baltimorespokes

By Washcycle

Some good news. Among other things, cyclist in Maryland will no longer be required to use the shoulder just because one is present. And while criminally negligent driving that results in a death won’t be a misdemeanor, negligent driving that results in a death may result in a $1000 fine and a 180 suspension of a driver’s license.

SB 189, suspension of driver’s license for
reckless or
negligent driving that leads to a fatality:  Passed.

https://mlis.state.md.us/2010rs/billfile/sb0189.htm

 

HB 282, Declaring that it is the policy of the
State that
the Maryland Department of Transportation shall work to ensure that
there is an
appropriate balance between funding for specified transportation
projects for
pedestrians and bicycle riders and specified highway construction
projects and
place increased emphasis on specified transportation projects: 
Passed.

https://mlis.state.md.us/2010rs/billfile/HB0282.htm

 

SB 624, removing the mandate that bicyclists
ride on a
shoulder when one is present and allowing a bicyclist to cross a street
in a
crosswalk when riding on the adjacent sidewalks is legal, and requiring
vehicle
drivers to yield to cyclists in a crosswalk:  Passed.

https://mlis.state.md.us/2010rs/billfile/SB0624.htm

 

SB 870, Making it a misdemeanor for a person to
cause the
death of another as a result of the person’s driving, operating, or
controlling
a vehicle or vessel in a criminally negligent manner:  Failed.

https://mlis.state.md.us/2010rs/billfile/sb0870.htm

The last bill is the three feet passing bill. As Contrarian points out it’s pretty weak. I don’t agree that it makes things worse because of part 1 that still requires due care. But the exceptions make it worthless beyond the symbolism. There is now a 3 feet law, but it has no teeth.

(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this title, the driver of a vehicle shall

(1) Exercise due care to avoid colliding with any bicycle, EPAMD, or motor scooter being ridden by a person; AND
(2) WHEN OVERTAKING A BICYCLE, AN EPAMD, OR A MOTOR SCOOTER, PASS SAFELY AT A DISTANCE OF NOT LESS THAN 3 FEET, UNLESS, AT THE TIME:

(I) THE
BICYCLE, EPAMD, OR MOTOR SCOOTER RIDER FAILS TO OPERATE THE VEHICLE IN
CONFORMANCE WITH § 21–1205(A) OF THIS SUBTITLE (“RIDING TO RIGHT SIDE
OF ROADWAY”) OR § 21–1205.1(B) OF THIS SUBTITLE (“ROADWAY WITH BIKE
LANE OR SHOULDER PAVED TO SMOOTH SURFACE”); OR
(II) A PASSING CLEARANCE OF LESS THAN 3 FEET IS CAUSED SOLELY BY THE
BICYCLE, EPAMD, OR MOTOR SCOOTER RIDER FAILING TO MAINTAIN A STEADY
COURSE.

(III) THE
HIGHWAY ON WHICH THE VEHICLE IS BEING DRIVEN IS NOT WIDE ENOUGH TO LAWFULLY PASS THE BICYCLE, EPAMD, OR MOTOR SCOOTER AT A DISTANCE OF AT LEAST 3 FEET.

So if the lane [Law says Highway, which is all lanes] is too narrow for safe passing, you can go ahead and pass in an unsafe manner. I’d like to see LAB not give them credit for this poor law. This is not a three feet passing law. It’s a sham. Though I do like that the MSM is reporting it without caveats. It helps if people believe they always have to give three feet.

Legally, bikes do have a right to the roadways,
in most cases in most jurisdictions. Those rights have been expanded in
D.C. and Maryland where a 3-foot rule has been passed. That rule directs
drivers to give cyclists a 3-foot buffer. Harrison cites that as a
national trend.

Continue reading “Maryland Legislation Final Outcomes”

The road bicyclists use the death of one of their own this week to lobby the state for a mandatory three-foot buffer from cars. These road bicyclists choose some of the worst roads to ride on, rural route roads like Falls Road and the side roads of Upperco in Baltimore County, where if the state of Maryland wanted to do anything rational, it would ban the use of bicycles on all rural route roads without shoulders because it isn’t safe to operate bicycles on them.

These twisty, windy roads with blind corners and rapidly changing elevations and without shoulders are constantly used by commercial vehicles like horse trailers, farm equipment and people towing machinery, which many times extends beyond the lane they are traveling in. Motorists traveling in the opposite direction many times have to more off the road to allow these vehicles to pass. These cyclists expect to get a three-foot buffer on these roads? It is not possible.

Instead, these cyclists, who I see constantly without the proper safety equipment (rear-view mirrors on their bicycles or helmets and blinking lights on their bicycles) want to be given special treatment. Just using the picture in The Sun from Tuesday, not one of the people pictured atop a cycle is employing this equipment. They want to operate on roads where they are a danger to themselves and other motorists and constitute a public nuisance.

It is simply impossible to have a three-foot buffer for them on these roads. A three-foot buffer would require bicyclists to be riding on a wide shoulder or bike lane and the motorist to actually move about a foot into another lane to pass them. This is not possible on these roads, where the motorist would be required to cross over a double yellow every time a cyclist is encountered. Many times, due to the speed and the nature of these winding roads with blind turns, and the fact cyclists do not employ any safety equipment like blinking lights, the motorist will have to take this action suddenly because the cyclist will appear suddenly. Furthermore, because most cyclists do not use rear-view mirrors, they have no idea a car is bearing down on them and cannot even check for approaching cars. The motorists of the opposite side of the in this situation could easily find themselves in a head-on collision.

The fact is, this proposed three-foot buffer will probably encourage even more cyclists to use these roads because it is going to give them a false sense of security. This will probably sadly result in more cyclists being killed and worse road conditions on already dangerous roads for motorists.

– Daniel O’Neal Vona, Baltimore
Continue reading “Three-foot rule won’t make bicyclists safer”

by Gene Bisbee

An organized bike ride from Baltimore to Annapolis by 85 cyclists on Monday may have ensured the passage of the 3-foot passing law in Maryland, as well as 3 other bicycle friendly measures during the last day of the legislature.

The Maryland Legislature became the 16th state body to pass the 3-foot bill, which goes into effect in October 2010 if signed by the governor.

On the last day of the session on Monday, cyclists rode to the noon rally in Annapolis in memory of bicyclist Lawrence Benksy, 43, of Owings Mills. He was killed April 6 when he was struck by a car as he rode his bike along the shoulder of a road in Baltimore County. Another cyclist also was struck in the rear-end collision.

Reaction

Reacting to passage of the bills, Carol Silldorff, executive director of One Less Car, exclaimed at the Maryland bike advocacy group’s website:

“It is time to celebrate! I returned from Annapolis a few hours ago where four significant Bike/Ped/Transportation bills passed! The bicyclist’s show of support in regard to the bicycle safety legislation was meaningful.”

Other bills

In addition to the 3-foot legislation, the legislature also passed:

— A bill recognizing cyclists as legitimate road users. It also allows cyclists to ride on the shoulder if they choose to (they don’t have to, though), pass on the shoulder, ride in crosswalks and ride 3-wheeled bikes on the shoulder;

— A bill making it the policy of the Maryland Department of Transportation to ensure there is a balance between funding for specified transportation projects for pedestrians and bicycle riders and specified highway construction projects;

— A transportation transparency bill that sets criteria for transportation projects, creates regional transporation impact review, and better tracking of transportation funds.

Much greater detail is available at One Less Car website.

Other 3-foot states

The other 15 states that require motorists to give cyclists a 3-foot wide gap when passing are Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Louisiana, Maine, Minnesota, Mississippi (effective July 15, 2010), New Hampshire, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Utah and Wisconsin.

The Maryland bill — SB 51 — appeared to be pigeon-holed in a committee as the session rolled toward the finish, but it was voted out of the committee late last week. An amendment added by the House of Delegates, however, had to be approved by the Senate before it could become law.

The amendment says that motorists don’t have to give 3 feet if the roadway isn’t wide enough to pass otherwise.

The Baltimore Sun blog reports that the Baltimore Bicycle Club and the University of Maryland School of Law Cycling Club were among the rally organizers.

Continue reading “Cyclists ride to Annapolis to achieve passage of 3-foot rule”