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It might seem counter-intuitive, but the safest way for a cyclist to survive in traffic is to behave as a car would [“Whose lane is it, anyway?” July 6]. As a 15-year bike messenger in Manhattan, I had almost all my accidents as a rookie. Then I learned that bike lanes are very dangerous for the reasons described in your article: Car doors open in the lanes and vehicles cut off cyclists to make turns. Both situations can be fatal. If you are in the actual traffic lane behind a truck about to turn, you either pass the truck on the left or wait for it to complete the turn, just as you would in a car. The bike lane tends to give a false sense of security to the cyclists in it. They are somewhat oblivious to the motor vehicles on their left just as these motor vehicles are oblivious to them.
A problem occurs when the cyclist cannot approach the speed of traffic. In my messenger days, I would usually go faster than the cars in midtown and I would ride as near the center of the avenues as my speed would warrant. Novice cyclists often can’t maintain even 15 miles an hour and would slow down traffic if they drove their bikes as they drove their cars. (An aside, one clearly “drives” a bike with muscle power while one just as clearly “rides” in a car driven by a motor. Why then, do we say we ride a bike and drive a car?).
The solution to this problem is for the cyclist to always consider himself as part of the traffic flow and to take the space beside them, away from the bike lane, when sensing a motor vehicle is about to turn in front of them. I always, always, always keep at least a door’s distance from any parked car because they will, yes they will, open their door right on you. You can’t give them the chance, keep a door’s distance.
Even more dangerous than bike lanes for cyclists is riding on the sidewalk. Motorists making turns into driveways, in the city and elsewhere, might register pedestrians, but they are not expecting a 15 mph cyclist hidden from traffic by parked cars. If you feel that the sidewalk is the only safe place to be, walk your bicycle on the sidewalk until conditions become safer. There is never a reason for anyone over 10 to ride a bike on the sidewalk.
The idea is to be alert, visible, and predictable. This means no earphones on the bikes and no telephones in the cars. Having learned to drive and cycle in Manhattan, I am always amazed how cavalierly Virginians regard driving anywhere and cycling in town. If you realize you can be killed or maimed at any moment, you will ride/drive safely.
The very safest bike lanes are those that physically separate bikes and cars. The painted bike lanes at least give a section of road to the cyclist, but the cyclist can never relax while sharing the road with cars.
Phil McDonald
Charlottesville
Out, weed, out!
Erika Howsare: Don’t give up the fight against Ailanthus [“The garden’s commance,” Green Living, July 6]. It is a scourge. It is an aggressive and destructive invasive alien species and we should do all we can to keep it out of our yards and woods. Think about it as a weed, and think about how often we weed the same rows of vegetables or flower beds in a season. Pull those baby trees, cut the larger ones, before they set seeds if possible. Yes, Ailanthus will sprout; so, go out there and cut the sprouts a couple times a year. That’s less often than you weed your garden. Keep at it and you will prevail. By the way, it does make good firewood and does not stink up the house when you use it. I agree with your reluctance to use Roundup, though I have used it to paint stumps on occasion when distant from open water or direct drainage. Use your imagination in coming up with alternatives and urge your readers to do the same. For example, paint those stumps with vinegar and see how it goes. Try new things. Good luck.
Daniel Bowman
Charlottesville
The girdle solution
As Erika Howsare states in her Green Living column, killing the roots of the invasive Ailanthus trees without using chemicals can be a “dilemma.” If the tree is too large to dig out the roots, one can girdle it in the spring after it leafs out. Be sure to completely encircle the trunk close to the ground, removing bark and cambium. Then be patient as the summer months pass. Eventually the tree will die as the roots starve.
J.A. Barker
Charlottesville
Poorer living through chemistry
I was delighted to get to the end of Erika Howsare’s article and find that she was hesitant to embrace the use of pesticides to get rid of Tree-of-Heaven, Ailanthus altissima (which she mistakenly called “Paradise Tree,” a name more correctly reserved for a tropical member of the Ailanthus Family).
She seemed surprised that “most of the green-minded people” she knows told her to use herbicides, but the fact is that people—especially environmentalists—have become far too accepting of these poisons.
Herbicides harm our amphibians—the toads, frogs, and salamanders that wander among plants to feed on invertebrates. Amphibians have extremely absorbent skin that allows herbicides to pass into their bodies with adverse consequences. Worldwide declines in amphibian populations have occurred concomitantly with the worldwide use of herbicides, especially Roundup.
Probably because this pesticide has been touted as being safe for humans and mammals (current research disputes this), it has become the largest selling herbicide in history. In the United States alone, over 100 million pounds of glyphosate (the active ingredient in Roundup) are poured into the environment every year.
But humans and mammals are not the only animals out there. We can’t overlook the effects of these chemicals upon the other critters that help to make the environment habitable for us. Amphibians are your natural insecticides; they limit the numbers of invertebrates in your yard to levels that will not seriously harm your plants.
What is particularly sad about the abundant use of herbicides is that the homeowner really should not need to use them. Muscle power is not only adequate for dealing with unwanted plants, it’s also far better for human health. Exercise is a good thing.
People complain about unwanted plants “forever popping up” and that “if you have one, you’ll soon have gazillions.” But getting rid of unwanted plants is part and parcel of gardening.
To avoid dealing with “gazillions” of unwanted plants, cut the Ailanthus after it flowers to prevent seed formation. Pull as many seedlings as you can every year; do not wait until you have many years’ worth of plants to deal with.
As for Ailanthus sending up “five new shoots to replace the one you cut,” you needn’t hate this plant for such “diabolical” behavior. Instead, recognize that this tree is not unique; virtually all deciduous trees will do this.
I’ve been maintaining my half-acre yard for 24 years without the use of herbicides. Yes, it requires a lot of work on my part, but when I see the numerous kinds of critters that make my property their home, I know for a fact that my yard is a safe haven for me as well as for them.
Marlene Condon
Crozet