I was clipped by a cab on Thursday morning, while riding a
Citibike in downtown Manhattan.
We were going the same direction in a lane marked as a bike lane to be shared with cars. I was on the outside, and the cab came up from behind and tried to pass me while we shared the same lane. We brushed into each other, and both pulled over. The woman paying for the taxi ride looked at me sympathetically, while the driver shouted abuses. Luckily there were no serious injuries.
The experience left another deep impression of the conflict between motorists and cyclists. It seems to have gotten worse the last few months with the introduction of the Citi bike sharing program.
A few weeks back, there was an interesting and relevant NYT op-ed
Is It O.K. to Kill Cyclists?. I second the author's conclusions:
• as a cyclists, it often feels as if a lot of motorists are out to kill me.
• too many cyclists recklessly violate traffic laws, such as ignoring red lights, creating a reputation for cyclists as arrogant and negligent to others that share the road. This sucks.
