BIKING LAWS APPLY TO J-LAKE

Post date: Apr 30, 2012 3:43:21 PM

This law just past, detailed in the following article, goes for around J-Lake!! However, it should be noted that it is also against the law to ride on the roads where a Bike Trail is available!! This is especially important on the East end where traffic is heavy and the commercial businesses are located and the NG&PC main campground entrance is located. Bikers need to use the provided trail...

Law on the side of bikers being passed

By Katy Healey, WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER, « Metro/Region, April 30, 2012

It happened quickly. Martin Cordes was biking to work, as he did most days. Then, without warning, he wasn't.

“I heard this roaring sound behind me, and all of a sudden I was flying through the air,” he said.

The sound belonged to a truck's engine, humming as it rounded a street corner. The truck hit the bike and launched Cordes.

The January 2011 accident crushed his ribs, broke his pelvis, misaligned multiple vertebrae in his back and injured his elbow and left foot. He spent a total of five months in four specialty hospitals recovering before he returned home to North Platte, Neb.

At the time there was no law under which to ticket the driver who hit Cordes. But his story helped to propel a new state law to protect bicyclists and others on the road.

The law, approved by the Nebraska Legislature in April, requires motorists to leave a 3-foot clearance when passing cyclists, pedestrians and people using electric scooters.

Law enforcement personnel are authorized to pull over drivers who pass too closely. Drivers can be fined $100 for the first offense, $200 for the second offense and $300 for the third.

The law goes into effect July 19.

Sen. Tom Hansen of North Platte introduced the bill, citing several incidents in his district involving vehicles hitting joggers and cyclists, including Cordes. More than 270 people were injured in bicycle-motor vehicle accidents in Nebraska in 2011. The number was the highest in seven years. Two people died.

“I think it's real smart,” Cordes, 67, said of the law. “I wish it'd be 5 feet, but it's something. We definitely need it so people are thinking about (safety).”

About half the states have similar laws to protect cyclists. Passing clearances generally range from 2 feet to 5 feet. Hansen said 3 feet seemed to be the most common measure. Iowa law does not mandate a specific minimum clearance distance when passing a bicycle, according to David Stutz of the Iowa Department of Transportation. The state's driver's manual does recommend drivers leave three to four feet.

The new Nebraska law is “an affirmation,” said Julie Harris, project manager with Activate Omaha, a public health organization. “Yes, we have a right to be out there and be safe if we choose to transport ourselves using a bike.” Harris said the law also benefits motorists who do not know how to interact with cyclists. Her advice: Drivers should pass bikes the same way they do cars, moving into the next or oncoming lane to pass. If there is oncoming traffic, drivers should slow down and follow the cyclists until oncoming traffic clears. Prior to the legislation, the state driver's manual suggested drivers allow 3 feet to the left of cyclists when passing but did not fine those who didn't. “If it's just a suggestion, it may not be taken real seriously, but if people find out you can get ticketed for this, it may make a little difference,” Hansen said. “Hopefully it makes everyone safer.”