Too many ghost bikes

After a post I wrote recently about two new ghost bikes that had appeared on some of my favorite bike routes, Vicky Backman suggested that we need a more European approach to car/bike accidents where the car is assumed to be at fault because of the asymmetrical injuries caused by such accidents. That got me to thinking about whether such an approach would ever be accepted in the USA and whether it would even be appropriate.

For one thing, the USA is very car-centric. This isn't really surprising considering how big the country is. But even while gas prices are hyper inflationary and we go to war to ensure gas availability, the idea of replacing gas guzzlers with public transport or bicycles, or even just replacing them with smaller and more efficient cars, is greeted with cries of "Commie Fascist!" (Americans have never claimed to be politically savvy either). Hell, we even divert corn off the tables of starving children into the gas tanks of our SUVs.

Europe has slowly been moving away from individual cars and towards public transport, walking, cycling, etc. The health and cost benefits are clear and there is gathering momentum towards bringing non-motorized forms of transport into the mainstream. I read that in Amsterdam half of all non-commercial trips are made on bicycles. Compare that with Caltrans's attitude towards alternative transport as "a damn nuisance". Maybe in 50 years the USA will be where Europe is now. But I can't imagine a time when they will actually catch up. Protected bike lanes, separate stop lights, Right to Ride - I can only dream!

A few nights ago I was driving home from a meeting of the Inland Empire dot net user group late at night and in the space of five miles I saw four separate cyclists with no helmets, no lights, and no reflective gear. One of them was even riding against traffic on a four lane highway. The only reason I saw him at all is that he passing in front of a reflective sign. Just this morning there was a teenager riding his bike no handed in the middle of the road (literally) with headphones on. I had to pass him on his right. He didn't know I was there - he couldn't hear me. What if he had decided to move to the curb just as I was passing?

My dilemma is that with all these apparently suicidal cyclists on the road, how can we get motorists and law makers to give us the protection we need? As a motorist, I don't want the law to assume I'm at fault if I hit one of these crazy cyclists. And if I'm concerned, how do we persuade the public at large?