Antone's Nightclub
Drivers Are a Frightening Reality to Bicyclists
RECEIVED Mon., Aug. 11, 2008
Dear Editor,
“Driver Sentenced in Bicycle Fatality” [News, Aug. 1] quotes Gerd Hesness-Frudakis, the bereft sister of Vilhelm Hesness who was killed while riding his bike on Manchaca last summer, as saying that cyclists are resented by drivers who will even try to scare them. This is a frightening reality for those of us brave enough to take two wheels rather than four. Having just returned from six years living in the Netherlands, I can only deplore the absence of safe cycling in the U.S., but see the oil crisis as an opportunity for behavior to begin to change. However, until there is driver education which teaches sharing the roads with cyclists, and laws enforcing severe consequences for hitting them, as in Holland, tragedies will mount with the hope for a greater volume of people pedaling to avoid burning fuel. In Amsterdam, where 30% of the population rides (without helmets), safety is achieved in numbers and thanks to their infrastructure. Here, we can only dream of bike lanes that are more than painted lines on roads, where oversized cars go at excessive speeds so that taking the bike is much too scary for most people. The light sentence of this guilty driver relative to the loss of Hesness' life is irresponsible and misses an opportunity to send a stronger message to reckless drivers.
“Driver Sentenced in Bicycle Fatality” [News, Aug. 1] quotes Gerd Hesness-Frudakis, the bereft sister of Vilhelm Hesness who was killed while riding his bike on Manchaca last summer, as saying that cyclists are resented by drivers who will even try to scare them. This is a frightening reality for those of us brave enough to take two wheels rather than four. Having just returned from six years living in the Netherlands, I can only deplore the absence of safe cycling in the U.S., but see the oil crisis as an opportunity for behavior to begin to change. However, until there is driver education which teaches sharing the roads with cyclists, and laws enforcing severe consequences for hitting them, as in Holland, tragedies will mount with the hope for a greater volume of people pedaling to avoid burning fuel. In Amsterdam, where 30% of the population rides (without helmets), safety is achieved in numbers and thanks to their infrastructure. Here, we can only dream of bike lanes that are more than painted lines on roads, where oversized cars go at excessive speeds so that taking the bike is much too scary for most people. The light sentence of this guilty driver relative to the loss of Hesness' life is irresponsible and misses an opportunity to send a stronger message to reckless drivers.
Lorn MacDougal