Driver stops in the middle of a cross ride, and starts using her phone.

I remember a video of someone just getting in the car's backseat, scooting over, and then getting out the other door. If the doors are unlocked I feel like that's the best option. Really fuck with their sense of personal space considering they think all the space around them is their personal space regardless of the rules.

I used to have one wedged between the brake and gearshift levers of my bicycle, so I could hit the button with my thumb, it was very handy.

A friend and I were talking about what's wrong with the world, and one of the things we discussed was there aren't any consequences for minor infractions. We're all too polite. Someone does something shitty, like this person in their car, or someone taking up 4 seats on the bus, or throwing their trash on the street, and no one does anything. No one wants to start a fight or make a scene.

Many people operate at a very basic level of moral reasoning: avoid punishment. Some people, some of the time, achieve higher levels of reasoning like "I should follow the rules" or even "I should do what's good for society." But many people chill out at the toddler level of "I don't want to be punished." So it follows that when these oversized toddlers never get punished, they think they're doing just fine.

But concurrently, the institution we have to enforce laws and norms, the police, sucks dog shit. Racist, corrupt, no accountability, and lazy. If I see a guy littering, I'm not going to call the cops. They wouldn't even come, for one thing, but I also don't want to bring a bunch of armed assholes into the scene.

I don't know what the best way forward is. My friend suggested local "guardian angel" volunteers that patrol and "Deal with" people who are shitty, but that feels like it could just turn into the police-but-worse. But I really want people who shit up the world to stop, and it feels like they don't have enough empathy to understand anything more complex than "you took up four seats on the bus and were blasting youtube out of your phone, so we threw you out. Enjoy walking home, asshole."

I turned around and gave him the “what the fuck” hands and gestured at the stop sign, and this mother fucker looked at me like I fucked up.

Not long ago, I was going through an intersection on a green... from one bike lane, continuing into the other on the other side of the intersection.

While I had a green, a driver making a left nearly ran into me, honked and did the same "what the fuck are you doing" to me.

It's pretty amazing that we don't hear of crashes every minute of the day, because some people quite literally have no idea what the hell they are doing.

My ride yesterday was about 5 hours, across 7 municipalities, and over 130km.

I can say with confidence that there were at least a dozen close calls at intersections and cross rides, specifically because drivers aren't paying attention.

I had one lady "stop", and then crawl into the crossing, while looking only to her left (I was coming from her right). I had to stop and ring my bell before she even realized that I was there.

Many, MANY people making turns without checking for pedestrians and cyclists crossing.

And not stopping behind the line happened more times than I can count.

I've witnessed a few times people actually driving onto bike paths! Not just bike lanes, but fucking paths, like ones that go through parks and forests! Just clueless about what they're doing.

Just yesterday, my teen was asking about all the bollards on bicycle and paved walk entrances. People suck, or are idiots all too often

I don't think op is complaining about blocking the cross walk itself but on the phone while blocking the cross walk which is wild. Everyone gets that you need to block like half or not most of the cross walk when you are trying to get out of someone where in America.

I usually hop up on their hood and walk across it, or give their trunk a loud smack as I walk past idiots like this.

I value my bikes far too much, but in my head, I would love to! LOL

They are all over here, specifically at crossings that join MUPs (Multi Use Paths).

But they have made some areas more dangerous because of drivers who don't stop behind the line. A pedestrian walking slowly might not be hit, but a cyclist going bike speed is at far greater risk of "not being seeing".

They never do when I do this.

Is a cross ride like a crosswalk but for bikes or something?

Yes, you can ride through with your bike. Notice the two green lights above her, those are bike symbols, indicating that I have the right of way to cross. She needed to STOP behind the line, and also not be on her phone (illegal).

Not sure why you're being downvoted. I've never heard the term cross ride before, so your question was useful. Perhaps it's the keying thing, but a bunch of the comments in here are about hitting the car, so yours isn't any different. Whatever I guess, fake internet points and all that, but it's peculiar.

Are you talking about the rusty iron texture plate?

Maybe they didn’t know.

Didn't know what? The traffic rules?

Our local police do squat about traffic violations, unfortunately, unless they are present when the infraction occurs. I've got a video of this entire thing, she was in the cross ride for at least 17 seconds. And I'm sure she was on her phone for more than just this encounter.

This kind of lack of awareness is why we have so many pedestrian and cyclist deaths in places designed to be "safe" for cyclists and pedestrians!

Maybe they didn’t know.

"Maybe they weren't aware of their surroundings while driving a vehicle."

Go right and you’re in oncoming traffic, go left and you’re risking further traffic stopping at this junction crushing you against the back of her car? I’d rather not. Bunny hop and skid mark on the roof is much better

They probably will, doesn't mean she shouldn't be shamed for parking in the middle of the walk

Not everyone has marine training

So... Don't look at your atupid phone while driving a car? How important do you think her Instagram notification was?