I've been an avid cyclist for almost 40 years, as well as doing a lot of driving, so I've seen both sides of the coin. Not only do bicyclists rarely stop for stop signs, neither do drivers. It's rare to see any vehicle operator come to a complete stop at a stop sign. Right of way is generally determined not by the method prescribed by law (the vehicle on the right has the right of way) but by which operator is the most aggressive versus the most deferential. But as a cyclist, my biggest beef is with drivers who stop for cyclists when the driver has the right of way. It creates a dangerous situation for the cyclist (I have very nearly been killed or seriously injured in this situation). Americans have not yet figured out how to mix cars and bikes, but we'll get there. Bikes and drivers both need to know and follow the rules of the road, and neither are very good at this yet.

as "Helter" has indicated, the proper Rules of the Road for bicyclists. Most of the bicyclists in this town blithely make it up as they go along. Riding on the wrong side of the road, rolling through stop signals, crossing intersections on sidewalks as if they were pedestrians, etc. My biggest beef however is with these holier-than-thou lycra-clad uber-bicyclist yuppies who are too cool or sumpthin to ride on the very bike paths that they themselves probably lobbied the city to spend scads of money on. A badly-needed public service for the STRIB would be to publish a big-splashy article every spring on the rules of the road for bicyclists. That would contribute mightily to the safety of both bicyclists and car drivers and motorcyclists … of which I do all three.

I cycle everyday and wish my fellow cyclists here would: 1)slow down at stops signs and if there are any cars in any direction, STOP. It really ticks off drivers when you blow through. Another cyclist is gonna have to deal with a ticked off driver down the road. 2)stop at stop lights and, if its a light that doesnt sense the presence of a bike, then go through when safe. 3)give some room to a car making a right turn on red. we cyclists win a friend for life when we do that. In my humble opinion.

Even though you don't like bikes on the roads and parkways, they are legally entitled to be there. The parkway/lakes path speed limit for bikes is 10 MPH, so by default every lycra-clad fast rider is gonna be on the road. Whether you like it or not. Deal with it.

futurics, pay attention to the signs and realize the bike paths are often filled with pedestrians, kids and strollers. If I'm going over 10 mph I'm going on the roads I'm legally allowed to use. And give me the 3 feet that's required by law.

Instead of an us-vs-them scenario, many bikers use cars, too. The last time I drove a car, I yielded on my left turn to a cyclist going straight. A horn blared behind me as a very angry, wild-eyed woman apparently wanted me to plow into the cyclist just so she could go faster. Road-ragers like her need to realize that not all other motorists share their anti-bike views. Some might even phone in their plate numbers to the police department. And fellow cyclists, please don't get mad at the ones that stop for us when they have the right of way--they mean well. Just wave 'em through.

I switch between biking, driving, and taking the bus to work, and I'd say the bus drivers are the best drivers on the road around cyclists.

One of the most dangerous bike situations I can think of is the case of bicycle crosswalks spanning 2-way, 4 lane streets. The rules for these need to be better defined. For example, anyone who rides the LRT through St. Louis Park is familiar with this situation. Where the bike path crosses Louisiana Ave, bikers are required to stop and wait until traffic is clear. However, quite often, 1 car will stop at the crosswalk to allow the bikers to cross. Very often, another car in the other lane won't. It gives the biker a false sense of security that it is safe to cross. The biker begins to cross, and is nearly hit by the car that doesn't decide to stop. If the bicyclist doesn't cross right away, it confuses and angers the drivers who think the bicyclist is hesitant to cross. Its a very inefficient system all around. These situations need to be dealt with.

...I was on that same trail this evening on an 18 mile post-work ride (15.4 miles of which was on trails). An SUV Driver going N bound stopped to let me cross, but nearly was rear ended by a pickup behind her. I appreciate the courtesy that the SUV driver offered, but waved her on before the pickup driver did something aggressive. Me and my bike (net weight <200 lbs.) is no match for any motor vehicle. With that said, the sad thing is that even the bike community is not united around the concept of obeying the law, there is a small subset of bikers who believe that bikes should get the right-of-way under all circumstances, even running red lights, etc. I ran into this when I rode in last September's memorial bike ride. There were bikers who were advocating to not stop for lights, to block traffic to let bicyclists though on reds, etc. It really made a lot of drivers angry and I don't think those types understand that to get respect, you need to give respect. Fortunately, the vast majority of bikers & drivers try to operate safely. Anyone in an accident knows it's not fun. So, ride safe, drive safe and we all can go home.

... I used the less than symbol and it hacked the rest of my post off... so... it went... (net weight less than 200 lbs) is no match for a motorized vehicle. Ride safe, drive safe and we all can go home.