Reply #156: They do and they don't

[Rosemary2205]

While cyclists have a responsibility to follow traffic laws and look out for themselves, IMHO it's the car driver who should always be yielding the right of way to the pedestrians and cyclists simply by virtue of the fact that car can kill. Even if TECHNICALLY it's the biker's fault - dead is still dead and any sane car driver is going to be upset beyond beyond. Sometimes it can't be avoided -- as exampled by an earlier post where a biker jumped out where they shouldn't and got the big squish. But too many times - WAY too many times -- it's the car driver not slowing down, not in full command of the vehicle, distracted etc - and when a biker does something less than perfect a death results where it wouldn't if the car driver would just accomodate.