If you're riding along Market in the bike lane, you've got to keep your wits about you here -- people are getting badly hurt by cars that are rushing to get on (or off) the freeway.

If you're heading eastbound on Market, cars making illegal right turns are crushing cyclists. The SF Bicycle Coalition (mad props) had a big demonstration about this last week after a woman was badly hurt.

SFist.com (again, mad props) did the mainstream media one better by sitting there for an hour and counting how many people made illegal turns. It was not a pretty picture (story linked off this item title).

I LOVE that SFist did this -- it's the kind of thing newsroom reporters used to do when they worked the streets instead of the phones. You rock, SFist!

As dangerous as eastbound travel is, westbound is bad too -- especially at night. Even though, from a cars perspective, it's a blind intersection when you're coming off the freeway, they continually run red lights -- or charge the yellows -- and I've seen scores of people nearly run down by cars at night.

The city knows about all this and needs to fix it. Pronto. If it doesn't well the blood of citizens will be on the hands of the Supes and mayor -- they've been warned.

This is a mere one block from Octavia, so the danger from there isn't over yet.

If you're going westbound, this intersection isn't so bad, but going eastbound in the bike lane it can be dangerous.

Eastbound cars speed past you, pull into the bike lane (maybe crushing you) and try to turn right onto Valencia. Or westbound cars charge the left arrow to turn onto Valencia and can hit you.

I got hit by a truck here about a year ago. Thankfully, my injuries were slight. It could have been worse -- I nearly went under his wheels.

The truck driver knew he hit me and knew he was in the wrong -- he slowed down to see if I was moving -- and then took off. Two other cyclists saw it and gave chase -- but he got away.

Beyond my personal experiences, this intersection is a festival of confusion -- particularly at rush hours -- so be careful.

If you want to get doored, this is the place to do it during rush hour. My particular favorite is the idiots in taxis who sit 30 cars back from the intersection and then decide to fling the door open into the bike lane.

You've got to watch left and right here...

The more serious problem is all the double parking in the bike lane that goes on. Drivers just pull over into the bike lane -- hopefully you're not in it at the time -- and stop. It drives all the cyclists into the main traffic.

Bad form, cars. Stop it. There are signs everywhere that it's an expensive ticket do this -- like $350 -- but the city doesn't see a point in actually enforcing this law. I guess the mayor figures he has enough money....

OK, here's the deal SF Police force -- start doing your job and enforcing this double parking thing and you'll keep citizens safe. And keeping citizens safe is supposed to be your purpose, right?

And cars, stay out of the bike lane....

Yest, in my mind Market street captures the top four spots -- and this intersection is gets fourth place.

From a cars' perspective, it's a confusing one and there are buildings around that prevent a clear view of everything.

There are a lot of pedestrians, mass transit, doughnit shops and a smallish open air drug bazaar right here, so there's a lot happening.

Of course, for most motorists, if you don't have a clear view of an intersection and there is a lot happening, it means one thing: speed up and mow down whatever gets in your way.

Keep your eyes open here if you're on two wheels.

These are not super dangerous, but I've seen some dazzlingly scary things happen here from time to time.

It's a bad combination of sightseers, fast(ish) traffic and oddball street architecture that account for this.

It's not hair-raising, but keep your eyes open.

Again, a bike lane is better than no bike lane, but Folsom traffic tends to be fast and the drivers here seem unusually blinded to bikes because they're thinking only of freeways.

All right -- this is a bike on bike thing. Folks, calm down when you're riding over the bridge.

I've seen some of the dumbest things in the world on the bridge -- and they only involve bikes.

Here's the dynamic -- it's cold and always windy and you've a dangerous combination of tourists on rental bikes and lycra clad cyclists coming to and from Marin who want to go fast for some reason on the bridge (what does THAT prove?)

And depending on the day of the week, pedestrians. And always people suddenly stopping to take pictures because it's beautiful. And it's narrow. And did I mention cold and windy? Oh yeah... And you've got the pillars..

So when you get a line of four or five racers trying -- incredibly! stupidly! -- to prove something on the bridge, for god's sake, and they're going 25 miles an hour and tourist is struggling with a rental bike going 5mph bad things can happen.

So seriously let's just slow down and take it easy on the bridge. We don't need bike-on-bike road rage.

For the most part, Valencia is sweet because on Valencia bicyclsts look at cars and say, "here, we're the boss of you..."

Bike on rule on Valencia -- yay. Pedestrians too. Double yay!

But when you first get on the Valencia lanes near Market, the first few blocks you'll see a lot of people running red and yellow lights. Cars get too close to freeways and their hormones start surging or something.

So open your eyes for the first few blocks and then, later on, you'll be with your two-wheeled peeps on the main part of Valencia.

(One caution about the whole route though -- pay attention to cars looking for parking, they can be unpredictable and swerve into your lane. A parking spot is more important than your life to them....)

OK, I ride this regularly and every time I do I think, "what the hell are you doing, you've got kids who need you..."

The Stockton tunnel just sort of appears and it looks good and you go racing and whooping into it... and they you realize that:

a) it's dark, suddenly, after being in the sun and your eyes can't adjust
b) it's too narrow and you have to take the lane
c) cars probably can't SEE you when you take the lane because of the darkness
d) the road surface is HORRIBLE and the potholes alone can take you out if you're not careful.

In other words, the Stockton tunnel is not a great idea for riders -- unless it's during Critical Mass and you've got your peeps with you. Then San Francisco is your oyster...

But under all circumstances, pay attention to the cracks and potholes in it -- I've seen people get wiped out just because they were going too fast and couldn't see the pothole in front of them in the dark...

People die all the time on 19th ave -- mostly pedestrians.

Most cyclists ride along if for a block or two and realize how crazy it is and then say, forget this and move onto residential streets.

Residential streets are your friend...

When, though, will the city start enforcing the law here? I never see cops writing tickets along 19th Ave.

It's narrow, and there are lots of cars and parking problems and drivers do a LOT of lane changing on Divis.

And the road surface is absolute crap.

Almost always you can get off Divis -- lots of good alternatives exist -- but if you must ride it, keep your wits about you.

It's not long and it's not the most dangerous place, but all the same...