Crosstown Traffic

Letters, November 22

The last couple of lines of my recently printed letter were incorrect. My original letter intended to note that Derf’s November 1 “The City” cartoon proved that anything connected to George W. Bush will be attacked by neo-libs.

Calvin Oyler, Claycomo

Martin: “The Dance,” November 22

Thank you for David Martin’s column about bus routes and parking rates in the Power & Light District. I am so enraged that the City Council killed light rail. As usual, Cordish is influencing the way our city runs and is clearly not a proponent of any public transportation.

My hope in this free-lovin’, down-to-earth, just-like-you-and-me, Converse-wearin’ mayor is fading. Looks like he is just a sellout, like so many others.

It is time for Kansas City to wake up!

Emily Hillman, Kansas City, Missouri

Feature: “Uneasy Riders,” November 8

Thank you so much for Carolyn Szczepanski’s article on cycling in the metro. We definitely need better laws, enforcement, education and all that. I would love to see follow-up stories on making KC more bike-friendly.

Karen Mell, Kansas City, Missouri

I don’t know exactly how the traffic laws read concerning bicyclists on the street (K. Pearsall’s November 22 “wah, there is a cyclist on MY street” letter to the editor), but it is my understanding that cyclists have as much right to be out on the street as cars, as long as they obey the traffic laws. Little things like riding on the right-hand side in the same direction as the car traffic, stopping for red lights and stop signs, etc.

I was also taught that if your age is measured in double-digit numbers, you have no business riding on the sidewalk because you then become a hazard for the pedestrians who are actually supposed to be using those sidewalks. I think I have encountered Pearsall or his ilk in the form of the assholes who try to get as close to me as possible when they pass me and then yell at me to get off the road.

K. Pearsall, here is my flip-off to you. If you are so worried that an oncoming concrete truck will take out you and your family, wait for five seconds before passing me and you will not be risking my life and the lives of your family. If you are in such a big damn hurry, why did you not leave the house 10 minutes earlier?

James O. Wright, Kansas City, Missouri

Hmmm, let’s see. According to the Mid-America Regional Council, 12 bicyclists were killed on area roads from 2000 to 2006. That’s an average of two a year. Is this some kind of epidemic? How many pedestrians were killed in that same time? How many motorists?

To me, it is absurd to put small, two-wheeled, self-propelled vehicles traveling at 8-10 mph on the same roads designed for traffic moving at 35 mph and faster. They don’t allow cars to travel less than 40 mph on the highway because they pose an obvious hazard to other vehicles traveling at 70 mph. So why can’t bicyclists see the same connection? This is an unsafe mix!

Let’s face it. From the time of the very first motorized vehicle, the bicycle has been extinct as a form of travel, kinda like the horse and buggy. Obsolete!

As for the 10 sob stories of bicyclists who have had incidents with motorists, big fucking deal. Is there a single motorist out there who couldn’t relate a similar account they’ve had with another motorist? Do these 10 bicyclists think they’re the only ones who were injured in accidents that weren’t their fault?

But, hey, I have nothing personal against bicyclists. Some of my best friends are cyclists, and furthermore, I wouldn’t mind some portion of my taxes being spent to provide areas for the recreational use of bicycles. We already spend money for basketball courts; baseball, football, soccer and rugby fields; hiking trails; etc., etc., so why not bicycles, too?

Just keep ’em off the steeeenking streets where I gotta drive!

Charley Hutto, Kansas City, Missouri

Bicycles are classified by law as vehicles in all states. It is against the law in most areas to ride a bicycle on the sidewalk unless it is specifically marked for such use. I won’t even get into the dangers of intersections for pedestrians and cyclists riding on the sidewalk.

Another one of those inconvenient laws states that you are to stay behind a vehicle until it is safe to pass.

Dave DeLeersnyder, Kansas City, Missouri

Café, November 15

I recently read with interest Charles Ferruzza’s review of the Malay Café. I laughed so hard when he mentioned the less-than-spotless bathroom.

I, too, believe that the bathrooms — especially the men’s, since these seem to go by the wayside — should be spotless. As a former Anheuser-Busch employee in St. Louis, I’ll never forget August Busch going to one of the breweries. First thing, he would walk into the plant’s bathrooms. If they were not clean, he would immediately leave the premises. Later on, the manager of that brewery would get a memo that this better not happen again or else.

I learned this cleanliness from my mother (I was born in Italy and am now retired), the Marine Corps (32 years of service) and my association with A-B.

Kudos to your article.

Lou Bacco, Shawnee