Why Drivers Might Hate Bicyclists

I spent the last two weeks of December in Atlanta, living (mostly) with my parents.  My life in Atlanta is much more car-dependent than my life in Jacksonville; in the latter city, I live a block from a bus stop, while in Atlanta, I live at least a mile from the nearest bus stop (and more importantly, near no sidewalks to take me to said bus stop).  So naturally, I drove everywhere in Atlanta. And while driving, I noticed a couple of unusual things.  First, I noticed that unlike in my Jacksonville neighborhood, bicyclists actually tried to ride on the street rather than on sidewalks.*  Second, I noticed that I was beginning to get annoyed with bicyclists- to a much greater extent than I have ever been annoyed with pedestrians while driving.

2 minute read

January 5, 2011, 11:43 PM PST

By Michael Lewyn @mlewyn


I spent the last two weeks of December in Atlanta, living (mostly) with my parents.  My life in Atlanta is much more car-dependent than my life in Jacksonville; in the latter city, I live a block from a bus stop, while in Atlanta, I live at least a mile from the nearest bus stop (and more importantly, near no sidewalks to take me to said bus stop).  So naturally, I drove everywhere in Atlanta.

And while driving, I noticed a couple of unusual things.  First, I noticed that unlike in my Jacksonville neighborhood, bicyclists actually tried to ride on the street rather than on sidewalks.*  Second, I noticed that I was beginning to get annoyed with bicyclists- to a much greater extent than I have ever been annoyed with pedestrians while driving.

A recent Planetizen article (http://www.planetizen.com/node/47339 ) suggests that motorist hostility to bicyclists is no more rational than motorist hostility to other nondrivers.  But I believe that the bicyclist/motorist relationship is different, for two reasons.

First, bicyclists affect motorist behavior more often.  Pedestrians rarely share space with motorists; they walk on sidewalks, cross the street, and then return to their customary state of invisibility.   By contrast, if someone is cycling in front of a motorist, the motorist must drive more slowly and be more careful as long as the cyclist is in front.  And if traffic is sufficiently congested that the driver cannot easily pass the bicyclist, this status quo might last awhile.  So the driver not only must go more slowly, but has a more difficult (and thus more annoying) experience where a cyclist is present.

Second, nearly all drivers are occasionally pedestrians- if only because drivers must walk in and out of parking lots. By contrast, many drivers rarely or never use a bicycle.  As a result, they have less empathy for cyclists, because they will never be in the same position as a cyclist.

Thus, it is only natural that as long as cyclists use the same streets as drivers, the driver/cyclist relationship will be a tense relationship- to a much greater extent than the relationship between drivers and other nondrivers.

*Which of course, is as it should be according to most local laws.   I have no opinion as to proper cycling practice on this issue. 


Michael Lewyn

Michael Lewyn is a professor at Touro University, Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law Center, in Long Island. His scholarship can be found at http://works.bepress.com/lewyn.

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Get top-rated, practical training

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

April 30, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Close-up on Canadian flag with Canada Parliament building blurred in background.

Canada vs. Kamala: Whose Liberal Housing Platform Comes Out on Top?

As Canada votes for a new Prime Minister, what can America learn from the leading liberal candidate of its neighbor to the north?

April 28, 2025 - Benjamin Schneider

Hot air balloons rise over Downtown Boise with the State Capitol building visible amidst the high rises.

The Five Most-Changed American Cities

A ranking of population change, home values, and jobs highlights the nation’s most dynamic and most stagnant regions.

April 23, 2025 - GoodMigrations

People biking along beach path with moored ship in San Diego, California.

San Diego Adopts First Mobility Master Plan

The plan provides a comprehensive framework for making San Diego’s transportation network more multimodal, accessible, and sustainable.

May 2 - SD News

Sleeping in Public

Housing, Supportive Service Providers Brace for Federal Cuts

Organizations that provide housing assistance are tightening their purse strings and making plans for maintaining operations if federal funding dries up.

May 2 - KSL

Conductor walks down platform next to Amtrak train at station in San Jose, California.

Op-Ed: Why an Effective Passenger Rail Network Needs Government Involvement

An outdated rail network that privileges freight won’t be fixed by privatizing Amtrak.

May 2 - Streetsblog USA

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.

Senior Manager Operations, Urban Planning

New York City School Construction Authority

Building Inspector

Village of Glen Ellyn

Manager of Model Development

Central Transportation Planning Staff/Boston Region MPO

Write for Planetizen