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PaperclipPerfector  6mo ago (text post)   35955 thread views

Culture War Roundup for the week of June 9, 2025

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I wonder if it's because cyclists in general hate stopping. Decelerating and accelerating again on a bike is really annoying, and being forced to do repeatedly might be the source of the annoyance. Not that makes this acceptable behavior in a pedestrian space.

As a cyclist I think most of these interactions could be avoided if the roads were made safer for none cars. I'm not going to zoom through a public park if I can use a nearby road without feeling like I'm going to die.

And cars would get much better milage if they just never stopped, too (most of the fuel spent driving is spent accelerating in the city). If you hate stopping then take your bike to a velodrome where you have every right to never stop. In the city, you need to stop and start just like everyone else.

Re: acceleration I’d heard the theory but wondered if the rise of e-bikes had made acceleration less of a faff.

I'm not going to zoom through a public park if I can use a nearby road without feeling like I'm going to die.

The park in a question has exits on Road A and Road B. There’s a road that connects the two but it’s further down and has traffic lights, so the park path has become a highway for delivery people on bikes who act like the pizza drivers in Snow Crash. It’s not a safety issue per se.

acceleration I’d heard the theory but wondered if the rise of e-bikes had made acceleration less of a faff.

There’s a very simple trick to making acceleration less of a faff that was ubiquituous back in the 90s where I live: Drive slower.

It only takes a few pushes of the pedals to get back to speed that’s still much faster than walking.

Yes, of course. I’m a granny-bike person not a road warrior; I like having a basket and being able to get off easily just by swinging my legs, so I eschew high speeds by default.

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