"Watch for bikes" warnings in cabs?
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Melanie K on -
We had a cab that suddenly and without warning stopped in the road and the passenger just flung the door out into the bike lane. There was no warning, no signal, and no indication that the cab was going to stop. We guessed that the passenger told the driver to "stop here". Didn't have much problem settling with the cab company on that one as they acknowledged the driver shouldn't have just stopped in the middle of the street like that and should have pulled to the curb or to the next intersection to let out the passenger. I think warning stickers would be a good idea and wouldn't cost much for a taxi company to put them in.
On a similar, I wish the city would put in "Watch for Bikes" signs on busy bike routes similar to those stickers.
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Permalink Reply by Cameron 7.5 mi on -
Ideally, I'd like to see more cabs the Transit Connect that use a sliding door and eliminate the swinging door hazard entirely.
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Permalink Reply by Serge Lubomudrov on -
This is exactly how I was doored.
Mike Keating said:[...] He said the only exception they make is when the cab lets the passenger out onto the bike lane from the middle of the street.
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Permalink Reply by Serge Lubomudrov on
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True. But even if it will have SOME effect, it's something.
Michael A said:I take a lot of cabs. They already have a exit on curb side only sticker that is ignored, a watch for bikes will be ignored just as well
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Permalink Reply by Adam Herstein (5.5 mi) on -
Ahh, that makes sense. Thanks!
James BlackHeron said:Exactly!
Anne Alt said:If there is enough room for the bike to pass on the passenger side, then the cab is NOT pulled over to the curb as legally required.
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Permalink Reply by Serge Lubomudrov on
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Right. Passengers are softer than doors. But not much. I'm speaking from experience, having collided on the LFT with a runner who turned right in front of me (perhaps, that runner was just a tough guy, being a Texan). Anyhow, the outcome of both dooring and meeting with a runner was the same in my case: fall, various scratches and bruises, bent front wheel.
So yes, the dooring hazard will be reduced, but not passengers-exiting-a-cab-related accidents.
Cameron Puetz said:Ideally, I'd like to see more cabs the Transit Connect that use a sliding door and eliminate the swinging door hazard entirely.
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Permalink Reply by James BlackHeron on -
Hopefully with a sliding door the exiting human would have a little "skin in the game" with their own well-being at stake as they hop out into traffic.
I've noticed that many folks just whip open the door and THEN look, before putting their own soft parts at risk.
Sure, there will still be a lot of zombified folks who just shamble out into traffic from the cocoon of the cab regardless -but I feel that looking before going into a "danger area" is hardwired into the deep instinctual recesses of the monkey-brain.
Notice how many folks will pause as they exit a building (usually & annoyingly right in front of you) before fully going out though a door. They don't look BEFORE throwing the door open but tend to pay attention before stepping out into the open themselves. It's a survival instinct before entering a "danger zone." There might be lions out on the grassland when stepping out of the relative safety of the trees...
I feel that sliding doors on cabs would be better in the long run. And i'd rather hit a +/-200lb bag of meat than a sharp, thin, solid metal and glass object connected to a 3000lb car by a hefty pair of hinges.
Serge Lubomudrov said:Right. Passengers are softer than doors. But not much. I'm speaking from experience, having collided on the LFT with a runner who turned right in front of me (perhaps, that runner was just a tough guy, being a Texan). Anyhow, the outcome of both dooring and meeting with a runner was the same in my case: fall, various scratches and bruises, bent front wheel.
So yes, the dooring hazard will be reduced, but not passengers-exiting-a-cab-related accidents.
Cameron Puetz said:Ideally, I'd like to see more cabs the Transit Connect that use a sliding door and eliminate the swinging door hazard entirely.
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Permalink Reply by Serge Lubomudrov on
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Actually, I found the link and the photo that started this conversation among the FB comments to this picture:
Melanie K said:
[...] I wish the city would put in "Watch for Bikes" signs on busy bike routes similar to those stickers.
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Permalink Reply by Cameron 7.5 mi on
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The sliding door should give enough warning that a passenger is about to step out to make that type of crash preventable. A standard door can very suddenly become a hazard if it is flung open in your path. A passenger would first have to open the sliding door before stepping into your path giving you time to react between when the door starts moving and when the passenger steps out creating a hazard.
Serge Lubomudrov said:Right. Passengers are softer than doors. But not much. I'm speaking from experience, having collided on the LFT with a runner who turned right in front of me (perhaps, that runner was just a tough guy, being a Texan). Anyhow, the outcome of both dooring and meeting with a runner was the same in my case: fall, various scratches and bruises, bent front wheel.
So yes, the dooring hazard will be reduced, but not passengers-exiting-a-cab-related accidents.
Cameron Puetz said:Ideally, I'd like to see more cabs the Transit Connect that use a sliding door and eliminate the swinging door hazard entirely.
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Permalink Reply by Mike Keating on -
Yes, thanks.
If the cyclist tries to go around a curbed cab, the cab company takes the position that the bicyclist is at fault.
However, even the attorney for Yellow Cab agreed that if the cab lets the passenger out with the cab in the roadway and the passenger door opens from the cab into the path of the bicyclist then the cab and its passenger were at fault.
Thanks for the clarification.
Adam Herstein said:I don't understand... Do you have this backwards? I'd think that if a cyclist tries to go around on the passenger side, then the cab company would blame the cyclist, since the cabbie is following the rules in that case.
Mike Keating said:Yellow Cab takes the stance that if the bike tries to go around the cab on the cab's passenger side, the cab is at fault.
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Permalink Reply by Serge Lubomudrov on
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Does it mean, Mike, that the cab company (or is it a cab driver?) AND a passenger share, say, insurance payments and damages (not sure about the legalese here)?
I don't ride cabs as often as Michael A here, but, if memory serves me, a cabbie locks all the doors during the ride and unlocks them to let the passengers out. Wouldn't it be the driver's responsibility to check the mirrors before doing that?
Mike Keating said:[...] if the cab lets the passenger out with the cab in the roadway and the passenger door opens from the cab into the path of the bicyclist then the cab and its passenger were at fault.
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Permalink Reply by Mike Keating on
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Serge, that's usually determined on a case by case basis. Typically, I would proceed against both the driver and the passenger. But sometimes the passengers just walk away from the scene and can't be traced. In that instance we proceed against the cab company individually. The argument is the cab driver has a duty to make sure that the passengers do not exit into the path of traffic. This is for the safety of the passenger and traffic, including bicyclists.
Cabs are what are called "common carriers." Buses, trains, cabs, etc. that carry people in exchange for money have a higher duty to their passengers than "regular" people who are just giving someone a ride. The legal theory is that since, for example, cabs are "professionals" that they should only act with the "highest level of care."
Serge Lubomudrov said:Does it mean, Mike, that the cab company (or is it a cab driver?) AND a passenger share, say, insurance payments and damages (not sure about the legalese here)?
I don't ride cabs as often as Michael A here, but, if memory serves me, a cabbie locks all the doors during the ride and unlocks them to let the passengers out. Wouldn't it be the driver's responsibility to check the mirrors before doing that?
Mike Keating said:[...] if the cab lets the passenger out with the cab in the roadway and the passenger door opens from the cab into the path of the bicyclist then the cab and its passenger were at fault.
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