Cycling in Waterloo Region

[ookpik]

There was a discussion here back in July about STOP signs and cyclists who "blow" through them. Some more food for thought: 

Let’s put an end to the spread of stop signs   

[STOP signs] create stop-and-start traffic that causes increased air and noise pollution. Instead of calming traffic, they can agitate it. While studies show that drivers do slow around 100 feet before the stop sign and 100 feet after it, they actually speed up in between them to make up for lost time. A proliferation of stop signs can actually increase peak speeds. The result is neighbourhood NASCAR with residents doing their best Dale Earnhardt Jr. impersonation on quiet streets.

Another unintended consequence is that stop signs create a false sense of security among pedestrians. They see the big red octagon and think they’re safe. They’re not. The more stop signs they see the more drivers can become immune – hence the rolling stop.

Perhaps the only group who hates stop signs more than drivers is cyclists. Often lambasted for blowing through them, cyclists argue that 30-pound bicycles should not be treated the same way as 3,000-pound cars. In July, cyclists in San Francisco held a “stop-in” in which they obeyed the law and made full stops at every sign. The stunt brought traffic to a virtual halt.