transcanada highway is a death trap

D: a couple of cyclists were finally killed on the highway.
It was overdue, by the sound of things.

The advice given was that we need to pave the edge.
Well, yes and no.
The only bicycle to cross a country on is a narrow-tired racer.
However, they are unstable when on gravel.
Ergo, unless there is a paved edge, they are not practical.
Leaving no practical bicycle at all.
There is a problem with the proposal to pave the edge.

A very heavy truck, loaded with an uneven load, can have the trailer gyrate up to a couple feet on each side. Meaning it can clip a cyclist who is on the right hand side of the white line.

http://www.johnforester.com/Articles/Safety/NatBSMotorists.htm
D: this article touches on something. Bicycles are somehow seen as the illegitimate off-spring of a pedestrian and automobile, with no rights to either world.

http://www.cars-suck.org/littera-scripta/ntsb.html
D: bike lanes adjacent to road-side parking are death traps.
Unless the lane is a full metre wide, there is little chance to react and evade.
If there are 2 lanes on each side, I feel within my rights to ride in the CENTRE of the right-most lane. Hugging the side just makes for dooring, or worse, a sudden shift to the left to avoid a door.
Uptown Waterloo is a night-mare that way.
I choose the compromise of moving at pedestrian speed on the sidewalk.
I stay away from store doors. I am surprised by how many people don't look before stepping out of a store. I certainly don't approve of gunning it at high speeds on low-visibility sidewalks.

Highway riding reminds me of the need for rules about side guards on big trucks.
http://spacing.ca/wire/2007/10/31/a-day-for-remembering/
Our gov't was dismissive of it.
Some European nations mandate them, I think.
http://biketoronto.ca/topic/show/540.htm
!!! c. 1/3 of cyclist deaths are due to heavy trucks.

For long-distance hauls, trucks are 1/3 as energy efficient as trains.
A pollution and/or a carbon tax would render them cost ineffective in most situations.
I look forward to the day.
For that matter, cars don't like to share highways with them.
It reminds me of what Trudeau said about being a mouse beside an elephant.

D.