Disobeying traffic rules: irresponsibility or consequence?

Vratislav FILLERAuto*Mat VOCA meeting, Vienna, 29.3.-3.4.2012 Disobeying traffic rules: irresponsibility or consequence?

Disobeying traffic rules: irresponsibility or consequence? (0)Good news first: Kapitána Jaroše crossing

Disobeying traffic rules: irresponsibility or consequence? (1)Outline Status quo of disobeying in Czech Republic Space for disobeying in various traffic modes Sources of disobeying: Legislation, personal point of view, infrastructure Does „lawful“ mean „impractical“? Effects on level of cycling transportation Effects on public perception of cycling Practical point of view: comprehensive bending of rules Reducing space for disobeying Opportunities and risks for campaigners One final question :-)

Disobeying traffic rules: irresponsibility or consequence? (2)Status quo in Prague - 1 Riding on interrupted cyclepaths and crosswalks, running red lights when crossing minor streets

Disobeying traffic rules: irresponsibility or consequence? (3)Status quo in Prague - 2 Sidewalks commonly used as cycle path (not legal in CZ)

Disobeying traffic rules: irresponsibility or consequence? (4)Status quo in Prague - 3 Using tram lanes when zero space on right Photo: Václav Kříž

Disobeying traffic rules: irresponsibility or consequence? (5)Status quo in Prague - 4 Using counterflow oneways (with some querilla legalization :-) ) Photo: Václav Kříž

Disobeying traffic rules: irresponsibility or consequence? (6)Status quo in Prague - 5 The survey was carried out by Vratislav Filler in project of NGO Oživení, „Jak odstranit klíčové bariéry cyklodopravy v Praze“ in 2010

More numbers Crosswalk „Agip“: 2 of ~700 cyclists dismounted(Pr.T. 2007) Kapitána Jaroše: 40% run red to avoid dangerous waiting(Oživení, 2010). Mánes: only 3 of 50 cyclists pass legally; waiting for green takes 60-80 sec (Survey Pr.T. 16.4.2011.) Disobeying traffic rules: irresponsibility or consequence? (7)Status quo in Prague - 6 Photos (from up to down): Václav Kříž, Tomáš Cach, Tomáš Prousek

Disobeying traffic rules: irresponsibility or consequence? (8)Space for disobeying Different opportunities for cars, pedestrians and cyclists There is not too many ways, how to break rules in car here. (photo Cycling Commitee of Prague) What else to do than to disobey? (Yes, You may dismount, but that is not the purpose why the bicycle was made for.)

Disobeying traffic rules: irresponsibility or consequence? (9)Effects of disobeying - cars Car speeding proven at least as dangerous as alcohol Especially threating unprotected participants of traffic • Illegal car parking creates bareer mostly for other participants of traffic Source of plots: Advancing Sustainable Safety, SWOV Institute for Road Safety Research, 2006. Both plots are based on scientific studies.

Disobeying traffic rules: irresponsibility or consequence? (10)Effects of disobeying - bicycles Ride against one-way flow is mostly safe – Only 3 serious accidents in Vienna since 1980 (where legal, source: Ing. Blaha) Crosswalk interrupting cyclepath has no negative safety effect in CZ. – In CZ, cyclists generally do not have right of way on bicycle crossing. Ride on sidewalks has effect depending on frequency of pedestrians and cyclists. problematic Possible Source of plot: Gute Lösungen in und für Wien, 2012

Disobeying traffic rules: irresponsibility or consequence? (11)Effects of disobeying - summary Very different effects of common disobeying for particular groups: For cars, usual effect is threat for others. For bicycles, there is mostly no effect on safety except threat to pedestrians. As much as possible „harmless“ offences should be legal.

Disobeying traffic rules: irresponsibility or consequence? (12)Sources of disobeying (1 - external) Sources: Internal (cyclist, vehicle) x external (infrastructure, rules) Non-bicycle infrastructure – why to dismount? – pointless slowings down Not natural infrastructure – pointless waiting on lights – pointless detours – mandatory worse routes Remark: well known reasons for poor infrastructure are wrong norms and outdated preferences of decisive executives. Rules not for bicycles – prohibited safe behaviour (e.g. taking lane) – prohibited natural behaviour (two cyclists abreast) – car favouring rules (right of way, mandatory infrastructure...) Image: Cach, Syrový, Prousek

Disobeying traffic rules: irresponsibility or consequence? (13)Sources of disobeying (2 - internal) Lack of knowledge – Sidewalks, crosswalks and counterflow streets considered to be legal Personal – Ruthlessness towards pedestrians. – Haste (red lights, risky maneuver) – Alcohol – Yes, and there is still space for some unintended mistakes... Vehicle / equipment – Helmets , reflectors, lights... – Analogica offenses exist for drivers too.

Disobeying traffic rules: irresponsibility or consequence? (14)Sources of disobeying (3 - summary) It seems that for drivers prevail internal sources, whereas for cyclists and pedestrians external. Many breaches are „enforced by infrastructure.“

Disobeying traffic rules: irresponsibility or consequence? (15)Does „lawful“ mean „impractical“? „Yes – but how much?“ Time losses and uphills decrease willingness to ride: Extrapolated part When bicycle is slower than public transport, then every minute lost on traffic light decreases willingness to cycle by 5%. Stopping and starting to 20 km/h equals 1.6 m climb. Assume cyclepath in urban area with obligation to stop (or slow) on every crossing (200m span). It creates additional 80 m uphill on 10 km route, decreasing willingness by 40%. Plots from survey of 412 Prague cyclists, by project of Oživení, „Jak odstranit klíčové bariéry cyklodopravy v Praze“, 2010.

Disobeying traffic rules: irresponsibility or consequence? (16)Prone to disobey? Does illegal ride discourage people? – „Keep rules even if wrong“ → lost for everyday cycling. – Centre of Prague: 80% adult men among cyclisnts (counting 2010) – Mixed with safety issues (perceived as biggest barrier in Prague – survey 2010). Do more people cycle who are prone to disobey? – First riders („pioneers“): → high experience → good risk assessment → good knowledge of principles → lower care about keeping official rules – Newbies („followers“): → May not understand principles → May disobey needlessly

Disobeying traffic rules: irresponsibility or consequence? (17)Bad image of cycling Status Quo changes when cycling rises rapidly – Level of acceptable sidewalk cycling is limited → strong negative effect! – On roads, effect of „safety in numbers“ is rather positive. Dangerous image of reckless cyclists: – 5% of reckless creates image of all – Complaints even from regular cyclists – Complaints from citizens → turns politicans against bicycle transport Connection with poor infrastructure and evil rules is not comprehensive for people who do not cycle. – Comparison with pedestrians fails, as they are rarely a threat – „It's like if a highway changes into a rural road“ – „It's like if you're obliged to push the car“

Disobeying traffic rules: irresponsibility or consequence? (18)Practical point of view „Light lane“? We do it without lasers! Creating new rules on the fly: – Changing roles („car“, „pedestrian“, „not being there“) – Creating virtual infrastructure (bike lanes, boxes, counterflow signs, green signals, etc.) To suppress danger we need to be: – comprehensive for everybody. To suppres negative image of cycling, we need also to be: – acceptable for everybody! – Desired image: „Well, OK, he/she did something clearly illegal, but what else I would do on his/her place...“ – Excludes aggressive techniques of invisible or „non-existent“ cyclist.

Disobeying traffic rules: irresponsibility or consequence? (19)Reducing space for disobeying Principles: Natural infrastructure. Requires standards of – actual safety (widths, radiuses, clearances...) – perceived safety (traffic to merge, speed...) – social safety (light, wide underpasses...) – practical atractivity (directness, quickness, no double hills...) Considerable laws and technical norms Change way of thiking of traffic decision makers Education to be carefull and considerate. Education to understand each other. Many of these principles are not achievable by campaigning organizations, but we need to keep them on mind.

Disobeying traffic rules: irresponsibility or consequence? (20)Opportunities for campaigners „Safety in numbers“: + in traffic – on sidewalks What to do when cycling rises? Special focus on behaviour towards pedestrians – Include among main messages about cycling transport Collaboration with officials – big city PR / information campaign to improve mutual understanding – find most effective measurements how to get newbie cyclists on the road without discouraging them. – cooperation with police to find sensible way to manage rising amounts of „sidewalk cyclists“ Find own mechanisms how to suppress rude behaviour of cyclists toward pedestrians. – work with community? – shoot them? ;-)

Disobeying traffic rules: irresponsibility or consequence? (21)Neverending question: Integrated or segregated? Should we prefer integrated infrastructure, even if too poor? Integrated infrastructure in „Wild-esatern style“ – Distractive for beginners – Unusable for weak cyclists and children What is then a „lowest quality tolerable“? – Example: Kpt. Jaroše crossing – to be praised, but... How to make this topic interesting for politicians? How to catch non-cycling majority positively?

Thank you for your attention

Disobeying traffic rules: irresponsibility or consequence?