Cyclists must follow all rules of the road

Re Alleged hit and run leaves cyclist and her son looking for

perpetrator, July 25 I feel for Stacey Talbot’s ordeal. I often thought that car drivers who hit cyclists were careless.

However, a couple of weeks ago, I was driving on Danforth Ave. and was unable to turn right on two green lights because of constant pedestrians crossing the street. I finally saw my chance to make a right on a red light.

I looked in my mirrors to see if bicycles were coming, as I had noticed many along the way. There was one about 15 metres back. I assumed this cyclist would follow the rules and stop at the red light. I was wrong.

Fortunately, I was able to slam on the brakes to avoid hitting the cyclist as he proceeded full-speed through the red light without stopping. He either did not notice or ignored my turn signal.

It scares me to think what would have happened if I had hit that cyclist. I am not saying that such was the situation with Mrs. Talbot. But it got me thinking that car drivers and cyclists need to be extra vigilant on a right turn.

We are well to remember that just as there are reckless drivers, there are reckless cyclists. If both groups followed the rules, then maybe there would be more respect between them. Diane Randall, Markham

Re Delivery vehicle blocking a bike lane? Likely Canada Post, July 24

Although parking officer Kyle Ashley is doing a laudable job, it is time to clone a few more Kyles to make sure cyclists also follow the rules of the road.

I have narrowly avoided being run over by cyclists when crossing legally and they just sail through a stop. And I have seen countless cyclists head down one-way streets in the wrong direction.

When will someone start clamping down on the two-wheeler devils who disobey almost all the rules of the road? Stephen W. Ayers, Toronto

In making the Green Hornet out to be a champion of justice for the poor bikers, this story ignores many facts of life on the streets.

Delivery of documents and parcels is a very valuable part of the economy in which we thrive. It is almost as vital for the health of the economy as hospitals and doctors are for our health. When they stop to drop off a package of letters, they are important lubricants to the wheels of commerce. They are seldom stopped in one place for more than a couple of minutes.

Admittedly, cyclists are equally important to our society and economy. Thanks to the introduction of bike lanes, they are now able to have a share of the road for their use.

If delivery vehicles were to stop to the left of the bike lanes, they would be blocking the driving lanes for automobiles. On streets with no bike lanes, when delivery vehicles stop briefly, we merely stop till they are done or make our way around them when it is safe to do so.

If we have given cyclists a share of the road, they have the same option of either waiting a few moments or going around the stopped delivery vehicles.

If the crusader is not ticketing delivery vehicles on roads with no bike lanes, I would say he is biased toward giving more weight to the inconvenience of cyclists than to the drivers of four-wheeled conveyances.

Has the Star found any champions of justice for pedestrians, to ticket cyclists who weave in and out of pedestrian traffic on sidewalks?

Venkat Krishnan, Ajax

Re Canada Post vows to quit blocking Toronto bike lanes, July 25

I am very impressed by Toronto parking officer Kyle Ashley’s efforts (crusade?) to ensure bike lanes are kept open for the use of cyclists, as they were intended. Good for him and hopefully the results will be lasting.

However, I can’t help expecting that the fallback solution for Canada Post, and others, will be to park on the sidewalk instead. They already do this, as a matter of course, and with the implicit approval of the parking enforcement. I’ve seen many cars ticketed for whatever reason while parked on the street, but only a handful of cars ticketed while parked on the sidewalk.

When I’ve approached people about it, they’ve said the police told them to park on the sidewalk in order to keep the street clear. This actually sounds plausible to me.

Add in drivers rolling past stop lines to stop in the crosswalk and cyclists riding on the sidewalk, and it’s obvious that we walkers need a Kyle Ashley of our own.

Nathan Loeppky, Toronto