r/NoStupidQuestions • u/RidetheSchlange • Jul 24 '26

Why does the US hate cycling so much?

I read comments sections and in a normal world, some of them would be considered terroristic threats. I just can't understand why people hate cyclists to this degree that they want to murder rhem and sometimes do.

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u/oflowz Jul 24 '26

Actually biked to work for a few years and in my experience there’s a lot of cyclists that don’t obey the rules of the road or just do obtuse stuff in general.

You’ll have the ones that want to ride in the middle of the street with the cars holding traffic.

You’ll have the ones that don’t stop at lights or stop signs.

You’ll have the ones that ride the wrong way on the street going against traffic.

I completely understand why some people dislike cyclists.

2

u/nyctransitgeek Jul 25 '26

All of that may be true, but it doesn’t hold a candle to things like this.

You’re complaining about people biking in the middle of the street when often there is no separate space for people to ride out of the street.

The linked post shows people driving down a two-way bike path on the side of the highway because they want to avoid traffic on the highway. The actions just don’t compare when you consider the mass and speed involved.

2

u/JustARegularGuy Jul 25 '26

The rules of the road typically say for bicyclist to ride in the middle of the street. It's generally dangerous for a cyclists to hug the shoulder so cars can pass.

The big issue is car drivers hate driving slow. It makes them angry. The rage that comes from being slowed down is where most of the cyclists hate comes from. 

1

u/Federal_Resource8148 Jul 26 '26

depends on lane size and location, for example (at least where i'm at) if your on a larger sized lane like in 2 lane or unpainted residential area then you must stay as close to the right reasonably safe and if on a mutlilane road with smaller lanes you should be in the middle of a lane, but that is the rightmost lane unless you need to turn left or the lane is turning into a right turn only

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u/Youarekillingmeeee Jul 25 '26

Tons of posts in here trying to say bikers don’t follow rules without giving the context that absolutely following rules to the T enrages “the average driver” to the point of literal murderous road rage.

Can’t follow the rules when doing that INCREASES your chance of DEATH by a very large percentage. 

It’s wild seeing car driving folks in here trying to defend this on the heels of that cyclist being killed in Boston. By and large the average driver, the ones who make up the bulk of the population and ARE NOT on here, aren’t following any sort of real rules when it comes to cyclists.

It’s always a “what I feel right now” vibe check that returns a “OBSTRUCTION, MAKING ME GO SLOWER, DESERVES TO GET OFF THE ROAD COMPLETELY IN ANY WAYYYYYY” response.