←back to thread

Helsinki records zero traffic deaths for full year

(www.helsinkitimes.fi)
1163 points DaveZale | 4 comments | 30 Jul 25 16:08 UTC | HN request time: 0.215s | source
Show context
mzmzmzm ◴[02 Aug 25 20:31 UTC] No.44771148[source]▶
At the same time NYC and Toronto, we are removing protected bike lanes. In North America the acceptable amount of lives per year to sacrifice for a little convenience for drivers is above zero, and apparently rising.
replies(9): >>44771213 #>>44771385 #>>44771689 #>>44771694 #>>44771702 #>>44771763 #>>44772166 #>>44772256 #>>44774008 #
deadbabe[dead post] ◴[02 Aug 25 21:35 UTC] No.44771763[source]▶
[flagged]
1. whateveracct ◴[02 Aug 25 21:39 UTC] No.44771800[source]▶
Cyclists switch between pedestrian and car rules at will. I see them blow stop signs and lights constantly.
replies(3): >>44771826 #>>44771884 #>>44771898 #
2. TimorousBestie ◴[02 Aug 25 21:41 UTC] No.44771826[source]▶
In their defense, neither set of rules offers them much in the way of safety and protection.
3. analog31 ◴[02 Aug 25 21:48 UTC] No.44771884[source]▶
What I've noticed is that everybody skirts rules for convenience, but the offenses are different because the conditions are different.

Cars break the speed limit, look at their phones (easy to see from a cyclist's vantage point) and roll through stop signs, because those things are possible and convenient. Very few drivers are fully in control of their cars in fast, congested traffic, which is why "rear enders" seem to happen frequently.

Bikes roll through stop signs and invent their own shortcuts because those are convenient, but exceeding the speed limit is impossible for most of us.

4. bichiliad ◴[02 Aug 25 21:50 UTC] No.44771898[source]▶
I’d argue that neither set of rules is made for them, so it’s not surprising that they take the most convenient of the two. Plus, it’s not out of the question to have laws in which red lights act like stop signs and stop signs act like yield signs specifically for cyclists[1]. It’s also likely less dangerous if that’s the case[2].

[1]: https://www.bicyclecolorado.org/colorado-safety-stop-becomes...

[2]: https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2010/may/21/women-cyclists-mo...