road widths

Doctor Phibes said:

Who decides these things? To acommodate cars they take roads designed over 100 years ago and turn
them into twin lanes with no bike lane, no

Lane width, believe it or not, is actually derived from Roman chariot dimensions. I can't remember
all the connections, but every time a new transportation technology came around, the wheels and
axles were always built by the same guys who built wheels and axles for existing technology, so they
built them the same width. Well, each time, it became the standard.

Chariots -> ??? -> Wagons -> Trains -> horseless carriages -> cars

Quoted message said:

road shoulder. Isn't this severely unfair? I often see room on side of road for expansion, why
cant they expand the road? Why not

Because that would make sense. We can't have that.

It would also be rather expensive, and we all pay enough taxes already; it certainly couldn't be
taken out of money that was for something else, like, for example, waste.

Quoted message said:

guardrail it off to encourage more environmentally sound forms of transportation? A lot of people
dont dare commute by bike because of

That would be cool.

Quoted message said:

the fear of being hit. If they cant fork out the $$ to expand how about some signs reminding
drivers they're suppose to drive to center of the road? Why go even further, a driver every time
they renew their license should have to be retested only a more comprehensive test. All the rules
should be included as well as an essay section. It's not

Now you're really asking too much, in asking people to be careful or maybe even change their habits!

Quoted message said:

like the police help, their lack of devotion to anything other than their own "brotherhood" has
encouraged the wreckless behavior of

That's how being employed by the government works.

Quoted message said:

automobilist. Why maybe cyclists should travel in packs of 20 or more and hog the entire road.
There's no law against that is there? 😉

No, but it pisses off automotive drivers who then do everything they can to [censored] bicyclists.

--
Rick Onanian

Rick Onanian <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

Doctor Phibes said:

Who decides these things? To acommodate cars they take roads designed over 100 years ago and
turn them into twin lanes with no bike lane, no

Lane width, believe it or not, is actually derived from Roman chariot dimensions. I can't remember
all the connections, but every time a new transportation technology came around, the wheels and
axles were always built by the same guys who built wheels and axles for existing technology, so
they built them the same width. Well, each time, it became the standard.

Chariots -> ??? -> Wagons -> Trains -> horseless carriages -> cars

Quoted message said:

road shoulder. Isn't this severely unfair? I often see room on side of road for expansion, why
cant they expand the road? Why not

Because that would make sense. We can't have that.

It would also be rather expensive, and we all pay enough taxes already; it certainly couldn't be
taken out of money that was for something else, like, for example, waste.

Quoted message said:

guardrail it off to encourage more environmentally sound forms of transportation? A lot of
people dont dare commute by bike because of

That would be cool.

Quoted message said:

the fear of being hit. If they cant fork out the $$ to expand how about some signs reminding
drivers they're suppose to drive to center of the road? Why go even further, a driver every time
they renew their license should have to be retested only a more comprehensive test. All the
rules should be included as well as an essay section. It's not

Now you're really asking too much, in asking people to be careful or maybe even change
their habits!

Quoted message said:

like the police help, their lack of devotion to anything other than their own "brotherhood" has
encouraged the wreckless behavior of

That's how being employed by the government works.

Quoted message said:

automobilist. Why maybe cyclists should travel in packs of 20 or more and hog the entire road.
There's no law against that is there? 😉

No, but it pisses off automotive drivers who then do everything they can to [censored] bicyclists.

Quoted message said:

Well half my post was suppose to be dry humor 😉. I'm travelling over "new roads"(bikeless roads). I
seen one other cyclist, never seen him again. I do find that after a while the drivers adjust to
you. Vacation is over now "i'm actually gonna have to hit the major highway exit at a reasonable
speed say 50 mph instead of 70" rethinking. People are habitual, they often travel at the same
time...i think of what i'm doing is slowly invading their territory to make room for other cyclists.
Human nature, "if he can do it so can I". The first day I used the route most of the drivers(lotta
trucks)passed me going about 45 mph within 6 inches, now they're fading off say 4 feet.

I don't expect anyone to support cyclists who commute. We can support each other though by
keeping the ground we have aquired. Be visible and watch out for blind sided right hand from the
rear turns 😉

In article <[email hidden]>,

(Doctor Phibes) said:

People are habitual, they often travel at the same time...i think of what i'm doing is
slowly invading their territory to make room for other cyclists. Human nature, "if he can do
it so can I".

I hope it works.

But you're not "invading their territory", you're just reclaiming your own right to the road.
Good on ya.

cheers, Tom

--
-- Powered by FreeBSD Above address is just a spam midden. I'm really at: tkeats [curlicue] vcn
[point] bc [point] ca

[email hidden] (Tom Keats) wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

In article <[email hidden]>,

(Doctor Phibes) said:

People are habitual, they often travel at the same time...i think of what i'm doing is slowly
invading their territory to make room for other cyclists. Human nature, "if he can do it so
can I".

I hope it works.

But you're not "invading their territory", you're just reclaiming your own right to the road.
Good on ya.

cheers, Tom

Quoted message said:

They the all mighty suv's might disagree with you! lol "you're suppose to be on the sidewalk", "honk
honkkkkkk" etc ;-). I will take it to the extreme though where I wouldn't expect most to follow. For
example: riding in nor'easters both snow and rain variety, extreme cold as low as 3 degrees here,
extreme highs as much as 100 degrees. Some people shouldn't attempt those conditions because they
can be deadly. If I can get another worker to ride to work a few times a week that will still be
progress. ;-) thanks phibe

"Doctor Phibes" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Who decides these things? To acommodate cars they take roads designed over 100 years ago and turn
them into twin lanes with no bike lane, no road shoulder. Isn't this severely unfair? I often see
room on side of road for expansion, why cant they expand the road?

While travelling in rural Kentucky recently, I saw what would be a cyclist's paradise if the roads
had any shoulder at all. They were literally just wide enough for two cars to pass. We encountered
one cyclist the whole way. Traffic wasn't too heavy, but people were obviously not acclimated to
bikes. You're right, drivers do adapt. In a way, I'd feel safer riding through downtown Boston where
people are used to bikes than on a narrow Kentucky road with aggressive drivers, which is a shame,
because Kentucky is prettier than Boston.