Posts from — May 2008

Two state legislators (who happen to be cyclists) have proposed a new statute that would permit bicyclists to roll stop signs and red lights when traffic conditions permit.

The proposal is based in the idea that without traffic, a rolled stop sign is no big deal, and that bikes do not always trip the pressure plates to get a red light to change in the absence of a car. In the latter instance, I know many bicyclists who apply Minnesota Statute 169.06, Subd. 9:

Affirmative defense relating to unchanging traffic-control signal. (a) A person
operating a motorcycle who violates subdivision 4 by entering or crossing an intersection
controlled by a traffic-control signal against a red light has an affirmative defense to that charge if
the person establishes all of the following conditions:
(1) the motorcycle has been brought to a complete stop;
(2) the traffic-control signal continues to show a red light for an unreasonable time;
(3) the traffic-control signal is apparently malfunctioning or, if programmed or engineered
to change to a green light only after detecting the approach of a motor vehicle, the signal has
apparently failed to detect the arrival of the motorcycle; and
(4) no motor vehicle or person is approaching on the street or highway to be crossed or
entered or is so far away from the intersection that it does not constitute an immediate hazard.
(b) The affirmative defense in this subdivision applies only to a violation for entering or
crossing an intersection controlled by a traffic-control signal against a red light and does not
provide a defense to any other civil or criminal action.

I have not seen this statute tested in terms of law enforcement, ticketing, or any sense of legality. The new statute would be bicycle-specific, so it wouldn’t have the doubt factor of trying to apply the motorcycle statute on a vehicular basis (ie: a motorcycle is a vehicle, a bicycle is a vehicle, and if a motorcycle can’t trip the sensor, a bicycle surely can’t, eh?).

The chief worry I have about allowing rolling stops in certain circumstances - which is presently permitted in Idaho - is that it relies on the cyclist’s awareness of surroundings. I worry that misuse of the statute could simply continue the perception of cyclists as traffic scofflaws. However, the people who will roll stops and blow reds in the presence of traffic really don’t care about statute and are already doing this.

The full text of the proposed statute can be found on the Minnesota House of Representatives site. To express your support (or opposition) to this proposal, contact your Representative.

Buried in all the coverage of the Minnesota transportation and bonding initiatives is the news that replacement of the Old Cedar Avenue Bridge in Bloomington has finally been funded!

The bonding bill contains $2 million to handle the replacement. The need to replace the bridge has been something of a problem, as the bridge exists in multiple jurisdictions, and goes through an environmentally sensitive area.

The bridge was closed in 2002 because it became structurally unsound, and had probably been so for some time at the time of closing. Without it, crossing the Minnesota River from the south metro takes some creativity on a bicycle, particularly to connect to places like the Mall of America transit station to execute a mixed commuting option (bike to train).

Yay!

Amidst my complaints about bad media coverage of cycling in general, the Chicago Tribune goes and publishes an article that gets it right.

While sensationally titled, as a communicator I can’t really argue that kind of title - it’s what gets attention, it’s what gets submitted to social news sites, etc. The Tribune’s 8 Steps to Ensure You Survive Your Bike Ride hits the high points:

• Follow traffic laws.
• Be predictable and visible.
• Manage your space - ride to the left of your bike lane to avoid dooring; avoid being to the right of a right-turning car if your intention is straight.
• Share the road.

These are valid tips. They also seem to me obvious, but a lot of the people who fear street riding and vehicular cycling don’t see them as such. The people who blow stop signs and weave also clearly don’t see these tips as obvious.

So, hooray for a major media outlet publishing something positive.

CNN is presently carrying a Mental Floss article on the role of the bicycle in promoting mobility for women - both physical and social.

In honor of Ride to Work Week, which I am missing by not being at work and thus not riding there, I present up the new Metro Transit Bike 2 Benefits program. Commit to biking to work or transit once a week for 8 weeks before year-end, and they’ll give you a nice bike map, a personalized commuting route, and a reflective ankle strap.

They’ll also enter you for faboo prizes. If you commute more than the 8 times/8 weeks, there’s apparently more benefits available, but Metro Transit is vague.

Backing up my past claims that some of the local bike trails are in pretty rotten shape, neighborhood paper The Bridge reports that parts of the East River Road paths will be closing midsummer for renovation.

Per their report of the Prospect Park/East River Road Improvement Association:

…some trails are seriously deteriorated. Also, older trails will be brought up to current park system standards.

Construction is expected to begin in midsummer and be completed by early fall. It will involve paving, wall repairs, signage, and landscaping. It includes 1.5 miles of pedestrian trail from the city limits north to East River Flats, and .75 miles of bike trail between Franklin Avenue and East River Flats.

The roadway in that section isn’t anything to write home about either, but I typically prefer the road through there for having more avoidable hazards in either direction, and because if you’re going from Franklin towards the Flats, it’s a downhill and the path is 10mph, and I… am not. Going downhill, I go the same speed as cars on the road.