May 19th, 2008 By Justin Williams
Why I Won’t Ride a Bike in Evansville
Having just paid $4 a gallon to put premium in my car last week, I have dreams of being able to get around town on a bicycle for relatively short trips. Living in Newburgh, the luxury of public transportation is nonexistent. Risking my life trying to pedal on Newburgh’s narrow roads is not worth lowering my carbon footprint and padding my wallet.
Face it. The Evansville area seems to be one of the most bike unfriendly cities. Just last night was another story of a cyclist being smashed by a car.
An Evansville bicyclist suffered a possible back injury Sunday night when he collided with an oncoming vehicle at a four-way stop
…
[Jon] Hyneman was traveling south on Main Street through Louisiana Street when he hit an eastbound Dodge Stratus, according to an Evansville Police Department accident report. Hyneman reportedly rolled over the hood of the car, breaking its windshield, and then hit his back on the pavement.
It would be great if many major public thoroughfares offered a bicycle lane rather than forcing cyclists to attempt to share the road with a car. In the eternal struggle of cycle versus vehicle I am pretty sure the vehicle is undefeated.
A year and a half ago we a cyclist was actually killed in the area after being hit by a car during an organized ride. When I was at Purdue, there was a dedicated lane for cyclists and rarely did I hear of an accident involving motorist and cyclist and there were far more bikes on a college campus than in our fair town.
Maybe someday I can park my car for the majority of my day, but until then, I’ll keep bitching about the price of gas like it’s the 70’s all over again.
photo courtesy of Simon Davison
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Jason Burton
May 19, 2008 @ 09:51AM
Agreed. I live in newburgh and work in downtown evansville. I would love to ride my bike to work once or twice a week but there is just no good route. That’s not even talking about the safety issues. I thought that walkway by the river was supposed to eventually extend to newburgh. Am I wrong on that thinking?
Gregg
May 19, 2008 @ 12:29PM
The Walk way randomly ends… and It doesn’t look like anyone plans on working on it any time soon.
I ride my bike from my house (SE 2nd) to work (Olive, off of Gov. st), I HAVE to leave at 7:30 or 9:00, because the traffic is so bad I’m pretty sure I’d get run over…. I feel bad driving because its such a short distance.
mdmetcalf
May 19, 2008 @ 12:57PM
Much of the problem, I think, is with the cyclists themselves (not in the organized ride you’re talking about, though). Every day I see some idiot riding his bike to work in downtown Evansville, and this guy will ride in the traffic lanes (rather than on the sidewalk) but doesn’t seem to think that traffic laws apply to him. For example, he will ride across an intersection even if he has a red light. If you’re going to be in the traffic lanes with the cars, you have to obey the same laws. If you want to obey pedestrian rules, then ride on the sidewalks.
And as for the (Pigeon Creek Greenway) walkway extending to Newburgh, it will eventually do so, but not for a long time. That project is being done in phases, and that phase is a long ways off. The plan for the greenway is up at their website (http://www.pcgreenway.org/).
Jenna
May 19, 2008 @ 01:55PM
Aren’t bikes supposed to ride in the road and not on the sidewalk? Fully agreed, no matter what means of transportation you use, follow the traffic laws because otherwise you are looking to get hit. Granted there are the cars that run red lights or stop signs or try to pass a biker and fail….but every one needs to just follow the same rules. And a bike lane would be great. Most of IU had a bike lane and there were very few biking incidents (except for the lil’ 5! ;) )
Midgetqueen
May 19, 2008 @ 04:25PM
This is why we need friggin’ bike lanes and trails around here! I want to bike to work too, but it would entail crossing 41 and I want to live ‘til my 24th birthday, thankyouverymuch!
I do bike, recreationally and sometimes to the food co-op or art gallery or other nearby places, but NEVER at night. In Evansville, that’s a death-wish waiting to come true, unless you’ve got a glow-in-the-dark vest and have fitted your bike with a headlight and maybe a taillight, too. Which of course nobody does.
Sometimes I think I’d die happy if Critical Mass started having a lot of shindigs in Evansville. The plight of would-be bicyclers is not going to change unless we do SOMETHING to demand it.
…well, unless gas prices keep rising to the point that everybody has to bike. Fewer cars = fewer smushed-biker pancakes.
Warrick Reader
May 19, 2008 @ 08:28PM
While it does sound nice, I doubt very seriously that the Evansville area will ever be “bike friendly”. We enjoy and cherish our cars. We enjoy and cherish our trucks. Basically, we enjoy and cherish our independence and comfort. And I’m guilty as charged. I think a lot of it is culture. Unlike most east coast and west coast cities where residents depend greatly on public transportation and other alternative means of transportation (like biking), most cities in the midwest and south have a hard time letting go of their cars and trucks. I recently read an article that stated the two least bicycle friendly cities in the U.S. are Kansas City and Indianapolis. And almost every other city on the list was either in the midwest or the south. I think it’s also important to realize that not everyone can bike to work. I live NORTH of Boonville and work on the east side of Evansville. I don’t care how many bike lanes you create, there is no way I’m going to ride a bike 20+ miles one way to work.
Justin Williams
May 19, 2008 @ 08:37PM
I don’t care if people give up their cars or trucks. I just want a safe way to use a secondary transportation option.
Gregg
May 21, 2008 @ 11:40AM
Bikes are supposed to stick to the roads. Downtown there are wide enough sidewalks to use, but in other parts of the city there are not. Also, bikers can cross at crosswalks if they dismount.
I ride downtown most every day during non peak hours, and will cross at red lights provided there is no one coming so I don’t clog up the intersection (bikes take a little longer to get going.)
I’m always worried something like this will happen again:
http://www.courierpress.com/news/2007/oct/02/widow-suesbicycle-clubposey-driver/
Steve
May 21, 2008 @ 07:07PM
I grew up bicycling EVERYWHERE, and I lived in rural Spencer county, so we could only dream of bike lanes, or even sidewalks. It was nothing for me to bike 10-12 miles per day. I now live in Owensboro, and would love to be able to bike on a regular basis again, but we live a few miles away from our own greenbelt. To get there, we must load our bikes in/on a car, and transport them to the bike path. Maybe when my kids grow up…
Alex
May 22, 2008 @ 06:29PM
According to several bike safety sites that emphasize HOW you bike instead of WHAT YOU WEAR (a helmet) while biking suggest that crossing a street during a red light for your street can be far less dangerous than trying to cross the street WITH the traffic when the light turns green.
Just as the streets in Evansville aren’t built for bikes the sidewalks in Evansville leave much to be desired for anyone on a bike. When I first moved here I road from the Eastside (east of Green River) to First Avenue (downtown). First day out I made the mistake of trying to stay on the sidewalk all the way down Lincoln. That’s fine except that you’ll be killed in a crosswalk because people don’t pay attention and are tying to see the cross traffic and then there’s the constant slowing down and speeding up because there are only a few curbs with ramps (how does a handicapped person get around here? Don’t act like you haven’t seen that guy in the motorized wheelchair ALSO riding in the street).
A dedicated bike lane anywhere in Evansville would be great. Anytime I ride from East/West I use Bellemeade only because of the width. Streets like Lincoln and Weinbach are so narrow that you MUST take up the entire lane to keep from being hit or passed to closely.
The traffic is not that bad if you plan your route and avoid the obvious streets. I obey the traffic signals, and yes, when I used to cross 41 I would occasionally run a red if there was no car in sight instead of waiting thirty minutes for the light to change and get hit by a car making a left-hand turn from the opposing lane.
People constantly tell me that I’ll be killed and not to ride at night because of the drunk drivers. I’m still typing and last summer I rode everyday for 4 months to and from work (even through the alleged Evansville ghetto).
Is a person on a bicycle asking too much of a person in a car, whose weight is measured in tons, not pounds, to pay attention to their driving and share the road? Don’t yell at me to get on the sidewalk or get a helmet when I’m one less car and my bike can’t kill anyone (unlike your car).
Bike riding could be more sensible if people didn’t live miles and miles from where they worked. Riding 20+ miles isn’t bad if you’re in to that sort of thing but I believe a person would be more apt to ride less than 5 in one direction.
Check out:
Bicycle Safe
http://www.bicyclesafe.com
read the helmets page:
http://www.bicyclesafe.com/helmets.html
Carl Brooks
June 11, 2008 @ 07:45AM
I ride 6 miles each way from S.E. corner of Evansville to N.W corner 3 - 4 days a week with an extra trip @ lunch of about 3 miles each way. I cross hwy 41 both ways without trouble. This town is not very bike friendly, but most of it is common sense.
1) No night riding as that would be suicide.
2) Pick routes with low traffic and minimum double lanes. Sidewalks are ridiculous to try, but with low traffic the right lane is your’s legally.
3) Traffic laws apply equally. Stop means Stop here as well as in dating. No adjusting them for bikes with personal justification of “this is better for…” nonsense.
4) Keep your cool. The ranting drivers are to be ignored because they are the base of the word (i.e ignorant.
Be vigilant. When asked how I have ridden motor cycles for 35 years without incident I answer “stepping on the bike I become a WWII Spitfire in the skies over London ‘39. There are no friends, and everyone is out to kill me”
Happy trails
Buckaroo
P.S. gas will go to $10/gal before long and things will change for we bikers. That’s a fact Jack
Vince D.
June 30, 2008 @ 08:38PM
I agree with the need for bike trails in Evansville, maybe it will keep the two wheeled wahoos from riding against traffic on the street and running stoplights and signs. I am, and I am sure many others are tired of dodging these idiots that cannot comprehend basic traffic safety.
Many people have very little regard for a grown man or woman playing with thier toys in the street as it is so at least have enough sense to roll with traffic. If someone in a car hits you, chances are they will get a charge of vehicular homicide. Under today’s sentancing guidelines, they will probably serve 6 years and be back on the streets. You, on the other hand, will still be dead.
Ride safely, please.
YankeeBlueJeans
July 02, 2008 @ 11:03AM
Problem is hoosiers don’t know how to drive. Period. Learn how to drive then I’ll ride my bike. Atleast Owensboro has the Greenbelt to ride around.