Fear and Loathing on the Road

By Tom Hodgkin
I can hear it from more than a quarter mile back. It’s probably a box truck, traveling fast. I grip my handlebars and hold steady at the white line at the side of the road. Six inches to my right, the shoulder disintegrates into loose dirt and vegetation; if my bicycle drops into that, I’ll be in trouble. The sound gets louder and louder and then “WHOOSH!” it’s past me in an explosion of wind and sound that blows my jersey and rattles my concentration. Ahead of me now, the dirty gray truck disappears up the empty road, still hugging the right side of the pavement. I’ve just been buzzed closely again, and my heart, even with my careful preparation, is pounding.

As a regular road bicyclist, I know this experience all too well. It’s certainly not every day. But over months and several thousand miles, it happens much more often than it should. And it’s not only trucks. Over the years, I’ve felt the blow-by from BMW’s, pickups, family sedans, soccer-mom minivans. I’d like to think it’s not intentional intimidation. But perhaps even scarier, I’ve come to believe it’s actually simple thoughtless behavior: someone looking down at their phone, adjusting their AC or just not registering the discrepancy between my presence and theirs. It’s always scary. It’s also unnecessary and illegal.

Many drivers don’t actually know the laws governing bicycles. Legally, Connecticut, New York and Massachusetts all grant bicycles the same rights to the road as motorized vehicles. This means that, contrary to some people’s beliefs, bicycles belong on roads, the same as cars, and should be given the same regard as any other vehicle.

While, according to Connecticut law, bicycles must ride to the right side of the roadway, that location is “as judged safe by the bicyclist”—not as far right as physically possible. In addition, all states mandate a safe passing distance—three feet by Connecticut General Statute 14-242—when a vehicle overtakes a bicycle. Importantly, states also provide for fines and even criminal charges for drivers who violate these regulations.

These laws exist to protect bicyclists. In its very language, the Connecticut statue recognizes that “Because of the large disparities in size, weight and speed between bicycles and motor vehicles, cyclist are at a tremendous disadvantage in the result of a collision with a car or truck.”

Thankfully, most motorists recognize these disparities and the catastrophic potential involved in hitting a bicyclist. Most drivers I meet are careful and respectful of my right to the road. But there are some who seem not to be as aware or concerned.

The issue of bicycle safety is not a small one. Figures available from the Centers for Disease Control state there are more than 130,000 bicyclists injured in collisions each year in the United States. Roughly 1,000 bicyclists are killed annually on the roads. The costs of bicycle injuries and deaths from crashes, which includes spending on health care and lost work productivity, as well as estimated costs for lost quality of life, has been estimated to exceed $23 billion.

Are those drivers who fly by me thinking about this? Probably not. When we get in our cars, we are practiced at ignoring the possibilities for legal or personal disaster. But it’s pretty hard for me to ignore these possibilities when a car whirls past too closely at 60 m.p.h. My heartrate jumps, my adrenaline surges and I think about what I’d like to say to them.

And what is that? Given the chance, it is this: “If you’re not worried about me, think about yourself. Think about what will happen to you when you hurt me. Think about the legal repercussions, the financial repercussions and the psychological ones. Think about your family and your own life and your reputation. Are you ready to live the rest of your life knowing you killed some guy just riding along on a bicycle?”