Massive truck ripping through Ottawa takes out light pole

Two years of silence from Drivers of Ottawa

All of my current posts can be found over at Drivers of Belleville, Ontario. As I am not longer personally around the Ottawa area, this blog will probably not receive any updates unless there is someone who wishes to take over.

More current resources:

• https://ecologyottawa.ca/complete-streets/
• https://www.facebook.com/groups/criticalmassottawa/

1V7528 Parking in the Bike Lane

Being a veteran doesn't exempt you from traffic laws

BKTK 468 Careless Driving Causes Near Collision

The male driver of this white Chevrolet van, BKTK 468, who appeared to be in his late twenties, with dark hair, nearly ran into me today. At the time he was wearing a black leather jacket.

The incident took place at 1:45 PM on Connaught Ave. between Severn Ave. and Hanlon Ave. where there are two intersections in close proximity.

I was travelling south through the first intersection as the van approached a stop sign, I continued straight and he made a right turn behind me. Immediately I signaled my intention to make a left turn. As I began my turn I heard the engine of the van rev-up behind me and then saw the van trying to overtake me.

I was forced to swerve in order to avoid being hit by the van.

Cycling on the Sidewalk and in a Crosswalk

Back from the depths of Google Street View, I bring you a sidewalk cyclist! Cycling on sidewalks and crosswalks is more dangerous^[1] than cycling in the road. Not to mention that sidewalk cycling can land you some pretty decent fines.

Click on the two images below to go to Google Maps.

Riding on the Sidewalk - $40^[2]

Observe the classic conflict between the sidewalk cyclist and impatient motorist.

Riding in a Crosswalk - $85^[3]

Street View imagery is copyright of Google, and is used for educational purposes.
[1] http://www.bike.cornell.edu/pdfs/Sidewalk_biking_FAQ.pdf
[2] http://www.ottawasun.com/2012/06/05/mixed-message-on-sidewalk-cycling
[3] http://www.mto.gov.on.ca/english/pubs/cycling-guide/section5.0.shtml

412 LZD Threatened by Aggressive Driver

March 27, 2014 - 6:29 PM
The male driver of this silver car honked at me as we were approaching a red light on a single lane, one-way street. I had just been passed by a different vehicle, and was in the same position in the road. After the first honk I made sure to take primary so as not to allow the impatient driver to pass me without enough room and knock me over. When I stopped at the red light, he honked multiple times. It was at this point that I was stopped that I turned and made eye contact with him.

The light was still red, and I turned my bicycle perpendicular to the road to keep him from turning right while I was getting my camera out. He popped open his door and said something along the lines of, "Get out of the road." I simply told him that I was taking his picture and that he would be reported to the police. He reversed his car a short distance, and was then able to get past to my right. At this point, I was attempting to capture a picture of his face, but all I got was this picture of him driving past me with his door still open.

He entered the intersection without stopping at the red light, then made a right turn around the bus you see into the second lane, forcing other traffic to slow down.

Ottawa Police Refuse to Take Report of Aggressive Driver

I had an encounter with a honk-happy motorist today, and when I got home and called the OPS's non-emergency line to report him, I was told that they were not going to take a report. You could imagine that I was quite surprised to hear this, because on their website they proudly state:

The Ottawa Police Service looks upon driving complaints very seriously. Every incident reported is documented and a district officer assigned to the area of the complaint will follow up every traffic complaint.

When a citizen calls in with a legitimate complaint about the law being broken, the least the OPS could do is pretend to care and take a report, even if they don't have any real intention of investigating.

I was told that the person responsible for the decision not to take my report was "Call Center Supervisor Mason."