This pedestrian crossing is on a hill. I’ve noticed that everyone who uses it does the same thing. Car coming? We step into the road so the driver must stop. Bike coming? We step back from the kerb, showing the cyclist that we’ll wait until they’ve passed. Like an instinctive social contract. Cars block public space, bikes share it. Cyclists are either whizzing down or puffing up that hill so it’s a tiny courtesy to let them pass. Often with a mutual smile or wave. Urban in-this-togetherness.
@CiaraNi there's a pelican crossing on the hill near my flat - I always wait for cyclists to pass before pressing the button! :)
@patrickhadfield @CiaraNi as someone who lives in the Netherlands, I'm confused by these hills you speak of. As a cyclist who lives in Amsterdam, I'm really confused by this idea of cyclists stopping for red lights... :p
@quixoticgeek @CiaraNi a lot of them don't! It is another stick with which motorists beat them.
@patrickhadfield @CiaraNi except in Amsterdam, cyclists out number motorists. And even then almost every driver is also a cyclist. There's a lot less "us and them" mentality about it.