Responses to a recent column about the state of bicycling in Colorado Springs were divided, not unexpectedly, between those who sit behind a wheel and those who grasp a handlebar.The two dozen or so e-mails and comments left on The Gazette’s Web site generally fell into two categories: Motorists said too many bicyclists flagrantly disobey traffic laws. Bicyclists said Colorado Springs needs to do a better job of connecting bike paths and bike lanes into a cohesive system that would make commuting possible.L. Hamilton, in an email, said in his 10 years in the Springs, he’s never seen a bicyclist stopped for violating traffic laws that would earn a motorist a hefty fine and points on his or her license.”I deal with bikes going the wrong way in the lanes, driving at night without lights, weaving onto and off sidewalks, holding up traffic going uphill on blind curves and cutting in front of moving vehicles on a daily basis,” he wrote. “This is not an exaggeration.”He thinks bicyclists should be licensed so they have the same “incentive” to follow traffic rules as do motorists.Several other readers responded with e-mails decrying what they think is blatant disregard for traffic rules by some cyclists:”I’m sure all motorists would appreciate it if the bicyclists also followed the rules of the road: stopping at stop signs (and) using hand signals to indicate their turns,” wrote Susan Mulvihill.Cyclists have their own concerns. One who commented on the Web site but did not leave his or her name said too many streets in the city don’t have room to accommodate commuting cyclists.”Fillmore is an excellent example of a street with no room for cyclists and high traffic density,” wrote the Getting There reader.Several cyclists said too many bike lanes and bike paths either funnel a rider into dangerous intersections – one mentioned the intersection of Cascade Avenue and Uintah Street – or take riders across busy streets. One said traffic engineers need to consider the implications for riders when intersections are restriped to create turn lanes on two-lane roads, an act that often puts throughbound cyclists in a vulnerable position.Finally, several cyclists suggested a system of tunnels or overpasses on popular biking routes would make commuting by bike a viable alternative.Several writers tried to strike a conciliatory tone, saying they thought cyclists and motorists generally try to accommodate one another. But there’s long been tension between the two groups, and that was reflected in some of the opinions.Sam Mercier, commenting on a recent award the city received for its efforts to make streets more bike-friendly, said au contraire: “I have never bicycled in such a city as unfriendly as this one … what a joke.”A writer who posted to the Web site took the opposite tack: “I’ve seen more cars respect cyclists than the other way around.”Venting aside, most of the comments didn’t show an unbridgeable gap between motorists and cyclists. Perhaps all that’s needed is a dash of common courtesy on both sides?There’s a “can’t we all get along” opportunity at 10 p.m. today, when an expected 1,500 or so folks ride through the Garden of the Gods in a Bike Month event called the Starlight Spectacular. For more information, visit www.starlightspectacular.org.-Tell me your commuter tales. 636-0197 or bill.mckeown@gazettedev.gazette.com