Tuesday, May 26, 2009

It is not f**king Copenhagen, dear Riga cyclists

Bad times and a bit of green consciousness are making more and more people in the Latvian capital ride bikes. At my workplace, the security guard, who is responsible for locking up bikes in a downstairs storeroom, says there are at least 25 and almost no room for them. Last year there were just a few. Two of my department colleagues ride to work. Good for them, sort of...
The problem is that most bike riders I encounter whizz by on the sidewalk, no bell, no horns, no warning. This is often scary, about one near miss every day Almost no one wears a helmet, so that a collision with a pedestrian would hurt both parties.
There is no other place for them to ride. Bike paths have been built here and there, for some ridiculous but typically Latvian price. They are still few and far between.
The street and the highway are no place to ride. A few years ago, the answer would have been simple. A great many Latvian drivers simply are animals. Period. Now, of course, the animal count has fallen, maybe due to self-elimination by fatal accidents (these have also declined). But the average driver is still a borderline asshole, talking on a mobile phone and driving with one hand while turning  a street corner  where pedestrians are crossing. Just a few days ago a big jeep tried to pass me on a curved access ramp and nearly collided with a car on the main highway. Typical. And one reason why I will feel some emotional satisfaction if and when social unrest expresses itself in the burning of SUVs. To quote the Bloodhound Gang : "burn, motherf**ker, burn!" 
To sum up, the main reason I have mixed feelings about the increase in cycling in Riga and Latvia generally is that this society is not civilized enough for this development to be safe and beneficial to all. Riga is not Copenhagen or Amsterdam. The society here is not the Dutch, it is a a semi-savage (when it comes to road habits), alienated, reckless rabble. And it is not likely to change in the foreseeable future. So cycle at your own risk and at risk to pedestrians (I have seen cyclists talking on their mobiles, weaving with one hand down a sidewalk with shopping bags on each of the handle bars)

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Pedestrians are blind too. Even after bumping into somebody they haven't established that :D Zombies.

Anonymous said...

Now this is Canada, but I feel your pain. Regularly while out walking with my ipod, a cyclist will virtually brush by me at pace leaving me to thank the deity that I had kept to my straight line walking at that moment, rather than veering even slightly into the path of the bicycle.

Anonymous said...

A female Latvian friend insists the correct way to drive in Riga is with one hand on the horn, leaning out the window swearing in Russian.

Anonymous said...

After living in Uzbekistan for two years, I have to say that driving in Latvia is quite civilized. But I hope that some day bike paths and other options will become the norm in Riga - perhaps as less people can actually afford their cars, we will see this increase. :-)

Anonymous said...

Ringing the bell usually dosn't help much. Most people don't hear it or ignore it.
Especially those with mp3 players. However those who do hear the bell may start to panic and move chaotically.
Basically no one knows that they must stick to the right.
If you take the road at least you can count on SOME rules.

Anonymous said...

Cycling on the pavement is just wrong. Pedestrians don't have rear view mirrors or indicators andd there are no signs for them to tell who should give way.
Unfortunately, it looks like a small child or pensioner will have to be seriously injured or even killed before the local authorities realize there's a problem.