I can agree with the part about "gearing down a notch", but somehow these types of articles always seem to end up focusing on the renegade behavior of a couple cyclists, which are in the VAST minority anyway, and taking the focus away from the arrogance and insulary behavior of motorists--for example the huge number of them who talk on their cell phones when their full attention should be on the road.
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Editorial: Cyclists, the Police and the Rest of Us
New York Times
December 29, 2006
Urban bike riders often feel they’re pedaling on virtuous ground, striking a blow against pollution and traffic congestion. That’s particularly true of a movement called Critical Mass, which holds demonstrations around the world on the last Friday of every month, tonight included. Thousands of riders will take to the streets. They’ll force cross traffic to stop and wait as the bikes all whiz by. There have been scuffles in the past with the police in San Francisco and in Seattle, but lately nothing compares to the confrontations in New York, where the stare-down between cyclists and police officers keeps escalating, threatening to create a losing proposition for both sides.
The New York police, who deem Critical Mass an illegal parade and have drafted a law that would essentially ban it, have seemed obsessed with the rides since one coincided with the Republican National Convention in August 2004. Officers arrested 264 cyclists then. There are fewer arrests now, but the response is no less disproportionate. An amazing array of police resources — scooters, vans, unmarked cars and helicopters — chase a quarry that looks like fish in a barrel. Police vehicles race the wrong way and on sidewalks, posing a greater public danger than the bikers.
The department’s proposed parade law — which would greatly restrict the right of assembly for even small groups — goes overboard and isn’t likely to stop the monthly rides anyway. Considering that more than 200 cyclists have died in traffic in New York over the last decade, including two hit by motorists on a bike path recently, the department should have better priorities. The police should pay more attention to the real problems — everyday cyclists who ignore red lights and one-way street signs, and motorists who crowd and cut off bikers.
Law-abiding bicyclists could win a lot of hearts if they focused more on bad behavior by fellow bikers. That includes the Critical Mass practice of corking streets — as halting cross traffic is called — which is an odd way for cyclists to make their case that biking is the answer to gridlock. Ride leaders should work with the police to chart a route and allow officers to stop traffic for them, as was done before the 2004 confrontations. As both sides prepare for the year’s final ride, we’d like to see everyone gear down a notch.
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Editorial: Cyclists, the Police and the Rest of Us
New York Times
December 29, 2006
Urban bike riders often feel they’re pedaling on virtuous ground, striking a blow against pollution and traffic congestion. That’s particularly true of a movement called Critical Mass, which holds demonstrations around the world on the last Friday of every month, tonight included. Thousands of riders will take to the streets. They’ll force cross traffic to stop and wait as the bikes all whiz by. There have been scuffles in the past with the police in San Francisco and in Seattle, but lately nothing compares to the confrontations in New York, where the stare-down between cyclists and police officers keeps escalating, threatening to create a losing proposition for both sides.
The New York police, who deem Critical Mass an illegal parade and have drafted a law that would essentially ban it, have seemed obsessed with the rides since one coincided with the Republican National Convention in August 2004. Officers arrested 264 cyclists then. There are fewer arrests now, but the response is no less disproportionate. An amazing array of police resources — scooters, vans, unmarked cars and helicopters — chase a quarry that looks like fish in a barrel. Police vehicles race the wrong way and on sidewalks, posing a greater public danger than the bikers.
The department’s proposed parade law — which would greatly restrict the right of assembly for even small groups — goes overboard and isn’t likely to stop the monthly rides anyway. Considering that more than 200 cyclists have died in traffic in New York over the last decade, including two hit by motorists on a bike path recently, the department should have better priorities. The police should pay more attention to the real problems — everyday cyclists who ignore red lights and one-way street signs, and motorists who crowd and cut off bikers.
Law-abiding bicyclists could win a lot of hearts if they focused more on bad behavior by fellow bikers. That includes the Critical Mass practice of corking streets — as halting cross traffic is called — which is an odd way for cyclists to make their case that biking is the answer to gridlock. Ride leaders should work with the police to chart a route and allow officers to stop traffic for them, as was done before the 2004 confrontations. As both sides prepare for the year’s final ride, we’d like to see everyone gear down a notch.
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Washington, D.C.
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Re: CM editorial in NY Times
Mon, January 1, 2007 - 9:06 PMi couldn't agree more. i thought the editorial started off strong and then ended up like a limp dish rag. no spine, no spunk. they want to placate everybody and end up saying nothing at all.
"everyday cyclists who ignore red lights and one-way street signs" - this seems trivial when you consider the huge inequity at work here between the car-centric mainstream and the cyclists whose lives are threatened by them every day. -
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Re: CM editorial in NY Times
Thu, January 4, 2007 - 6:49 PMhowever, i think the overall affect of the NY Times having an editorial like this on critical mass which mostly seems against the parade rules is a really good thing. a friend pointed this out.... i think i was missing the larger picture.
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Re: CM editorial in NY Times
Fri, January 5, 2007 - 12:28 AMIf you want to get a feel on how some Long Island, NY people think in regards to CM, then check out this thread, its at a local Mountain bike forum.
I'm Mark ride in the threads
www.visionmtb.com/forumvb/showthread.php -
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Re: CM editorial in NY Times
Fri, January 5, 2007 - 11:06 AMsounds like the reaction to CM in any city really. The same non CM-ers are alive and well in SF.
But- yeah, LI is freakin bad for recreational cyclists, let alone commuters and others who don't use a car to get around.
Visiting in Nov, I was thinking that all the towns were close enough together that its theoretically easy to ride to wherever you are going. It wouldn;t take much to set aside some greenways or lesser used arterials and link up a bike lane/route/apth network that actually goes somewhere, linking residences and retail. There are still commercial corridors in LI that don't include strip malls and enclosed shopping malls.
My sister lives a mile from my dads. They drive to see each other. I walked from my sisters to my dads one night and they asked if the rentacar was broken. I said I didn;t rent the car yet- they were incredulous. When my parents visited oakland last spring, they walked from my house to the cat'lic church near my house- about a mile away. It was not even a thought in their mind to drive there, and I live in a kinda rough neighbourhood. They go home and revert to their old habits of driving EVERYWHERE- even 2 or 3 blocks to the post office or grocery store.
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