As a resident and cyclist on Mercer Island, I can understand Mr. Grady’s fear, anger and frustration over a bus drive passing him and then quickly making a turn in front of him, causing Councilman Grady to take evasive action to avoid injury. This is unfortunately an all too common occurrence I’ve experienced and one that frightens me as well. My hope is that drivers would begin to consider whether it’s really worth endangering a cyclist to get to where they’re going a few seconds earlier. As one who spends more time driving than cycling on the Island, I understand the frustration of being delayed by a cyclist or a school bus, for that matter. That said, we need to remember that sharing the road with cyclists is the law and needs to be obeyed.

Perhaps now that a Councilmember has experienced the problem firsthand, we’ll see increased efforts on the part of the city to make the roads on the Island safer for everyone.

Patrick Daugherty