D.C. Advocates Seek Cultural Shift in View of Cyclists
[B' Spokes: Just some highlights:]
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By Martin Austermuhle
Can you legislate a culture shift, using the law to change the way drivers perceive cyclists?
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Opponents of the law claim that it would unfairly put cyclists in a protected class offered to few other groups. But according to the law's supporters, that's the point. Councilmember Tommy Wells (D-Ward 6) said that cyclists regularly face vehicular hostility on the District's roads, criminal charges are rarely sought when accidents do happen and civil penalties are too low to encourage lawsuits as a means of seeking justice.
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"Until injuries to bicyclists and pedestrians are taken seriously by MPD and drivers are held accountable, the streets are not safe for our children, our husbands, our sisters," Rowan said in her testimony.
As a means to make police better understand the challenges faced by cyclists, Rowan proposed that they become cyclists themselves.
"I'd like to see every police officer spend three months on a bicycle...because they're going to come back and say, 'Oh my God, this is really terrible,'" she said.