Cyclists Have Rights BUT....

.....they need to take responsibility for those that don't abide by the rules, both the legal and common sense ones-
- riding on the sidewalk
- ignoring stop signs
- making illegal left/right hand turns
- not obeying one way street signs

- and I am sure more can be added to the list. Also every bike should be registered, not necessarily licensed, to eliminate the current debacle where valuable police resources are being spent on finding the owners of thousands of stolen bikes.

Beware! Bikes barrelling through tunnel TheStar.com - Fixer - Beware! Bikes barrelling through tunnel

July 29, 2008

Leslie Ferenc
Staff Reporter

The Fixer has heard plenty of legitimate beefs from cyclists about inconsiderate motorists – the ones that run them off the road or open doors without looking as they cycle by and then give them the finger, or those that lean on the horn and scare them out of their spandex shorts.

But this time, the shoe's on the other foot.

Caller Tim Leclair complained cyclists are a safety hazard for pedestrians walking through the King St. underpass just west of Sudbury St.

Signs posted at the entrances of the underpass advise cyclists to dismount. Some just ignore them. They race through the tunnel, whizzing past pedestrians "and ring their bells as they pass," he reported.

With barriers erected along the raised sidewalk next to the road and the walls of the underpass on the other side, it's hard to get out of the way of cyclists.

"My 10-year-old has almost been hit a couple of times and I've seen small dogs hit," Leclair said, adding that some cyclists got nasty when he rebuked them for not walking their bikes.

One would think cyclists would be more obliging considering the hassles that confront them on city roads.

Leclair suggested the city install gates at the entrances to the underpass, forcing cyclists to get off their duffs and follow the posted rules.

On a visit to the underpass, The Fixer saw one cyclist riding in the tunnel. At the time, there were no pedestrians at peril. The cyclist was blind to the sign posted as clear as the nose on his face.

STATUS: Steve Johnston, spokesperson for the works department, said he'd make some calls to let us know who handles such matters. We'll let you know the outcome as soon as we hear back.

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