Buffalo Rising Online

I am willing to give this improvement project a chance and see how it turns out, why not reduce the amount of land consumed by asphalt pavement. Please do not place cyclists in the same catagory with pedestrians because many cyclists are among the worst traffic law violators. It is time to stop just blaming motorists for all the problems and start placing some of the blame where it rightfully belongs, on the cyclists. Cyclists are just as much a serious safety hazard to pedestrians as motorists because they think they are above and exempt from traffic laws which is definately not true. Numerous times, I have seen cyclists running red traffic lights and ignoring stop signs, riding against traffic, cutting in front of traffic, cutting right in front of pedestrians in crosswalks, and the most common unlawful activity- riding on the sidewalks. The unlawful riding of bikes on sidewalks is especially serious along Elmwood Avenue and many of these cyclists have no regard for pedestrians because they think they are above the law. This is why several motorists despise cyclists and a growing number of pedestrians complain about cyclists as well. It is time for government authorities to start cracking down hard on cyclists and force them to follow all traffic laws and keep them off the sidewalks. This will help improve public safety and overall quality of life in the city.

JBooth, You are wrong when you say the onus needs to be on the motorist because lawbreaking by cyclists has caused a lot of pedestrian injuries. Granted a car can kill a pedestrian but a bicycle hitting a pedestrian can cause serious injury and depending on the age of the pedestrian, it could result in permanent disability. So the onus for highway safety should also be put on the cyclist as well as the motorist because there are too many cyclists out there that think they are above the law and have all the right of way in the world. The distinction between careless motorists and careless cyclists is irrelevant. Both are a serious safety hazard to pedestrians and persons with disabilities. I am sick and damned tired of our political leaders coddling and ignoring unlawful and dangerous acts by careless cyclists on our streets. I ride my bike frequently and follow all the traffic laws and I have not had any problems with motorists. My problems while on a bike are from other cyclists who refuse to follow the laws, that is why so many of them have been getting injured or killed, its their own spite and stupidity thats at fault, not just the motorists. Another thing, this idiotic idea of narrowing major streets is a major part of the problem of bicyclist vs motorist. Instead of narrowing these streets, they should be permanently kept at their present width but change the pavement markings instead. Install bike lanes on both sides of the street and reconfigure traffic lanes and permanently eliminate all right turn only lanes, these are not expressways they are city streets. That alone will help provide a complete network of safe cycling routes throughout the city and even into the suburbs as well. But all cyclists must be made fully accountable for all their actions by the law while they are on the road period.