Zebee Johnstone said:I stop at red lights because of expectations. The expectation of
someone at a green light or one about to turn green is that the bods
who have the red will stay put. I don't think it is sensible to ruin
that expectation.
When the coast seems clear I stay put anyway. That way I don't have
to think, or place a bet.
Zebee
I run reds regularly. I call it civil disobedience. Call me a [censored].
If I get cleaned up, it's my fault, pure and simple. If I want less
risk, I'll be more cautious, and only run a few simple ones.
The problem is this. In line with all other things that seem to be
dangerous (read "able to be actioned and blamed upon someone in a court
of law"😉 in the f&*ked up s$%tholes we call our outdoor living areas
(covered in bitumen and concrete and white lines for cars to drive
around, and a little bit of green if we're lucky), we are trying to
legislate, dilute and regulate all the danger away. Lights and signs
with (legalese) riders and disclaimers saying "Do this now, don't do
this now. You may get hurt. You have no common sense, therefore we have
to tell you this, which you will obey on pain of penalty points and
monetary exactions. You are unable, like an autistic child, to plan
your physical movements to avoid harm to yourself and others".
When a two ton chunk of metal is involved, no. We cannot. When it is us
and 15kg of bike, then, unless we are warping our way to the other side
of the galaxy, who we gonna hurt? A frail old lady? A baby in a pusher?
Us? Are we taking responsibility for our own actions?
Go to Hanoi and watch how the traffic behaves there. Many more people.
Many more journeys. Four wheels stop at the very small number of
waist-high traffic lights. Two wheels don't. Works almost perfectly.
So, traffic lights. Good to stop cars killing people. Flexible friends
for cyclists and peds. Although if the latest brainstorm by assorted
fascist pollies gets off the ground, it could become a crime to
'jaywalk', to use their coined Americanese, i.e. to impede the lawful
movement of automobiles wherever and whenever they want to go.
Traffic lights were invented to reduce car accident insurance claims in
the 1920s. As was the TAC. I don't think either would be needed in a
bike/foot/tram/train-only city. I hold them and their necessity in
almost contempt, and would start a campaign to disable large numbers of
them if they didn't perform the vital function of stopping cars hitting
people. (is that seditious? is ASIO watching?) Kev Carmody, famous
Aboriginal musician, once said he stands at ped crossings for 5 and 10
minutes at a time, pushing the button, messing with people's heads. I'm
doing the opposite. I'm ignoring something that doesn't have anything
to do with my safety, as I see it, after careful observation and
exposure to that particular traffic situation. Of course I don't ignore
3 lanes of oncoming traffic, but I won't be told I can't use a
perfectly good road to ride to where I'm going at bicycle speed, in a
bicycle manner, using road sense refined for riding a bicycle.
Is this long enough? Sometimes I'm just full of myself. 🙂
MH
