2 accidents in 2 days

After having been “accident free” on my motorcycle for the past 10 years in Taiwan, I’ve had 2 accidents in the past 2 days whilst riding my bicycle.

The first was a SUV that pulled out from a small side alley only to stop directly in front of me. No suprise there of course - happens every day. If I’d been on my motorcycle I would have swerved around the outside of this fool and been on my way. But lacking the acceleration to safely do this on my MTB, I went on the inside of the SUV. Little did I know, but I was now between a woman in need of her morning caffiene fix and a Starbucks. She then quickly swerved right without signaling, to park in the scooter lane on the red line. My bar-end left a very nice dent in her rear passenger door just before I hit the pavement.

Then today, while out riding with my 1.5 year old son in the baby seat on the back, a scooter went wide on my left only to veer right and stop directly in my path. My front wheel hit the leg of the girl on the back and my son’s helmet visor slammed into the small of my back. The driver then sneered at me like some annoying pest and sped away.

The only sense I can make of these 2 incidents is I’ve just been rudly introduced to my new position in the Taiwan Road Pecking Order. Fast walking ( Legal definition of cycling in Taiwan ) being only just above those lowly pedestrians. Having traded my heavy 150 Yamaha for a measly bicycle, I just don’t command the same respect on the road anymore.

There is no commonwealth, here.

Be careful. Especially with your boy on the bike. One needs to ride defensively everywhere, but in Taiwan even more so. Especially with your boy on the bike.

I got hit by a logging truck on my bike back in California 15 years ago. I was riding cautiously, saw him in advance, slowed to be sure he saw me, but he still turned suddenly and was completely at fault for hitting me, but whose fault it was makes little difference: at least it meant my bills were paid for, but I was still rushed to the hospital in an ambulance with broken bones and gashes.

I’ve been even more cautious since then. If one is truly intent to prevent all accidents, one must be prepared for every door to slam open in front of you, every car to swerve in your path and every idiot to suddenly cut you off. We all know Taiwan drivers suck, so it’s your responsibility to avoid getting hit, not theirs.

I had a car accident in the USA and took it to the shop to get it fixed. When it was ready, I drove it home, only to get hit again. Both times weren’t my fault, but sometimes luck just happens that way.

And, like the parable of the man whose horse ran away . . . then returned with several other horses, etc. . . . maybe it’s neither good luck nor bad, but just what happened. :bow:

What you need to realize is that an MTB is one order of magnitude down on the “roadway hierarchy” when compared to a scooter. It is merely one level above pedestrian, so of course you need to adjust.

The “Roadway Hierarchy”

  1. VIP / Li Yuan
  2. Gravel Trucks
  3. Gangster cars (typically one generation old benz or BMW in poor condition)
  4. Taxis
  5. Autos with prices above 1 million TWD
  6. The plebs in cars of mass production
  7. Scooters / Motorcycles
  8. Bicycles
  9. Pedestrians

Regardless of the actual traffic rules involved, the lower must give way to the higher ranked.

In Taiwan all must be balanced so this is tempered by the inversely running “Accident Pay-out Hierarchy”