Safety and Education Committee Report - Archive

Where on the road do you belong?

Like most things in life, there are laws and unwritten rules regarding safe bicycling.

The law defines a bicycle as a vehicle. As such, you must keep to the right when encountering oncoming traffic. According to the law slower moving vehicles must keep to the right. You have the right to the entire lane (if you need it). Vehicles traveling below the posted speed limit are limited by law as to how long they can obstruct traffic before they must pull over and let others pass. Many towns have ordinances against bicycles riding two abreast but it is legal to avoid obstructions (potholes, debris, parked vehicles, etc). It is your right to make overtaking vehicles wait for you. When making others wait for you please remember, “ when you make others needlessly wait, you are stealing their time” and thieves don’t get much respect.

Nobody owns the road; we all just want exclusive use of a little bit of it for a short period of time. Bicyclists lose in physical confrontations so we must be somewhere else when a motorist wants to use part of the road. Unfortunately not all drivers obey the law (some due to ignorance, others arrogance). Confrontations are usually avoidable with proper communication. Distance and speed preclude verbal exchanges so visual clues work best.

The sooner a motorist knows where you are going to be, the safer you are. Under normal conditions I like to ride near the fog line. If conditions permit, I’ll ride so my left foot is over the fog line. Sometimes there is insufficient pavement to do this and I’ll move left until my right foot is on the line. Avoid riding with your tires on the painted surface for it can be very slippery. If the shoulders are wide enough I will ride two feet right of the fog line. When riding further toward the ditch you will encounter more debris and the risk of flat tires. If you ride in a straight line most people will expect you to continue doing so. When you see an obstruction in your path make a long gentle arc around it rather than acting like a squirrel.

I do not want motorists to pass and then cut me off when they make a right turn. When the roadway widens for a right turn lane I run parallel to the dividing line and let the right turning traffic pass on my right. If the right turn lane is quite long I’ll keep right until I near the end and then either take the whole lane or move into the thru lane.

Bill Fisk- Safety and Education

Safety and Education Coordinator