Is there anything else we can do to protect ourselves against errant cyclists?
[Disclaimer & background: Sorry for being incoherent cos aphasia strong today. I’m a cane user with poor stability. I don’t dislike cyclists. I just hate unkind and inconsiderate people.]
I was walking in a narrow pavement which was next to a coffeeshop when a cyclist suddenly appear from behind me. He didn’t ring a bell but I could hear something.
Since I can’t pinpoint sounds well, so I decided to find out where it is coming from. Before I could react or anything, he kept moving forward which caused me to fall backwards and stumble.
My hubs thankfully caught me from falling on my butt. Unfortunately it caused me to sprain my knee resulting in a sharp pain plus I can’t put weight on it.
I wished I could have reacted faster because he zoomed away without apologizing. Sadly, this is not the only encounter where a cyclist/pmd acted really impatiently.
I don’t know if the police can help in anyway because I want him to not do this to others and have safer cycling behavior. Unfortunately I don’t think they can because bicycles don’t have identifiers like plates.
Is there anything we can do to protect those with poor mobility or poor balance against people like them? Or if there’s an incident like this, what can I do?
Edit: I created this post for awareness and advice on what to do because if we cant change the blacksheep of cyclists/pmd then at least those with poor balance/mobility can protect themselves by being wary. Also i wanted more accountability for the blacksheep or those who do harm.
For a better shared pavement environment, its on both pedestrians and cyclists/pmd to be kind to each other.
I hear and see both sides. But the lack of infrastructure doesnt give an excuse to be unkind or inconsiderate to other users.
I personally walk with left mostest lane and wo any music to be safe. As fish suggested, look behind once awhile. This is a great idea for those with poor hearing/hard of hearing.
I speak for those with poor mobility/poor balance. Please be patient with us because we cant react immediately and need time to rebalance or find our footing. I cant move left or right only forward because of my mobility aid.
Thanks for reading so far and hehe its on each of us until the gov create a better infrastructure. Lets be kind to other users.