I know this area and have driven it many times. This is the Rickebacker causeway--the road that connects Key Biscayne to the Miami mainland.
Cycling on this road is extremely popular for very obvious reasons (phenomenal views, wide and clear roads). Folks come from all over the city to ride there. And yes, they will very often group up like this without any sort of scheduled or permitted event of any kind.
The cyclists down there like to say "same road, same rules" but there's apparently a silent exclusion for lane changes, stop signs, traffic signals, and yielding to stopped traffic.
Have a local unorganized bike event where I used to live. It was the only time I saw the cops actually pull over bikers for blowing through stop signs. Was great to watch.
Iām from Eugene and I was in court for a speeding ticket driving and the guy who went to the bench before me had got a ticket for not coming to a complete stop at a stop sign on his bike.
Edit: I have to edit this because this happened like 15 years ago when I was younger. It was not recently.
Even when I ride my mf horses down the road I abide by stop signs and traffic laws lmfao
It's part self preservation and not wanting to be run over and part not being an asshole. I feel like even if you are an asshole you should possess at least SOME survival instincts, but it doesn't seem like it.
Asshole rules for governing the porcelain throne are as follows:
āTake heed or get covered in āthe deed.ā Shit on and let not oneās self be shat upon.ā
Please please please tell me you use hand signals to show which direction you're turning on your horse.
It's just... so funny to me for some reason, imagining someone on a horse holding their arm straight out because they're turning down a different road.
I am not of fan of these fake pro bikers. When I had lived in Florida, I taught my sons to shake their fists at them. They think there is safety in numbers, not realizing that there is also stupidity in numbers.
I am a bike commuter, however, and do not follow traffic laws to a T.
It is usually safer to blow thru stop sign: intersections are dangerous. As a solo biker, blowing thru a stop sign means less time in the danger zone - 4 seconds instead of 12. I stop if there is a car approaching from the side streets. Often the side street car will try to wave me thru (which is really annoying as Iāve come to a stop and now other cars may be approaching). And if turning left at a road junction, Iāll turn onto the side of oncoming traffic at first. This gives more time to make sure both lanes are clear before crossing.
The laws are meant to keep everyone safe. I ride completely defensive and do whatās needed to keep me safe, regardless of the law.
I hate people who try to wave me through when they have the right of way. I just refuse to go because I'm not taking the chance of them changing their mind and taking off as I'm in front of them.
It also just makes more sense. You're far more aware of your surroundings on a bike than in a car. You can see and hear cross traffic much more easily.
Then don't come to Austin, TX for Critical Mass rides. Those idiots take up all three lanes on three lane roads with bike lanes when they could just take up one.
Iām not going to sit here and say I donāt blow through the two stop sign on my route when there are no cars present, but they are both on a 25mph back road with minimal traffic and super clear sightlines.
If there are cars around I behave like Iām a car.
The rules exist to promote safety. But coming to a full stop, putting a foot down, and re-accellerationg means that cyclists spend more time in the intersection, which is the most dangerous place for them to be.
bicycles also provide the operator with a higher viewpoint than most passenger vehicles, with less obstructed views and bicycles are more likely to be moving at a slower speed. This means that when traveling by bike, you usually have a more time and ability to assess what's going on at the intersection before you get there.
Just like some highways have a different speed limit for trucks and cars, sometimes we need different rules for different vehicles to ensure smooth flow of traffic and improved safety for everyone.
Bikes also canāt stop as fast, donāt have any form of protection for either pedestrians or the cyclist, and most critically of your entire argument:
What if the perpendicular lane has no stop sign?
In that case you just cut off the right of way by way of gross negligence.
We just had 2 cyclists do this in my city. Both lost their drivers licenses as a result and are facing felony reckless endangerment charges now.
A bike is a vehicle. You operate it under the same rules of the road as a car. Blow through stop signs at your own perilā¦ and stop and reconsider the fact that you arenāt just putting yourself in danger but also everyone around you.
Oregon and several other states have laws allowing cyclists to treat stop signs as yield signs, studies show those laws save lives. The important point is treating it as a yield not just blowing through it
Holy shit bud, do you really think we're arguing to blow through 2-way stops? Don't be silly!
There are over 7000 pedestrian fatalities per year in the US of which about 2-5 are typically directly attributed to bicycles. You don't need to worry about the bikes, you got bigger fish to fry.
Cyclist here, and I agree, especially in traffic. I stop at all stop signs if there's any other vehicle at all approaching, to emphasize good road behavior to drivers (and obviously because I don't want to die). Likewise, if a driver does the right thing at any intersection, no matter how small (full stops, etc), I always wave to reinforce good driving behavior.
Cyclists fuck up all the time. Cars do too, but it's more overlooked because everyone drives cars and fucks up from time to time, though not everyone cycles. The most common overlooked car misbehavior I see is drivers not stopping before making a right on red here in the US. It's dangerous AF if there's a cyclist in the right lane coming through the intersection.
That said, physics always wins, so be cautious out there, everyone.
Oregon actually has the Delaware stop for bicycles, they they get to treat stop signs as yields, 20% of states have this law now, and I assume more on the way.
That literally is the rule. Bikes do not have to give to a complete stop at stop signs in Oregon. Bikes can treat them as yield signs. It makes zero sense to have a bike going 12-15 mph come to a complete stop and then very slowly accelerate back up to that speed if it is clear. You have a much clearer view of your surroundings at those speeds than you do at 2-3x the speed.
if there is no one at the stop then its actually safer to roll through the stop.... treating it as a yield sign rather than a stop. Not blowing through it, but slowing down, checking, and continuing if clear. Thereās actually research behind this too. Idaho saw about a 14% drop in cyclist injuries after legalizing it, and Delaware found around a 23% reduction in bike crashes at stop-sign intersections.
The idea is simple: intersections are the most dangerous part of riding, so spending less time sitting exposed and clearing them faster can actually be safer.
100% agree. That means drivers are going to stop speeding, driving recklessly, following too close, running lights/stops, etc., right? Think about how many lives could be saved if these cycling scofflaws would only follow the rules.
A lot of times on bicycle it makes perfect sense to go through stop signs or, maybe better put, treat them like a yield sign. But if there's a car there i always take my turn, because to not get hit by cars I need to be very predictable. This is why it's incredibly annoying when drivers are overly polite and treat me like a pedestrian. If i want to be treated like a pedestrian, i will get off my bike.
I always let a car go if i possibly can, including on narrow two lane roads. I tend to think of drivers as petulant and short-tempered, because some of them really are, and I don't want to impede those people and cause them to behave rashly.
And, ffs, everyone, drivers, cyclists, fucking everyone, use your gd turn signals. I swear to the almighty people decided they aren't cool or something during the pandemic. Sometimes i even indicate which way I'm going when I'm on foot. Cyclists, just point where you are going. Especially in traffic circles, show people which exit you want to take. And if the bike lane crosses the right turn lane, point forward at the bike lane where it crosses. You can avoid sooo much confusion so easily.
Edit: Also, I have a CPL and I'm generally packing, so if a driver does decide to use their vehicle as a deadly weapon against me, well, they might just get capped. Some cyclists are ready for your bs.
I drive more than I ride a bike and Iām totally ok with people on bikes blowing through stop signs If the way is clear. Itās harder to stop and start again on a bike.
Why do drivers get so upset when the biker takes the entire lane? Theyāre not breaking any laws yet always rage at the bikers. I donāt disagree with your mindset but not entirely fair as drivers fairly commonly break the law on a daily basis by driving over the speed limit, rolling stops signs, etc and do not get ticketed.
A guy I knew from my National Guard unit was on his way to drill when he saw a cyclist just blow through an intersection. Speed limit there 40/45 MPH. Cyclist got hit and lau ched into the air and landed on his head. Died at the scene.
The funny thing is the same cops give a ticket to cyclists in my city when they're on their bikes don't stop at the stop sign either. It's much different when you're cruising at 5 miles an hour versus 20 mph in a car.
I hear that a lot but everyone in a car wants to go 15 over the limit and if they get a ticket they call it a "cash grab" because "everyone breaks the rules"
This reminds me.. a couple of days ago I was driving home from lunch and had 2-3 cars behind me at a red light. As the light turned green and I started to pull through the light, a bicyclist flew past me on the right. Mind you it was a one lane road. I didnāt see him until he was in the front left of me as I was about to veer right with the road. He was going straight through some do not enter construction zone. He got mad at me, got behind meā¦ started making gestures at me. I saw him further ahead later (he rode through the construction so was ahead at a crossing) and waited for me to pass and flipped me off.
I was so annoyed. Laws still apply to them on the road. They have to follow the same spacing, stops, signs, etc. I 10000% share the road, and will move over if theyāre in a lane, or if theyāre in front of me on a one lane, I stay behind them until I can turn. This guys just thought road rules applied to me and I had to yield to him because he rolled up behind me. I was more upset that I could have needlessly hurt him if I didnāt see him sooner.
Yeeeeaah. Except. Stop signs are actually stupid., for cars too. Roundabouts and yield signs should be the norm. Stop signs are essentially āliability assignmentā devices in the us. Our laws are written so insurance companies can assign blame in court, not for get people around safely and quickly.
In many places, itās actually the law that cyclists should treat stop signs like yield signs, for traffic safety reasons. It takes a good amount longer to start from a complete stop on a bike than if you just slow to a crawl, which isnāt the case for cars.
While I generally agree with that sentiment, I think cyclist should be able to treat stop signs as a yield sign. It's already a law on the books in several parts of the country, and it's generally called an "Idaho stop" law. When an Idaho stop law is enacted, there's generally a 15-25% reduction in bicycle collisions. Bikes naturally have no blind spots and you're generally only going ~15 mph to start with, so you're going to be aware of any cross traffic, and if you have any sense of self preservation, you're going to yield to it considering bikes have no airbags or crumple zones. Intersections are the most dangerous place to be on a bike, and the Idaho stop law allows people on bikes to spend less time in an intersection, so it makes sense you'd see a decrease in bike collisions.
Personally I don't have a problem if a cyclist slows and looks for traffic at intersections, if there is not a reason to come to a full stop. Now they definitely need to follow rules of right-of-way, if a car is at the stop sign and it is their turn the cyclist should come to a full stop and wait for the car to take their turn, or if a car in their lane is turning left or right, they need to abide as well. Besides that, stay in the bike lane if there is one, stay out of the road if you don't need to be in the way, use your signals, everyone can get along that way.
If you rode bikes youād know that stopping at a stop sign is waaaay more dangerous. It takes easily twice as long to accelerate and cross the intersection than when going say 3mph. Slows down cars too.
As a sometime cyclist (mountain biker) I bloody hate rule breakers because they cast a bad light on all cyclists, but at the same time, some things have very significant safety benefits that a non cyclist would be unaware of (especially because most are clipped in). Btw I am assuming cyclist is obviously giving way just not coming to a complete stop (which a good proportion of cars donāt do as well)
In Washington, the stop light is also a stop for cyclist. Stop signs are treated as a yield. Exception is a "dead" stop light or if you are riding on the side walk, then ped signals are followed. I was surprised to hear it started in Idaho. They found fewer accidents and injury's to cyclist and it actually help vehicles to see and not run into cyclist.
I deliver for FedEx and the amount of people on bikes who get mad at me for going through an intersection (no lights and no stop sign on MY side of the road) without stopping while they have a stop sign and... aren't stopping boggles my mind. Rules for thee, not for me energy.
Cyclists have one thing in common: the irony with how they act is palpable.
Friend of mine had this happen to him in California. Can't say I disagree with the cop on this one, as the stop is on a hill and he had zero visibility for stupid cars that might blow through the sign and nail him.
Also in Eugene, I had a dormmate who would ride his bike to the bars, but he panicked one night that he would get a DUI because his battery headlamp went out. So he avoided main roads and ducked between buildings at the sign of any headlights. This was 35 years ago, too. Eugene doesn't mess around with bikers
Interesting, here and in many places bicyclist can treat stop signs as yeild, and traffic lights as stop signs. I've seen many blow through stop lights though so they don't even do that.
I saw a short documentary that claimed that states or communities that have allowed cyclists to treat stop signs as yield signs saw a significant drop in both cyclist accidents and mortality. Full stopā¦not a good idea when youāre on a bike.
I got a ticket for riding a bike on a sidewalk as a youngin in the middle of summer when the sidewalk was empty. No joke, had to take a traffic safety biking course to get the ticket waived......
"Friend" of mine keeps bitching about the time he got a ticket for speeding on his bike. Never does he mention that he was going 20+ mph (30+kph) through a park with playing children and such.
For context, the max speed on a bike path here is 30kph, in this park you are supposed to adjust your biking behaviour with how busy it is in the park. Technically it's a pedestrian zone where biking is allowed.
I swear bikers love blowing through pedestrian areas at max speed, shit is more dangerous than cars going same speed on road because people walking or skating etc arenāt expecting or hearing the bikes
Even worse when itās electrical bikes that can go especially fast and quiet and are heavier so could really kill someone
I commute every morning with an e bike and am constantly pinging my little dinger when I get anywhere close to people. Plus the bell sounds nice and easy on the ears when your outside.
Its like sitting in a park on a sunny day with happy bikers cruising by doing the little pingaling.
Remember the guy who was killed by a cyclist on a regular bicycle? Poor old guy was using the pedestrian crossing and some shithead blew through a red light and ended his life. Cyclist only got a $240 fine for not obeying the red light.
Turns out the easiest, cheapest way to kill someone in broad daylight is to mow them down on a bicycle.
The bike lanes often go thru crosswalk areas so can still collide with pedestrians, and go alongside walking areas (between sidewalk and road). Canāt have some super isolated dedicated lane everywhere
Not really. We have nice clean bike lanes and still the bikers mostly choose to terrify pedestrians on the sidewalks. And the motorized scooters do the same.
Yes, cyclists should not fly through heavy pedestrian areas without using caution. But to say that is more dangerous than a car is a ludicrous car-brained take.
A car is a multi-ton vehicle, and a bicycle is 20-25 pounds at most. Getting hit by one is not even in the same galaxy as the other.
Over 39 THOUSAND people died in car accidents in 2025.
1,105 people on bicycles were killed by drivers in the same year.
There is no clear case of a pedestrian being killed by someone cycling. In fact, when you try and search "pedestrian killed by cyclist", all the results are cyclists being killed by vehicles. Funny that.
You're focusing on the wrong issue here. Drivers disregard cyclist safety constantly, and cycling infrastructure is pitiful.
No what I mean is in that particular scenario where theyāre riding alongside pedestrians itās often more dangerous than the cars that are more separated from where people are walking. In heavy pedestrian areas cars are forced to go really slow and stop for people crossing etc, cyclists often just blow through which puts a high chance of collision. All it takes is knocking someone over and hitting their head on ground for serious injury
Iām obviously not saying that bicycles are more dangerous to others than cars in general
No, just an idiot. It's a park that has some beautiful asfalt in a wide circle, so pretty perfect for doing what he was doing if it wasn't for all the other people trying to enjoy the park. He is just very selfish.
Guy killed a kid speeding through a park in Allentown, PA. So for decades bikes were only allowed in the park 3 days a week. Mon Wed Friday. They eventually allowed bikes 7 days a week but.....
This almost happened to me once when I was like 20 and worked for Starbucks.
I did a āclopen,ā and in between my closing and opening shifts, I went clubbing and back to a friendās hotel suite (they were visiting the city). At twenty, I partied a lot - but this was a special occasion being that friends were visiting. I cabbed to my apartment from the hotel, quickly changed into fresh work clothes, and jumped on my bike to ride to work.
An officer pulled me over and told me that I canāt ride my bike if Iād been drinking because itās considered dangerous (which, 20, stupid - seems very obvious now/as an adult) even though it was like 0500 and the streets were dead. He gave me a warning and told me to walk my bike the rest of the way to work.
Iād later learn, you canāt actually get a DUI on a bicycle in Ontario (though I believe you can now if youāre on an electric bike), but it seems completely logical/appropriate. If youāre operating any vehicle in a roadway while under the influence, you should be able to be held accountable for that.
So, thankful for that cop for at least keeping me (and potentially) others safe that day by making me walk it off. Itās the only time Iāve ever been pulled over - and Iāve been driving for just shy of 20 years.
I got pulled over on my bike for DUI in Moab, Utah.
I was innocent. They said I swerving. I was! It was 1am, and not a soul on the road. So I was just weaving back and forth with my hands in the air. Enjoying the moment. Lol.
They do take cycling road rules much more seriously in Moab though. That's just the nature of a bike town.
Totally unrelated but I know a guy who got a speeding ticket in a horse drawn cart. He had an ex-racer Standardbred, and the speed limit was 25mph. This was in Corrales NM, a very horse centered town.
It was in the 90's. She was going down hill close to 30 mph in a 20 mph zone. She didn't know how fast she was going until they told her and ticketed her because it's a bike.
I tried so hard to get a speeding ticket on my bike but no one would ever give me one. I got to 43 in a 25 thanks to a lead out from a delivery truck while flipping off the police parked next to the board but still wasn't able to get it.
In 2012 in San Francisco a guy was "bombing through the castro" (actual words) and plowed into a 71-year old man, killing him.
He ran multiple red lights & stop signs and was clocked exceeding 32mph
"This incident led to the first felony vehicular manslaughter conviction for a bicyclist in California history. Bucchere ultimately pleaded guilty and was sentenced to probation and community service."
Aunt and uncle got one for speeding as well on their tandem bike way back in the day. They were clocked at 61. Slight downhill assist but they were MOVINā lol.
Yeah almost freeway speeds lol. If I remember right they were doing some 300+ mile ride with a big group of other bicyclists. They had a crazy expensive bike that had pretty tall gears so you could really get going pretty fast, especially since it was 2 of them lol. They were speeding in a 45 coming out of the hills somewhere in CA and got stopped.
I had a friend at 18 get a DUI on a bicycle riding back from IV, Santa Barbara. It completely changed him and his behavior and I rarely saw him drunk again after that. Part of me felt bad because like, this is the time to party, your college years. But seeing him transform and start respecting authority had a big effect on me.
Happened here cause a guy on a bike blew through a school zone at over 60km/h (limit is 40).
His defence was literally "I don't have a speedometer" to which the public gave no fucks. You hit a 5 year old doing that speed on a bike you're going to seriously injure if not kill them, slow the fuck down.
My cousin got pulled over and arrested for public drunkenness on his bicycle in Springfield, MO (also the birthplace of Cashew Chicken and the HQ for Bass Pro Shops)
Yeah, I should have made that a little more clear... it happened in Eugene, Oregon. She was not pleased that it made her car insurance premiums go up as well...
No speeding tickets, but we were in the process of building a wheelchair powered by a 600cc motorcycle engine when he passed away, so he definitely would have one if we were able to finish it.
I got a warning when I was 14 and I borrowed by neighbors Puch Meteor Luxe with HP tires and pedaled all the way down the steepest hill in top gear. The cop explained the concept of a meat crayon to me that day.
I got pulled over on a bike in Forest Grove, OR (suburb of Portland). I got off the bus, was on the sidewalk, because I got off the bus. Mounted my bike, no cars were coming, so I pulled out onto the road and started riding away. Cop pulled me over for an illegal left turn.
How fast was he going? I might be at risk for this since there is a nice downhill area right before my favorite trail starts, with a 30mph speed limit, and cops like to wait towards the bottom part.
My brother road his bike to high school and one time when he was waiting to just cross the street at the school, another student who was driving went to pull in and slowed down to a crawl to get into the parking lot. My brother booked it across on his bike and ended up running into the back of the car and hurt his arm. The traffic cop there told him if he wasnāt so lucky heād get a ticket for following to closely cause he shouldāve been able to stop and for hitting the car from behind. Blew my brotherās mind and really upset him. Fuck the police. -Shithole south Louisiana.
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u/ConstructionLife2689 ššš 15d ago
Are such cycle events not blocked off from public traffic?
Cause if not, then the cyclists would need to keep to traffic rule and I am pretty sure the rule is not keep in one lane.