The Doors!

You’ve just parked, turned off your car, and given a sigh of relief that you’re no longer stuck in traffic. You reach for your things, kick open your door and CRASH!

The Doors

Okay, so you didn’t “door” a cyclist. But you very well could have!  Just because you stopped driving doesn’t mean you can stop looking. Dooring is one of the most common crashes for cyclists. And in many areas (including Massachusetts) the driver is at fault for opening their door in the path of oncoming traffic! So remember:

The Doors

 

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52 comments

  • Susan December 11, 2012  

    Speaking of passengers: if you’re seated on the traffic side of the back seat, scoot over and exit on the other side, instead of opening the door on the traffic side in the first place!

    It’s a shame that more recent car design puts so much stuff between the front seats that it’s not as easy for drivers to scoot over and exit from the other side. However, if your car doesn’t have so *much* stuff that you can’t get your feet and hips over it and make your way to the other side from the driver’s side, maybe you could still exit from the other side too?

  • Tim O December 11, 2012  

    I’d like to be able to cycle that far out, but in London, on a lot of the roads which I use on my commute, four to five feet outside of the door zone would easily put me in the door zone of cars parked on the other side of the road! (and whilst theoretically cars should be parked facing the direction of travel, they aren’t always, so the door could open oriented in the worst direction still). eg

    http://tinyurl.com/bqyxpbj

    (although I rarely see so few cars parked on that road).

    Nevertheless, when possibly staying outside of that area is preferential. Spotting car divers sat in their cars is also a warning that a door may open, or for that matter, that the car may pull out with little or no warning.

    • crankypants December 19, 2012  

      that street is about as wide as most residential streets in Boston – in fact, that’s wider than the street I live on. Although in Boston they often just eliminate parking on one side – or make it one-way –

      we also have the same problem in some neighborhoods – extremely narrow residential streets- parking both sides, people don’t bother to park in the direction of travel… I just ride right down the middle of the street, though…

  • MrDotbike December 11, 2012  

    What’s wrong with using humor to make a point? Can’t we all laugh at OURSELVES looking for a breath mint before exiting the car for that business appointment? My routine is equally as silly… As usual Bikeyface does it again! Two pictures do more than 2,000 words. I just wish this reached millions of people.

  • JP Gal December 11, 2012  

    I love the kangaroo! I hope we’ll see her again. What’s her name?

  • thorn December 11, 2012  

    Ian & Carrie, you can’t possibly really think that cyclists and motorists comprise two mutually exclusive groups, can you? Seems doubtful, so I’ll guess you don’t really think that.

    Also, Ian & others, ‘don’t ride in the door-zone’ – ? ‘A full 6 feet from parked cars’ – ? Where I live, this amounts to choosing between being killed by moving traffic and being killed or seriously injured by an opening car door. I keep my wits about me, have a bell, and am not shy about dinging it — followed by a friendly ‘heads-up!’ and ‘thank youuu..’ And during rush hour in the city I know better than to think trying to spin along at 20mph is going to be anything but frustrating. I stick to about 12.

    There’s a reason why German cities build bike-lanes into sidewalks, in contrasting brick. Not only is the speed-difference between pedestrians & cyclists generally less; there’s a difference in mass that makes non-motorized people more compatible with each other than with motorized vehicles. Make no mistake, these are not ‘shared paths’ – they are simply paths that are completely off-limits to motorized traffic. I often wonder how the math would work out on a retrofit in the US. Someone who can’t afford a car might not be able to afford insurance. What are the ER, rehab, etc. costs to society in the current scenario? Probably because so many cyclists avoid injury by being killed outright, it’s not an issue…

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