Author Archives: jsallen

About jsallen

John S. Allen is the author or co-author of numerous publications about bicycling including Bicycling Street Smarts, which has been adopted as the bicycle driver's manual in several US states. He has been active with the Massachusetts Bicycle Coalition since 1978 and served as a member of the board of Directors of the League of American Bicyclists from 2003 through 2009.

Throttled and doored

Posted on December 27, 2019 by jsallen

Sigh. I stopped motion at 2:54 in this video. The embedded image in the video is speeded up so you can’t get a good look at what it shows, but if you stop at the right place ( around 2;55), … Continue reading →

Posted in Bicycle facilities, Bicycling, Bike lanes, Equipment | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

A better crosswalk treatment

Posted on December 15, 2019 by jsallen

This post continues the discussion in the comments below my previous post about a crash on the Pinellas Rail Trail. So, first, because images can’t be embedded in WordPress comments, here is my photo of an installation on the Capital … Continue reading →

Posted in Bicycling | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

A crash in Toronto

Posted on December 2, 2019 by jsallen

Have a look here: https://globalnews.ca/news/6209332/video-cyclist-struck-markham/ So, who was at fault, but more importantly, because an ounce of prevention is better than a ton of cure, who could have prevented the crash? The bicyclist came from the right, pushed the button … Continue reading →

Posted in Bicycling, Crashes | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Crash on the Pinellas Rail Trail

Posted on November 18, 2019 by jsallen

An article about a car-bicycle crash on the Pinellas Rail Trail in Florida is on the Cycling Today Web site. Please view the embedded video there before reading the rest of this post. There is a lot of nonsense about … Continue reading →

Posted in Bicycle facilities, Bicycling, Crashes, Traffic Signals | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 17 Comments

European Cycling Federation report about motor vehicles

Posted on October 15, 2019 by jsallen

See https://ecf.com/what-we-do/road-safety/motor-vehicle-regulation-safer-cycling Generally good stuff. I like the call for automatic emergency braking. This will prevent rear-end collisions, and can potentially eliminate the right hook — though not the screened left cross. Automated speed control with an override for emergencies … Continue reading →

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Van rental

Posted on October 9, 2019 by jsallen

I’m used to driving a small sedan, but this past weekend, my son and I volunteered at the rest stop for a bicycle club century ride and rented a large cargo van (Ford 250Z) to transport supplies. Safety feature: back-up … Continue reading →

Posted in Bicycling | 2 Comments

Another embarrassing Dutch bicycle education video

Posted on August 16, 2019 by jsallen

Here’s a video from the Dutch cycling Embassy, a promotion. Dutch education teaches children how to follow Dutch rules. It doesn’t teach them basics of bike handling or safety in traffic. The teacher makes an empty claim that it does, … Continue reading →

Posted in Bicycling | Tagged , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Grade crossing

Posted on August 5, 2019 by jsallen

Shining Sea path, Falmouth, Massachusetts, northbound at Ter Heun Road. (You may click on “Vimeo” at the right below the image to get a larger view) shining-sea-terheun from John Allen on Vimeo. So, let me ask you: how many bicyclists … Continue reading →

Posted in Bicycling | 2 Comments

Trying out a V Bike

Posted on July 31, 2019 by jsallen

In late 2017, several V-Bike dockless bike share bicycles appeared on Carter Street opposite the commuter rail station in downtown Waltham, Massachusetts. Soon the bicycles were gone from Carter Street, but one sat in front of a house on Pearl … Continue reading →

Posted in Bicycling | 5 Comments

Dutch bike handling skills

Posted on May 26, 2019 by jsallen

What do Dutch cyclists learn  about bike handling in their vaunted public-school bicycling courses? Evidently not much. In the video here. (auch hier auf Deutsch), I don’t see even one cyclist who has learned how to stop and restart efficiently … Continue reading →

Posted in Bicycling | 13 Comments