Opis
so many issues on see click fix involve the need for more enforcement of traffic laws, and more protection of pedestrians and cyclists.
the following things have happened to me in the past week (to help paint a picture of how many happen overall):
i was cursed out in the crosswalk in front of the police station for daring to cross legally, because i'm a "b*tch" who thinks i can "walk wherever i want"
i flipped over my handlebars after nearly being missed by a car running a red light, and then was nearly missed by the car speeding behind me. neither of the vehicles stopped to see if i was ok.
i was cursed at for riding in line with sharrows on state street because i should "get out of the way" and "stay on the #$% sidewalk"
a man and i, while crossing in a crosswalk, were violently honked at, despite crossing legally, and the fact that he was using a cane. when i challenged the driver honking, a stream of curse words came, and the driver behind him screamed "WELCOME TO NEW HAVEN, WE DON'T GIVE A DAMN"
while waiting at a red light going straight towards the train station, with my bike physically stopped ON A SHARROW, a man got out of his BMW to ask me why i wasn't all the way over to the right (even though that is a turn lane and i wasn't turning) and when i explained why, he started screaming that i'm "supposed to let all the cars pass" since i was "blocking all the traffic" (while stopped at a light legally, and after keeping up with the flow of traffic for my entire trip) (and, "let all the cars pass"? so i should wait at each intersection until not one car exists?)
with this level of aggression, it is a wonder we walk or bike at all.
our city needs to take more serious steps towards protecting the roads most vulnerable users.
26 Skomentujs
NH (Guest)
fire the lawmakers. we do not need more laws
the drivers passing New Haven are terrible. I observe this everyday.
if the city does not have the police power to do it, hire less police and allocate money to some groups like ECC so that we citizens can use video cameras to document
recall on the Mayor if no action taken
watcher (Guest)
juli (Zarejestrowany użytkownik)
watcher:
thank you for illuminating perfectly how anti-cyclist and anti-pedestrian many people are in this area. why the knee-jerk reaction to blame the cyclist or walker? maybe because in this hurried car culture people are conditioned to think that drivers are entitled to a road without others to consider?
i calmly and rationally laid out scenarios where i was acting with all the rights and responsibilities afforded to me by law. i flagrantly broke no laws, the drivers around me did, and do every day, which is why i opened this issue.
Wizwaz (Zarejestrowany użytkownik)
prevalent in CT, MA, and on Long Island. I have some friends in NY who said stop signs are
ignored as if they didn't exist. The drivers know there is no one watching. I believe there needs to
be more traffic patrolling
Anstress Farwell (Zarejestrowany użytkownik)
A timely new report from the Victoria Transportation Institute:
"Whose Roads? Evaluating Bicyclists’ and Pedestrians’ Right to Use Public Roadways"
(http://www.vtpi.org/whoserd.pdf )
Many people believe that non-motorized modes (walking, cycling, and their variants) have less right to use public roads than motorists, based on assumptions that motor vehicle travel is more important than non-motorized travel and motor vehicle user fees finance roads. This report investigates these assumptions. It finds that non-motorized modes have clear legal rights to use public roads, that non-motorized travel is important for an efficient transport system and provides significant benefits to users and society, that less than half of roadway expenses are financed by motor vehicle user fees, and pedestrians and cyclists pay more than their share of roadway costs. Since bicycling and walking impose lower roadway costs than motorized modes, people who rely on non-motorized modes tend to overpay their fair share of roadway costs and subsidize motorists.
NH (Guest)
KD (Guest)
NH (Guest)
no leadership in the city!!
we need bolder, more innovative solutions to protect pedestrians & cyclists NOW
Department of Public Works (Verified Official)
cyciatrist (Guest)
juli (Zarejestrowany użytkownik)
cyciatrist:
i didn't open this issue to place blame-- i understand what you mean. when you are traveling via one mode of travel, you can easily slip into thinking all other modes of travel are acting inappropriately, or just in your way.
but your point about individuals demanding enforcement-- there is obviously an unacceptable number of life-threatening traffic violations every day in new haven, and a lawless culture where, yes, in my opinion, specifically drivers feel they are above the law and will most likely not get caught. so, i opened this issue to demand more enforcement, while calling on the Dept. of Transportation, Traffic and Parking to take more serious steps towards protecting the citizens of new haven that are not protected by two tons of metal every time they travel.
useless traffic law (Guest)
state st resident (Zarejestrowany użytkownik)
do-nothing city (Guest)
Sparky (Guest)
How do you get 'violently' honked at?
I must Wikipedia this...
Sparky (Guest)
juli (Zarejestrowany użytkownik)
sparky:
laying on the horn for at least a solid three minutes while screaming profanity out the window at two pedestrians legally crossing directly in front of the vehicle isn't violent? you wouldn't take that as a threat?
Sparky (Guest)
KD (Guest)
I think most readers of this page can imagine what is meant by "violent" honking. And no, Juli probably did not take out a stopwatch at the moment the honking began.
But why the irritation? It seems odd.
Sparky (Guest)
KD (Guest)
Thanks Sparky.
I guess I just find it difficult to see the humor in a description of motorists screaming profanities at pedestrians in a crosswalk.
Sparky (Guest)
Sean (Zarejestrowany użytkownik)
safety first (Guest)
Please sign, related to this type of thing:
http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/petition-for-a-walkable-100-college-street-development.html
http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/new-haven-petition-for-safe-streets.html
the lack of standard sidewalks here
combined with $3,000,000,000 spent to widen I95/I91 in the middle of the city,
including $200,000,000 for a gigantic flyover bridge to route 34
shows where the priorities of our city REALLY are
Sparky (Guest)
Zamknięte Department of Transportation, Traffic and Parking (Zarejestrowany użytkownik)