Traffic tips and dangers: What to expect on the road
So, you are commuting by bicycle. Here are a few pointers.
GEAR:
First, your gear and setup.: You should have a bicycle tires wider than normal road width [assuming 23c is normal road width. That means 25, 32, or even 35c tires are a good idea. The tires should have some tread but not be knobby. Any of the aforementioned tires are good for road bikes or other rides w/ 700c rims. For mountain bikes [26” rims] do not use knobby or dedicated offrroad tires. Semi-knobbies do fine. If you can get flat-resistant inserts or tire liners do it; you may need ‘em.
You should have a rack, fenders and front and rear lights. Your lights: A word of caution: Most people think lights are onyl for nighttime use. Not true! In NJ, cars are required by law to turn on their headlights during rainy days so other drivers cans ee them better, and motorcyclists frequently ride during daylight with illuminated headlights. This is good logic. During the light use your lights. During daytime if it is not too sunny to make any difference, you should set your rear light to blinking or flashing mode in any of the following conditions, even if it is not dark: Morning, cloudy or overcast day, rain or fog.
You should be wearing a helmet and carry a bottle of water. Take a few sheets of paper towel or a rag in your pack to clean your rims when it rains. And either wear or pack a rainjacket and at least one article of reflective clothing. Gloves are a good idea; Take winter-style outer gloves and thinner inner gloves, which will either be knit or silk. In really cold weather you wear one inside the other; in fall or warmer winter days you can get by with the thin inner gloves and pack the thicker winter outers.
ON THE ROAD:
Riding: The biggest error casual cyclists make, right off the bat, is riding against traffic. When bike riders do this they expose themselves to numerous dangers. The first is cars hitting them while driving because they do not expect a bike coming at them! The second is cars hitting them while turning. Drivers look when turning for oncoming traffic. If you are on the wrong side of the street they may turn into you within looking or seeing you are there. This is especially true of drivers emerging from driveways or parking lots. Many of the same may not stop anyway, as they have a habit of running stop signs and going without looking, but you can minimize your risk if you are at least where they are likely to see you, should they look. Also, about riding the wrong way: You are considered a vehicle and should ride with traffic. In America, this means riding on the right side of the street.
When you can, ride closer to the curb, at the outer edge or the road. But do not force yourself over further than is safe; within the last few inches of the road, nearest the curb, is where dirt, gravel, broken glass, razor blades and tacks, and other debris collects. In winter this is also where road salt builds up. Riding too far over to the side may expose you to an unnecessary risk of flat tires!
Also, when riding too close to the curb, you may be out of a driver’s range of vision. Drivers do not look to the right or left habitually; they look ahead of them. If you are too far over they may literally look right past you.
Try to find a compromise and ride in a way that you are not blocking the street continually, but not endangering your tires or yourself, by being too timid, either.
TURNING: When passing or turning down intersections, watch for pedestrians! They do not see you and in this day and age are often distracted by electronic devices. They may not even be watchiong where they are going! While it owuld serve them right to get hit, please don't let your own bike be the one to do it. [In this circumstance a bell helps immensely; although in my own experience the pedestrians often act confused and sometimes do not realize where the bell is coming from. In some cases this can result in them stepping IN FRONT OF YOU rather than out of the way! Be prepared to react.]
When turning, signal by hand turns you intend to make. Look as you turn (DON'T ASSUME HEY SEE YOU!.) For Right turns look for traffic and go; also look for pedestrians. If you find yourself hitting them, get a bell -- or better yet, an air horn... Left turns should be made from the left lane. Signal by hand and watch the cars behind you. Sometimes they will get angry that you are in the street. Let them. Their blood pressure can only hurt them, not you!
Be sure when waiting at a traffic light, etc. to turn Left, that the cars behind you coming up tot he intersection see you stopped there. Glance behind you from time to time and if you have a light [and you should] make sure it is on!
THE SIDEWALK SHUFFLE: Riding on the sidewalk is both an unfortunate necessity at times, as well as a good way to get a Darwin Award. Most cyclists hit riding bikes in urban areas are hit riding on the sidewalk; I have personally seen at least one appear in a courtroom trying to collect for his injuries. Riding the sidewalk is dangerous because divers pulling into or out of driveways and parking lots do not expect sidewalk traffic to be going so fast. Either they don't see you, don't look, or if they see you, have no time to react. You also are at greater risk from pedestrians.
Riding on the sidewalk is, in many cases, illegal, and is not good for your bike; the uneven surfaces put greater stress on tires, wheels, and the frame.
However, though it is best to avoid the Sidewalk Shuffle, it is often a necessary evil in urban area, where cars parked to one side of the street may take up your lane, or where perpetual and apparently needless construction is either ongoing, or has left the lane of traffic so covered in uneven patches and/or debris [those metal plates that can pop tires and supposedly cover worksites are considered "debris"] that it is not possible to ride on it.
In these circumstances, you may be forced to get off your bike and walk -- or do the Sidewalk Suffle.
If you do... be careful getting on and off the sidewalk. Look for pedestrians and cars as well as debris. Keep your pace slow and be ready to stop. Also watch for storefront doors that may swing open.
Get off the sidewalk as soon as possible, and try to avoid using it.
RIDING THE BUMPER: Not worth the risk! One of the errors cyclists make in traffic [though understandable] is tailgating cars out of a stoplight.
Automobile traffic backs up, and there is a time lag; when the light turns green, if the first car waits one second to go, and the one after him waits one second to go, and if you are behind the sixth car, you will still be waiting for the car in front of you to begin moving six seconds after the light has turned green. Don't assume when the light turns green the cars will all move!
Your bicycle actually accelerates faster than the car in front of you, in terms of time it takes to get "mnoving" from a stand-still. This is nice to know but dangerous if not considered, as cars getting off to a start from a stopped traffic light do not always accelerate smoothly. As the cars start to go, don't speed after them really close; the slightest tap on the brakes by that brain dead snail in the car in front of you can be very painful if you are too close.
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