Baltimore Sun on Sharing the Road

Michael Dresser, the Baltimore Sun's equivalent of Dr. Gridlock, wrote an article yesterday in response to those who don't think they should have to share the road with cyclists.

Here's a flash for the internal combustion crowd: Bicyclists, even the Lance wannabes who live somewhere else, have a right to be on all roads except for a few high-speed highways. They do not impede traffic; they are an integral part of traffic. It has been thus since the dawn of the auto age. Should bicyclists stay to the right and use the shoulders when they can? Absolutely. But there are times when they have to use the travel lanes and the rest of us just have to learn to share.

Bicyclists may not pay gas taxes, but they pay sales tax on their bikes. The government hits them up in most of the ways it hits up others. Their bikes cause no pollution and almost zero wear to the road system. They don't require widened highways or significant traffic law enforcement.

Comments

[Jonathan Krall]

Thanks for the posting. Nice when the press speaks up for cyclists, for a change. :)

[TurbineBlade]

It should have mentioned that many (probably most) cyclists also drive on occasion and pay all the fees associated with owning a motor vehicle.

[CyclingFool]

And it could have added that the vehicle registration and gas taxes paid by motorists do not cover the cost of our maintaining the roads. The balance is paid for out of various other government taxes, primarily income taxes.

So, even those cyclists that don't own/drive cars or buy gas subsidize the nation's roads...