(Photo © J. Maus/BikePortland)
Funny how things work out some times: A reader emailed me a few hours ago wondering what she should do when she sees people using phones while driving. Then a few minutes ago I read a news story about the exact same situation.
The situation is this: When bicycling, it’s very easy to see inside people’s cars as you ride by. That means people who ride bikes witness an awful lot of people using phones while driving. For anyone that knows the carnage distracted driving accounts for on our streets, this is a disturbing phenomenon. Using a cell phone while driving is both highly dangerous to yourself and those around you, and it also shows blatant disregard of Oregon traffic law. (As an aside, this ease of seeing drivers on cell phones while biking is why I’ve advocated for the police to use bike patrol officers to do cell phone law enforcement stings. So far, they haven’t taken me up on the idea).
Reader Kim I. emailed us wondering what to do (if anything) after witnessing such behavior. Here’s her email:
“I am a daily bike commuter in Portland. Over the last few weeks during my morning or evening commute, I have observed drivers texting on mobile phones as I passed them. It is probably no surprise to you that it evokes anger for me… I am appalled that someone can be so careless. On at least three occasions I have caught the texting drivers’ attention and chided them. Invariably, they smile and blow me off. I find this frustrating (and I feel foolish), yet if I remain a mute witness to this behavior, it is equally frustrating. Is there anything a citizen can do? I wonder if others in the bike community have any suggestions.”
Just an hour or so after reading that email, I came across this story via KOMO News up in Seattle: Police: Driver rams pedestrian for telling her to hang up and drive:
“… a female driver talking on a cellphone intentionally rammed a pedestrian after he signaled for her to hang up and drive Monday afternoon… the victim was crossing Fifth Avenue South and South King Street in the crosswalk around 12:50 p.m. when he indicated to a woman driving a silver Honda Civic that she should hang up her phone… The suspect reacted poorly to being scolded and pulled forward, intentionally ramming the victim with her car, according to the report… The victim told officers the suspect hit him in the knees with her car twice more while laughing and yelling that he wasn’t an officer before driving off.”
So does that answer Kim’s question? Is it better to just stay silent when you see people using phones in their car? I’ve often wondered this myself.
One thing we’ve seen over the years — and what this Seattle incident clearly illustrates — is that trying to communicate with another road user about their behavior is an extremely dicey proposition. It can end up going very well, but it can also end up deteriorating quickly. Emotions rule in these situation and I don’t know of any adults who take kindly to lectures about their behavior from friends and relatives, much less complete strangers.
In the end, I’d urge a compromise between verbal engagement and doing nothing. Perhaps the best thing is to come up with a good hand gesture (not the middle finger) or facial expression that shows your disapproval and gets your point across. Does anyone have other tips? What do you do?
Read more in our Ask BikePortland archives.
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What about cyclists who ride while taking on their phones? Not minimizing issue of drivers talking/texting while driving, but I’ve seen many cyclists who do it also, which is equally unsafe and when they are riding in front of me or heading towards me, potentially a safety issue for me as well.
That’s a good question. I agree that’s an issue, but not even close in terms of threats to public safety. It’s also not crystal clear whether Oregon law prohibits the use of phones while biking.
And the rate at which I see people using phones while biking is very very low compared to folks in cars. (In the Netherlands and Copenhagen it’s a different story! Tons of people bike while using phones over there.)
The few times I’ve tried to correct other cyclists I’ve either been ignored as they continued on their way, or called nice names like “fucking faggot”.
So it generally does not go well. I just keep my mouth shut now. That goes double for people in cars, as something about driving makes people want to RAGE (gee, wonder why?).
Yeah, I’d say that if you are going to challenge other citizens’ illegal actions, you should be armed and prepared to use deadly force. And, since that is illegal in Oregon (we do not have a stand-your-ground law), I would not recommend it. Unless you are law enforcement…
nonsense.
i’ve been challenging dangerous behavior on roads for decades and have never come close to being threatened. all my near misses are due to obliviousness and/or narcissism — not malicious intent.
As of 2007, there is no “duty to retreat” in Oregon, according to the Oregon Supreme Court.
http://www.publications.ojd.state.or.us/docs/S53457.htm
“which is equally unsafe”
You can’t be serious.
Equally unsafe???
I mostly encounter this while I’m walking in a crosswalk and the person stopped at the light is on their phone.
I scolded a man once, and he sheepishly put the phone down (but clearly didn’t hang up, so he probably just resumed after I looked away).
Just yesterday, a woman was on the phone, and I was about to say something, but there was some traffic commotion that made me look the other way and I just ended up doing nothing.
I also feel the dilemma between being confrontational (but maybe saving someone’s life or limb) and avoiding confrontation. It’s a tough choice.
It goes much deeper, to car culture, routine disregard for traffic laws, and the acceptance of the collateral damage. I just don’t see a clear fix. It’s all so broken.
Yeah, I have a little “hanging up the phone” gesture. I would give anyone I saw driving with an open can of beer a piece of my mind. So, given that driving while talking on the phone is just as dangerous as driving drunk, I want to at least let drivers know that it’s socially unacceptable even if I may not change that particular driver’s mind in the few seconds we have to interact.
I do the same thing. I know it’s perhaps not the smartest thing given that some people are prone to the rage, but I figure a small gesture of peer pressure might slowly change a few minds.
I will pit my drunk driving skills against anyone driving while talking, texting or Google mapping their bistro choice…
I believe that electronic devices in cars are the absolute worst social acceptance of human behavior on the road in the past 30 years.
It is hard enough to just tune a radio while driving, let alone all the crazy crap people are allowed to do now.
If victims can litigate in reverse to find my bartender guilty of over serving me before I drive off into the night, why are we not be able to sue Google when people use in-dash on board devices?
Color me Luddite.
Film them with a head-cam and write down their license plate, and put it on youtube. Ask Portland Police to do their jobs?
10+
Anyone want to make a youtube channel for this sort of thing?
After Joe Rose commented on one of my videos, Ch. 6 picked up the story: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qSSuaOGFAZ4
Scofflaw motorists!
You can write a ticket yourself. Commuting columnist Joseph Rose covered this topic at length in a 2012 column: http://tinyurl.com/8xtbkl5
Citizen Prosecution of Dangerous Drivers:
A Users’ Guide on How Others Have Done It and How You Can Do It for Yourself
http://www.stc-law.com/citizenprosecutions.html
Yep. Before you say a word or make a motion toward the person on the phone…
Whip our your camera phone, do your record a video of the driver on the phone, as much of a face close-up as you can, and catch the license plate too. Then start your C.I.C. proceeding 🙂
STC Law makes it even easier with their “Citizen Prosecution of Dangerous Drivers: A Users’ Guide on How Others Have Done It and How You Can Do It for Yourself”
http://www.stc-law.com/citizenprosecutions.html
Exactly. Oregon allows for citizens’ arrests. Submit complaint to your local PD.
I politely tap on their windows with the barrel of my pistol.
I know it was said jokingly, but what would it take for THEM to fear US? We cower on the sidewalks, and we are not safe there.
they do fear us but you won’t realize this if you are cowering.
Although people yakking on phones annoys me and is dangerous, I usually let it go. What’s far more dangerous is texting or otherwise fussing with the screen on a smartphone. I’m not one to call out garden variety stupid crap that people do, but texting while wielding a multi-ton deadly weapon as as dangerous as drunk driving and I WILL say something if I have a chance.
A couple years ago I confronted a 30s age guy I’d been following who was driving down the street blatantly watching a video on his phone. He was pretty contrite about it and apologized.
But more often, people get angrily defensive and scream F-words back, as if they have an entitlement to do drive down the road without looking at it. For some reason I’ve particularly gotten this reaction when the texter is a young woman. YMMV.
I would strongly recommend not doing anything. Two times I have said something to drivers talking on the phone while driving as a pedestrian, and both times they physically tried to ram me with their cars. The second time, a cabbie in NW Portland pulled a gun on me after missing me with his car and stopping.
So, unless you have a death wish, I don’t recommend doing anything! Unless, of course, you have ultra ninja skills and a rocket launcher. Then, maybe.
As long as the Portland cyclists continue to live up to their stereotype as being pissy and judgemental towards all other beings, we’ll be ok. I do like Jonathon’s addendum “while avoiding physical harm to their beings”
Yesterday, a driver passed me while texting, and he subsequently had to lock up to avoid rear-ending a stopped car in front of him. Gave him a thumbs down as I passed.
I saw this just last night ona ride with my wife and daughter. This youngish girl almost blew the intersection just prior to us going through (we had the green) and was blatantly on the phone, I made the “hang up the phone” hand sign while mouthing hang up, she gave me a dirty look as we went by. I’m not too concerned ablot confrontations, I’m 6’4 and about 275, that will usually end a confrontation right there.
So…yelling “GET OFF THE F***ING PHONE” is not advisable, then? Darn.
If they aren’t creating an obvious hazard (failure to maintain lane of travel, failure to obey traffic control device, etc), don’t do anything. Calling out others, particularly minor offenses, rarely ends well. The last thing we need are a bunch of cyclists riding around town telling drivers what to do.
That said, I have yelled at drivers before. A guy that turned right on red while I had a bike-only green signal: I yelled and pointed at the “no turn on red” sign. The dude that was sitting at a red light texting: why would I say anything?
I would be the first, second and last person to verbally confront people that are texting while driving. Having my unfortunate share of threatening gestures with a 2,000 lb vehicle in response, I would advocate for using video to catch them in the act then self report. If you’re filming them texting, and *then* they get cranky and try to run you off the road, you have your video of road rage / hit-and-run incident to go with it. (Hopefully NOT the latter).
Most times a dirty look suffices – I give stink eye like no other.
I say “PUT THE PHONE DOWN!”, and it usually ends there, but I have more colorful language when the need arises. I engage EVERY person withe a phone, Its unacceptable behavior, JUST AS BAD AS BEING DRUNK OR HIGH.
I would remind people who think we’re being busy body-ish regarding this offense, that driving while talking on the phone, with or without a headset, is as statistically dangerous as drunken driving. Some studies suggest it is actually even more dangerous. And as people who ride bikes, we are THAT much more vulnerable to life threatening injury from the collisions that result from distracted driving.
http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/new_scientist/2013/07/voice_and_text_while_driving_research_shows_it_s_all_dangerously_distracting.b.html
If I can, I just stop, rest my arms on my handlebars & STARE. I say nothing and just stare until they go. I use this same tactic for parents being mean to thier kids, or other behavior that they would NOT do if they were being witnessed. Whatever happens, I don’t expect good behavior at the moment but make a situation that MAY make them think in the future.
I was a passenger in a car on the freeway the other day when I saw a man talking on a cell phone while merging into freeway traffic. His car had a sticker on the back saying, “How’s my driving?” and giving a phone number and an identification number for the car. Five minutes later he was still on the phone – so I called. Anonymously. That felt good.
When I see bicyclists yakking on the phone, I just say “Baaad Example.”
I would support a universal hand gesture that is neutral in nature for “please hang up and drive” or “please pull over and chat”.
Someone make some illustrations and lets get these circulated through social media!
Mine starts with the “on the phone” gesture (fist with thumb and pinky finger extended, thumb to the ear, pinky finger to the mouth) then “hangs up” the pretend phone.
Mine too. I usually haven’t gotten more than a “Who do you think you are?” look out of this. I don’t think it helps, though. It’s rare for anyone to hang up. I think the only actual solution is for the police to enforce this law, and the many others that are commonly violated.
People do something 9 times safely, and they start thinking they are on a roll or it must not really be that dangerous, and the 99th time they get in an accident. Humans are stupid about risk when the danger is in the aggregate. (This pretty much applies to all traffic violations, by any mode.)
Why use two fingers when really one big one would suffice?
Good point. Unfortunately that’s what perpetuates drunk driving, too. You do it once, you get away with it… you do it twice, three times, five times, twenty times. You can easily convince yourself that you’re okay if you don’t get too drunk. And then on the 200th time, that person it going through the crosswalk and the sun’s at just the right angle, and boom.
When i first started riding I’d yell at people loudly. Luckily no one retaliated. It was (and still is) a HUGE pet peeve. Though I found that most on their phones are so checked out of actual driving that they aren’t even aware when people are yelling at them.
When they passed the cellphone law I thought it would be an amazing new world. Sadly there’s been absolutely no difference. Seems like easily 30-50% of the people I look at in their cars are on their phones. I can almost tell who is and isn’t just based on how bad their driving is.
I’d probably try to sell them a hands free device or something.
I had two separate, recent incidents where I was nearly killed by someone texting while driving. Then last week I was riding during rush hour and saw a driver weaving in and out of the bike lane while moving. When I caught up to her at a red light, sure enough, she was texting. I am really tired of risking my life because someone thinks their OMGs and LOLs are more important than the safety of everyone else on the road! We need to be asking our local PDs about their action plan for reducing this risky behavior, and letting them know what we are seeing out on the road from a cyclist’s eyes.
Isn’t there some kind of sticker that we can all be armed with that we can slap on their window, reminding them that what they are doing is dangerous? Doesn’t Microcosm Publishing have something witty and poignant that they can sell or give to us to slap on cars? Hmmmm… just thinking out loud.
If it really bothers you, and you feel they need to put their phone down right away. You can let them know if they do not put their phone away you will call the police. I imagine just saying that will get their attention.
This is one issue that you young whippersnappers and I agree upon. LEOs need to enforce this law!
They will NOT enforce this law until someone dies from a motorist using their cell phone while driving. It will also need to make big news. Then there will some ‘cracking down’ on this.
No, that won’t cause them to crack down, because it’s already happening. Probably hundreds, if not thousands, of road fatalities every year are due to distracted driving, but it’s incredibly difficult to collect direct statistics on it — let alone prove it in a court of law.
I don’t think Jim Price’s death (to mention one prominent cyclist) a few years ago in Colorado has resulted in massive, lasting enforcement action.
A number of people have already died from this. According to http://www.roydwyer.com/distracted-driving-causes-accidents-injury/ , at least 4 people had been killed by cell phone users in Oregon as of last November. It’s the ‘making big news’ part that’s the issue – motor vehicle collisions almost never do (and often the news focus is the resultant traffic, not the casualties).
Distracted drivers are already killed, killing others and crippling others, It will take a massive class action lawsuit that hammers service providers before the issue is addressed. Law suits are the new rules enforcers. Police are understaffed, overworked and can only prioritize the issues that immediately result in personal injury. I wish that a similar massive law suit hits the car companies that put computers that provide distractions in their cars. I have nothing against cars or drivers, but cars should be vehicles for transportation, not entertainment centers or mobile offices. There is lots to pay attention to when driving and drivers engage in a social compact to pay attention when the get behind the wheel. Don’t get me started………………..
Hard to crack down on it when there have been soooooo many exceptions made for some to use the phone while driving.
Ride in front of the offending car and talk loudly into your shoe, oblivious to the shouting cell phone yapper in the car trying to get you out of the way.
That one only works when your name is Maxwell Smart… and last I saw he was driving a Sunbeam Tiger (really tiny car with a big American V8 from the ’60s).
San Francisco Public health ambulances sported “hang up and drive” bumper stickers when I lived ther 10 years ago. I gets old fast responding to crashes caused by distracted drivers and cleaning up their carnage. I was attending a patient when someone on a phone rear ended my ambulance; my patient and I were okay but we had to get another ambulance to haul him off to the hospital.
Balloon full of milk to the windshield?
I was rear-ended several years ago. My car was totaled, but I was ok, just shook up. When I got out of my car to discuss the incident with the other driver, she was busy talking on her phone and didn’t hang up and come out to talk to me for several minutes. It wasn’t until much later that realized she had probably been talking on the phone when she hit me.
1) carry an air horn on your bike which you can pick up and aim.
2) if extremely mad, use a cell phone jammer
I have a funny story about a cell phone motorist: a friend of mine saw someone talking on their cell phone while driving. They were stopped at a light, and this friend signaled urgently for them to wind down their window, which they did. This friend then took a carton of chocolate milk, crushed it in his hand, and poured it over the motorists’ head.
Lesson learned. I have always wanted to carry around multiple containers of chocolate milk since then.
What I actually do is get out my cell phone, and make a big show of snapping their licence plate, and their face with my camera phone. This act tends to get a certain number of drivers to hang up.
I cross SE Powell every day. I would say 1 out of 8 drivers is obviously on the phone.
And what is it with the about 1 out of 3 of them that is chatting away, holding the phone out away from their head? Do they think putting it on speakerphone is better somehow? Or that it doesn’t look like they are on the phone? Or are they all watching videos while talking on the phone and driving?
I don’t want to find out the hard way, I just want to cross the street.
Doesn’t that make it legal though?
No way. It’s “hands free”, not “away from ear free”.
It’s only legal if you’re using a Bluetooth ear piece or other speaker system.
Another couple thoughts-
How about a nonprofit website where you can post photos/videos and they will make sure the local authorities and the insurance companies get the information… a bit Big Brother-ish, but if you had to certify the photo it would weed out the scammers. I’ll bet certain license plates/drivers would show up a disproportionate amount of the time, and to not take action given that information would be hard to defend.
Or people could take a class and become a deputized traffic watcher. The cops/courts would be required to take their calls seriously and would take things from there. Someone needs to be the eyes out there, the police can’t make a dent the way things are now. Yes, you can file your own ticket, but it’s not something enough people are willing to take on, and there’s no built in protection from pissed off drivers.
Other ideas?
This is a good idea. My wife shared this idea to me the other month. She thinks if your phone is moving more than ‘x’ miles per hour that a pop up message should come up asking something like, “Are you driving?” If you answer “No” then you have an accident and it is determine you were driving at that time you lose your insurance. Or something like that. I like the idea of posting pics of these folks too, but taking a picture of someone might put you in a confrontational situation.
mind yer own beeswax
“mind yer own beeswax” -Justin
Some of us remember that’s what people used to say about drunk driving, in the days before MADD.
It is our business to be able to use the streets without being run over by a distracted driver disobeying the law.
The model for fighting texting driving is MADD.
From wikipedia:
“Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) is a nonprofit organization in the United States that seeks to stop drunk driving, support those affected by drunk driving, prevent underage drinking, and overall push for stricter alcohol policy. The Irving, Texas–based organization was founded in 1980 in California by Candice Lightner after her 13-year-old daughter was killed by a drunk driver.[1] MADD claims that drunk driving has been cut in half since their founding.[2]”
&
“Candice (Candy) Lightner is the organizer and was the founding president of Mothers Against Drunk Driving. On May 3, 1980 Lightner’s 13-year-old daughter, Cari, was killed by a drunken hit-and-run driver at Sunset and New York Avenues in Fair Oaks, California. The 46-year-old driver, who had recently been arrested for another DUI hit-and-run, left her body at the scene.[1]”
“The mission of Mothers Against Drunk Driving is to stop drunk driving, support the victims of this violent crime and prevent underage drinking.”[3]
&
“:Generally MADD favors:
* Education (about the dangers of drunk driving), advocacy and victim assistance
* Strict policy in a variety of areas, including an illegal blood alcohol content of .08%[4] or lower and using stronger sanctions for DUI offenders, including mandatory jail sentences, treatment for alcoholism and other alcohol abuse issues, ignition interlock devices,[5] and license suspensions
* Helping victims of drunk driving (this includes family members and other loved ones of both innocent victims and guilty impaired drivers)
* Maintaining the minimum legal drinking age at 21 years
* Mandating alcohol breath-testing ignition interlock devices (IIDs) for everyone convicted of driving while legally impaired”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mothers_Against_Drunk_Driving
I wish we had something more proactive to do.
The other week I was riding up Barbur to the Terwilliger intersection. If traffic is thick (going south) I often get in the right turn lane and enter the cross walk on on Terwillerger to make a left turn. The other day a person plowed into the cross walk while looking at their phone in the far lane. This was not a problem for me as I don’t enter that last lane (Terwilliger right hand turn lane onto Barber), but they almost got the person walking across the lane. I made a hand jester indicating they should hang up their phone (Thumb near ear, pinky near lips…moving in a hang up mode). They proceeded to roll down their window and state rather roughly, “I wasn’t talking on my phone, I was looking at directions.” I disengaged, it was clear they weren’t interested in apologizing and it didn’t seem productive to offer any advice at that point.
This is a more extreme example of what I see daily. As noted in the article I see folks on the phone every day. For the most part I make no jester besides giving them the stink eye. I wish there was a more proactive way to express displeasure.
I personally propose we deputize these folks just like Andy did to Will in The Andy Griffith Show so Will could arrest himself every time he got drunk. These folks can write themselves a ticket every time they pick up the phone, send a tweet or look down for directions.
if pursuing and “inconveniencing” dangerous motorists is not your thing, i strongly recommend the bird. its constitutionally-protected free speech and it feels good.
I don’t know if there’s a Mothers Against Cell Phones or anything yet, but we can certainly take the initiative and learn from their experiences, and ask that the existing laws we have be enforced.
It can be achieved with a small number of people and a bit of coordination. Here’s one example of how it could be ramped up the priority list of law enforcement.
First, do a little homework:
1) Spend an hour doing web searches of news stories, scientific research, analysis, etc. of how phones distract drivers. Print them out.
2) Get the addresses of about 10 public officials who can mandate additional enforcement of existing laws (list below). And media sites.
Next, throw a party:
3) Get together with 10 of your friends, have them settle in for 90 minutes of letter-writing, with drinks and refreshments.
4) Each friend writes a personal letter to each public official. Gives out personal anecdotes, references scientific studies, shares experiences, and asks for their commitment to enforcement of OR 811.507. http://www.oregonlaws.org/ors/811.507
This is a good start, and probably all you need to do next is:
5) Find 10 passionate friends to throw their own parties. I suspect that if politicians, media and law enforcement got 100 well written letters over the course of a three months, they’d ramp up enforcement.
Bam. Problem well on its way to being solved. If you’re still motivated, rinse and repeat every six months.
6) Use your momentum to get a legislator to support new legislation to impound the cell phones of any person involved in a car crash. And report it in media releases, just like seat belt, alcohol blood levels, and bike helmets. If the NSA can track our calls all the time, I’d hope the local cops would have authority to track calls when it is actually warranted.
Ted Buehler
Here’s who you write your 10 personal letters to:
* Portland Mayor Charlie Hales. http://www.portlandonline.com/?c=28533
* Portland Police Chief Mike Reese http://www.portlandoregon.gov/police/article/319093
* Multnomah County Commission chair Jeff Cogan http://web.multco.us/chair
* Your district County Comissioner http://web.multco.us/communications/find-your-commissioner
* Multnomah County Sheriff Dan Staton
http://www.mcso.us/profiles/ (click “contact us” snail mail address on the right)
* Governer Kitzhaber http://www.oregon.gov/gov/Pages/ShareYourOpinion.aspx (snail mail address at the bottom)
* Your state senator and rep. http://www.leg.state.or.us/findlegsltr/
* Oregon State Police Superintendent Richard Evans http://www.oregon.gov/osp/pages/superintendent_evans_bio.aspx
* & also to the general State Police request email/snail mail address http://www.oregon.gov/osp/Pages/contact_us.aspx and ask.osp@state.or.us
* The Oregonian (letter to editor, choose your favorite aspect of the issue — enforcement, education, compassion, etc.) http://www.oregonlive.com/contactus/ (snail mail address at the bottom).
There is an organization called FocusDriven that is starting to make an impact. Like MADD, it was started by family members who lost a loved one… One of the victims featured on the map on the website is Gordon Patterson who was killed in a hit-and-run while biking home from work in Vancouver in September 2009. One of his own students was convicted of negligent homicide due to texting. Sadly, this guy appears to have learned nothing since he was recently arrested two months post-prison for cutting in front of a truck while driving on a suspended license and then eluding police. His mother didn’t learn anything either; she let him drive her car (this really offends me)… You may already know this story but maybe others don’t.
I love your suggestions and always appreciate the links you provide to make following them easier. It would help if I were an Oregon resident, though.
Kristi — if you ride a bike in Oregon on occasion, and are at risk of being turned into roadkill by Oregon drivers, then I suspect that you have a perfect right to make requests about Oregon law enforcement with whomever you like.
Ted Buehler
i.e. — send a letter to the governor of Oregon, explain that you live in Washington but ride your bike in Oregon, and think it would be a good idea to crack down on cell phone use and texting while driving. Shouldn’t be a problem that you’re not a constituent, and in fact your opinion as a nonresident would add yet another type of voice to the chorus.
My son Dustin was killed 8/12/11 while riding his bike in a bike lane on Division. I speak at an average of at least 6 – usually 7 to 9 – DUII/High Risk Driver/Share the Road Safety classes per month in Multnomah, Clackamas, and Clark counties. I testified twice before the Oregon Legislature earlier this year about the need for increased penalties for injury hit-and-run (which are still waaaayyyy too lax). Plus assorted other things. But I want to do more, and as I already said, your suggestions and the resources you provide really help. Thank you! (I am taking some of August off, though, to grieve this 2nd year anniversary).
Thank you for speaking at all of these events. Your work is very important. Take it easy this month….and god bless you.
I bet if you went to most major cities(portland not being in that category) and tattled on cell phone users you may just get your arse kicked. Here in portland it is common practice to correct people for any type of behavior you deem incorrect. Perhaps yelling at people doesn’t do anything but incite violence. Be aware of who you “correct” because it may end up with you getting a throat punch. Just sayin
i’m not afraid of the people of wall-e.
People willing to do that are idiots. People like you describe is another reason my helmet is constantly recording hi def video.
Agreed. I nearly moved to Portland doing a job transfer. I’ve spent a lot of time in PDX and when I was house hunting I was “behavior corrected” twice in the same day and I decided that I really wasn’t interested in having people up my a** all the time so I stayed put. Imagine someone telling on or correcting cell behavior in NYC….
People screaming things at each other in NYC traffic? Never happens.
That’s the hallmark of personal interaction with strangers here– the delicious opportunity to say “You’re doin’ it wrong”
I’d be more concerned about the crippling cost of living and lack of paying jobs.
Portland’s a violent enough city that you’re actually more likely to get throat punched keeping to yourself. I know this from personal experience.
I tell them to hang up the phone…
Unless, of course, they’re bigger than me! 😉
1) Aim helmet cam at driver
2) blast Airzound
3) when the driver looks at you point at the video camera
Any interactions after that can easily be misinterpreted by an over-aggressive driver.
It would be nice if we could use that video footage, which by design would have a profile and front view of the driver’s face, as solid evidence in a citizen’s initiated citation.
Is there anything louder than an airzound in the bike horn department? Portland’s a loud enough city that 120dB doesn’t get heard over the din.
Keep your Airzound filled to 90psi.
Expect substandard performance under 60psi in normal temperatures, as high as 80 psi in freezing and below.
Most unscratched bottles will hold 125psi for over a month in a container that shields them from UV exposure. Club soda bottles are stronger by at least 20 psi; Sodastream’s reusable home carbonation bottles feel like they could hold 200psi when undamaged.
I have not performed destructive testing on Sodastream’s bottles but the key is protecting any air vessel from UV and chemical degradation while scrupulously making sure there are no surface imperfections, even on the factory original bottle. The scratch is your worst enemy.
I find that giving the mildly disdainful “really” stare to be the safer middle ground between being passive and being overtly confrontational. Just used it this morning on somebody who honked at me for taking the lane on Broadway to avoid the potential right hooks just past Flint.
To Jonathan’s point, I find that my initial reaction to being called out for bad behavior in public is usually negative. Given a minute or two, or sometimes just a few seconds, however, I usually find myself admitting that I was being stupid. At least in my case, just because I react adversely in the moment doesn’t mean that someone’s approbation isn’t effective when I am capable of being more contemplative.
As a veteran volunteer PBOT bike counter at numerous busy arterial intersections during the PM peak, I am amazed at how many motor vehicle drivers are violating the law and holding their phone up to their ear, while in motion, not just stopped at a traffic light. It would be quite easy to set up a video camera and record this activity, including the license plate and driver in the act.
I appreciate that PBOT and PPB have added this dimension (warnings and citations for distracted driving) to their crosswalk enforcement actions but this does not go far enough…
Cyclists with gopro cameras should be writig citien traffic complaints.
I’ve posted this link before, but…Korea’s approach of paying a bounty to people who submit video of criminal offenses seems rather relevant here.
…and in phase 2, we can train our head-cams on traffic and narc on drivers with burned out lights, or speeding, or rolling through stop signs at 5mph. After all, they are Endangering everyone around them. Phase 3, we can narc on them for expired tags, throwing cigarette butts out of the window, dangerous cracks in their windshield. We can only dream of a day when the police start scanning faces of citizens for facial recognition, which would mean that we can start busting fellow cyclists for traffic violations, missing lights and cycling w/o a bell….oh, to dream.
A surveilled society is a polite society! 😉
(with apologies to the NRA)
just ignore and move on… sometimes it is not easy to do. once in awhile i act up if it is too close for comfort…
Of course bicycles must follow the same rules as cars:
http://www.portlandoregon.gov/transportation/article/301187
“he number of bicycles being used on streets and highways is growing daily, both for exercise and transportation in city areas. The same traffic rules and regulations for vehicle drivers apply to bicyclists.”
If its unclear to you, then why not set a good example as cyclist and hang up the phone while riding bikes?
Most cycling organizations ban members from talking on cell phones already. Why? because its dangerous to other cyclists!
While on business in San Francisco recently, I had a conversation with an attorney whose specialty was vehicular accidents. He said the first thing he does when representing a client, is subpoena phone records of all parties involved.
Let’s hope the person who hits me isn’t using a phone or texting.
I did something stupid while driving and got called on it by a cyclist… I said I was sorry and I got scolded for saying I was sorry…
Exactly my fear when I do drive.
Reminds me of a time a year or so ago when I was driving behind a bus which suddenly stopped, leaving my car hanging back part-way into a crosswalk.
Then the light changed, meaning people wanted to cross where my car was. I knew I had screwed up, but some guy starts SCREAMING at me while he was walking by, with serious anger in his face.
I rolled down my window and said “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to!”, to which he replied “no you’re fucking not!”.
It’s pretty funny when I look back on it…
The correct response to that arsehole would be a smile and a cheery wave and “have a nice day.” It would ruin his day that you hadn’t engaged him and he wasn’t able to piss you off.
Man, I do NOT miss the aggro-aggressive nature of Portland traffic.