Rant on dealing with the legislature (more so in the House)

No doubt we expect our elected representatives to be educated and well informed so when urban myths are spouted off in the legislature as truisms it comes as a great shock. The irony of these two urban myths just hit me "Cyclists break laws" and "Cyclists don't pay gas tax (so the road system should be hostile to cyclists???)"

We have enacted Federal laws that say transportation funds have to be used to give due considerations to the needs of bicyclists and we have enacted State law that cycling has to be an essential component of the State's transportation system yet MDOT breaks these laws saying that on-road bike facilities will not be funded.

So because cyclists break laws the State breaks laws to redirect transportation funds away from where they are legally obligated to go. Because the roads are for cars only (because they are paid in part by gas tax) no laws nor significant educational campaigns to insure the safety of human "road kill" are necessary.

There is a reason why Maryland ranks the 8th highest in pedestrian fatality rate as they have adopted a policy that roads are for cars and not for people.