at higher speeds, and at higher speeds more things are happening more quickly, so you have more inputs to process in the same time period.

But as far as situational awareness goes, whether I bicycle or whether I drive a car the intensity of taking everything in it's basically the same. I try to "look nowhere, but see everything" whether biking or driving.

hotbike

I replied "same", but I want to add that a car isolates the driver from noise, wind and road conditions, and cars have "blind spots" because of their roof pillars. So it's hard or impossible for a driver To be as Situationally Aware as a cyclist.

cyclezealot

Being in that cage, might lead to a greater sense of security. But, with it's higher speeds, its a false sense of security. They are equal in danger. Being broad sided by a truck in a car is little different than what we feel on a bike..
However, I think I feel a greater sense of safety on the bike.. I think that solid line separating cyclists from motorists rage, makes me think I am not in competition with fellow motorists for that piece of asphalt up ahead.