The August edition of Breakfast on the Bridge is nearly upon us. That’s when cyclists (and pedestrians, too, I think) gather for coffee, smoothies, bagels, bike tune-ups and stimulating conversation.
It will happen this Friday, Aug. 26, from 7 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. The August breakfast is at the bridge at 24th Avenue and Amazon Parkway:
I know what you are thinking. You are thinking, “My, that’s not the grandest of Eugene’s many bridges, is it?”
We would agree.
But what it lacks in magnificence it more than makes up for in nearby succulent blackberries.
Which should be ripened up by then, just in case you don’t like bagels.
Hope to see you there.
Eugene Bicyclist 
What we need at this particular spot is a brawny cyclist with an RPG-7 to discipline the moto-head a$$hats who don’t seem to know what a crosswalk is for. Are events like these supposed to make us a “bike-friendly” city? Es ist zu kotzen.
I don’t pass by here daily, but fairly frequently. I sometimes feel that TOO MANY people stop. Sometimes I’d rather they just go through — when I’m on a bike, which is most of the time when I’m down here. On a bike, I don’t see the crosswalk as being my right of way, and expect that the cars on 24th should always stop if I’m waiting to cross.
I usually get more annoyed at motorists who do stop and eagerly wave me across, being all “nice” when they clearly have the right of way — and when there is another car barreling down the road in the opposite direction who may not be as enlightened. It almost feels more dangerous than me waiting my turn sometimes.
I’ve been meaning to write a post about this phenomenon …
It’s worth documenting how often it happens when a motorist has the explicit right of way and gives the “aw poor bike” stop and wave. Often at 2-way stop intersections, you have the stop sign and they do not. I’ve gotten people to angrily peel out because I won’t accept their patronage (durr). I shouldn’t expect people to stop for me if I run a stop sign, nor should I expect them to stop for me if I stop at the sign. It’s annoying and confusing when people transcend common sense and right-of-way laws.
On the other hand, I don’t blame them for being nervous with the way people ride in this town. Maybe when they stop, we should take that as our cue to take a break, dismount, walk up to their car and apologetically discuss the issue… if they don’t get startled and peel out first.
Agreed! I’ve experienced this many times. Also: Trying to make the unprotected left turn from Polk onto the bike path where it jogs there, and people stop their cars when I’m clearly waiting for them to pass so I can complete the turn. Would they do that if a car was waiting to turn left? That intersection is dangerous and confusing for cyclists and motorists alike, and almost forces cyclists to ride on the sidewalk on the wrong side.
You are as wrong on this as you could possibly be, and I am astounded at your ignorance. Oregon law requires that motorists stop for those using a crosswalk, and this includes crossing cyclists. If you stop and let these cars through, YOU are the one improperly granting right-of-way. I personally don’t care if you sit there all day relying on the “kindness of strangers,” but I resent that you are contributing to the clueless of Eugene drivers by making them think they don’t have to stop for you. Get a clue.
See ORS 814.410 Sec 2 for this.
skinner,
I read the law you reference here, which says, “Except as otherwise specifically provided by law, a bicyclist on a sidewalk or in a crosswalk has the same rights and duties as a pedestrian on a sidewalk or in a crosswalk.” I hadn’t thought about this much because I usually avoid riding on sidewalks or in crosswalks. But a crosswalk on a path — Amazon and Fern Ridge, especially — can’t really be avoided.
So maybe you’re right — except on the rocket propelled grenade part. I think there’s probably a law against discharging a firearm within the city limits.
Still, it’s odd to me that the cars should just stop because of my presence, like I’m Moses parting the Red Sea.
There is a good post on this very issue from last October at WeBikeEugene Go here.
There is the part about a pedestrian having to step into the crosswalk to gain the right of way. Do you have the right of way if you are just waiting on the sidewalk? According to the WBE post, there is a bit of gray area here.
I don’t know. Happy to discuss it here, but maybe I’ll do a post on this issue in the near future.
oh, yeah, and people who know me are never astounded by my ignorance. It’s par for the course :)
Please note I was discussing crosswalks, not intersections where a cyclist is acting as a vehicle in the roadway. I am with Lvc on the annoyingly simple who think they are doing you a big favor (and feeling so liberal about it) by ignoring the right-of-way and trying to wave you through.
Two things seem to make these places work better, triggered traffic lights or dismounting and clearly becoming a pedestrian. I think in both cases, the situation gets better because you’re signaling intent and then waiting to see the driver recognize that you’ve signaled your intent.
I sort of figured this out for myself on that strange little bike path segment that crosses Willamette by the old PeaceHealth building downtown – I sat there on my bike and nobody slowed down, so I dismounted and dropped a foot, and people stopped right away.
I had an interesting experience at one of the yellow warning signal crossings on the bike path in Springfield, if there’s traffic, I stop and hit the button – and the freaky thing about these lights is that they’re just blinking yellows, and they turn on instantly when you hit the button, so it feels like there’s grace period to stop if you’re almost to the crosswalk. The minivan driver that was only 30-50 feet from the intersection had the presence of mind to give a little tap honk to let me know he was there, which I thought was pretty impressive. It had the feel of ringing a bell to let pedestrians know you’re passing – very nice. (how often can you say that about getting honked at on your bike?)
OK, Skinner, I was wrong in my first comment regarding the crosswalk thing. Yeah, there is a new law (Senate Bill 424) on this, just went into effect this summer as I understand it, which adds this to the applicable laws:
And when any of that happens, a car is supposed to stop.