Earlier this month, East Bay Attorney Bill Dullea of GJEL Accident Attorneys testified before the Assembly Transportation Committee in support of Senate Bill 1464. Senate Bill 1464, commonly known as the 3-Foot Passing Bill, clarifies the current, vague law requiring cars to give cyclists a ‘safe distance’ when passing. In his testimony Dullea argued that the ‘safe distance’ law unnecessarily endangers cyclists because not all drivers judge ‘a safe distance’ in the same way. Since 40% of cycling collisions occur when a cyclist is hit from behind by a vehicle, this proposed legislation is poised to make a large impact in the cycling community.

Dullea argued that the 3-Foot Passing Law would help make cyclists feel safer when they are  sharing the road with automobiles and would therefore encourage more cyclists. Ideally, this law would lead to safer streets for everyone. Like Rahman Law, GJEL represents many cyclists in their line of work. Dullea testified that in his experience it s clear that drivers don’t know how to judge a ‘safe distance’ mostly because most California drivers do not have to deal with cyclists very often in their day -to-day driving. This has obviously been changing in the last few years, especially in San Francisco and the Bay Area. A statistic that often creeps into these conversations and which is extremeley illuminating, is that in San Francisco in the last 5 years, cycling ridership has increased more than 70%.

With interactions between cyclists and vehicles constantly increasing it is important for drivers to know how they can best avoid collisions. The 3-Foot Passing Bill is designed to do just that. The California Bicycle Coalition and cycling advocates like Rahman Law and GJEL Accident Attorneys support SB 1464 because it protects cyclists and drivers and generally makes the roads, which we all share, a safer place.

The bill is currently waiting for Governor Jerry Brown’s signature.

For more information on how you can become involved in the California Bicycle Coalition’s Safe Passing Campaign visit their website at http://calbike.org/advocacy/safe-passing/

Sources:

http://www.sfgate.com/business/prweb/article/East-Bay-Attorney-Advocates-for-Bike-Safety-with-3688716.php

A google search of the term ‘scofflaw’ reveals an urban dictionary definition of “one who habitually flouts or violates the law, esp one who fails to pay debts or answer summonses”. Understanding this term is an important first step in understanding the debate raging about ‘the growing problem’ of scofflaw cyclists in San Francisco.

The SFBC’s report, What About Scofflaw?  also provides some valuable insight and context into the debate. As the numbers of cyclists have grown in San Francisco, 71% in the last five years, conflicts between cyclists, pedestrians and drivers have naturally increased. Indeed, recent stories involving careless and negligent cyclists have inflamed an already sensitive issue.

San Francisco has an oftentimes harrowing mix of pedestrian, cycling and automobile lanes. Negotiating the changes from street to street, the sharrows and the lack of marked lanes, can cause frustration and unease for even the most experienced cyclists and drivers. The fact is that in San Francisco, and indeed in any major urban center, there will be pedestrians, cyclists and drivers who, whether knowingly or unknowingly, break traffic laws. Unfortunately for the cycling community these few ‘scofflaw cyclists’ can have an extremely detrimental effect on the cycling community as a whole because public opinion is so split on the cycling issue in general. One rude or unsafe cyclist can mess things up for everyone else. The situation might not be fair, but that’s the way it is.

The best defense against the argument that there is a ‘growing problem’ with scofflaw cyclists in San Francisco, is to simply be aware of the rules of the road and to be polite and safe at all times. This is true for cyclists, pedestrians and drivers as well.

We have to share the roads. Please, let’s be safe and courteous while doing so.

The SFBC hosts regular Urban Bicycling Workshops as part of its drive to educate cyclists about the rules of the road.

Market Street is at the heart of San Francisco’s history, tourism industry and daily transportation system. As a city hub, it is a meeting point for many different modes of transportation. Cyclists, Pedestrians and Drivers all share one heavily trafficked area. It may come as no surprise to many people who frequent the Market Street area that cycling is becoming an ever more dominant mode of transportation.  In fact, Better Market Street claims that at various time of the day bicycles outnumber vehicles.

As cyclists who frequent Market Street know, there are a number of areas where a collision between cyclists and autos or cyclists and pedestrians is intensified by poor urban design. One of the goals of the Better Market Street Project is to optimize the safety and efficiency of the traffic on Market Stteet. This is an area of San Francisco that needs improvement and the opportunity to create that change is here.

Better Market Street is currently in Phase 1. This phase includes the opportunity for public input. Join the San Francisco Bike Coalition at one of two community meetings to discuss potential improvements to the Market Street area.

Community Meeting | Tuesday, July 17, 2012, 6:00 PM – 8:30 PM | SFMTA (1 South Van Ness, 2nd Floor Atrium

Community Meeting | Saturday, July 21, 2012, 10:00 AM – 12:30 PM | SFMTA (1 South Van Ness, 2nd Floor Atrium)

For those who missed it, Shaana Rahman spoke to KGO this past Tuesday afternoon regarding the District Attorney’s decision on Monday to charge Randolph Ang, the cyclist involved in the fatal collision with pedestrian Dionette Cherney, with misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter. The collision occurred on July 15th, 2011 on Embarcadero and Mission and resulted in Ms. Cherney’s death after the 68-year-old tourist received “blunt force injuries to the head” from being knocked to the pavement. On Monday, Assistant D.A. Omid Talai announced that Mr. Ang would be arraigned on November 23rd to carry out his one-year sentence in county jail.*