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Automotive News & Views Are gas prices fueling your pain? 
10042 messages, Last post on Jul 12, 2008 at 3:07 PM
You are in the Automotive News & Views Forum. Your Hosts are steve_ & claires
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Replying to: imidazol97 (Jun 03, 2008 6:36 am) Hey.... if someone getting hit by a car gives some vicarious thrill, enjoy.... I don't get it, but it is still a free country.
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Replying to: gagrice (Jun 03, 2008 6:21 am) Gary, you have a penchant for posting things that have only a peripheral meaning for the subject at hand and saying, "see, see, there there, see, see !!!!" You know how many times "people who have no control of their cars" slam into crowds of bikers? Probably about once every five hundred billion bike miles or so. Anyone riding a bike for a commute (have they a lick of common sense) knows that cars are their most critical danger. That's why I ride almost exclusively on the sidewalk. Remember though: The levels of bikers getting killed by cars is far far less per capita than people dying in car wrecks. It is still far safer to ride a bike than to drive a car. You don't need to post snap shots of the bikers hogging the road. They know they have the right of way over cars and take advantage of it. Most of them who habitually do that are fools. But they make up a very small portion of bike riders who commute on their bikes. Riding for your commute is different for most people than riding for pleasure.
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Replying to: mattandi (Jun 03, 2008 6:29 am) That is exactly correct. I imagine Ahnold is getting a bit anxious with the sales of so many econoboxes. He not only loses the higher sales tax revenue from the SUVs not being purchased. He is losing 46 cents per gallon. That can be a lot when you go from a 15 MPG SUV to a 30 MPG Civic. Not to mention the 50% less sales tax. That could be as much as $2000 per vehicle sale. Then the license fee each year will be less on the smaller car. Yet the road usage and congestion is the same. I guess he will have to dig into his deep pockets and make up the shortfall. |
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Replying to: ny540i6 (Jun 03, 2008 6:41 am) I'm not sure about the meaning of your post so I'll assume it's positive since I personally don't get a thrill. My concern is that helmets aren't supposed to come off! I know of several people through the decades killed either running or riding their bikes along roads without trails or sidewalks. I watched a car run into a group of pedestrians of about 30 walking across a 4-lane street near University of Cincinnati campus. The impact was lower than 35 but he hit a few of the nursing class girls. This was before cell phones. I drove up the road looking for a phone and a Cincy policeman was at the intersection. I told him and he looked at me like he didn't believe me that there was an accident down the hill in front to of the hospital.
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Replying to: gagrice (Jun 03, 2008 6:21 am) The mere presence of the bicycles, or even the car for that matter, is not what brought about this horrific event. It was the behavior of that driver. Follow the laws, employ safe practices, maybe sprinkle in a little common courtesy (even if it, gasp, inconveniences you a little) and bicycles on the streets are no more dangerous than cars. 'Tis unfortunate that courtesy is becoming somewhat less common.
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Replying to: larsb (Jun 03, 2008 6:47 am) I am not sure of your motive in posting all these made up statistics. Do you have any links that would back up your statements. You ride on the sidewalk which would be my choice if their is not a dedicated bike trail. I have personally seen as many accidents with bicycles and motorcycles as I have auto accidents. In 1999, there were 750 bicycling fatalities and 51,000 bicycling injuries resulting from traffic crashes in the United States. While these numbers continue to decrease from year to year, bicyclist fatalities still account for 2 percent of all traffic fatalities as well as 2 percent of all traffic injuries. http://www.massbike.org/info/statistics.htm I seriously doubt that bicycling amounts to 2% of the miles driven in the USA. Which will prove that riding a bicycle on a road that is primarily used by cars to more dangerous than being in a car. You usually get your facts closer to accurate than this post.
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Replying to: imidazol97 (Jun 03, 2008 6:52 am) |
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Replying to: imidazol97 (Jun 03, 2008 6:52 am) Valid concern, but that does appear to be a rather severe impact. Not sure any helmet is designed to withstand that force. |
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Replying to: mattandi (Jun 03, 2008 6:58 am) You are right I am. I always am on the side of caution. You cannot be too careful riding a bike. Think about this. What if the EPA decided to force the bike manufacturers to make a bicycle as safe as they do cars? Why do I need airbags surrounding me in a car and nothing to protect me except a plastic helmet when riding a bike, sharing the same road?
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Replying to: gagrice (Jun 03, 2008 6:59 am) Read what I said: I said the times people on bikes were killed by drivers who (in YOUR WORDS) "were not in control of their car" was very low. There are no stats for that, but I stand by my estimate. Some of those biking deaths are not related to crashes with cars, and many of the injuries are not car-related either. From one of your posted links: As of 2002: Since 1932, 47,000 "pedalcyclists" have been killed. More than that die every SINGLE year in car crashes. Pedestrians are killed far far more than bikers. Of the total "people killed while on a roadway but not in a car" numbers, pedestrians make up about 85% to 87% in most recent years. The rest are bikers, roller bladers, skateboarders, etc. Nothing done on a road is without risk. I personally know far far many more people who have died in car crashes than in pedestrian or bike accidents. Don't you? UPDATE: I found some more current stats. In 2006, Arizona led the country in bikers killed per capita. 1.42 deaths per 1 million vehicle miles traveled. That's pretty darn low !! Now you see why I ride on the sidewalks !!!???!!!!!! Here is that page with some other good stats. AZ bike stats My point is: It's still far safer to bike that to walk. And far far fewer people die on bikes than in car wrecks. |
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Automotive News & Views Are gas prices fueling your pain?
