Don't get doored! How to avoid being injured when someone opens a car door in front of you while you're cycling.
Most city cyclists are familiar with this collision scenario: a driver or passenger suddenly swings their door open into traffic without checking behind them. For the cyclist, it’s like a steel wall appearing right in front of them. This is what bike messengers wryly call getting the "door prize".
In the City of Toronto, this particular type of collision has been named as the leading cause of injury to cyclists. At best, it can leave a bike commuter shocked and badly bruised. At worst, it has been responsible for a few tragic cases in which a cyclist has been thrown under the wheels of oncoming vehicles, sometimes fatally.
Once a rider has been taken by surprise by an opening door, it’s too late to do anything but damage control. Instead, avoid the situation entirely with these savvy commuter cycling tips collected from experienced urban riders!
Whenever possible, ride far enough out into traffic that a door can’t clip you. (In fact, it’s actually better to stay a little farther to the left all the time and ride in a more or less straight line than to constantly move in and out around cars.)
1. Keep your brakes in good shape.
2. Don’t carry any luggage with your arms that may prevent your being able to brake fast.
3. Never ride so fast that you don’t have the ability to stop quickly. (Lower your top speed in slippery weather.)
4. When passing a line of cars on the right, slow down and be aware of passenger doors, especially if the vehicle in question is a taxicab. (These days, all Toronto cabs have very smart stickers on the inside passengers doors that warm disembarking fares to watch for bikes.)
5. Watch for the clues: rear red lights show you that there’s someone in the car. So does exhaust.
6. Check through the rear window as you approach the vehicle to see whether there are people in the car and what they’re doing (but don’t be fooled by headrests!)
7. Listen for that telltale click of a door lock. You may be surprised how audible it is, and it may give you that extra minute of warning that someone’s about to step out of the car.
8. As a last resort, use your voice and ring your bell.
This article is part of a series about safety tips for cyclists. You can read about left turns and lane changes here. In my next article, I’ll discuss how to deal with left-turning motor vehicles.
