Urban Cycling Survival Guide

I've been riding my bikes around cities for a decent number of years now, and that's spanned cities in four countries. It's a personal thing, but I personally couldn't manage without a bike at this point. The benefits are simply too great. I use them almost every day I'm in a city and almost anytime I'm going anywhere between a couple blocks and a few miles away. I'd highly recommend biking to almost everyone.

So people ask me somewhat hesitantly if it's safe. I usually don't tell them about the four or five times I've been hit by a car (luckily without much harm [it helps that I'm good at landing on my feet from my gymnastics days]), and fallen a few more times. The truth is that it can be dangerous, as I've learned the hard way. But it is what you make of it, and there's a lot that can be done to minimize the risk. This post is intended to teach you how to reduce the risks to a minimum.

I can also say that in most places bike safety is improving rapidly, and most of that has to do with better driver awareness, increased numbers of cyclists, and better infrastructure for bikes. That said, it really does depend on where you are. My recent frame of reference is mostly Washington, DC and Brussels, Belgium. It might be pretty different in a spread-out place like Dallas or even LA where "roads" are more like highways.

But a lot depends on how you ride. These are some tips that can help keep you in once piece:

1. Know how to drive. Seriously. Review the rules of the road for where you are. At a minimum, know who should yield, when, and where. The most dangerous cyclists (to them and others) are those who don't really. And they do exist. Don't forget to signal when you want to turn (just stick out your right or left arm [- you'll need to practice riding with one hand!]). You don't want a car to pass you as you turn left, for example. And you don't want anyone riding your tail as you slow for the turn.
2. Control everything that's in front of you. Until you see proof to the contrary, don't assume anyone in front of you knows you're there. At least not consciously. And even if consciously, they may not comprehend. In other words, drivers often misjudge the speed and maneuverability of bikes (not to mention their own). One person who hit me looked me in the eye right before they pulled out into my path and sent me flying over the hood. Anytime I approach an intersection where there's a car (or will be one soon) I am constantly on guard, keeping lots of space between us and keeping my eyes clearly on them. Don't underestimate pedestrians' abilities to jump in your path either.
3. Beware car doors. This is one of the biggest risks in the city. Usually, there are people parallel parked on the right side, you're coming along the right side of the road, and they open their driver door right into your path. Avoid this by staying far away from such cars whenever possible, or going slow enough to react. But sometimes, the passengers of people in the traffic lane will do this too -- beware especially of cabs. I had this happen to me once, (when the traffic was about to move!) and it wasn't fun. Relatedly, beware of cars parked perpendicular to the road who may reverse out into you (just enough to tell if anything is coming, you see).
4. Be ready for the "pass you and cut you off." Surprisingly often, people will pass you on the left and then make an immediate right turn into your path. The main defense is just awareness of the possibility. Drivers appear to have little understanding about how fast bikes are going. More generally, drivers will often see a bike ahead of them and think "I've got to pass this guy". But the reality in cities at least, and especially when there's traffic, is that I go as fast or faster than cars almost everywhere (the main exceptions are big uphills or long fast stretches). So this is pretty irrational. It's a quiet pleasure to permanently re-pass these cars that are in such a hurry to pass me.
5. Avoid passing stopped/slow moving cars which may turn. Especially people who seem lost. Cars can quickly decide to make a right or left turn without looking for bikes coming from behind (remember you're usually in their blind spot when they do this, so unless they've been paying attention they really have no idea you're there). So just don't be in places where this may happen. At intersections, I like to position myself to the right of and between cars (which are before and after me in the flow of traffic). Slow down to allow the car ahead of you to pass through first; the cars behind will wait for you to cross the intersection before turning. Note that passing cars on the left at a stop sign is a bad idea too; they may turn left with no signal. I made this mistake once early in my biking career and got my foot run over as I skidded to a halt to avoid it getting more of me.  Didn't even hurt, actually.
6. If you'll ride at dusk, dawn or dark, use reflectors and lights. Bikes can be surprisingly hard to see and are often unexpected at night. That means a front and back reflector, and ones on your wheels.  Something on your feet/pedals is also good, as their movement means "bike" to drivers. You can get pretty decent lights now that are the size of nickels. In this case they are for drivers to see you, not to illuminate the road. And it doesn't hurt to have a reflective vest for long trips or dreary nights. I know if you're a racer, it's not cool to have reflectors, I don't have them either on my race bikes. But don't use those bikes when it's getting dark. You can't control what's behind you, so make sure it's no surprise that you're there. Also more generally, a helmet won't hurt [But please, learn how to fit it. My goodness how many people wear them as a useless hat. It should cover your forehead and bind at the chin strap when you open your mouth.]
7. Manage road obstacles. Gutters can be very dangerous. Always beware of vertical slits in a gutter that can eat your front wheel, especially on a road bike, and send you catapulting over the handlebars (worst case -- ride over them diagonally). Railroad tracks should be crossed at a perpendicular and don't try to turn while you're crossing them. Especially when it's wet. The same applies to slick metal manhole covers. Glass shouldn't make you fall but it might be a pretty big bummer with flats so is best to avoid (good tires go a long way to avoid these, too). Be careful on off-camber turns in rain. Especially soon after it starts raining, when the road is particularly slick. And ice, of course. Bike wheels have a large diameter and can go over most obstacles. If your room for maneuver is slight, you can probably go right over it. Certainly things like water bottles and even curbs are no big deal. Don't panic and simply keep riding straight. Let your legs absorb the shock of something like a curb so as not to ding your rim (better yet, learn to hop them). (Also, having properly inflated tires [80-100 psi on road bikes, 40-65 on city bikes and 35-45 on mountain bikes] will avoid damage.)
8. Control the lane. Sometimes you need the whole lane, and it's your right to take it. Don't be shy. It's much safer to block the lane than to risk some of the stuff above. I tend to go pretty fast though, so drivers are rarely very upset about it I don't think. The slower you go the less necessary it is (you can just stop after all), but again if you think you need the lane, command it. It is your right.  If you're not willing to do this in areas like the below, then get on the sidewalk and go even slower. When should you take over the lane? When the road is too narrow for them to pass you (don't let them try). When it's too slippery for (potentially) necessary maneuverings. When there's a traffic circle coming up. When there are parked cars on the side, especially those that might have a person in them. When there's an upcoming obstacle. When there are obstacles on the shoulder, or there is no shoulder. When going around blind curves to the right (in countries that drive on the right) -- you want any vehicles approaching from behind to see you as early as possible, so stay left. (But, do be careful not to take over the lane when someone is about to pass you, or to swerve into passing cars to avoid obstacles, say. As noted, sometimes it's best to slow/stop or to ride over things). Infrequent cyclists worry about getting hit from behind. Well, it's always possible. But it's very unlikely if they know you're there and especially if you control the lane -- the statistics show these kind of accidents are extremely rare.
9. Worry about what the drivers who will pass you need to worry about. If there's something coming up that will restrict their lane space, get out of the way. They might not know about it, as cyclists often have better situational awareness. You don't need them veering into you to avoid the oncoming car, for example. Remember, they have the big metal box to protect them. You don't. (Also, metal is hard...)
10. Beware the cycle path. It sounds crazy, and it is. But, bike paths can be some of the scariest cycling at times. I can't remember all the near misses I've seen people have. Some cyclists don't appear to understand that just because there are no large moving metal boxes to hit them doesn't mean that there aren't risks. These can be the worst accidents, because people often go fast, and make unsafe passes. If you're going fast, make yourself known to those in front of you "rider back", "on the left". If you're going slow, and basically whenever you can, stay to the right. Always pass with ample space (if someone veers and snags your handlebar, you're eating turf). If there's someone in front of you and oncoming bikes in the other direction, slow down and wait behind in your lane until you can pass safely. Also, don't pace near congestion, and don't pace anyone (e.g., the stranger in front of you) who is not a predictable rider accustomed to pacing. Instead, always give space between you and the wheel in front of you.. There can be one way lanes too, as under bridges. Don't try to squeeze two in. I've seen this one happen. Hitting a bike travelling in the other direction hurts -- like dislocated shoulder/broken collarbone hurt. Finally, bikes yield to horses. You don't want to scare a horse.

Some people won't ride in cities because they don't trust their bike handling skills. Well, the only way to improve them is to bike, but start in controlled environment. I really recommend mountain biking for this. You'll learn a lot very quickly and you don't need to be a dare-devil to do it. Just find easier trails to start. But find singletrack, otherwise you won't really have to learn to maneuver. One tip that some people learn the hard way and applies to roads too: keep your weight back in the saddle when going down hills; also arms should always be bent and relaxed. Stiff arms act as a fulcrum when the unexpected occurs, bent ones act as shock absorbers. Which reminds me that bike gloves are great; I always wear them on long rides, since I like the skin on my hands and the nerves under my palm.

So that's it -- you've heard all the terrible, horrible things that can happen, but also how to try to minimize their risks. Hopefully facing up to them and understanding how to deal with them can help you get out there. Because in the end, it's fantastic.

Addendum: http://bicyclesafe.com/ does a good job detailing most of these crash scenarios and how to avoid them.