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Bicycle safety bill passes Colorado Senate
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Thank you if you were one of the many cyclists who took a moment to call your state Senator to explain how important this bill is to area bicyclists. Following a 6-0 vote in committee, Senate Bill 148 passed the full Senate by a 26-7 vote yesterday. That’s a hefty margin which hopefully portends good things when the House version of the same bill is tackled by the Colorado House. Even better than the vote total, the Senate version was not watered down by removing the 3 foot safety zone required of cars who are overtaking bicycles. As had been expected, the inimitable sheriff of Larimer County, Jim Alderden, opposed the bill, claiming it would be too hard to enforce.
"When you're in your patrol car on the street how do you measure that?" Alderden told the Coloradoan newspaper. "It's basically impossible."
Alderden went on to say that officers already have discretion to ticket drivers who are driving too close to other vehicles, including bicycles. But if you’ve followed Alderden’s previous words and actions regarding the rights of bicyclists, you suspect that he would not be happy with any of his officers who actually issued a motorist a ticket for driving too close to a bicyclist.
Bicycle Colorado has been at the forefront of lobbying efforts to get the bicycle safety bill passed. The organization’s executive director, Dan Grunig, said rigorous enforcement is not the ultimate goal, but rather setting a standard and sense of expectation for drivers that can be easily understood. "Three feet is pretty easy to envision because if a bicyclist were to stick their arm straight out that would be about 3 feet," Grunig said.
For those who think Colorado has gone all soft just for the benefit of bicyclists, it’s important to note that eleven other states currently require 3-foot berths for cyclists, while a number of additional states require some sort of safe passing distance when cars are overtaking bicycles.
As noted, this bill is less than half way to completion. The Colorado House has yet to take up its version. You can help make sure the House results are as impressive as the Senate’s by calling your local representative today. Bicycle Colorado recommends briefly explaining to your representative why the bill is important to you and asks you to make sure you mention that the 3-foot passing zone and safe lane positioning are very important elements of the bill. It would be a shame if this bill gets amended in the house to remove or water down the 3-foot safety zone.
Thanks for reading.
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