Seeing Things
I was waiting for an appointment the other day when I struck up a conversation with another woman in the lobby. She noticed my bike helmet and the conversation quickly turned to a discussion of cars versus cyclists.
It was just on of those casual conversations you have with a stranger in passing. After voicing the usual complaint about cyclists never stopping for red lights she added that she just “was not looking for cyclists.”
I started thinking about the word “looking.” Do drivers only see what they are looking for? And are they only looking for other cars? Which would mean, to a driver, a city intersection looks like this:
But when I bike through an intersection I am not looking for anything. I am seeing everything. If I were to travel through same intersection at the same moment I might see something like this:
But I probably see every street like this because I have to compensate for what the drivers are not looking for.
Meanwhile, Bikeyface, I would love to see your take on motorists’ perception of the space cyclists take up (only a minuscule amount is required when motorists are overtaking cyclists, while cyclists take up vast tracts of space when they’re in front). I’ve just posted a blog on the subject here: http://invisiblevisibleman.blogspot.com/2012/02/bikes-can-be-hard-to-overtake.html
Try bicycling in Bangkok sometime (seriously, come visit). There are so many other things on the road besides cars (motorcycles, dogs, buses, peds, tuk-tuks, people pushing carts of smoking pork, etc.) that drivers are used to watching for everything.
I’d be interested in reading bicycle bloggers like yourself comment on biking here vs. at home.
Great post as usual!
Any motorcyclist will tell you, drivers are not looking. There is a campaign here in PA to draw driver’s attention to motorcyclists — road signs and messages on state publications like registration renewal envelopes. Don’t know how effective it has been; I doubt it has made much difference. And if drivers aren’t looking for motorcyclists, they definitely aren’t looking for bicyclists. I always assume I am completely invisible to drivers and instead gauge how much time it would take them to run me down starting, say, from a stand at a stop sign, leaving enough distance so I can avoid them should they decide to do that.