Confrontations
Streetsblog Basics
Meet the (Alleged) Road Rage Thug of Ninth Avenue: Gus Gonzalez
So, based on the accumulated evidence, we can safely say that the man who allegedly blocked the Ninth Avenue bike lane with his 7,000 lb. Ford Excursion, exploded in a fit of rage when cyclist Ray Bengen tried to ride by without getting crushed, and sped off after knocking Ray to the ground (severely bruising his leg and damaging his bike), is this guy:
June 25, 2009
Tune in Now: Ninth Avenue Road Rage Incident on CBS 2 News
Ray Bengen, the cyclist who was assaulted by the driver of a Ford Excursion blocking the Ninth Avenue bike lane, will appear tonight on the 6:00 p.m. edition of the CBS 2 local news. Ray just emailed to say the producers have confirmed they'll broadcast a segment featuring him explaining the road rage incident. Let's hope they do the story justice.
June 24, 2009
DA Files Charge Against Cyclist Attacked by SUV Driver in 9th Ave Bike Lane
The Manhattan DA's office is filing charges of criminal mischief against a cyclist, Ray Bengen, because he allegedly caused property damage to a multi-ton SUV in the process of getting doored by the driver. Too ridiculous to be true? Sadly, no. Here's how it happened.
June 23, 2009
Sen. Jeff Klein to No Impact Man: “Hands Off My Car, You F–king A–hole”
A couple of days ago we relayed the remarkable story of Colin Beavan's close call with a careless motorist, which ended with the parties shaking hands. Yesterday, No Impact Man encountered another inattentive driver -- one State Senator Jeff Klein -- but this time there were no heartwarming epiphanies.
September 18, 2008
Shared Space on the Brooklyn Bridge
I'd bet that people walking outnumber people bicycling across the Brooklyn Bridge by at least 100 to one. I cycle across the wooden-slatted walkway that soars over the top of the bridge regularly now, and every time I do so I think about this. My rolling bicycle negates the space for scores of people every second, forcing them into a relatively skinny strip that is half as wide as the whole walkway.
November 7, 2007
Invisible Man
The brain experts tell us vision is an act of discrimination. In other words, we don't see everything; see what we look for, what we expect to see.
November 5, 2007
Biking the Mean Streets of L.A.
In Los Angeles County, bicycle-related accidents have increased in the past year. Road rage is an enormous problem, and as growing numbers of Angelinos choose bikes as transportation, clashes with motorists are on the rise. The Los Angeles Times reported in August:
September 6, 2007
Rage on the Bikeway
The Boston Globe ran a front-page story yesterday about confrontations among users of the super-popular tree-lined Minuteman Bikeway in Boston. Police have already filed more reports of clashes between users of the bikeway this year than the previous two combined. As the Arlington Police Chief noted, "We have road rage, and now we have bikeway rage."
July 2, 2007
Man “Tasered” and Arrested for Leaving Airport by Bike
If you think handing out traffic tickets to Central Park cyclists or random seizures of locked bicycles qualifies as outrageous police behavior, check out what happened to Stephan Orsak when he tried to leave the Minneapolis St. Paul International Airport on his Brompton folding bicycle. He says that he was pulled over by a police officer, harassed and then shot with a Taser stun gun. He has started a blog dedicated to the case:
June 13, 2007