1 commentsNote: I write four articles a week for TreeHugger.com. I will occasionally post them here. You can read this article in its original context here
Caught at a Red Light
Last night I was biking home from the movie theater when I got caught at one of those red lights that cyclists dread. If you are a cyclist, you know the situation: you’re on a small road and need to turn onto a larger road. Unfortunately, the light only changes if a car trips a sensor under the road. Your options now are limited: you can either run the light, wait for a car to trip the sensor, or climb off your bike and push the cross-walk signal (if there is one.) Well, at first I waited for a car to come, to no avail. Nor did the street have a cross-walk signal. My only option was to run the light, but as a law abiding cyclist, I wasn’t terribly excited about the idea. One of my biggest pet peeves is seeing cyclists running lights and stop signs, riding on the wrong side of the road, etc. After all, while motorists often don’t seem to know how to share the road and put others in danger, cyclists greatly damage their image by not obeying the laws of the road.
A Bicycle is Not A Car
I ended up running the light after making sure there were no cars in the vicinity, but that’s not the point. I tell this story because it got me thinking about the fact that while cyclists have the same rights--and responsibilities--as motorists, a bicycle is NOT a car, and perhaps shouldn’t be treated as such. (Of course, I believe a bicycle can do everything a car can!) Conversely, if we are to really view bicycles in the same way as cars, at a a minimum from a legal perspective, then we have done a pitiful job of providing the requisite education and infrastructure to make that a reality.
I have had this same problem and quandary of conscience!
If this article is a sign of things to come on your blog, it’s going to be awesome. This reads and looks like a blog that is read by millions 
Or maybe at least thousands
Doug
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