California considers exempting bikers from stop signs
As a biker, waiting at a deserted stoplight in the late evening feels really, really ridiculous. In fact, I rarely do it. Now, if a cop were to see me run the light, he could decide to ticket me and put me through all kinds of bureaucratic hell. So, it's nice to see that lawmakers around the country are considering changing traffic laws to allow bikers to cut bikers some slack when it comes to stop signs and traffic signals.California state authorities are debating a change that will allow bikers to keep their momentum at empty intersections. According to Rachel Kraai of the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition:
"Bicycles would still have to yield if there was a car at a stop sign. They would still have to stop for that car and let them go through... At a stop light they would still have to stop and look both ways, but then they could go through."
This wave of more bike-friendly laws is great news to me. I'm not sure that I've ever seen a cyclist come to a complete stop at a stop sign -- unless it's to yield to a much larger, heavier object that could flatten them. The rolling stop is a common practice for bikers at stop signs, because losing momentum for no reason basically sucks. At least bikers would be able to follow their common sense instincts without fear of being fined.
The California law would basically mimic the new rules adopted by Idaho, allowing bikers to treat stop signs like yields signs. The only major opposition I can see to these changes is over safety concerns. The new laws allow for much more discretion on the part of bikers, and I can see a lot of people complaining if bikers start forgetting to yield.
[via Treehugger]
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