Laws about motorists turning across bike lanes


I would like to examine laws more closely that are or might be relevant in the Nathan Krasnopoler bicycle crash. Be it fact or be it rummer both necessitate looking at what the law is as well as what the guidance is so we all have a better idea what is expected of motorists because ignorance of the law is no excuse. And that goes for motorists as well as police officers.

"Training specific to bicycle safety and enforcement is not currently provided at the Baltimore Police Academy and bicycle safety or enforcement issues are rarely mentioned at daily roll call, the venue for new information or updated enforcement instructions. Currently, enforcing laws related to bicycle operations and safety in traffic is not among the department’s highest priorities..."
<a href="http://www.baltimorespokes.org/article.php?story=20090804094101521">http://www.baltimorespokes.org/article.php?story=20090804094101521</a>;


Motorists passing a cyclist and then turning

Guidance:

After passing a bicyclist, check over your shoulder to make sure you have allowed enough room before moving over. Experienced bicyclists often ride 20 to 25 mph and may be closer than you think.

• Be Careful in Intersections – Always assume bicyclists are traveling through an intersection unless they signal otherwise, and yield to them as you would to any other vehicle. Do not turn left or right in front of bicyclists unless you can do so safely. You can be fined $1000 and receive 3 points if you injure a bicyclist by violating their right-of-way
<a href="http://www.choosesafetyforlife.com/pdfs/Bicycle_Booklet.pdf">http://www.choosesafetyforlife.com/pdfs/Bicycle_Booklet.pdf</a>;
(This is from Maryland Highway Safety Office and fully vetted for being in accordance with Maryland law.)
[Note: The speed of a turning vehicle is near identical to a speed of a cyclist. Since motorists are not aware of this fact they think the speed at which they started the pass will continue through their turn never realizing that they just started using their brakes and are no longer passing the cyclist but have them trapped in their blind spot.]


Law

§ 21-303. General rules governing overtaking and passing vehicles.
(c) Overtaking vehicles going in the same direction.- The driver of a vehicle overtaking another vehicle that is going in the same direction, until safely clear of the overtaken vehicle, may not drive any part of his vehicle directly in front of the overtaken vehicle.

§ 21-309. Driving on laned roadways.
(b) Driving in single lane required.- A vehicle shall be driven as nearly as practicable entirely within a single lane and may not be moved from that lane or moved from a shoulder or bikeway into a lane until the driver has determined that it is safe to do so.

§ 21-1209.(d) Yielding right-of-way.- Unless otherwise specified in this title, the driver of a vehicle shall yield the right-of-way to a person who is lawfully riding a bicycle, an EPAMD, or a motor scooter in a designated bike lane or shoulder if the driver of the vehicle is about to enter or cross the designated bike lane or shoulder.

[Do I really need to point out that just because a motorist signals does not mean that other vehicles are now legally obligated to yield. A personal story: I was riding down a hill about 20mph and a motorist starts to pass and then turns right across my path while I was about next to her passenger window. I have the experience, training and education, so I was able to do a quick turn into her driveway. &quot;Lady you almost killed me!&quot; Her retort &quot;Didn't you see my turn signals?&quot; Me &quot;Your turn signals are only really visible to people BEHIND your vehicle and I was never behind your vehicle. And even if I had seen them most people need more then a half second to react and you need to verify that I am yielding before crossing my path.&quot;]


Motorists making right turns

Guidance

Use Caution at Intersections, Bridges and Driveways
Never make a right turn from a through lane immediately after passing a bike on a shoulder or bike lane. Doing so is as dangerous as turning right from the left lane after passing a car on your right, so stay behind the bicycle. Try to avoid any chance that a bicycle will be to your right or in your right blind spot when you turn right. Before starting a right turn, move as far to the right as practicable within the bike lane, shoulder, or right turn lane.
<a href="http://www.baltimorespokes.org/article.php?story=20101026001608737">http://www.baltimorespokes.org/article.php?story=20101026001608737</a>;

Laws not covered already

§ 21-601. Required position and method of turning at intersections or crossovers.
(a) Right turns.- If the driver of a vehicle intends to turn right at any intersection, he shall approach the intersection and make the right turn as close as practicable to the right-hand curb or edge of the roadway.

§ 11-151. Roadway.
(a) In general.- &quot;Roadway&quot; means that part of a highway that is improved, designed, or ordinarily used for vehicular travel, other than the shoulder.

§ 11-104. Bicycle.
&quot;Bicycle&quot; means a vehicle that:
(1) Is designed to be operated by human power;
(2) Has two or three wheels, of which one is more than 14 inches in diameter; and
(3) Has a drive mechanism other than by pedals directly attached to a drive wheel.

[Note: a bicycle is a vehicle so a bike lane is for vehicular travel. This method of cars merging with bike traffic to turn right is also recommended by the League of American Bicyclists. (Otherwise what happened in this case is very likely to happen a lot and we don't want that.)]


Did the cyclists &quot;t-bone&quot; the car or did the driver &quot;right hook&quot; the cyclists?
We have a lawfully riding cyclist in a mandatory use bike lane and a improperly turning vehicle. That should be all that is necessary to say on that.


The cyclists was contributory negligent

Lets say a drunk driver ran a red light while you were talking on a cell phone and you had a crash, you are contributory negligent. But does that relive the other driver from fault of running a red light or being drunk? No. Does it prevent traffic fines and punishments of traffic laws the driver violated? Again no. Can it limit your ability to sue and recover damages from the at fault driver? Maybe but that is up to a court of law to decide not the police.

New:
From BBC forum: &quot;I asked how he could be at fault if she turned right so close to him that he couldn't stop and then hit her car. He replied that if he had hit the front panel that might be the case, but he hit the rear panel of the car...&quot;

My understanding is everyone has a duty not to hit things even if they are in the wrong. Take a case of a left turning vehicle that tuns in front of your CAR. If you hit the front side panel then it is fairly obvious that you did not have a chance to avoid but if you hit the rear panel you did have a chance to avoid as you could have turned more left to avoid.

This (might) makes some sense with cars and left turns but makes no sense with right turns across another lane of traffic as it is totally dependent on when to other car started to turn. And it makes less sense with cyclists and bike lanes. You could come to a complete stop but still be in the turning radius of the other vehicle and be struck by the side rear. The other thing is there is 15' of car moving across 5' of bike lane, the average cyclists cannot turn right (parked cars) or left (the turning car) so all they have is the distance from where they are to where the car started turning (with an every decreasing space due to the cars turning radius.) State law says a bicycle must have brakes capable of stopping 15' at 10mph. So if the cyclists is just past the rear bumper (assuming braking at the same time as turning) he stands a chance of stopping and avoiding a crash otherwise the motorist has not finished passing and the rear side panel is probably the more likely crash point then the front because of where the drivers blind spot is. A requirement for a cyclists to hit the front side panel would require a driver to right hook a cyclists within a 7' window and only a 7' window. A foot off and the cyclists is hitting the rear side panel.

Or more simplistically: An aggressive driver cuts you off while you are driving your car so your front bumper hits their rear side panel. He signaled so he is not at fault and possibly you now are. This makes no sense!

Some police enforcement videos from other states on right hooks:

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xKmwKP5ZRtQ">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xKmwKP5ZRtQ</a>; Starting at: 3:00
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZaX2iHgHnhE">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZaX2iHgHnhE</a>; Starting at: 3:45


Police need to witness a crash in order to issue a citation

This is totally bogus especially in light of the videos above. They can determine fault through an investigation. So far I have not heard anything that remotely puts this in the unknown fault category or the cyclist is at fault category.


Conclusion

Police have an obligation to educate the public and improve the safety of all individuals. Bikes lanes are new to the City and there has been no public education effort on how motorists are supposed to deal with them. I strongly encourage the City and the Police to correct this oversight.

by B' Spokes

Like most people I live a hectic life and who has the time for much exercise? Thanks to xtracycle now I do. By using my bike for daily activities I can get things done and get an hour plus work out in 15 minutes extra of my time, not a bad deal and beats taking the extra time going to the gym. In case you are still having trouble being motivated; the National Center of Disease Control says that inactivity is the #2 killer in the United States just behind smoking. ( http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/bb_nutrition/ ) Get out there and start living life! I can carry home a full shopping cart of groceries, car pool two kids or just get lost in the great outdoors camping for a week. Well I got go, another outing this weekend.
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