Quote: Consequences

.. and that’s one of the reasons it is strictly regulated, licensed and enforced.
Likewise, for others whose professions or jobs endanger themselves or others –
– doctors, nurses and pharmacists come to mind, as well as airline pilots and railway engineers (see New Jersey commuter rail crash today).

There are bad drivers – and there are deliberately murderous drivers. I’ve experienced a few of those.
The last was three years ago, on Renfrew by the PNE, heading for New Brighton with my son. A jackass in a Jetta was in a no stop zone loading up three passengers, so we had to cycle around his open door – creating danger for us. I rang my bell and yelled out “No stopping!” doubtless startling, and pissing off the miscreant.
Going down the hill to McGill he passed very close. At Renfrew and McGill, while he was in the right turning lane and we were in the thru lane, he flung open his door in an attempt to door me and stepped half out of the car. Had I not braked hard and veered he would have succeeded.
I wish I’d had the presence of mind to get his license and a witness, but was freaked. Anyway, if I’d been cool enough to do that, what would have been his penalty?
My mind replays this scenario periodically – the reptilian part of it imagines grabbing my bike lock and doing damage to him and his car.
In another incident over ten years ago, a van driver, maybe an Astro/Safari, yelled at me for not coming to a full stop at a sign in a residential area. Don’t recall my exact response – a bit impetuous no doubt – but he chased me in that van and cut me off a couple of times by going into driveways and jumping out.
I was able to elude him because once he was out of the vehicle he had a big belly and couldn’t give chase. While making my evasive manoeuvres a stranger called out to me to look out – that the guy wanted to kill me. The van driver did have the look of a parolee.
It was a heart pounder.