Cycling and Safety in China

[sandeehoo]

hi, I want to know whether getting a bike whilst studying in china (tsinghua university) is essential?

I can't really ride a bike, i've only ever ridden a bike twice in my life, and don't want to get killed trying to ride a bike on the dodgy roads of China/campus. I heard that tsinghua has a large campus ground so a bike is more efficient, but can't I just walk the distance?

It would be good to hear of people's bike riding experiences on the roads of China/campus ground.

[billiardsmike]

You can certainly get by with walking. If you find it to be a bit much, riding a bike on campus is considerably easier and safer than on the streets. Don't worry about it now. You can see what you're comfortable with when you get here.

[imron]

The Tsinghua campus is BIG. Also, the classrooms are located far away from the canteens and the dormitories. You can walk, but on Tsinghua at least, a bike is really quite necessary. As a previous poster mentioned riding on campus is also a lot safer than riding on the streets, plus once you get a bit of practice, I'm sure you'll have no difficulty riding about and you'll wonder what you were ever worried about.

[yonitabonita]

I don't think you should attempt Beijing roads. I'm a competent rider, am constantly watching what's going on to the left, to the right, in front, and sometimes even behind me, and STILL near death experiences threaten me at least once a week.

That said, depending on where you are, campus traffic should be ok. I found it really pleasant riding around the BLCU campus. Not an awful lot of cars and nice wide tree-lined roads. There are pedestrians which won't harm you - unless you crash into them. I can't speak for other universities though.

Why don't you wait till you get here, work out what's what before you decide?

If it's a 5 minute walk to class each day, you might as well walk. On the other hand, if it works out to be 30 minutes door to door by foot and you're not good at getting up early, and there's a really nice cycle path to class, you could go the other way.

Hope this helps.

Y

[bijian]

Hi sandeehoo,

Why not use the bus system at Tsinghua（see following picture on Flickr )?

http://flickr.com/photos/ntrebing/214064794/

I've never been to China, but I've heard when using buses, one has to be very

familiar with the bus stop names and the bus routes.

In any case, bike seems to be super popular in big cities in Beijing, specifically

at Tsinghua University (see following picture on Flickr):

http://flickr.com/search/?q=tsinghua%20bike&w=all&s=int

谢谢你

-毕健

[WoAiJolinTsai]

This is what happens when you ride in Beijing

http://www.nothingtoxic.com/media/1183230910/Japanese_Girl_Gets_Slammed_By_a_Car_on_a_Busy_Street

(Warning:the link contains footage of a cyclist being hit by a car)

[gato]

This is what happens when you ride in Beijing

http://www.nothingtoxic.com/media/1183230910/Japanese_Girl_Gets_Slammed_By_a_Car_on_a_Busy_Street

That's from Beijing Television (BTV). The accident happened in Chaoyang District, according to the voiceover.

[muyongshi]

Is this an example of what stupid foreigners who don't know any Chinese do to the media? I mean it says Japanese girl. Bet somebody found this and then was like it sounds like Japanese. Hence what we have here.

Anyway....

Sandeehoo you really don't have to worry about this. Just follow traffic laws and be aware. Or better yet, never leave your campus.

[billiardsmike]

Just follow traffic laws?!?! That might be the funniest thing I've read in a long time! That's a prescription for either getting killed or getting nowhere.

[sandeehoo]

Thanks for that clip Gato.

I think i'm traumatised for life now =P

[imron]

If you're riding on Tsinghua campus the biggest worry you'll have is other cyclists and pedestrians, not cars, and in fact several of the main roads on campus are closed for cars. You will be able to get by without a bike at Tsinghua, it's just inconvenient. It's perfectly possible to walk everywhere, but after the first week or so, you might decide to get a bike after all, if only for riding around campus.

[woliveri]

yeah, you just need to be very aware of what's going on when riding a bike in China. People will carry just about anything on a bike, from other people to plate glass which they will straddle across their motor scooters. So, imagine running into that guy and getting sliced up.

In China, the bigger your vehicle, the more powerful you are. So busses outweigh trucks, trucks out weigh cars, cars can crush motorbikes, motorbikes buzz by bicycles, etc.. And the lowly pedestrian is the lowest on the totem-pole. Be aware that nearly no one yeilds to the pedestrian.

And Traffic Laws, forget it. People will try to get away with anything they can. Most of the time it looks like a free-for-all on the streets. You need to be very aware of what's going on in front, back and on both sides.

[onebir]

In China, the bigger your vehicle, the more powerful you are. So busses outweigh trucks, trucks out weigh cars, cars can crush motorbikes, motorbikes buzz by bicycles, etc

There's some truth in this, & the drivers of larger vehicles can operate by intimidation to some extent. But they'll often cut you a bit of slack if they can - it's less hassle than filling in a police report.

Be aware that nearly no one yeilds to the pedestrian

And the Chinese pedestrian seems to have a deathwish, never looking for vehicles, walking in the middle of the road unnecessarily etc

[gougou]

never looking for vehicles

That's precisely what you have to do. Once you look at the car, the driver will think that by acknowledging its existence, you also acknowledged its right of way. If, however, the driver is uncertain whether you have seen him or not, he will drive much more carefully and, if necessary, yield way.

DISCLAIMER: There's about one in a million drivers that know about this and won't give way whether you looked or not, so use at own risk!

[adrianlondon]

I cycle every day in London (I commute to work by bike and often cycle at the weekends for fun/exercise). I also cycled most days when I was in Beijing. My experiences of both cities are almost totally opposite.

In London, I need to keep changing direction, make sure not to hit anyone, and stare at car drivers in a "I've seen you, you've seen me, don't fuck me around" kind of way. I'm a car driver as well so like to think I'm quite road-aware. I've not had any serious accidents in years of cycling, and the non serious ones were (a) another cyclist's fault and (B) me falling off drunk. I don't drink and cycle any more ;)

In Beijing, you cycle slowly, and in the direction you want to go. You don't acknowledge anyone (if you look at someone, and they're in a car, they'll drive into you cos they're bigger. If they're a pedestrian they'll be all like "wow, a foreigner friend on a bike!" and walk in front of you while staring. If they're a cyclist they'll suddenly swerve all over the place until they hit you).

Beijing traffic is, generally, quite slow. They look out for cyclists (as I say above, don't amke eye contact) as they expect everyone to be on black bikes, wearing black clothes, and refusing to have lights. Ninja cyclists.

I found Beijing very safe to cycle around. Only had one issue where I went head-long into a cyclist coming the wrong way up a cycle lane. He saw me, a white guy, started to stare, then swerved all over the place (as did I) until we crashed ;) Excellent fun. This is all at about 5mph so no damage done.

[cdn_in_bj]

Only had one issue where I went head-long into a cyclist coming the wrong way up a cycle lane. He saw me, a white guy, started to stare, then swerved all over the place (as did I) until we crashed ;) Excellent fun. This is all at about 5mph so no damage done.

Wow, were there any bystanders around? You guys must've put on quite a show (to them). Glad to hear no one was hurt.

[cdn_in_bj]

I've only biked here once, but know a few people who do it on a regular basis. Although you may be tempted to with the flat roads here, don't go too fast. Going at a slower pace will give drivers/pedestrians/other cyclists time to react to you, and you to them. Going too fast is just asking for trouble, but at "regular" speeds it should be quite safe to bike here as long as you keep alert of your surroundings (also watch out for cars and buses in the cycling lanes).

Stay safe, stay cool.

[shanghaikai]

Riding a bike saves a LOT of time.

Unfortunately, whether or not you'll still have your bike 24-48 hours after your purchase it is an entirely different matter.

As high as they are, the odds of you dying on your bike is relatively low compared to the odds of your bike getting stolen.

[magores]

I got a laugh out of some of the responses.

I'm a foreigner living in Beijing, and unlike many Chinese, I ride a bike for the fun of it.

3 days ago I rode from my house near Panjiayuan Qiao to BLCU, then to Zhonguancun, then back home.

Last week I rode from my house to the "charming village"of Tongzhou, and then back.

I often ride in a circle around the 2nd and 3rd rings just for the fun of it.

In the year and a half I've been riding in Beijing, I've only been in one accident, and it was minor. Lots of minor close calls though.

Here's how I've survived so far...

-Everyone in Beijing seems to assume that the other people see them, so they don't look before moving/turning/merging/etc. This means that you MUST keep an eye on the other people. In my experience, this also means, that the other people are watching you, because they assume that YOU won't look before doing something.

-People in Beijing ignore traffic laws. Don't assume people are going to stop just because the light is red.

-Whenever possible, as soon as the light turns green for you, get out ahead of the pack of other riders. This isn't too difficult. Beijingers ride at a "stroll", and bunched up. I, personally, ride for fun and exercise, so fast is good to me.

-When traveling on a road with one lane + bike lane (per direction), be aware that cars WILL use the bike lane in order to pass others, whether your in that lane or not.

Basically, watch what others are doing, and be prepared to react.

PS. Anyone else in Beijing like to ride bikes the way I do? I'll race ya

[muyongshi]

PS. Anyone else in Beijing like to ride bikes the way I do? I'll race ya

If you are ever in Sichuan I'll take you up on that. I ride for the same reasons and I get an odd feeling of pleasure as I pass a guy on a moped.