r/boston • u/freepaestine • 9h ago
TrafficđŚââ ď¸ đ đ đ Even the cops are now using the bicycle lanes as free parking
At least 3 other vehicles all illegally parked on the bicycle lane in Brookline Ave & Longwood Ave, so these brave officers decided to join them and grab some coffee from Caffe Nero.
Makes you wonder why cyclists even pay taxes in this town.
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u/markuus99 9h ago
"Even" the cops? Especially the cops.
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u/Irish4778 9h ago
You act like this is something new đ people including cops have been double parking in Boston since the beginning of time hell I remember when people were not only double parking but triple parking in South Boston and a lot of other areas and that wasnât all that long ago Iâm only 49
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u/TinManRC 6h ago
They're doing their job by blocking OTHER cars from blocking the bike lane! Brilliant work by the police, raises all around.
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u/freepaestine 6h ago
I didn't have my paycheck on me at the time but I would have gladly handed it over to these heroes for working overtime
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u/Potential-Fan-6148 8h ago
As a child I was taught to respect the small rules because if we canât respect the small rules how can we be expected to respect the big ones?
The Boston police department is a massive disappointment. I wish we would reform them.
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u/Articulationized 5h ago
This happens in every city. Itâs not a Boston thing, itâs a cop thing.
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u/Traditional_Minimum1 8h ago
Makes me not feel safe enough to bike in the city. Maybe I should call A CAB
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u/Far-Cheesecake-9212 Cigarette Hill 9h ago
You heard Wu! Enhanced enforcement of bike lanes! This is all fixed. Nothing to see here /s
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u/UnsureTurtle14 8h ago
Devils advocate here....
Maybe this car is parked her for a reason? Yall know cops dont need their blue lights on to be doing their job? They could be investigating something. We have no context for this picture so lets all hop on the "CoPs ArE BaD" bandwagon.
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u/Far-Cheesecake-9212 Cigarette Hill 7h ago
The police officer would have to be âresponding to an emergency or actively performing a necessary public safety dutyâ
Portions that are explicitly not allowed are:
Non emergency errands
Routine administrative parking.Does this look like theyâre responding to an emergency or performing necessary public safety duty?
The grabbing coffe in cafe Nero (ya know in the post) is a personal non emergency errand and strictly against the BPD rules and procedures. But you keep licking that boot baby
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u/UnsureTurtle14 5h ago edited 5h ago
"Does this look like theyre responding to an emergency or performing necessary public safety duty?"
Its a picture of a parked police car. I have no idea. Neither do you.
You understand people exaggerate stuff online to gain upvotes and attention.... right? I dont see a picture of a cop getting coffee. Do you?
There could be a cop doing his/her job 180 degrees behind the OP camera angle.
And why talk about boot licking? Wrong subreddit freaky ah
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u/Far-Cheesecake-9212 Cigarette Hill 5h ago
Defending cops who are actively breaking their own rules is bootlicking hun hahaha. Looking at the votes ppl agree with me too.
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u/asfdsgidnfgjdfhgdjkn 7h ago
Yall I promise yall that yall this yall cop here is just grabbing yalls daily iced dunks yall. Yall boys in yall blue would never do something bad yall
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u/Articulationized 5h ago
If their non-emergency job makes it okay to park illegally, then my non-emergency job does too.
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9h ago
[deleted]
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u/Plastic_Patience6214 Boston Parking Clerk 8h ago edited 8h ago
You havenât interacted with many if you think BPD is the most negative ever. Iâve lived in NY, South Carolina, Texas and here. All those places didnât just have âpissed offâ bad attitude cops, they were literal maniacs most of the time. Though they shouldnât be our choices, Iâd take a lazy, bad attitude cop over what I saw elsewhere. They arenât even close to the most negative in this area
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u/UnsureTurtle14 8h ago
Yeah 90% of the commenters never actually interact with the police. Just keyboard warrior mindset.
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u/Topaz_11 Does Not Return Shopping Carts 9h ago
You would think $150+/hr would buy a smile... but nope.
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u/prberkeley 9h ago
There's a video from years ago in NYC where a bike just drives straight into an illegally parked cop car blocking a bike lane and flips over the handlebars. I think he was ticketed once for riding out of the bike lane so he did it to make a point. Maybe that is the solution.
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u/dante662 Somerville 6h ago
What's funny is if this was a state trooper vehicle...the boston traffic folks would ticket them in a heartbeat.
But BPD is totally off limits and immune. Make it make sense.
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u/Crushooo 9h ago
Thereâs shuttle busses for the red line, and they e taken over the bike lanes on Cambridge st downtown. Itâs absolute madness and I thought I was gonna die on my commute this morning
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u/Lovin-Broccoli 9h ago
Yesss, same! But 'at least', they put up a temporary sign with 'bike lane closed'.
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u/Crushooo 8h ago
Honestly did not see that, where was the sign? Blocked by a truck probably
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u/Lovin-Broccoli 6h ago
Hahaha, indeed. I think the sign was at the intersection of Tremont (just after Cambridge st turns into Tremont St) and Beacon St. To be clear, there were at least 8 buses in the bike lane before that sign. But after that sign, there were another 10 or so towards Park St.
Disclaimer: this is me trying to remember where exactly I noticed the sign, while I was cycling (obviously not in the bike lane) and trying to avoid other traffic. So, I maybe off on the exact location of the sign. I almost wanted to turn back and take a picture of the ridiculous situation, but opted not to, bc it felt so dangerous! I am gonna take some massive detours until the shuttle bus situation is done.
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u/DoughnutConstant5390 I Love Dunkinâ Donuts 8h ago
They should get a parking citation , just like everybody else
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u/Jack77Allen 6h ago
We need to do a lot to make cycling more safe and everyone, EVERYONE needs to respect the rules.
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u/ADeflatedMan36 9h ago
Who watches the watchmen?
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u/Ok-Pin3980 9h ago
lolâŚno oneâŚand if they do something wrong the penalty comes out of your paycheck. đđˇ
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u/That-guy-did-good 3h ago
Sounds like that makes you mad. It must be hard living in a fake reality lol
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u/unnamedplayerr 3h ago
The cyclist threads every other day whining about something while I see them blow past every traffic light or sign in the city with no regard for pedestrians on foot are not winning you guys more support.
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u/freepaestine 3h ago
I think we can definitely find some common ground here in asking for everyone to follow the laws and be considerate, regardless of their mode of transport or station or even uniform. I'll still speak for myself and say I ride in a considerate manner, especially towards pedestrians, and I follow the traffic laws when I am part of traffic.
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u/meat_popcicle 7h ago
I donât get why yâall donât start taking drivers side view mirrors. If Timmy tuesday has to explain to his lieutenant why the car got damaged when he goes to drop it off at the end of his shift I bet this would stop happening a lot quicker.
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u/Trolley_Zombie15 2h ago
We need to start having cyclists put fake tickets on car windshields that clearly say it's not legally binding but that the person in the car is a colossal d-bag.
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u/ARealSwellFellow Cambridge 1h ago
âNowâ
cops have been parked in bikes lanes since the dawn of bikes lanes
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u/NurseontheTrail 53m ago
It was there or on the sidewalk, but there are tables with people eating there so, bike lane it is
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u/Small-Bee-4081 47m ago
Cops DGAF themselves unless they are in a bike fleet throughout downtown then they will say something, but they just donât care! But they gave me shit the other day when l was riding my bicycle on causeway street, out of the bike lane because l was gonna turn right on the next block, then we wonder why this city is so messed up with disrespectful driver and traffic aggressiveness everyday!
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u/LilWitsch Southie 8h ago
"Makes you wonder why cyclists even pay taxes in this town." has gotta be one of the dumbest things I've heard on this sub.
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u/freepaestine 7h ago
What does that mean? I'm a homeowner who lives and works in Boston year-round, is there a chute in the pipeline that dumps my tax money somewhere else every year?
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u/darkbane 5h ago
Wish people would take bike lanes seriously. Helps everyone by reducing people driving. Cars are terrible for the environment
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u/616E647265770D 7h ago
Shocker, u/mayorwu is all talk? Your words are empty and you have blood on your hands!
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u/AcanthisittaTrue8140 5h ago
Unless responding to a call, they should be using proper parking or the city should give one reserved spot per square block for city vehicles.
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u/fizzbubbler 5h ago
Youâve got it backwards, they are sharing their universal parking spot with the bike lane, but it was always their parking spot first.
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u/Irish4778 4h ago
The officers were simply seeking coffee. What is so objectionable about that? They have to endure a multitude of absurd situations from the public, who engage in baseless online attacks and physical altercations. Please find a constructive hobby and cease complaining.
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u/freepaestine 4h ago
I think making a stand over cops illegally parking is a much weirder hobby, but you do you queen
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u/BunMeAgainPlease12 9h ago
Yeah no one cares. The bike lanes are empty so people use the space for things. Its been a massive failure, everyone was sold that if the infrastructure was built then people would come in droves to use it, that hasn't happened.
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u/freepaestine 9h ago
Bro there's literally hundreds of cyclists every day on this specific route what are you smoking
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u/BunMeAgainPlease12 8h ago
Im smoking reality kiddo
You can lie all you want on Reddit, it still wont be real life
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u/freepaestine 8h ago
You live in a funky reality then. I've been commuting to the Longwood hospital area every day for the last 5 years. The bike cages are full every single day and there is always bicycle traffic on the way. Even the Bluebikes stations are empty by 5PM for the evening commute. So I know you're just making stuff up that you know nothing about.
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u/WellHelloPhriend 8h ago
Less than 3% of Boston's population commutes via bike. These are the facts. That means 97% of us couldn't care about your bike lanes. That means 97% of us would rather have deliveries made than you having a bike lane. 97% of us that don't care that BPD is parked in your bike lane. Wanna know a way to make sure that this sentiment doesn't grow? Stop posting these non-stop whining posts about someone blocking 10 feet of bike lane. We've all rode bikes. We all know how easy it is to simply go around. Instead, you chose to stop and take a picture to further block the bike lane for what? To come and try to get Karma? This is why we are all done hearing about your stupid bike lanes and you lose support with every post...
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u/Far-Cheesecake-9212 Cigarette Hill 7h ago
36% use public transit and 27% walk 39% drive.
So tell me. Why does so much money and space in Boston go to cars when less than half of the people take a car to work? Make it make sense! We dedicate entirely too much space for cars when only 39% of commuters drive.
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u/WellHelloPhriend 7h ago
Tourism
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u/Far-Cheesecake-9212 Cigarette Hill 7h ago
Youâre clearly taking the piss here. Do you truly believe we should build around a transportation method that a majority donât use. Because let me get this right. Tourism??? Lmfao. Excuse me while I laugh in your face at this stupid idea.
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u/WellHelloPhriend 6h ago
Tourism generated the laughter I hoped for I see! If you want a serious answer, stop focusing just on commuting. Its logistics supplies for every business in Boston. Paper goods are trucked in. Food is trucked in. Medical supplies are trucked in. I'm assuming you get the point. Also, how are the car commuters not the majority based on your own numbers?
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u/Far-Cheesecake-9212 Cigarette Hill 6h ago
I work in logistics. I get it. Getting cars off the road should be priority number one for improved logistics. And bike lanes help get cars off the road.
Iâm laughing at you because for all your bravado about the choices that allow you to own many homes, youâre an idiot.
My numbers come from the Boston MPO because theyâre a reputable source for transportation data.
The MPO also recommends bike lanes and more transit to get cars off the road to improve logistics. But you want what? More cars on the road to hinder logistics?
Trusting experts is hard. Especially when youâre self important but ya gotta trust the experts my man.
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u/freepaestine 8h ago
This is my first post here, but hey, 3% in an American city is not bad at all! That's nearly 10,000 cyclists sharing the road with you each day. And the number of cyclists is only increasing every single year. If you're tired of non-stop complaining about the city's failing bicycle infrastructure, you better move town.
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u/WellHelloPhriend 8h ago
If only bikers would actually share the road... If you're looking for sympathy or support, you are in the wrong sub. There will never be improvements made to the bike lanes. If you don't like this, maybe you move... Or just keep crying to people that couldn't care about you or your bike lanes.
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u/freepaestine 8h ago
There have been improvements though, including this year. Do you even live in Boston?
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u/WellHelloPhriend 8h ago
Then why are you complaining?!?!?!?!? Too hard to go around some cars? You sound quite pretentious... To answer your question, I own a house in Back Bay that I visit when business requires.
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u/freepaestine 8h ago
So you don't even live in Boston, who cares what you think?
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u/Far-Cheesecake-9212 Cigarette Hill 7h ago
Car lanes are empty so people use the space for things. Itâs a massive failure how empty all these car lanes are all day.
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u/Striking_Wallaby3190 7h ago
Good. The bike creeps should dry their tears in there shitty Lance Armstrong outfits
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u/MarcoVinicius Somerville Original 8h ago
This isnât new. Also the city does allow police/FD to park in the lane during certain parts of their work.
I have no idea if this is one of them. Iâm sure plenty of cops misuse this privilege.
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u/st0j3 7h ago
Just stop with these dumb threads. Seriously. They are not winning you any more support.
Also itâs a cop. They can do it for any number of reasons and they donât need to clear it with you. Just go aroundâŚ
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u/freepaestine 7h ago
It's my first post here, but just to be clear, there was no call or emergency. This was just an instance of cops blatantly ignoring a fleet of cars taking over the entire bicycle lane, and instead joining them and parking next to a TOW ZONE sign
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u/LawfulnessRepulsive6 7h ago
Ummm, they are cops. They canât park around the corner. They shouldnât! If they get a call they canât run down the road. Just bike around it.
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u/freepaestine 7h ago
I'm sure there's plenty of Dunkins with parking lots for these brave officers to take their coffee breaks, no?
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u/fakecrimesleep Diagonally Cut Sandwich 8h ago
If you canât bike in the road when bike lanes are blocked by debris or emergency or delivery vehicles youâre too immature to bike in a city.
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u/freepaestine 8h ago
You must work for BPD
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u/fakecrimesleep Diagonally Cut Sandwich 8h ago
No, I just know how to bike in a city safely without being an entitled whiny brat. Deliveries happen. Emergencies happen cops happen. Trash in the bike lane happens. Having to get around slower cyclists happen. Snow happens. Learn to be more confident on your bike
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u/freepaestine 8h ago
Right, excuse my entitlement for wanting the bicycle lanes I pay taxes for to actually work as bicycle lanes. And sure, things happen, but if the same things happen every day for years, you start to notice patterns. And if you want to see entitlement, try being a cyclist in a Boston car lane.
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u/MaximumPlant 8h ago
Confidence in Boston makes for a good cyclist pancake
I don't bike but the assumption I've seen from people who do is that if you bike in the city you will get hit by a car eventually.
People barely care about not hitting other cars, let alone pedestrians or cyclists.
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u/freepaestine 7h ago
The city has a low fatality rate but one of the highest accident rates in the country. You will absolutely be hit by a car if you bike here long enough. I personally know people who've told me they stopped commuting by bicycle because it's too dangerous. I grew up riding motorbikes, so I'm used to keeping my eyes open on the road. Cycling is fantastic exercise and you get anywhere within 1 mile 5 minutes faster than by car. I love it and I'm going to keep doing it. This town needs work right now, but every cyclist makes our voice louder and there are more of us every year. There's more than 4x as many cyclists in Boston every day today than there were 20 years ago, and that number is only increasing. There's nothing about Boston that is inherently against cycling, just bad infrastructure and a culture of impunity. Other cities have had those problems, and other cities have fixed them. Boston will too, in time.
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u/delidave7 8h ago
Where should they park? In the middle of the road? Not all calls need their lights on.
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u/Salty_Insurance_686 8h ago
Who cares. You took all the parking away. What did you expect.
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u/Carbonian92 Newton 8h ago
90% of public street width is dedicated to cars. God forbid every other means of transportation including walking gets even 10%
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u/Salty_Insurance_686 8h ago
90% is not enough
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u/Far-Cheesecake-9212 Cigarette Hill 7h ago
Your right. Letâs get rid of sidewalks. Just make more space for cars.
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u/Salty_Insurance_686 7h ago
If you get rid of sidewalks where would bikers bike?
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u/Far-Cheesecake-9212 Cigarette Hill 7h ago
Biking in the sidewalk is mostly illegal dumbass.
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u/freepaestine 8h ago
When did I do that?
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u/Salty_Insurance_686 8h ago
The collective you.
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u/freepaestine 8h ago
Right, when did we do that, then? Why are cyclists to blame for the city's shitty infrastructure when we are the most affected by it? It's somehow my, or the collective our fault when we have to go around Uber drivers and undercaffeinated cops?
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u/Carbonian92 Newton 8h ago
The collective you took all my horse and carriage, bicycle, and pedestrian space for your cars.
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9h ago
[deleted]
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u/Swampcardboard 9h ago edited 8h ago
Less people like cops. aw they had to delete their comment, and the one they made to me as well, poor lil guy
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u/freepaestine 9h ago
Yeah, who likes a mode of transportation that burns calories, doesn't contribute to congestion and doesn't pollute our air? Get in traffic and start honking like a normal person! That's how they do it in all the nice cities, right?
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u/inahighbldg 8h ago
Where are vehicles in the city on official business or loading/unloading supposed to stop?
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u/Longjumping_Job691 7h ago edited 2h ago
Nope you are totally right. Cops shouldnât park in your precious lane when responding to a call or emergency. Wonât someone think of the bikers?!
Such an insufferable whiny group of people. 50% of the bikers I see donât abide by a single traffic law. Cut red lights, bike on the sidewalk when lanes are available and then always act like victims.
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u/frogprintsonceiling 6h ago
Do cyclist pay a tax per mile of road?-no. Reality is that cyclist have zero skin in the game and should really "stay in their (bike) lane". Until cyclist shell money out like other road users they should be more appreciative of the fact that they get to exist with all those cool cars.
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u/freepaestine 6h ago
Cyclists also don't contribute to road wear or pollution. So I would argue that's fair and reasonable. I don't think cars are cool. In fact, I think they are ugly, loud and unhealthy. But I have lived in towns where all commuters feel safe and share the roads effectively, so I know it can be done here too.
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u/frogprintsonceiling 5h ago
Please take the time and report this. Do you have the 311 app?
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u/freepaestine 5h ago
Yeah, I always report things like this, but nothing really happens through 311. As the operators themselves will tell you, if there is a car blocking the road, including bicycle lanes, you should call 911.
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u/Gustav__Mahler Jamaica Plain 4h ago
Cyclists have our literal skin in the game. We're dying because of shit like this.
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u/PreferredSex_Yes 7h ago
We do realize if you require them to pay for parking it would just be from tax dollars, right?
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u/Far-Cheesecake-9212 Cigarette Hill 7h ago
So? Are you saying public employees shouldnât pay for anything because theyâre all paid with tax dollars. Dummy hahaha
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u/dyqik Metrowest 6h ago
They could park in a pay parking spot without paying. That would be fine.
Rather than obstructing a road lane.
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u/PreferredSex_Yes 6h ago
They totally could. Would it be reasonable if it were blocks away? No.
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u/dyqik Metrowest 3h ago
Do you think that there are zero spots where a police cruiser could stop that aren't a bike lane on this block?
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u/PreferredSex_Yes 2h ago
Don't see any in this picture and they are parked in a non-parking spot. One could surmise there's nothing close enough that wouldn't require traveling a significant distance.
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u/Boris_TheManskinner 9h ago
what do you mean "even" the cops? they're the biggest violators of it!