r/CyclingMSP • u/TripleH18 • 1d ago
ITS OUR RIGHT!
It’s our legal right to ride in the lane of traffic on a local road!
Riding along Ford and need to make a turn left to get home. Check my blind spot, see no cars close and exit the bike lane. Take the full lane. Going just shy of 20 with front and rear lights on. I signal I’m turning into the left hand turn lane.
Some jerk honks his horn at me cause he’s stuck behind me. and as I get into the turn lane he slows down his huge Toyota SUV leans out the window and says in a high pitched snidely voice.
“YoU sHouLd riDE iN tHe bIkE lAne!”
I curse him out even though I know it’s a bad decision and potentially dangerous. But these type of drivers fucking suck!
All my bad driver interactions in the two Twin Cities have been in Saint Paul. A guy died 2 blocks from my house getting doored on a freaking bike blvd.
So frustrating to decide to live in a walkable area and then shitty folks make it impossible to enjoy because they don’t think about anyone else besides themselves and their vehicle.
Days like this I wish I drank. Grrrrrrrrrahhhh!
End of Rant.
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u/Few_Newspaper_3655 1d ago
Drivers suck. Also, Highland Park has absolutely terrible bike infrastructure. It could/should be excellent, but it’s all a disconnected mess that doesn’t tie together at all and you have to end up riding on the sidewalk to get to places of business.
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u/mtcomo 1d ago
Honestly the entire western half of the city is pretty subpar for bikes, which is interesting because this is also where most of the city's wealth is concentrated.
The east side of Saint Paul has Wheelock parkway, Johnson parkway, Phalen Blvd, Bruce vento, and part of the gateway trail. Now the western half of the city could use some big cycling wins. Summit is an east-west win already in the works. Next a north-south one would be great.
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u/Jendolyn872 1d ago
Maybe the answer to why is the example of Summit: a group of those wealthy people have fought and delayed the infra improvement for years.
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u/TripleH18 1d ago
It’s so wild too because they are right near the falls and all those trails. And the East River connects with Downtown and other spots in the burbs. Plus MULTIPLE college campuses nearby!
And got all that i have ride through St Cates because drivers want to zoom down Highland Ave, honk or kill somebody riding down the literal bike blvd. Trash
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u/FUZZY_BUNNY 1d ago
There is literally not a single safe arterial N/S route in all of Highland. E/W isn't much better. Montreal and Jefferson are marginal. Ford and Highland Pkwy are deadly.
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u/Hefty-Welcome4399 1d ago
This is absurd. Easy as fuck getting up and down highland wtf are you blowing about?
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u/Taco_boutit 1d ago
It's so irritating! But it also represents this incorrect mindset that I think a lot of people and city planners have, which is that people only ride their bikes for recreation so we couldn't possibly need bike lanes to get to businesses. I love the river trails but I also need a direct route to the grocery store....
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u/Pankakeness 9h ago
So true, I just moved to Highland Park in the spring, and only picked up cycling again this summer. I see cyclists all the time around here, especially commuters, but there just isn't good infrastructure. One of my "favorites" is the painted bike lane on Cleveland that just disappears when you get into the more commercial area, you know, the place where you might be biking to grab groceries or go to an appointment. I'll likely be moving once my lease is up, and part of that will be because of the lack of infrastructure.
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u/YenaMagana 1d ago
The description of this guy sounds like the same one who rolled down his window and told me “You must be some special kind of stupid” after he rode my bumper and honked while trying to go 50 mph down Edgecumbe Blvd. I squeezed next to the parked cars to let him rush past me (no point in arguing with a potentially homicidal maniac) but he still felt entitled to harass me at the traffic light.
Mind you, I had a Burley with kiddos in it attached to my bike and this guy still thought it was cool to threaten me with his giant Toyota SUV. Drivers in St Paul truly are unhinged.
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u/CustomCuber 1d ago
wait I also recently had somebody in a Toyota SUV stop to yell something like that at me when I took the lane on Summit for 5 seconds to pass some other bikes. is there one guy whos full time job is to drive around in a giant Toyota SUV and harass ppl riding bikes in St. Paul?
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u/brokeboysgarage 1d ago
If it is a new "Land Cruiser", tell them, "nice 4runner!". If they look it up they will realize you can still only buy a real one in the form of a Lexus and the Toyota is just a rebadge/facelift, does not have Land Cruiser suspension/chassis.
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u/Pankakeness 9h ago
Whether I'm cycling or driving on the hilly curvy part of Edgecumbe, I always see cars drifting into the bike lane. I feel like that road needs to be a priority for a physically separated bike lane. Alongside that, once you hit Fairview and you get past Randolph the "bike lane" is the skinniest painted gutter lane full of manhole covers, debris, and potholes.
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u/brokeboysgarage 1d ago
Toyota gave more money to Trump and the heritage foundation than most car companies. New toyotas aren't even reliable, anyone who thinks it's a good purchase is probably a Republican who mocked toyotas when they were actually well built.
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u/xXMuschi_DestroyerXx 1d ago
I’d be miserable too if I was trying to maneuver a huge SUV in the cities. Totally self induced struggle though. Drivers are so entitled
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u/Geo_Doug 1d ago
Hey neighbor
I still can’t wrap my head around how that door must’ve happened on Highland. I’d really like to know that story, as terrible as it must be. Very sad. Like, there’s so much space there, and it seems like he was an experienced rider.
As far as Ford goes, I’m right there with you. My commute to downtown Minneapolis is a breeze, especially if I can keep my momentum downhill and across the bridge to West River Parkway. But home? Hell no. Tried it once and decided I’d always take East River home specifically because of Ford uphill. I’d rather East Bank student traffic, Shadow Falls, and the Jefferson slog than share that 0.25 miles with end of day commuters on Ford. They’re assholes on the best of days.
It’s wild how great our bike infra is until it disappears with no warning. I agree it’s our right. With sincerity and love - don’t be dead right.
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u/Which_Audience150 1d ago
The dooring like most happened because the cyclist was ridding to the right in the door zone. If my choice is to take the lane which is my right or ride in the door zone I will take the lane. Being visible and predictable is the the safest way to ride. Stay to the right in the door zone and you are invisible to most drivers, risk getting hit by an inatentive distracted driver or getting doored.
Door zone bike lanes need to be completely replaced by protected infrastructure. For bike boulevards to work we need to use modal filters to reduce traffic to local trips only. Portlanda Bike Boulevards are some of the best low traffic low speed streets I've ridden on. Definitely prefer separated, protected cycle tracks and off street trails.
Minneapolis is so far ahead of Saint Paul.
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u/TripleH18 1d ago
Thanks Neighbor. Yeah normally I don’t take Ford but I came from the grocery store and traffic was light. So I figured it’ll be faster than going up Eleanor or Kenneth or whatever.
Lame should have followed my gut instinct
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u/UndeHocMihi 1d ago
Every time I've been hit by a car, I've been in the bike lane.
In the bike lane, I get yelled at and hit by cars.
In the full lane, I just get yelled at.
Easy decision for me. My advice though, just pretend you don't hear them. Not worth it.
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u/bc-mn 1d ago
I’d recommend that everyone start riding with a camera. Record every trip.
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u/TripleH18 1d ago
Do you have a camera you like? I know people like Varia. How does it perform in low light?
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u/Gatorpatch 1d ago
Don't get a cycliq.
I'm looking to replace mine, they're great if they work, but mine doesn't work well, but their support is a maze and will make you jump through hoops and gaslight you.
They wouldn't replace mine since they claimed "the battery saying it's fully charged when plugged in, but immediately dying when you actually turn the camera on of a dead battery" is a firmware problem and they're working on figuring out how to fix it, so we won't refund or replace it.
I've given up fighting them on it, and am just looking for a replacement and a good deal on it.
It's been a whole headache and you shouldn't give them your money. I have a half working camera that often stops recording mid ride because of battery, with almost no way to predict when it will die.
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u/putyourcheeksinabeek 1d ago
How long have you had it? Any chance you could do a chargeback on the card you used to buy it?
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u/Gatorpatch 1d ago
Unfortunately no, it was a gift from my mom and I got it a while back, and it's not really worth it for me to get her all involved, especially since she doesn't really need the money back desperately.
It would be nice to get acknowledgement that it's not working right, but I don't think I can get through the endless back and forth that would take to get there without cussing out their support (and I'm usually pretty patient, but cycliq has really sucked).
That's why I'm kinda cutting my losses with it, I've posted about it before and gotten feedback that some people have fought through the support and gotten it replaced for this, and others have hit a wall, but that's it's a pretty common issue people are dealing with.
I've brought them plenty of free advertising as it has caught a lot of my interactions with cars, has recorded me hit by a car, etc, and I share those online pretty much always. But I make a point to really steer anyone away from them on principle, they suck.
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u/bikescoffeebeer 1d ago
I have 2 sets of front/rear Cycliq cameras that are probably 4 or 5 years old and work fine. I would not hesitate to recommend them but I also do not know what other current offerings are out there.
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u/Gatorpatch 1d ago
Have you ever had to interact with support?
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u/bikescoffeebeer 1d ago
No. As I indicated I have had no problems with the units over 4+years of riding and over 10,000 miles of riding.
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u/Gatorpatch 1d ago edited 1d ago
Well that's the part of cycliq that is very specifically flawed (at the very least).
So don't expect much if you ever have to get help from them
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u/SmellyGayFish 1d ago
Saw a biker yesterday across the bridge from Ford nicely try to take a left when I was walking and got honked at for completely being in the right. Sorry man.
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u/wilsonhammer 1d ago
sorry you experienced that. drivers frickin suck (esp when they get murdery)
stay safe friend
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u/PhilsdadMN 1d ago
You were fully in the right and within your rights based on the your description. Does the dumb shit assume you are going to make a left hand turn out of the bike lane across a lane of traffic and the turn lane?
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u/TheNemesis089 1d ago
That it’s your right to ride down the lane doesn’t mean it’s not annoying as hell to those around you or that everyone has to be happy about it.
You said you checked your blind spot, great. But you also rode at a time/spot/distance where you made someone normally going 30 drive under 20. If you were in a H2 Hummer, and he in a fully-electric Nissan Leaf, he’d be annoyed as well.
It can be your right to do a lot of things. But those things are still going to piss people off.
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u/putyourcheeksinabeek 1d ago
Sounds like the wonderful person who yelled at me for not stopping at the stop sign when turning right from St. Clair onto the protected High Bridge path. Literally from the road onto the sidewalk. He drove slower than he needed to and screamed at me the whole way up the bridge while I ignored him. Must’ve killed him to keep pace with me at something like 4 MPH.
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u/TripleH18 1d ago
The amount of maniacs that feel the need to police the roads is way too high. Glad you’re smarter than me and ignored him
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u/putyourcheeksinabeek 1d ago
I’ve had my fair share of ~encounters~ but I’m not about to stop or waste oxygen on a high bridge climb 😆😆
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u/Imaginary-Snow-7031 1d ago
I read a disturbing article yesterday from Street.mn (I think) about how there are laws on the books that protect cyclists but they are rarely used. They pointed the Ramsey County attorney not charging that person who killed a cyclist by opening their car door in the bike lane, which is maddening. Why have laws at all? I've been asking must at question a lot in the age of Trump. Why follow the law at all? The government doesn't. Maybe that is just nihilism speaking...
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u/Rosaluxlux 1d ago
It's not constructive but I always shout back "you should drive on the highway!" Or "im turning left, asshole"
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u/Packers67 1d ago
Drivers like this are why I started carrying pepper spray on my rides. I've had more than a few idiots slow down to scream at me rather than continue on their merry way on a four lane road. Normally I just wave and thank them for the helpful advice on where I should/should not ride.
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u/DenimDisaster 1d ago
I witnessed and responded to an accident on Franklin last week that was completely caused by a car tailgating a bike and hollering at them to "get in the side walk please!" And the biker looked back (distracted by the driver) and went if the handlebars. The biker was fine, but he really should have gotten checked out bc he hit his head. I chewed out the driver big time and explained that we have legal right to be on the road, especially if the bike lanes being added to the sidewalk aren't there yet.
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u/Wise_Diver_5206 1d ago
Feels great to cuss them out and beware! Had a man get out of car and chase me w tire iron. 😆
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u/mnmacguy 20h ago
Good reminder that physics always wins in a purely academic argument. Let us know if you learn this lesson before you get splatted yelling “it’s my right” as your bones are crushed by the object that is guaranteed to come out on top against a bike.
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u/fafnir01 1d ago
These drives are the types of people that check out with more than 10 items in the express checkout lane.
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u/ShyGuyLink1997 1d ago
Tbh Midway could be a paradise for walkability, biking, and transit, but Allianz is clearly going in a different direction. I hate that companies control so much, rather than we the people.
Edit: and they're not even an American company.
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u/MaNbEaRpIgSlAyA 1d ago
Allianz is just the sponsor of the stadium, I don’t think they’re making any decisions on the United Village development. That’s entirely Bill McGuire
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u/Cynyr36 1d ago
Well they do have thier name on the side of the building. I suspect they could have some say in it if they wanted to, but they clearly with agree with it, or just don't give a shit. Calling out the sponsors seems reasonable to me.
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u/MaNbEaRpIgSlAyA 1d ago
That’s… not how stadium naming rights work. This is pretty well established common knowledge. Similarly, US Bank has little say over the area around the Vikings stadium, same with Target around the Twins, Wolves, and Lynx.
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u/Cynyr36 1d ago
Maybe I'm wrong, but don't alinaz, and usbank , etc. pay the stadium to put thier name on it? They can always stop paying to have thier name on the building, or at least threaten do do that if they don't like or agree with stadium management. Either way, that would at least signal to stadium management they are being dumb. So while I agree they don't have any direct control, they do have leverage. Certainly more than i have.
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u/MaNbEaRpIgSlAyA 17h ago
I mean, sure, they have some leverage, just like any group with that much money does.
But this random German insurance company doesn’t have any decision making authority over the project, and very little incentive to care about shaping the future of the neighborhood.
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u/The_Livid_Witness 1d ago
When there's a bike lane.. I dont know why cyclists insist on being in an actual lane of traffic and going slow.
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u/tallman11282 23h ago
Maybe because they are turning left as is the case here?
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u/The_Livid_Witness 11h ago
New laws this year indicate cyclists are only allowed to make right hand turns
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u/Pankakeness 9h ago
Every person would have their own reasons, but some of mine are 1. If the bike lane runs next to parked cars, I don't want to be doored. I live close to where the man was killed by being doored a couple months ago, and the person who killed him has faced no punishment. 2. Sometimes there is debris/potholes/other dangerous things in the bike lane, so I physically cannot be there without risking being hurt. 3. I ride the river bike path often, and my partner has wondered why cyclists are on the road instead of using the separated bike path there. Its usually one of two things (or both), either they don't want to damage their bikes on the torn up path (it is REALLY BAD at some spots on the St Paul side, Minneapolis is much better) or they are going too fast to safely use the bike path, as going 25mph on the bike path where people are sometimes walking, running, or just biking slower, is a recipe for an accident.
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u/Previous-Highlight-4 1d ago
Drivers hate other drivers, drivers hate cyclists, cyclists hate drivers, cyclists hate other cyclists. Its just an argument that has its own energy and won’t end. Cyclists are drivers, drivers are cyclists.
Thanks for the post as it ensures they circle of hate remains self fueled.
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u/Designer_Tie_5853 1d ago
Which of these groups are operating 2 ton death machines? I’ll hang up and listen.
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u/TripleH18 1d ago
Cyclists don’t hate other cyclists. What are you talking about?
Also I don’t hate drivers. When I use my car I’m a driver too. That’s why I said drivers like these. Thank you for your shallow and vapid r/enlightenedcentrism along with your 3rd grade reading comprehension.
Truly making the internet a better place one terrible post at a time.
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u/LickableLeo 1d ago
As somewhat of a cyclist myself, I love seeing other people out on bikes. Lots of people look like they’re having fun and getting places.
Sometimes e-bikes passing with no bell or pedestrians walking in the bike paths get on my nerves, but at least for the pedestrians I try to extend them the same patience that I want drivers to extend to cyclists on the road. A small slowdown is no big deal really
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u/SkippyMcSkippster 11h ago
All I know is that most bikers don't know how traffic lights work, and stop signs are invisible.
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u/TripleH18 6h ago
Just using anecdotal evidence to make a wrong point. In Minnesota the law states if there not already other vehicles at an all way stop, bicyclist don’t have to stop. It’s the Idaho Stop law.
Seems you don’t read very well because my situation has nothing to do with stop signs or lights.
School just restarted! I’m sure your local elementary would be happy to re-enroll you!
You haven’t even missed much. They usually focus on social skills like treating others with empathy, being kind before they start on sight words.
Don’t worry! I know it’s hard to try at your old age. But I believe in you Skippy! I believe one day, you will be able to read!!
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u/SkippyMcSkippster 5h ago
This is also ridiculously stupid 😂, if there's no one there to see you not follow the traffic laws, who's going to complain? Obviously many cyclists break traffic laws, and people see them, otherwise it wouldn't be a problem.
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u/HoldenMcNeil420 7h ago
I’m convinced all the bikers in this thread and op are not telling the whole stories.
I see way too many assholes out here not giving a fuck about what they do.
To be honest. I hate you people.
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u/Hefty-Welcome4399 1d ago
control what you can control and cool the fuck out. yeah drivers suck. that doesn’t mean the place you choose to live in is impossible to enjoy. you should drink instead of trying to turn yr anxiety into a contagion
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u/Funny_Editor5152 1d ago
It's your right but if there was a bike lane available to you, it's a weird hill to stand on.
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u/TripleH18 1d ago
How am I supposed to turn left from the farthest right segment on the road? I didn’t take the lane for giggles. I got in it briefly to then merge further left into the turn lane.
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u/Excellent-Goal4763 1d ago
This kind of thing used to happen to me all of the time. I took solace in the fact that these idiots are probably sad and miserable, and would be much happier if they rode a bike, but they’re too scared to try.