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Safe Passing for Safe Streets
Yesterday we heard about the great news of the Pennsylvania Senate passing HB 170, the Safe Passing Act and sending it to Governor Corbett’s desk for his signature. Just in time for the 2012 Bicycle Friendly State survey no less! To learn what happens next, we have a story from Nancy Schulz with the Vermont Bicycle & Pedestrian Coalition.
Three feet (or more) – it’s the law, it’s safe, and it raises awareness about sharing the streets. But as cyclists often find out, safe passing isn’t always enforced. Since the passage of Vermont’s safe passing law in 2010, Nancy has encouraged reporting violations to law enforcement. Riding on a dirt road in Berlin, VT, Nancy heard a car approaching rapidly from behind. She pulled off to the side of the road, afraid the car may hit her from behind, only in time to see the car leave the road and tear off its bumper. Over the next 15 minutes, the driver would pull over, let Nancy pass, then buzz her honking his horn while the passenger screamed at her. Then they mooned her and sped off.
Nancy reported this harassment, including the unsafe passing, to the Berlin Police Department. It turns out the same driver on the same evening hit a mailbox and almost a little girl on a bicycle. The driver was caught and charged with driving under the influence. Through Nancy’s diligent work and the willingness of the Berlin Police Department to listen to her, the driver was also found guilty of violating the state’s safe passing law. The driver’s license has since been suspended and substantial fines were levied by the court.
Source: http://shiftinggearsbemidji.com/
As of the 2011 Bicycle Friendly States survey, 20 states throughout the country have a safe passing law. Cyclists in Nebraska and Indiana are working right now to ensure safe passing distances in their states. The work doesn’t end with the adoption of safe passing legislation. The awareness such laws raise is a major benefit for cyclists and motorists who share the road. But in instances like Nancy’s, there has to be meaningful enforcement of laws that protect cyclists, pedestrians, and other vulnerable users. Kudos to Nancy and the Berlin Police Department for working together for safe passing in Vermont.
Matt Wempe
League State and Local Advocacy Coordinator
Mr. Wempe joined the League in September 2011. For the three years prior, he worked as a transportation planner and Safe Routes to School Coordinator in Fort Collins, Colo. He holds a BA in Economics from the University of Illinois at Chicago and a Masters of Urban and Regional Planning from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
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January 26th, 2012 at 4:29 pm
I’m less concerned with setting a three foot or five foot distance than I am with enforcing higher standards of vehicle operation. Drivers should not have to be told whether to be three or five feet away. For one thing, we know it is also subject to the speeds involved. I don’t want to be passed at three feet by a 65 mph truck.
Also, in the above example, its obvious that the offending motorist should not have been drunk. That is the real issue. As is enforcement. In New Mexico, we have ten time DWIs behind the wheel!
Of equal importance to overtaking distance, where I live, is the common game of chicken. It is extremely important that a motorist not pass into oncoming traffic and then panic and veer right, hitting a cyclist. We have ghost bikes testifying mutely to that practice.
New Mexico law is not specific on lateral overtaking distance but defines passing in terms of both not endangering either the overtaken vehicle or oncoming vehicles.
66-7-312. Limitations on overtaking on the left.
“No vehicle shall be driven to the left side of the center of the roadway in overtaking and passing another vehicle proceeding in the same direction unless such left side is clearly visible and free of oncoming traffic for a sufficient distance ahead to permit such overtaking and passing to be completely made without interfering with the safe operation of any vehicle approaching from the opposite direction or any vehicle overtaken. In every event the overtaking vehicle must return to the right-hand side of the roadway before coming within one hundred feet of any vehicle approaching from the opposite direction.”
Thanks for the discussion, Matt.
January 27th, 2012 at 12:14 pm
[...] case you haven’t heard, PA Senators voted 45-5 in favor of the “Safe Passing Law.” It is now off to Governor Corbet’s desk for his [...]
January 29th, 2012 at 4:00 pm
“I’m less concerned with setting a three foot or five foot distance than I am with enforcing higher standards of vehicle operation. Drivers should not have to be told whether to be three or five feet away. For one thing, we know it is also subject to the speeds involved. I don’t want to be passed at three feet by a 65 mph truck.”
This is a terrific point you make. It is similar to the same logic that Forester, John would use against Bike Lanes.
I can appreciate and agree with you both; however, maybe theses “solutions” (B. Lanes & 3′ Campaigns/Laws) are the best tools available for having motorist recognize that cyclists, at the very least, are protected by the law? As far as teaching common sense, and especially courtesy, well I would say that is just to large a task.
January 30th, 2012 at 12:15 pm
I agree with Mr. Kille in that the best use for these campaigns is to change driver behavior. One size fits all solutions for passing are not good, unless the one size is “think before you pass”.
This morning while driving in our neighborhood, we got to play chicken with a pickup truck driver. In order to pass a stopped bus, he went over the double yellow line and was headed straight for us. As long as such blockhead behavior is out there, three foot laws are of limited use. Its the blockheads and the clueless who kill people. Hence the call for greater accountability.