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Motorists: Share the Road and Give Clearance to Cyclists

By Beth Janicek

An article in the San Antonio Express News caught my eye this weekend regarding Senate Bill 488 – the Safe Passing Bill. As a cyclist and runner, I am a proponent of the bill which heads to the House after a recent Senate victory. The bill requires commercial vehicles and large trucks at least six feet clearance to groups including bicyclists, pedestrians, runners, motorcyclists and construction workers. All other vehicles are required to give them three feet.

Violators will be handed a $500 fine. If the crash causes injuries, motorist will be charged with a Class B misdemeanor with a maximum penalty of 180 days in jail and a $2000 fine.

This weekend off 1604 and Highway 16, a motorist driving an SUV sideswiped two cyclists in their late 40s. They were driving on the shoulder when the 2003 Jeep Liberty swerved off the road and struck them. The driver did stop and call 911. Both cyclists were flow to Wilford Hall Medical Center, one with head and knee injuries and the other with chest pains and possibly broken ribs. The driver of the SUV was ticketed $190 and charged with failure to maintain a single lane.

A preliminary Texas Department of Transportation report showed 50 bicyclists in Texas were killed and another 274 suffered incapacitating injuries. In the 50 bicyclists killed, 20 of those were caused by motorists not passing safely.

'More people are cycling all the time. We want to make sure that crashes and fatalities don't go up with that increased cycling,' Stallings said. 'The best way to do that is to begin to educate at the earliest levels.'

Other similar bills regarding vulnerable road users have been held up in the Legislature since 2003, but Rep. Linda Harper-Brown, one of the author's of the bill is 'somewhat confident' it will pass before the session ends June 1.

I will be following up with additional blog posts on this topic as more information arises. Stay tuned.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Beth Janicek

Full post as published by San Antonio Personal Injury Lawyer on May 11, 2009 (boomark / email).