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Citizen complaint of the day: Rogue driver doesn't seem to like bicyclists
By adamg on Thu, 11/30/2023 - 9:20am
A concerned citizen filed a 311 complaint about a Nissan Rogue parked in the bike lane on Tremont Street inbound just past Mass. Ave. in the South End with a very special message for bicyclists yesterday.
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Comments
Taped to the window
I don't care
That your mirror
was in the bike lane
Get a new one
This is just to say
I have taken
the mirror
that was in
the bike lane
Axles Revenge?
I have shoved my breakfast banana into the available tailpipe, in the bike lane.
Tailpipe
We’re not gonna fall for the banana in the tailpipe!
I'd buy that for a dollar
Hey oh
and which
and which
you were probably
not using
for anything
Forgive me
Forgive me
it was so shiny
and so in my way
Wonderful
I give you 10 points for the William Carlos Williams reference, and 100 points for not calling attention to it.
At least the bike lane is
At least the bike lane is serving a purpose when a car is parked in it.
Wahhhhhh!
I bet you scream like a little baybeee when a cyclist uses the general travel lane, because cause and effect is something infants have yet to learn.
Dear anony:
Have you the dignity to express gratitude for each of the cars NOT blocking you because a person is riding a bike instead of driving? When you have grown up and are able to stop yourself from whiny baby cries then feel free to rejoin the commentariat.
Two wrongs always make a right
.
Keep your garbage out of the bike lane
You won't have any problems with your mirrors.
Oh, and consider not complaining about cyclists who use the car travel lanes because of your entitled attitude.
Plate MA 3BZC 98
Putting Massachusetts 3BZC98 in text here so that here so that anyone searching for that license plate will find this story and photo.
90% chance a biker put that on there.
But who knows.
Maybe
Why would it matter? They didn't put the car there.
Trying to be funny and put fake words in the drivers mouth...
Not the funniest thing in the world but I can see it.
I can see a car parked in the lane
Sure, one car isn't a big deal. But when it's every block, every bike lane, every single day it gets pretty old especially when people turn around and say, "why did the city install these lanes if no one uses them!"
I dunno man
As a biker, if I'm stopping to write a note for someone parked in the bike lane...
it's gonna be a lot less polite than that.
It looks passive-aggressive
If the driver really didn't care that they were parking in a bike lane, which, to be honest, is most likely the truth, why would they bother with writing a note.
Conversely, someone else- doesn't even have to be a cyclist- might put a note on this car to indicate what they think the driver thinks.
There are whole websites dedicated to people who leave notes like this, but I'm too lazy to track them down right now.
Wow
Are you honestly tone-policing a note on an illegally parked car whose location puts other road users at risk of severe injury?
You would actually go searching or ….
…. posting this note on websites about notes like this?
What curious hobbies you have.
Case noted. Don't hold your
Case noted. Don't hold your breath.
"Case Resolved | Thank you
"Case Resolved | Thank you for contacting Boston 311. The vehicle is no longer at this location."
Well if this report was investigated in a timely manner instead of 16 hours later, maybe the vehicle would have still been there.
Why even bother to allow illegal parking complaints on 311 if there is zero chance anyone will investigate it in a reasonable time frame?
Well then
Sounds like 911 instead of 311 it is.
But if you call 911
You don't get to submit a picture that will be publicly shared and perhaps posted to the Universal Hub.
I stand by my comment already posted here- the illegal parking was real, and bad, but the sign was most likely a passive-aggressive reaction to the illegal parking.
Why bother?
On the off chance that someone is being paid to alert traffic control of the areas that get the most complaints. So more staff can be sent there at times most of the complaints come in.
On the off chance that the someone is doing their job.
You lost me at "I don't care"
I'd feel pretty OK if the note said, "Sorry, I couldn't find a spot. I know I'm in the bike lane. Please go around me."
Yeah because their
Yeah because their convenience is worth more than someone's life
Why is any of it acceptable?
These lanes need to be clear at all times for cyclists, which is what they are legally designated for. Not deliveries, and not selfish assholes. Children, seniors, people with disabilities, new cyclists, and parents with loaded cargo bikes should be able to ride in a designated bike lane.
Anyone caught blocking a bike lane ("they should just go around!") should be required to go out cycling with their children and see how it is when they have to ride around a car blocking a bike lane with 45+ mph traffic as is common in Boston, and then imagine what it would be like if their child were riding to school alone (which it should be safe for kids to do, and only isn't because of entitled motorists and a lack of enforcement). Or ride a heavy delivery trike for the first time, perhaps while wearing goggles that make their vision appear like that of a senior. Maybe we can drug them to give them the slower reaction time of a senior, a child, or a working adult who has physical disabilities that allow them to walk and cycle but not drive.
Obvousily that driver does care.
Just not in the right way.
I hope to god....
that this is in front of Kinopio's house.
Why?
Just to be a jerk?
Let’s hope you never know ..
… where Kinopio’s house is.
My house is apparently in
My house is apparently in your head where I'm living rent free, sweetie. I ride a bike like 7 times per year so its even more weird that you are thinking about me.
Less "I don't care"
More "I know I'll face zero consequences"
I was wondering what that noise was at
9:20am today. Now I know it was the bike brigade’s gasket collectively blowing.
Doubt it
It was probably a car crashing into something
Nah, this happens far too often to blow any gaskets
What would really blow my mind, would be for people like you to start to understand that this puts lives in danger, then we could have a serious conversation. But when you are a glib asshole, we know not to take you seriously.
Gaskets?
Blowing?
That's drivers in their daily critical mass drive.
Is Melania in town?
Sounds like her ...
Ha!
.
nothing
a couple swings of a u-lock can't fix
Once Again...
Suggesting or agreeing with potential violent acts.
This time property damage, another time potentially attacking a sitting Boston City Councilor.
Seek help. You have a J6er mentality.
Parking in bike lanes is a
Parking in bike lanes is a violent act,
It deliberately puts others in danger, not unlike shoving someone in front of a moving train.
Property damage =/= violence.
Property damage =/= violence.
(No subject)
Question
Could saying you're gonna drive a car down the Minuteman bike trail be interpreted as suggesting a violent act?
No
If you don't hit anyone with your car, then no.
For all of you who support the occasional bike seen on the Pike or 93 and yell "Hooray", you then logically would accept a car on the Minuteman. You can't be two faced about it.
If you want anarchy don't be upset when it goes the other way.
Uh
You mean the strawmen in your pocket?
I'll take "things that never happened" for $500
I’ve seen a guy on a beach cruiser on the section of the pike …
…. west bound. Looking east from the Mass Ave overpass. It can be done in that little half lane to the right.
Not that I’m ever likely to see it again though I have considered testing it out. It’s safer for bikes and pedestrians than some of of the street level routes above.
John Boy’s problem is that he is determined to bend the rules of physics to make bikes and pedestrians as dangerous as cars and car drivers. He lives in an alternate universe.
It actually does happen
Sometimes a lone biker will end up on the Pike, not sure whether intentional or not. And there have been many documented cases of groups riding through the harbor tunnels in the middle of the night. These things are neither celebrated nor condoned by most bike safety advocates. Speaking for myself, I would love for there to be a bike tunnel under the harbor, but I would absolutely never suggest using the existing tunnels, so long as they are legally allocated to car use.
But what if I didn't support bikes on the Pike or 93?
More to the point though, I think we could agree driving on the bike path would be operating a motor vehicle in a way that endangers the lives and safety of the public.
You do seem to be suggesting or agreeing with potentially violent acts.
Derelict Owner
This car is clearly not owned by a responsible person.
https://311.boston.gov/tickets?filter%5Bsearch%5D=3BZC98
It was tagged in 311 by its license plate twice in the past year. Once for not having an inspection sticker (and not moving for a long time) and then a second time weeks later for being both parked illegally and still not having an inspection sticker.
The owner finally got its inspection about 3 weeks ago in the beginning of November (according to the RMV)...but they still don't know how to park properly it seems.
Towing
And apparently towed a couple times...
https://www.apartmenttherapy.com/400-square-foot-boston-studio-apartment...
Am I missing something?
What does the link show?
The law and order crowd goes
The law and order crowd goes on and on about cyclists not following the rules of the road to the exact letter but has nothing to say about flagrant stuff like this from drivers.
I get it
It may not be right, but I get it. I get so sick of the bicyclists doing whatever they want. Running through lights, riding on the sidewalks if the bike lanes aren't to their taste, etc. They scare me more than the cars. if I am about to cross on a walk light and I see a bike or scooter coming, I wait because I know they won't stop.
“They scare me more than cars”
No one was ever killed by a phobia. Heart attack maybe.
But drivers kill everyday.
You need to get some help with phobias before a genuine hazard you’re not paying attention to does you in.
Meanwhile just don’t leave the basement.
Bikes kill too, Lee
Stop being obtuse.
Peanut butter kills, too
That's a whole lotta drama there, pal
More statistics failure
Motor vehicles kill and maim thousands of pedestrians and cyclists each year. https://www.cdc.gov/transportationsafety/pedestrian_safety/index.html
Fatal cyclist collisions with pedestrians? I challenge you to find more than 10, let alone 100.
Moreover, when a bike hits a pedestrian, the cyclist is often seriously injured. Motorists have no such incentive to avoid collisions with their far less maneuverable vehicles.
BOTH SIDES BOTH SIDES BOTH SIDES is not factual or proportional information.
UPDATE: 101 pedestrians, 10 cyclists killed in 2022 - no report of cyclists hitting peds. https://www.cbsnews.com/boston/news/massachusetts-pedestrian-deaths-2023/
More hand waving
Bikes kill too is a fact. I didn’t say at what rate, but you just assumed, like usual. Your points are irrelevant.
How many deaths by being struck by a bike are ok to you? Apparently, 10 is the number. Those 9 people that died probably feel differently though.
LOL
First you whined that I don't support things with data when I ask you to put up or shut up? So I responded with some strong factual data.
Now you whine that I presented data because you don't like the reality and don't understand population statistics? Tough shit.
Grow up and learn something, or STFU. You don't get to decide when facts matter and when they don't.
BTW, no cyclist/pedestrian crash resulting in death has been reported in the commonwealth for at least 5 years, so your "moral panic" angle here is moot.
I can’t find anything for the Commonwealth
And I don’t have time to dig through the internet, but here’s our neighbor NYC - 7 fatalities since 2011 (article is from 2019 so 8 years or approximately 1 death per year).
https://nypost.com/2019/08/31/nyc-bicyclists-are-killing-pedestrians-and...
https://abc7ny.com/bike-lanes-safety-cyclists-bikers/5473859/#
So again, how is saying ‘bikes kill too’ a statistical failure or factually incorrect? Seems like it’s time for you to STFU.
Name one time a cyclist in
Name one time a cyclist in Boston, or even all of Massachusetts, killed someone. You can't.
One time…
… robo tripped over a stray tricycle and dislodged the one brain cell he has. He’s not quite brain dead so yeah, you are correct.
#reallybadoldmanjoke
I expect better from you, Lee
How many brain cells does a …
… robo need to ride a tricycle?
Probably not many
But to drive my manual 992 911? A decent amount.
Sad boy
Is sad.
If it took that many braincells to drive a standard lacking a synchromesh I'd never have learned to drive as a teen.
The first car to have a synchromesh was a
1929 Cadillac and the technology was mostly widespread by 1950s. So exactly how old are you?
Widespread is not universal
Maybe on "luxury" cars, but many of those were automatics.
Toyotas and Hondas available on the west coast didn't have them until the late 60s. VW bugs and vans didn't, either.
Cars last a lot longer without all the road salt - grandma had a twenty something 2nd Gen Corona that the teens got to beat up. She knew how to fix it. A friend of mine had an early '60s microbus older than either of us and I was one of the few who got to drive it because I could deal with it.
For someone who is a car head you don't seem to know much about actual automotive history. You traffic in spurious millennial assumptions about tech uptake speed. Cel phones were invented years before they were common, too. Ditto for TVs and fiber optic cable.
Can you shift without using the clutch pedal at all? Fun party/poverty/knee injury trick, that.
PS: as for your attempts at ageism, lets just say that I'm old enough to be amused that you think that driving a standard transmission is some sort of special award accomplishment.
You didn’t answer the question
But that’s ok.
All VW bug/van transmissions from ‘61 forward were synchronized. Anyways…
I’ll readily admit I know very little about older cars. Probably because they’re way before my time and also because they do nothing for me. I like the new ICE technology and engineering. 9000+ rpm gets me going. An old ass 1.8L NA that pumps out 120hp does nothing for me. A carbureted big block does nothing for me too.
I can and have shifted without a clutch. It’s really not that hard once you get a feel for the car.
Here ya go bike boy
https://www.wcvb.com/amp/article/bicyclist-dies-in-collision-on-popular-...
Do I get to choose my prize?
Alternative strategy
Why on a piece of paper? Why not on the windshield?
For a bicyclist, carrying a marker would be no more trouble than carrying a pen & paper. I hate graffiti and the jerks who do it, but this wouldn't exactly be the same thing.
A more compact strategy
I am only here for the comments.
They did not disappoint.
He/she might care if their window was broken
Not to encourage the same law breaking that this choose 1) servant of Trump nation or 2) self-important, "I am a progressive!' virtue signaler, but to ask if how the driver feels about quid pro quo?
That car would serve nicely…
…. as a solid object to lock a bike to.
Especially a bike one might choose to abandon.
Or anything at all.
Carry old locks you don’t need anymore with you, folks. Call them Locks of I Don’t Care.
Or Bike Lane Barnicles.
Don't give me ideas.
Don't give me ideas.
I wonder how liability would work...
...in the event of a cyclist death around the vehicle.
But also, feels kinda staged? I can't imagine someone who would really putting this much effort in if they didn't care in the first place.