Bike Riders and Traffic

[IROC]

Here in Tennessee, a law has been passed that requires a minimum of 3 feet of clearance between a motor vehicle and a bicylcist on public roads. There are a lot of people riding bikes these days and it is causing quite a few traffic issues.

A question I have: In order to pass a bycylist and maintain the required 3 feet of distance, is it legal to cross the center yellow line? Many of the roads here are very windy and have double-yellow lines for a long distances and that leads to long lines of traffic as the bicyclists generally will not move over onto the shoulder or stop and let everyone pass.

Is it legal to cross a yellow line in this case, or do we simply trudge along at 15 miles per hour for 4 or 5 miles?

[Seahawk]

I don't know the legality aspects, but I do it all the time, have too.

Most of the riders in my rural area try to work with autos...

[Rot 911]

It is not legal, but it is the safer thing to do unless you just want to be stuck behind them.

[Porsche-O-Phile]

This is another example of granstanding politicians passing legislation that will ultimately do nothing except add to the bloated list of unenforceable laws already cluttering the books.

I'm a pretty avid cyclist and I have to say that the best solution to the problem is to have completely separate, vehicle-free bike paths. There are some around here that I use regularly; another good example is Santa Barbara. There are numerous "rails to trails" initiatives in the midwest and northwest as well with this as the ultimate design goal. However, this kind of solution is also the most expensive and least likely to be implemented.

Barring that, the next best thing is probably dedicated bike lanes, but again this is expensive - it requires allocating a portion of an existing public right-of-way/road, painting/striping it and is all based on the assumption there's adequate roadway width to start with (often there isn't). The good news here in Southern CA is there are a LOT of wide, multi-lane roads and therefore a lot of them have had bike lanes added, which is nice.

In absence of this, you have the "classic" situation where cars and bikes are supposed to (in theory anyway) share the road. The problem is they don't. Drivers tend to be pushy, inattentive and people as a general rule are always in a hurry, so their courtesy tends to be largely absent. Perhaps not so bad if the ultimate consequence is a minor inconvenience, but it's a lot worse when it manifests itself (as it all-too-often does) in a dangerous situation for bicyclists or worse yet, deliberate aggressive acts towards them. The most common thing I see is someone in a car trying to "push" or "squeeze" a bicyclist towards either the extreme lip of the road shoulder or into a row of parked cars along the side. This is why as a bicyclist you need to leave a good 2'-3' between yourself and either one and not yield it, even if doing so would make you a "nicer guy". Believe me, if you're a "nice guy", 99% of the drivers won't even notice and the other 1% will still try to squeeze you even further, resulting in you being in danger of having a parked car door flung open in front of you (this happened to a personal friend of mine - he was launched about 20' off his bike and broke his jaw, collarbone, helmet, bike and four front teeth in the ensuing crash), a car pull out in front of you without looking, or run off the side of the road resulting in a crash.

Even worse are the yahoo/redneck types that will deliberately aim for you just for laughs (and yes, they're out there). I've had people throw beer bottles drive by and fling their door open in an attempt to swipe me, etc. I've heard of even worse. It comes with the territory and fortunately around here there's usually enough vehicle traffic where most of the jackasses that might otherwise try it don't because they don't want the guys in the cars behind them dialing it in to 9-1-1.

The point here is that ultimately you can't legislate courtesy or common sense. Jerks are going to be jerks and the only solutions are (unfortunately) to either keep your wits about you when biking and/or hope for more bike lanes and/or dedicated bike trails, which is a function of money and politics. It's certainly becoming more and more of a dangerous game with the driving public out there getting more and more "short fused", less attentive and frankly, downright dumber.

[BReif61]

I've noticed bikers around here starting to ride between the yellows.

Yeah, as in right down the middle of the road.

But growing up in Amish country, crossing a double yellow to pass someone/thing has become second nature. The cop would have to be having a pretty shatty day to make a big deal out of you passing a bicycle.

[Porsche-O-Phile]

As crazy as that sounds, I suppose an argument could be made that it's safer there than on the shoulder... At least you're noticeable there, although if you crash out, you're in a heck of a bad spot...

[IROC]

Originally Posted by Porsche-O-Phile

In absence of this, you have the "classic" situation where cars and bikes are supposed to (in theory anyway) share the road. The problem is they don't. Drivers tend to be pushy, inattentive and people as a general rule are always in a hurry, so their courtesy tends to be largely absent.

I for sure am not one of those people who have issues with bike riders (heck, I'm thinking of getting one myself). The problem seems to simply be speed differential. I live right off two-lane road with curbs on both sides (so no shoulder) a that winds along next to a lake (and as such tends to attract bike riders). The speed limit is 40-45 and it is windy enough that there just aren't many places to pass. The simple speed differential between the cars and the bikes leads to trains of cars following along behind one bike rider going 15 mph. Then there's some people who simply won't pass a biker even if it is safe. More trains...

Not a simple solution, it seems.

[BReif61]

Originally Posted by Porsche-O-Phile

As crazy as that sounds, I suppose an argument could be made that it's safer there than on the shoulder... At least you're noticeable there, although if you crash out, you're in a heck of a bad spot...

IDK, it just seems like you're doubling your chances of getting hit. Plus this was on hilly turning back roads, where I'm sure people drift over the yellows after taking a corner a little too hot.

[jyl]

Originally Posted by IROC

I live right off two-lane road with curbs on both sides (so no shoulder) a that winds along next to a lake (and as such tends to attract bike riders). The speed limit is 40-45 and it is windy enough that there just aren't many places to pass. The simple speed differential between the cars and the bikes leads to trains of cars following along behind one bike rider going 15 mph.

Unless auto traffic is constant and uninterrupted in the oncoming direction, why can't a car move 3 feet to left for the couple of seconds it would take to pass the slow-moving bicyclist? And if autos are queued up following 15 mph bicyclists, how can auto traffic be so constant and uninterrupted?

Doesn't make sense. Seems like the drivers are being unreasonably timid?

[IROC]

Originally Posted by jyl

Seems like the drivers are being unreasonably timid?

Exactly. Everyone freaks out and is afraid to pass a bicycle. That, along with the media coverage of the new "3 foot law" has people wary. I was simply wondering about the legality of crossing the yellow line to provide the "required by law" 3 foot clearance. It seems that the laws (three foot clearance and the yellow line) conspire to create a situation where it is illegal to do anything but stay behind the bike rider until he sees fit to pull over and let people pass.

[HardDrive]

Dear lord, what a stupid law.

Yes, lets throw common sense out the window, and pass a law!

I don't mind people passing me closer than 3 feet. If there is anyway to get to the right and give the cars more room, I always do. When you can hear people rolling along right behind you and they are afraid to pass, THAT freaks me out, because a lot of time they are not a skilled driver and could do something stupid. Guys in F350 construction trucks with mirror sticking out 2 feet to the side are spooky, especially when there is some agressive jerk behind the wheel.

I agree with Jeff, lets just by pass the whole issue and have bike paths. Everytime they rip up a railroad they should pave it for bikes/pedestrian. They did that with the Burke Gillman trail here in Seattle, and it is literally a super highway for cyclists.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burke-Gilman_Trail

[RWebb]

"completely separate, vehicle-free bike paths" are great - but they cost money. My small city has 40 miles of them, but we are pretty much bike town USA

Oregon also has a similar law. The thing to do is to send an Email to your state police and DOT. They will probably ignore the Email. You then save the Email. If a cop ever cites you for going over the yellow, you take the Emails to court and ask the Judge to be reasonable and dismiss your ticket.

I do not think it is a crazy law - tho being forced to follow a bike for miles and miles would be crazy.

Many bicyclists are killed every year on the hwys. The legislature is just trying to reduce that.

[Jeff Higgins]

I'm not sure bike paths are the answer, either. Back when I was still an avid cyclist (riding to work almost every day, and an additional 150-200 miles a week on top of that) I had my worst accident ever on the Samamish Slough trail. The stroller moms walking three abreast, roller bladers going back and forth across the entire trail, little kids on training wheels suddenly doing a u-turn to see where mom and dad are at, and on and on. I got hit head-on by another cyclist, who was passing one of those three abreast walking groups. She came clear over to the edge of the pavement on my side to go around them.

Out on public roads, the speed and weight disparity is simply too great. I'm sorry, but when one chooses to cycle in today's traffic, they are on their own. I realized (and accepted) that 20 years ago. No sort of law that restricts motorized traffic to accommodate human powered will ever be just, or ever be entirely enforceable. No one wants to slow down enough to accommodate the fraction of a percentile of our population that chooses to ride. And that fraction has no right to ask.

[legion]

Originally Posted by HardDrive

Yes, lets throw common sense out the window, and pass a law!

All of the laws that needed to be passed were done a generation or more ago. Politics has devolved into passing pointless laws to justify their jobs--that and passing laws to pander to small groups of motivated voters (a.k.a. "special interest groups").