Cycling in Waterloo Region

[danbrotherston]

I've appreciated the discussion here, perhaps it was pessimistic to say this is unenforceable. But if it really is no different than other laws, why were there only 19 charges laid in a year? My own experience and what I'm hearing from others suggests it's a rather common occurrence.

There are many possible reasons.  It's a new law, police aren't yet trained, or comfortable in applying it.  Police may prefer to give warnings for new laws which are now in place in the interests of "fairness" to motorists who don't know about the law.  More cynically, many (most?) police officers aren't cyclists, many of them may not even notice, or wish to apply the law.

And since this law applies to interactions with bicycles, there will be fewer tickets issued anyway, because there are fewer cyclist to pass to closely too, than there are, say, red lights to run.  And keep in mind the timing, the time period included mostly the introduction period, and the winter when there are fewer cyclists.

And further, you must actually compare with numbers on other types of tickets issued, obviously speeding, red light running, and cell phone use generate high numbers of tickets, but I suspect there are equally low numbers for other infractions.  Running a yellow light is probably a good example.  Technically illegal, but rarely enforced.  (https://www.ontario.ca/laws/statute/90h08#s144s31p2).  As "missing bell" infraction for cyclists might also be a good example of an infrequently enforced law.

I don't know which, if any, of the reasons I suggest actually apply, I'm just speculating.  I would like to see an increase in enforcement--or rather, I'd like to see a decrease in the prevalence of violations of the law--as I would for most frequent traffic violations I see.

[Canard]

I've appreciated the discussion here, perhaps it was pessimistic to say this is unenforceable. But if it really is no different than other laws, why were there only 19 charges laid in a year? My own experience and what I'm hearing from others suggests it's a rather common occurrence.

I look at "only 19 charges" and think of it the other way around - maybe the message got across and there were only 19 charges because people are behaving better.

I'd be more worried if there were *more* charges...

[danbrotherston]

I've appreciated the discussion here, perhaps it was pessimistic to say this is unenforceable. But if it really is no different than other laws, why were there only 19 charges laid in a year? My own experience and what I'm hearing from others suggests it's a rather common occurrence.

I look at "only 19 charges" and think of it the other way around - maybe the message got across and there were only 19 charges because people are behaving better.

I'd be more worried if there were *more* charges...

From my experiences, this sadly isn't the case.  While it's hard to measure objectively whether things are better or worse, when I experience three close passes on one trip up Weber St., the prevalence of tickets has little to do with the prevalence of the activity.

Another example, failure to signal, I see it probably 20-30% of the time people are supposed to signal, but I doubt you see very many tickets for it.  I see police cruisers fail to signal frequently for that matter.

[tomh009]

And further, you must actually compare with numbers on other types of tickets issued, obviously speeding, red light running, and cell phone use generate high numbers of tickets, but I suspect there are equally low numbers for other infractions.  Running a yellow light is probably a good example.  Technically illegal, but rarely enforced.  (https://www.ontario.ca/laws/statute/90h08#s144s31p2). 

The way the yellow light rule is written ("... if it's possible to stop safely") makes it very hard to enforce, so I wouldn't be surprised if there were zero tickets issued for this.  Running red lights is enforced, but it still happens far too often.

[jamincan]

I took a closer look at the bike lanes from Ebydale north to Victoria on Lackner today on Google Maps. The longest section is 500m between Keewatin and Victoria. After that they are all below 200m long with the shortest being only 75m. I simply can't fathom what was going through their minds when they planned that. The vexxing thing is that there appears to be plenty of room to have full bike lanes painted along the road, so I'm not clear why they elected not to. The present situation seems more unsafe than having no bike lane at all!

[Canard]

Yeah... it's fragmented and pretty bad. Traffic moves quick here, too - it's signposted 60 km/h, but whenever I drive along here and do 60, people are right up my tailpipe.

The section through Ottawa must be a nightmare for cyclists - it's got a curb right next to the lane, and the bike lane disappears on either side of the intersection.

[jamincan]

It's actually one of the rare spots where the situation is worse going southbound than it is northbound. The right lane on the northbound side is a bit wider than normal, so there's actually a decent amount of space for cyclists next to the curb. The situation going southbound isn't too problematic if you're comfortable riding in traffic, but there is no clear direction for where cyclists are supposed to go. The correct choice, I suppose, is to move into the travel lane and claim your space, but more common choice with less confident riders would likely be to either straddle the line between the right turn lanes and the travel lane, which is potentially dangerous, or stay next to the curb and risk getting hit by a turning car that doesn't check their blind spot.

I typically end up doing something else entirely. I claim the right turn lane on both sides of Ottawa as a bike lane, but keep to the left side if stopped at Ottawa so that there's space for turning vehicles to get by me. Otherwise I keep to the centre so that drivers can't try passing me on the right. They're turning anyway, so it's not like I'm impeding their travel too much. I think it's the best balance between safety and convenience for drivers, but it's by no means the obvious choice.

[Smore]

Dan/Chris, what type of cameras do you have or recommend?

[Canard]

Not trying to but in (I realize you didn't ask me specifically), but I use a GoPro Session mounted to my handlebars, and I'm quite happy with it. Footage example:

[zanate]

Dan/Chris, what type of cameras do you have or recommend?

I ride with a Fly6 from Cycliq. On the upside, it's a combination tail light and camera that loop records to an SD card and has a couple other features designed to preserve footage if you get hit or lay the bike down. On the downside, it's a pretty expensive tail light that requires recharging every few days so it has to come with me when I lock the bike up, unlike a $20 MEC special that runs for 18 bajillion years on a single triple-A.



They also make a front light/camera combo (called, unsurprisingly, Fly12.) I don't have one of those. But in general I think both are good ideas if you want to have the equivalent of a dashcam for your bike, because IMO the fewer devices you need to muck about with, the better.

[danbrotherston]

I use the previous generation Garmin Virb. I don't recommend it, it's too heavy and has limited features, and poor battery life. It was a decent camera when I got it seriously marked down, since it is the previous generation, but I'm not particularly impressed.

[Chris]

Dan/Chris, what type of cameras do you have or recommend?

Cycliq Fly6 and Fly12 for me. https://cycliq.com

I like that they are also lights so you save some bar and seat post space. Zanate summed them up well in his post. They are pricey but getting a decent rechargeable light and action camera is comparable.

If you are looking for something to record rides Factory Direct has had some iON action cameras on sale and they seem pretty decent. They sponsored the Tour of Utah a couple years ago and were used for some of the race footage.

iON at Factory Direct http://m.factorydirect.ca/SearchResults.aspx?Q=Ion
Sample video https://youtu.be/L4y6QPQxWVs

[danbrotherston]

   

Looks like some new bike parking near the Spur Line Trail across from Lens Mills (there's a sign for a Bakery).  It looks like city bike parking, but it must be temporary given it's on the grass.  I know they did a study asking where bike parking should be, I can't imagine this is already a result.

[Smore]

Looks like some new bike parking near the Spur Line Trail across from Lens Mills (there's a sign for a Bakery).  It looks like city bike parking, but it must be temporary given it's on the grass.  I know they did a study asking where bike parking should be, I can't imagine this is already a result.

That's out front of CE Food Experience (highly recommend btw.)...They also added outdoor seating by way of some stumps just to the left of the photo (outside shot)...all of which made it my impression that this wasn't really a sanctioned addition...not to mention I can't see the city installing within the boulevard.

[Canard]

...can I grumble about this here?

   

I guess it's really no different than when cars park temporarily on the "wrong side" of the very narrow street that we live on, and if I'm driving along, and a car is approaching in the other direction, I have to yield to it and wait for it to pass, then drive out around the vehicle that is blocking my path.