Motorists vs cyclists: Who’s to blame for conflict on the road?
Posted June 28, 2018 6:49 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – How well do you share the road? A new poll suggests a lot drivers and cyclists like to point the finger at each other for conflict.
About two-thirds of motorists says cyclists are to blame. A similar number folks on two wheels say those on four don’t respect them.
Shachi Kurl with the Angus Reid Institute says it seems your age has a lot to do with your perspective.
“Younger people — under the age of 35 — are much more likely to say drivers are to blame for conflict between cyclists and drivers. People over the age of 35 are much more likely to point the finger at cyclists.”
“If you are a frequent cyclist, you’re much more likely to say that drivers are to blame for conflict out there. If you’re a frequent driver, you’re much more likely to blame cyclists for conflict.”
But there is one thing that both groups seem to have some agreement on:
“Ultimately, across the country, people are inclined to say that separated bike lanes are a good thing. And that is the view of more than half of Metro Vancouverites,” says Kurl.
The poll also finds two thirds of Canadians feel too many cyclists are not following the rules of the road. A similar number say too many drivers are not paying enough attention to bikes in traffic.
