This new "Three Feet for Safety Act" for bicyclists...

[DowningRules]

...is going to create even worse weekend traffic jams on PCH once it goes into affect Sept. 16.

 

Under the law, drivers must give a three feet space distance between their vehicle and bicyclists.  It's going to create more problems and fights then already occur, in my opinion.  Subdivision (d) is vague and will lead to many a cluster f.

 

Here's the language:

Three Feet for Safety Act

 

21760. (a) This section shall be known and may be cited as the Three Feet for Safety Act.

( b ) The driver of a motor vehicle overtaking and passing a bicycle that is proceeding in the same direction on a highway shall pass in compliance with the requirements of this article applicable to overtaking and passing a vehicle, and shall do so at a safe distance that does not interfere with the safe operation of the overtaken bicycle, having due regard for the size and speed of the motor vehicle and the bicycle, traffic conditions, weather, visibility, and the surface and width of the highway.

© A driver of a motor vehicle shall not overtake or pass a bicycle proceeding in the same direction on a highway at a distance of less than three feet between any part of the motor vehicle and any part of the bicycle or its operator.

(d) If the driver of a motor vehicle is unable to comply with subdivision ©, due to traffic or roadway conditions, the driver shall slow to a speed that is reasonable and prudent, and may pass only when doing so would not endanger the safety of the operator of the bicycle, taking into account the size and speed of the motor vehicle and bicycle, traffic conditions, weather, visibility, and surface and width of the highway.

(e) (1) A violation of subdivision (b, ©, or (d) is an infraction punishable by a fine of thirty–five dollars ($35).

(2) If a collision occurs between a motor vehicle and a bicycle causing bodily injury to the operator of the bicycle, and the driver of the motor vehicle is found to be in violation of subdivision (b, ©, or (d), a two–hundred–twenty–dollar ($220) fine shall be imposed on that driver.

(f) This section shall become operative on September 16, 2014.

Added Sec. 3, Ch. 331, Stats. 2013. Effective September 16, 2014.

 

DR editing on account of subdivision ( b ) appearing as a f'ing teenage girl emoticon.

Edited September 10, 2014 by DowningRules

[gotbeer]

I wonder if there are laws in place for bicyclists.

 

Tired of these bicyclists doing 20 down the sidewalk, and zooming through intersections in the crosswalk.  Most of the time, almost getting hit by vehicles taking a right turn, and blaming the vehicle.

[DowningRules]

There are plenty of laws for bicyclists, the main one being that generally, they must obey the same laws as motor vehicles if the bicycles are ridden on a highway (basically defined as any public street).

 

That's just one of the problems with how this new law is written.  ALL of the burden is placed on the car driver.  The bicyclist has pretty much zero responsibilty.  And according to this new law, if a vehicle hits a bicyclist, the driver of the vehicle is automatically the one at fault.

 

It's going to be challenged.  Alot.  There is an existing law that says a bicyclist must stay as close to the curb as possible.  That law is ignored by pretty much every Lance Armstrong wannabe out there.  So, now it's the drivers responsibility to give the bicycilist three feet even if the bicycilist is not obeying the law requiring him to stay close to the curb.   

 

The bicyclists want all these rights and of course, 'respect,' but the truth is, there would be far fewer dead and injured bicyclists if they obeyed the laws already on the books.

 

Operation on Roadway

21202. (a) Any person operating a bicycle upon a roadway at a speed less than the normal speed of traffic moving in the same direction at that time shall ride as close as practicable to the right-hand curb or edge of the roadway except under any of the following situations:

(1) When overtaking and passing another bicycle or vehicle proceeding in the same direction.

(2) When preparing for a left turn at an intersection or into a private road or driveway.

 

 

 

 

I wonder if there are laws in place for bicyclists.

 

Tired of these bicyclists doing 20 down the sidewalk, and zooming through intersections in the crosswalk.  Most of the time, almost getting hit by vehicles taking a right turn, and blaming the vehicle.

[Schildog]

i'll agree with it's lame placing responsibility on the driver. i give cyclists space to begin with. but when they start going two wide, space is at a premium. i wish they would just ride in a straight line. 

 

i'm eagerly awaiting mt's take on this.

[Adam]

cyclists are the worst

[Tank]

it used to be law that bicyclists had to ride single file. is that law no longer in effect? i take great issue with a pack of riders who are 3 or 4 bikes wide. they usually move slower and hold the cars behind them. even guys who ride 2 people wide create a lot of problems, especially on smaller streets.

 

i'm also tired of bike riders who don't follow traffic laws, ESPECIALLY with stop signs, traffic lights, and crosswalks. they create far more safety hazards than they may realize. 

 

we also have a problem in that most older city streets weren't built wide enough to accomodate bicyclists, yet cyclists want plenty of room.

Edited September 10, 2014 by Tank

[DowningRules]

If you get two or more bicyclists there is often a pack mentatlity and they are suddenly full of machismo and bravado.  It's a bummer they can act like this since I think biking is terrific. 

 

If more people biked then drove cars, (often non-practical in SoCal) that would be a good thing.  But there is more and more an "us verses them" thing going on which ultimately hurts the long term thinking on bicycling as a transportation option.

[nate]

I used to ride my bike to work a couple times a week to exercise.

 

On Foothill Blvd in Pasadena there is a long stretch where it is eight lanes without any sidewalk.  I used to think I was going to die every time I rode it.  Having some sort of law is good.

[Lhalo]

I was just in Vancouver over the weekend and they have all of their bike lanes clearly marked neon green and divided from the street with a curb/barrier in many areas. They also are very particular about bicyclists not riding outside of the designated zones. Their system seems to work out for them so I wonder if something similar could happen down here.

PCH is already a nightmare to drive on next to bikes and staying three feet from them is physically impossible in many areas especially when you drive south to Laguna. It would be nice if rules were put in place constricting cyclists to ride single file at the very least. Some of those guys go 3-wide and are just asking for it.

[Hollyw00d]

Agreed on the pack mentality. Vicious biking gangs are out there running amok....in all seriousness, bikers should be more cautious and aware on the road and especially follow the rules of the road. There's laws for a reason, and they're on a 50 pound bike surrounded by multi-ton vehicles moving at fast speed.

With that said, the fact is they are more vulnerable and in a car-bike collision, the car will always win. So drivers have to be equally cautious if not more.

The main problem is there's a lot of old beat up roads in LA that are too narrow and cant accommodate everyone

[TobiasFunke]

cyclists are the worst

quoting because this is the most important post in this thread

[Aaronkv]

I live a block from the beach (Sadly don't have 3 Porsche though.). I have to cross a crosswalk on PCH with no light to get to the beach. Cars stop no problem, The Cyclist usually yell at pedestrians that are crossing because they don't want to stop. They think they have the right-of-way no matter what. They are a very rude bunch.

 

Now I'm not stepping right in front of them with no chance to stop, I'm talking they're a good 100+ yards away from the crosswalk or on the other side of the street and they start yelling the second someone steps into the street.

[mp170.6]

I don't understand how laws like these are enforceable.

 

How does a driver, much less a police officer, determine that a car got within 3 feet of a cyclist?

[Aaronkv]

3 feet isn't that much, does anyone really pass bikes closer than 3 feet?

[gotbeer]

I see bikers differently.  On the street, they can be managed.  Give them room and pass.  It's those that decide that street, sidewalk, whichever is their most convenient that are the problems.  I can watch for a pedestrian walking, and wait for them.  I can't watch for bikers hauling ass down the sidewalk at 20-30 mph, and when pulling into a driveway, almost hit them because they were some 10 houses behind me when I started to pull in.  Or some bicyclist zooming out onto the street from the sidewalk.

 

If you are going to pass all these laws about bikes and cars.  Then the first law that should be put in place is no bicycle riding on the sidewalks.  Or maybe more specifically, no bicycle riding over 5 mph on the sidewalks.  

[nate]

Actually, gb.  Most cities ban riding bikes on the sidewalk.

[1nutkruk]

cyclists are the worst

X10

[AngelsLongBall]

I pulled out of work yesterday, and two assholes were not only riding in the middle of the lane, they were riding in both lanes (one in the middle of the right land, the other stradling the left lane).  Only way I was able to pass them was at a stoplight where we had to stop.

[deepdrive]

Bike riders aren't any more obnoxious than car drivers. The difference is obnoxious car drivers maim and kill bike riders. I can't remember ever hearing of a bike rider seriously injuring a car driver.

 

As far as traffic laws, I'll bet the percentage of bike riders following them carefully is as high as the percentage of car drivers who do.

 

Nitpicking, but 20-30 on a sidewalk with a bike - haven't seen this either. Do you guys know how tough it is to ride 20+ mph on a bike.

[DowningRules]

Generally speaking, bike riders are fine.  It's the road bike kooks who are obnoxious.  They often antagonize car drivers which is pretty remarkable.  I mean, it's only a car, what could go wrong?  You won't hear of a bike rider seriously injuring a car driver unless that car driver exits his car into the path of an unseen and speeding bicyclist.  The injury ratio is proximate to the weight of a bicycle compared to an automobile.  Some bicyclists don't seem to realize this as they ride two or three abreast on PCH.

 

 

Bike riders aren't any more obnoxious than car drivers. The difference is obnoxious car drivers maim and kill bike riders. I can't remember ever hearing of a bike rider seriously injuring a car driver.

 

As far as traffic laws, I'll bet the percentage of bike riders following them carefully is as high as the percentage of car drivers who do.

 

Nitpicking, but 20-30 on a sidewalk with a bike - haven't seen this either. Do you guys know how tough it is to ride 20+ mph on a bike.

[Sully151]

cyclists are the worst

 

Just imagine if they let Golfers on the road.

[Sully151]

I am a cyclist and I agree there are a lot of D-bag cyclists out there. With that being said, there are a lot of D-bag car drivers out there too. I have had slurpees, milkshakes, and all sorts of other things thrown at me. I have had cars cut me off, swerve into my lane and make sudden stops in front of me just to make me almost crash. They are in 1 ton plus vehicles wrapped in steel and I am on a 16 lb piece of carbon fiber.

 

I do not ride on sidewalks, run red lights or roll through stop signs. I also know the laws and my rights which I abide by. We as cyclists, basically have the same rights to the road as a car. Especially if there isn't a dedicated bike lane. I believe that is where the new law is the biggest issue. It basically says cars need to give us three feet when they pass and  if there isn't room, they have to slow down until they can safely pass. Doesn't sound like a big deal to me as a driver, but is much appreciated as a cyclist. I have been blown by by enough cars going 30 MPH faster than me to know it is scary sh**.

[Tank]

Bike riders aren't any more obnoxious than car drivers. The difference is obnoxious car drivers maim and kill bike riders. I can't remember ever hearing of a bike rider seriously injuring a car driver.

 

As far as traffic laws, I'll bet the percentage of bike riders following them carefully is as high as the percentage of car drivers who do.

 

Nitpicking, but 20-30 on a sidewalk with a bike - haven't seen this either. Do you guys know how tough it is to ride 20+ mph on a bike.

 

that may be a bit of an exaggeration, but it's not uncommon for a bike rider to drive fast on a sidewalk and hit a crosswalk at full speed. i've seen it several times in glendale, and it frankly scares the crap out of me when i see a bicyclist on my right. they've become unpredictable and dangerous because i have no confidence that they'll follow the law.

[Sully151]

It's not that hard to hit 20 mph on a road bike. On flat roads I do 22-25 easy. On a slight down hill 30 mph isn't hard, and on a long steep decent I have hit 55+.

[deepdrive]

It's not that hard to hit 20 mph on a road bike. On flat roads I do 22-25 easy. On a slight down hill 30 mph isn't hard, and on a long steep decent I have hit 55+.

 

I knew someone would counter with this (and I knew it would be a serious road biker). Here's the deal, you and the people who can do this aren't riding on the sidewalk.

 

Oh, and Tank, those crazy bike riders in Glendale are the sons of those crazy Armenian car drivers.It's a push buddy.