That time once again

It was the Tour de L'ile on sunday which, as a cyclist I regard as an annoying nuisance. It serves no real purpose except to convince drivers and pedestrians that cyclists are one big inconvenience. But it's utterly deceptive as well, because for one weekend, cyclists are given a false environment where the roads are free of traffic, garbage, broken glass and other hazards. Come Monday, we're on our own with potholes, construction, bad intersection and bike paths littered with junk, riddled with potholes and choked by weeds. For all the promotion of how bike friendly we are, and we are so, compared to many cities, we aren't helping out much in the daily aspects. There are still, for example, insanely bad intersections of bike and road, such as the one in Lachine at ave de La Musee. At that intersection, nothing but stop signs control four-way traffic and an intersection of the bike path. The construction on the Peel Basin is STILL going on; not only is there a detour through the old port, cyclists still have to cross a gravel path. I am not fond of the thought of riding over that gravel and risking puncture and there seems to be no way to determine if or when it will be finished or why they can't simply pave that sector. And those of us on the bike paths who want to ride more than 2 miles an hour now have to worry about a new hazard to add to the rollerbladers, strollers, kids, dogs and mopeds: rollerbladers, stroller pushers, kids, teens, pedestrians and dog walkers yakking on cell phones, plugged into ipads or walking across with their heads down, texting. I yell them out of my way and if I seem a bitch, sorry- I just want both of us to get home in one piece.