Boston Globe film critic and Newton resident Ty Burr writes today about a decade of biking from Newton Corner to Dorchester. Here’s two excerpts…
First off, it’s my direct experience that cycling in the city is safer than in the suburbs. The car traffic is generally slower and more managed, for one thing, and drivers are more on the lookout for pedestrians and other random moving objects. Outside Boston the minivans come whipping around corners, their denizens yakking on the phone or talking to children in the back seats.
and..
The thing about bicycling is that it’s a big tent, with all kinds of riders holding all sorts of beliefs. So here is what I believe: that not wearing a helmet is stupid. That biking with headphones is especially stupid. That both cars and pedestrians have the right of way over me on a bike, because one weighs two tons and could kill me, and the other likely doesn’t see me coming and I could kill him or her. That any cyclist who cuts off a car or a pedestrian or blows through an intersection without looking isn’t a free spirit but a self-absorbed twerp.
One of many reasons why I love Ty 🙂
The Globe article is, simply, great. When it comes to the joys, the dangers, and the frustrations of cycling in metro Boston, he’s nailed it.
I would only quibble over some of the most minor details (what Ty describes as “healthy respect” for everyone else on the road, I’d call controlled fear. What Ty describes as moving “over and to the car’s left” to avoid being hit by a right-turning motorist I would describe as taking the lane. And while I agree that it’s critical to wear a helmet and follow traffic laws, the only observed tragic cycling death where it would’ve made a difference was Andy von Guerard in 2010).
Cyclists acknowledge that it can be dangerous to ride. They cite dangers that are inattentive drivers or aggressive drivers. Then they have a kid and hook up one of those kiddy wagons on to their bike and expose their toddlers to all that danger.
Excellent – well written and spot on. I appreciate that he is aware of cyclist’s responsibilities, not just those of drivers. Especially liked:
What’s crucial to biking in Boston, though — and not enough cyclists themselves understand this — is having respect for everyone else out there on the road while maintaining as close to a 360-degree Zen state of hyper-awareness as you can muster…
So here is what I believe: that not wearing a helmet is stupid. That biking with headphones is especially stupid. That both cars and pedestrians have the right of way over me on a bike, because one weighs two tons and could kill me, and the other likely doesn’t see me coming and I could kill him or her. That any cyclist who cuts off a car or a pedestrian or blows through an intersection without looking isn’t a free spirit but a self-absorbed twerp.