As both an advid cyclist and someone who uses a golf cart almost exclusively for transportation, I have my own take on the interaction between bikes and golf carts on the MMP’s.
As a cyclist, I ride for exercise, not transportation. I plan my bike rides to avoid the MMP’s as much as possible as I find riding through the vast network of low traffic residential neighborhoods to be much more relaxing and enjoyable. When I do find myself having to go on a MMP, I am constantly checking the rear view mirror on my bike. Whenever I see a golf cart approaching, I slow down and pull way over to the side and waive them by. I don’t do this because I think I’m better at determining when it’s safe to pass me. I do this because it’s common courtesy and I want to make it as safe as possible for the cart to pass me. I fully understand that the cart drivers can go faster than I ride (on a regular, non motorized bike), they have someplace to go, and I don’t want to be that selfish bike rider that erroneously thinks my time is more important than theirs.
As a cart driver, I respect bikers right to use the MMP’s, but also fully expect them to respect the fact that they are sharing the path, they don’t own it. Cyclists should always be fully aware of when they are slowing down golf cart traffic and make it as easy as possible for carts to pass them when they are slowing someone down. Cyclists that slow down traffic flow and make absolutely no effort to rectify the situation, or worse, purposely block people from passing them, create a very dangerous situation. Many Villagers utilize the MMP’s almost exclusively for transportation, often traveling many miles at a time. When someone has been driving for over a half hour and has gotten stuck behind numerous cyclists (especially groups) that don’t allow carts to pass, patience eventually wears very thin. The worst is when multiple carts get stuck behind inconsiderate cyclists, with no possibility of getting by them. That is what causes people to lose their patients and take risks that shouldn’t be necessary if the bikers would simply recognize the situation and let traffic pass.
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