There is a growing trend in Raleigh and in the United States of people riding bicycles to get around. This is great for a lot of reasons: Bicycles don’t have the same environmental impact as cars and other motor vehicles; they are a healthy way to get around; and they are incredibly cost effective. For all of these reasons and more, I think bicycles are a great way to get from point A to point B. Unfortunately, these great benefits can come at a great cost when people ride their bikes in the street.
I understand why people ride their bikes in the street; it seems convenient for the most part. On the other hand, I have personally witnessed two instances of people crashing because of riding in the street. One was a driver’s fault and one was the fault of the cyclist herself.
The first time, I saw a pickup truck rear-end the bicycle in front of it. It seems to me that riding a bicycle in the street is very dangerous and not really worth the risk. Fortunately, in neither of the accidents that I saw did anyone get injured at all, but they could have. I know that especially in Raleigh there have been numerous bike lanes added to the streets to make them safer for cyclists, but they do not make it completely safe. The girl I saw fall over was in a bike lane, and she fell into the street in front of traffic. There is just not enough space even with bike lanes for cars and bicycles to interact safely.
If it is necessary to ride a bike, it may be a better idea to ride on the sidewalk. If you ride on the sidewalk, then if there is an accident, you are risking hitting people instead of cars. While this is not ideal, riding on the sidewalk significantly reduces the chance of serious injury.
Dangers aside, it seems like riding a bike would be very impractical. I am not trying to deny the benefits of riding a bike, but it seems like a bike is only practical for certain situations. One practical problem with bicycles is the problem of distance. A bicycle is not a convenient way to travel for long distances. In addition to distance, bicycles can’t carry a lot of things like cars or other forms of transportation. Bicycles also don’t protect the rider from extreme temperatures and weather. There are many practical issues with using bicycles.
The combination of practical issues and the danger of riding in the street seems to be enough to validate looking for other options. There is merit in riding a bike for recreation or exercise, in which case the practical problems would not apply, but if you are riding your bike for those reasons then there is no reason to ride in the street. Riding your bike for other reasons, like to get to work or school, may be a bad idea if you have to travel on roads. There are lots of other options for getting from place to place like cars, walking and public transportation. Using a bike for a main source of transportation is too dangerous and impractical.
