I call BS on Henry M. Kay’s response. Why? Here is my bike on NJ Transit during off peak hours just utilizing the handicap space. (Two different trains, there and back.)

MARC’s response: https://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/news/traffic/2009/12/why_marc_doesnt_allow_most_bik.html

Remember Natasha Pettigrew of Prince Georges County where the driver drove for ~3 miles with Natasha’s bike lodged underneath? The State’s Attorney’s office says, more than eleven months later, the case is [still] "under review."
Art. 19. of the Constitution Of Maryland Declaration Of Rights
"That every man, for any injury done to him in his person or property, ought to have remedy by the course of the Law of the Land, and ought to have justice and right, freely without sale, fully without any denial, and speedily without delay, according to the Law of the Land."
It is bad enough that hit-and-runs make up 20% of bike/ped fatalities (vs 1% overall traffic fatalities) but add to it this kind of delay?
§ 27-113.(c) Penalty for death. — A person who violates § 20-102 of this article ("Driver to remain at scene — Accident resulting in bodily injury or death") and who knew or reasonably should have known that the accident might result in the death of another person and death actually occurred to another person, is guilty of a felony and on conviction is subject to imprisonment for not more than 10 years or a fine of not more than $ 10,000 or both.
Continue reading “Family Wondering Why No Charges One Year Later in Bike Accident”

Letter to the Editor in the Gazette:
Designated cycling lanes in Poolesville? Really? It’s obvious by your statement you’ve never ridden a bike into or out of Poolesville. Other than on White’s Ferry Road for a short distance, or most of Montgomery County, there are very few designated bike lanes. Mr. Klein, why don’t you come for a ride with me? Then you’ll understand what it’s like to be beeped at by a 4000 pound weapon, grossly exceeding the speed limit, as you’re trying to hug the white line and keep a good pace, and make it home to hug your wife and kids. Much of the “designated” bike lanes throughout Montgomery County we ride are filled with debris and trash that our tax dollars are supposed to keep clean. Before you judge why we’re riding in the road or just to the left of the white line, walk a little in our shoes.
Pay road tax? For what? Why don’t we meet over a beer or coffee and you can explain why I should pay a road tax. I own two vehicles and pay tax on them in Montgomery County and can’t get a budget balanced. Your premise is without forethought and lacks credibility as there is no way a legitimate worthwhile tax could be generated from your “all cyclists” from D.C. reasoning. Instead of thinking of new ways to generate revenue, why don’t you get after those people responsible for making the bike lanes and roads safer for all (DOT, sheriff, governor).
By the way, I’m an Army veteran who rides in Poolesville every weekend. Along with my cycling friends, we drop a significant amount of money at the Chevron gas station, Bob’s Bikes, and the local gym kitty corner from the Chevron. My group is riding as we ramp up to ride from Pittsburgh back to Gaithersburg in October to raise money for wounded Soldiers, Airmen, Seamen, and Marines. I’ve been hit by a car in Poolesville with no investigation done by the police (even given suspect description, partial plate, make and model of car). Tell your diesel truck friends in Poolesville to pass us without blasting diesel smoke in our faces. Maryland law allows for riders to ride two abreast providing they’re not impeding traffic. Likewise, drivers are to pass bicyclists with 3 feet of separation. So you’ve never flipped someone off who passed you too close or blew through a stop sign or beeped at you?
And blasting through stop signs? You’re worried about cyclists on bikes not stopping? Do they impede your driving ability that much or are you watching us from your porch? On Sunday, while sitting at the Poolesville Chevron, cooling off and resting, I counted 30 vehicles who didn’t stop fully for the stop sign at that intersection going in every direction. One was a huge Ford with a horse trailer. He just rolled through. So a cyclist on a bike is more dangerous than a 5000-pound truck with a 2000-pound trailer? Hello pot, my name’s kettle. Nice to meet you.
Kevin Bookman, Chantilly, Va.
Continue reading “Drivers are dangerous, disrespectful of bikers”

Letter to the Editor in the Gazette:
From my position as a cyclist and triathlete, the sentiments expressed in Mark Scott’s letter of July 6 [“Cyclists need to give respect to get respect”] are typical. As much as the adolescent in me would love to join his name-calling contest, that will not improve the relationship between cyclists and motorists on local roads.
His letter, which could be aptly summarized as "Hey cyclists, get off my lawn!" exemplifies the hyperbole and half-truths which mark the debate. For starters, both cyclists and motorists need to recognize that this particular "lawn" is not theirs exclusively; they need to realize that both sides are entitled to access, and are not going anywhere anytime soon.
Scott should chronicle the last time he was spat upon, yelled at, had objects thrown at him, had an air horn blast 10 feet from his head, or intentionally been run off the road. All of those things have happened to me, personally [me too where I ride], while riding my bike in Montgomery County. Every cyclist in the county knows someone who has had worse happen to them. For all of his considerable indignation, the worst outcome Scott can imagine is the possibility he may arrive at his destination a moment later. My worst outcome as a cyclist is that I may not make it home, ever. There is no such thing as a fender-bender on a bicycle.
His proprietary claim to the roads (which he asserts he has paid for through gas taxes) flaunts his misunderstanding of our tax system as well as of cyclists, of whom I am inferring he believes somehow pay no taxes. If that were true, please tell me whom to contact at the state of Maryland and Montgomery County to get back the thousands of dollars they owe me.
Second, the last thing you want on the MacArthur Boulevard pathway is me or my cycling friends training at between 17 mph and 30 mph. Those paths are all mixed-use facilities, open to people walking their dogs, kids, rollerbladers, and other slower-moving traffic. Throw cyclists moving at high speed into the mix and watch the wreckage. That is why cyclists belong on the roadway, even in the presence of mixed-use paths. I have never met a cyclist who wanted to impede traffic. Give me a bike lane or a wide, smooth shoulder and I will ride on that any day.
I recognize that cyclists could do much to improve their image in the community. Personally, I cringe whenever a cyclist runs a traffic light and would have no problem with that cyclist being cited for that violation. The adjacent letter from Chris Core lists several reminders that cyclists would do well to heed.
I think a good early step would be for everyone to decompress a little bit. By the way, I am a few days shy of 44, so if Scott thinks we’re men in our 20s and 30s, I thank him for the compliment.
Paul Meloan, Gaithersburg
The writer is president of the Montgomery County Multisport Club.
Continue reading “Cyclists, motorists need to decompress”