Speaking of courtesy and transportation.... its not the fact that car drivers kill us that pisses me off quite so much as the blatant discourtesy of a civic system that consistently dismisses the safety and (gasp!) pleasure of cyclists and pedestrians.
Since we're on the topic, here's one for the "shoulda' said" department. When the Spadina streetcars were backed up in the middle of a weekday (yesterday) and crowds and crowds of people who'd been waiting for ages including an old guy who fell asleep leaning on his crutches were finally, dismally, filing on to the car that finally, slowly pulled up and the TTC worker admonished us, in a well practiced high pitched camp counsellor tone of utter patronising contempt for the pathetic mob to please "take off our backpacks as a courtesy to the other passengers" I should have suggested that as a courtesy to their paying customers they keep the damn streetcars running on time so we didn't have to all bunch up like this. But I didn't cause the doors were closing and I wanted on the car cause I was late for a paying gig. And then of course we crawled along down Spadina which always gets me into a bit of a stew cause of this....(below)...arrrrrrg...how about putting the stops before the light so we don't all have to wait twice at every intersection?...weep....
why didn't you cycle?
flat.
I haven't had a good rant for a while so thought I would take advantage.
I left Jet Fuel coffee shop on a Tuesday morning around 9:30 am to cycle to work. I take Aberdeen, a quiet residential street parallel to Carlton. There is a row of parked cars leaving one lane free for traffic. It is a one-way street with speed bumps.
I start down the road and soon there is a car behind me. I take the center of the road. I do not want him attempting to pass me; there is not enough room.
Everything seemed OK at first. Then about half down the street, he puts his car in neutral and starts revving the engine.
I look back and he his motioning to me to get off the road.
Whatever. It invoked a seemingly natural instict to slow done.
Aberdeen street is not long. So once we reached the intersection with more traffic, he pulls along side and tells me I am inconsiderate. I tell him there was enough room for him to pass so I took the lane. He tells me, of course, there was lots of room, and again, that I am inconsiderate.
It was a stunning display of someone's inability to gauge his own behaviour. I was pretty angry and frustrated.
sorry that was me above, nanmac
There's one of you, there's one of him, there's only so much space, you were there first. How does it come about that people like this guy feel so completely entitled? He had to drive at the speed of a bike down a residential street for a little while. Bit deal, welcome to the city, where you don't get to go as fast as you want every single minute.
Yeah. I have heard drivers, mostly cab drivers, use this same wording. They want everyone to be "courteous" on the road. Courteous means, don't make me take my foot off the gas pedal.
I am pretty down on Toronto these days. Never mind that there is so little for cyclists. I just can't believe the city is not even trying to set a moral tone or encourage attitudinal changes. I notice this from the point of view as a cyclist and also as a co-worker as I watch my colleagues come back from lunch with unbelievable amount of take-out packaging.
The city offers transportation and refuse services. They can certainly make preferred habits known.
In the SF Bay Area, recycling is picked up free. Trash pickup is pricey. Recycling is pretty popular.
Two bucks a gallon gas tax could make alternatives to the car popular.
There is a nice non-ranting rational and informative post on this issue here at Spacing.
santa clara county's system is street level, and has priority. works fine.
Good rant, great image, so plain that even a transport engineer or a politician could understand that there's a problem. But then they didn't find room on Spadina for a bike lane did they despite the great width and over $100 million. And they're repeating the same "not enough room for bikes, keep on with roadkill roulette" on St. Clair, but it's many of the progressives that aren't looking out for bikes. Yup, Smogtown is carrupt, though there are sometimes good car drivers and dork cyclists on the best way of going.
Thanks Sally
|
Speaking of courtesy and transportation.... its not the fact that car drivers kill us that pisses me off quite so much as the blatant discourtesy of a civic system that consistently dismisses the safety and (gasp!) pleasure of cyclists and pedestrians.
Since we're on the topic, here's one for the "shoulda' said" department. When the Spadina streetcars were backed up in the middle of a weekday (yesterday) and crowds and crowds of people who'd been waiting for ages including an old guy who fell asleep leaning on his crutches were finally, dismally, filing on to the car that finally, slowly pulled up and the TTC worker admonished us, in a well practiced high pitched camp counsellor tone of utter patronising contempt for the pathetic mob to please "take off our backpacks as a courtesy to the other passengers" I should have suggested that as a courtesy to their paying customers they keep the damn streetcars running on time so we didn't have to all bunch up like this. But I didn't cause the doors were closing and I wanted on the car cause I was late for a paying gig. And then of course we crawled along down Spadina which always gets me into a bit of a stew cause of this....(below)...arrrrrrg...how about putting the stops before the light so we don't all have to wait twice at every intersection?...weep....
- sally mckay 4-14-2006 7:51 am
why didn't you cycle?
- sanctimonious (guest) 4-14-2006 11:27 pm
flat.
- sally mckay 4-14-2006 11:55 pm
I haven't had a good rant for a while so thought I would take advantage.
I left Jet Fuel coffee shop on a Tuesday morning around 9:30 am to cycle to work. I take Aberdeen, a quiet residential street parallel to Carlton. There is a row of parked cars leaving one lane free for traffic. It is a one-way street with speed bumps.
I start down the road and soon there is a car behind me. I take the center of the road. I do not want him attempting to pass me; there is not enough room.
Everything seemed OK at first. Then about half down the street, he puts his car in neutral and starts revving the engine.
I look back and he his motioning to me to get off the road.
Whatever. It invoked a seemingly natural instict to slow done.
Aberdeen street is not long. So once we reached the intersection with more traffic, he pulls along side and tells me I am inconsiderate. I tell him there was enough room for him to pass so I took the lane. He tells me, of course, there was lots of room, and again, that I am inconsiderate.
It was a stunning display of someone's inability to gauge his own behaviour. I was pretty angry and frustrated.
- anonymous (guest) 4-16-2006 5:10 am
sorry that was me above, nanmac
- anonymous (guest) 4-16-2006 5:11 am
There's one of you, there's one of him, there's only so much space, you were there first. How does it come about that people like this guy feel so completely entitled? He had to drive at the speed of a bike down a residential street for a little while. Bit deal, welcome to the city, where you don't get to go as fast as you want every single minute.
- sally mckay 4-16-2006 11:07 pm
Yeah. I have heard drivers, mostly cab drivers, use this same wording. They want everyone to be "courteous" on the road. Courteous means, don't make me take my foot off the gas pedal.
I am pretty down on Toronto these days. Never mind that there is so little for cyclists. I just can't believe the city is not even trying to set a moral tone or encourage attitudinal changes. I notice this from the point of view as a cyclist and also as a co-worker as I watch my colleagues come back from lunch with unbelievable amount of take-out packaging.
The city offers transportation and refuse services. They can certainly make preferred habits known.
- nanmac (guest) 4-17-2006 1:51 am
In the SF Bay Area, recycling is picked up free. Trash pickup is pricey. Recycling is pretty popular.
Two bucks a gallon gas tax could make alternatives to the car popular.
- mark 4-17-2006 8:09 am
There is a nice non-ranting rational and informative post on this issue here at Spacing.
- sally mckay 4-23-2006 8:59 pm
santa clara county's system is street level, and has priority. works fine.
- mark 4-24-2006 2:50 am
Good rant, great image, so plain that even a transport engineer or a politician could understand that there's a problem. But then they didn't find room on Spadina for a bike lane did they despite the great width and over $100 million. And they're repeating the same "not enough room for bikes, keep on with roadkill roulette" on St. Clair, but it's many of the progressives that aren't looking out for bikes. Yup, Smogtown is carrupt, though there are sometimes good car drivers and dork cyclists on the best way of going.
Thanks Sally
- hamish (guest) 4-25-2006 6:09 am