Community Corner

Community Update

Note to a Nasty Chestnut Hill Driver:
Yes, this is a particular note to an
obnoxious driver in a silver sedan on Hammond Street in Chestnut Hill
this beautiful Saturday afternoon.

But I write it also as a general note to other drivers abut why bicyclists sometimes need to do what they do.

First
off, I am a law-abiding bicyclist. I don't run red lights; I stay as
far to the right as I possibly can when I'm biking, to give cars as much
room as I possible can.

But there are times when our New England roads are so bad and bumpy that I must bike in the center of the lane.

A lane to which, I might add, I am entitled by law.

So,
dear silver sedan driver, when you leaned endlessly on your horn
because I was out in the middle of the lane as I tried to avoid some bad
road edge, don't forget that I have every right to be there.

You do not own the road.

I
feel the need to explain this to car drivers, because I realize there
are bicyclists who bike as though THEY own the roads. While technically
the law entitles them all the time to a lane, I would venture to
say most fellow cyclists are like me: we take the lane when it's a
safety issue, but otherwise, we try to be as generous as possible to
passing cars and stay far to the right.

So, nasty Chestnut
Hill driver, take a lesson in law and in consideration. The world — and
the road — does not revolve around you. Next time you feel the need to
rage at a law-abiding bicyclist, think twice. You got nothing to go on.




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