Inconvenience?

In Woodside, a honking and yelling pickup driver pushed me off the road into the bushes.

In Redwood City, the driver who opened his door into my path said it was my own fault for riding a bike. That happened to a young woman in San Francisco not long ago. She bounced off the door, fell into the street and a passing tire crushed her skull.

In Menlo Park, a driver ran a stop sign and T-boned me. I landed on the hood of her Mercedes while my bike went flying.

My regular route passes a ghost bike in a family’s front yard. Fourteen-year old Leyla was run over on her way to school.

If I make a mistake, I can easily be killed. But if a driver makes a mistake, it won’t be the driver who is killed. It will be me, even if I do everything right. Most adult riders probably understand this. I’m not so sure about the kids, and clearly some drivers don’t care.

On Jan. 5, Kate Low wrote in her letter, “Cyclists should be inconvenienced.” She said bike lanes should be removed for her benefit.

The next time a smashed bicycle and dead body are lying in the street, I hope she is not inconvenienced. Apparently, her time is clearly more valuable than my life, or Leyla’s.

Ray Tobey

Belmont