Shared frustration fuels driver-cyclist divide
Both groups say counterparts don’t obey laws of road
“I’m not the one surrounded by 2,000 pounds of metal, talking on my phone,” said Montrose cyclist Stephen Morton.
Houston drivers, bicyclists and pedestrians don’t share well, even though the signs tell them that’s the law.
Drivers rail when forced to share space and slow down. Pedestrians and wheelchair users cringe when they step into harm’s way. Bicyclists trade horror stories about drivers who buzz them, honk or throw bottles and cans.
Both sides say the other doesn’t obey the law: Bicyclists ignore stop signs. Drivers speed or fail to give riders and walkers adequate room, including stopping on and not before crosswalks.
Pedestrian and cycling advocates say the system is rigged to force people into car travel and that walking and biking is unsafe. Thousands of walkers
“Contrary to popular belief, people, thousands of people, walk in this city,” said Oni Blair, director of LINK Houston. The organization advocates for changes in transportation policy such as more spending on sidewalks and street repairs in low-income areas.
Still, more than 93 percent of people commute to work mostly by vehicle — either alone, in a carpool or on a bus or train. In the Houston region, the remaining workers are more likely to work from home than to get to work by walking or cycling.
As a result, decisionmakers confront a majority of people who want to be able to drive efficiently and a vocal, vulnerable minority who just want a safer space in which to walk or ride.
The conflict often leaves both sides livid.
“They should stay on the trails,” Reginald Michaels, 56, a 24-year resident of Houston, said about cyclists. “It is safer for them and better for traffic.” Veteran riders disagree. “I’m not the one surrounded by 2,000 pounds of metal, talking on my phone,” said Montrose cyclist Stephen Morton. “The responsibility not to hit me if I’m on the street — where I’m supposed to be — is on you.”
City officials must navigate that morass — often with questionable success. Pedestrian and cycling advocates in 2013 lambasted the city for allowing development of townhomes with stubby driveways, some less than a car length in distance. Walkers said many of the homeowners, parking in their own driveways, were blocking sidewalks crucial for safe travel for pedestrians and disabled travelers.
But when Houston cracked down on residents of Fourth Ward neighborhoods, irate homeowners complained about getting fined for parking in their own driveways — forcing an about-face from city officials.
Advocates for more sidewalks and bike lanes, nevertheless, remain optimistic. For every harrowing story of a soda can thrown at riders, they say there’s a friendly honk of the horn or a thumbsup from a passing car window.
“When people see us on the street, that changes their attitude,” said Veon McReynolds, a Texas Southern University professor and organizer of Tour De Hood, which encourages and supports biking in various Houston communities. “Cars slow down, they honk at us and wave. Some say ‘Get off the street,’ but that is very, very few people.”
‘Make better progress’
Making roads safer for pedestrians requires more people to think about vulnerable road users, experts say. Advocates are working to tailor their message in that area.
“If we can reframe that conversation around collective action and we’re all looking to get home at the end of the day, maybe we can make better progress,” said Nat Gale, who oversaw Los Angeles’ efforts to reduce roadway fatalities.
Across the city, however, statistics show drivers will virtually never face punishment for endangering cyclists. In the five years since the city required drivers to give vulnerable users at least 3 feet of space, police have ticketed fewer than 60 drivers — and most of those were in targeted enforcement campaigns.
During that time, at least 25 cyclists have died on city streets.