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Cyclists lobby for vulnerable user law with tougher penalties for motorists

Posted by Tom Held on Feb. 22, 2012

cycling

A slight Freudian slip by Kevin Hardman, executive director of the Bicycle Federation of Wisconsin, suggested that cycling advocates stormed the castle in Madison on Tuesday.

They didn’t.

They did, however, lobby legislators in the Capitol to pass a law that creates tougher penalties for motorists who commit traffic violations that injure or kill vulnerable roadway users, including bicyclists.

Pedestrians, emergency responders, motorcycle riders, in-line skaters and farmers driving farm equipment also would be among those covered by the bill introduced in the State Senate earlier this month.

In some circumstances, a traffic offense that harms or kills a vulnerable user would be elevated to a felony, punishable by $10,000 fines and up to six years in prison. (click here for the full text)

Three states have similar laws in place and the legislation passed the Maryland State Senate in 2011.

The measure in Wisconsin is intended to provide prosecutors with an option beyond the traffic tickets that have been issued in crashes that killed bicyclists in recent years.

Kyle Dieringer, for example, pleaded no contest in January and paid $400 in fines for failing to yield a three-foot safe passing distance in a crash that killed Jeff Littmann and severely injured Lauren Jensen. The local athletes were out on a training ride on Wisconsin Ave. in Nashotah on Oct. 1, 2010.

Citing cases like that, cycling advocates made the same push for a vulnerable user law at the federation’s annual Bike Summit in 2011.

“These laws are intended to protect vulnerable roadway users and to appropriately and fairly punish those who harm them through reckless or careless behavior,” according to the Bike Fed message.

Getting the bill introduced represents progress, Hardman said, after the lobbying effort on Tuesday, part of the 2012 Bike Summit.

He was hopeful that the proposed law would receive a hearing before the end of the legislative session next month, but expects no action until the next session.

Cyclists also asked legislators to restore the $2.5 million in state transportation funding for bike lanes and other enhancements. The state dollars were pulled from the 2011-’13 biennial budget, leaving only federal funds available for bike and pedestrian projects.

That source of funding is uncertain.

The federal transportation bill introduced in the House eliminates $1.2 billion directed to states for Transportation Enhancements and Safe Routes to Schools. Wisconsin received $9.5 million annually from those two funds.

Rep. Thomas Petri, a Republican from Fond du Lac, bucked his party’s leadership and pushed an amendment to restore the enhancement and safe routes dollars during a committee vote last month.

He came up two votes short, but earned a Bike Hero Award and a standing ovation at the close of the summit.

“We’re in the midst of a fight,” Petri told the crowd, in a ballroom across from the Capitol. “I’m trying to find the highest common denominator, not the lowest.

“We need to do everything we can to build active lifestyles. It’s good for the economy, good for health, and it’s fun too.”

Petri said the House version of the transportation bill has stalled, leaving open the prospect that the bike and pedestrian funds would be restored.

“We’re in the midst of a fight,” he said. “It’s not over. It’s just begun.”

Based on Hardman’s report of successes, the Bike Fed appears ready for that fight.

Revenue for the non-profit organization is projected to reach nearly $1.4 million in 2012, and it now has 10 full-time staffers, a paid lobbyist and ambassadors spread throughout the state. Nearly 400 people showed up for the fourth annual Bike Summit.

For 2012, the organization will expand the Wisconsin Bike Challenge nationally, work to improve its brand and convince more of the 548,000 self-identified bicyclists in the state the Bike Fed.

That would provide more bodies to lobby the “castle” next year.

85 Comments for "Cyclists lobby for vulnerable user law with tougher penalties for motorists"

  1. Please explain to me a situation in which it is an accident running your car into someone. "Pulling out in front of a bike" is not an accident. You, as the driver are at fault, no different then pulling out in front of a car. And if you can't see a bicyclist in the road "due to the condition of the road" (whatever that means), then maybe you shouldn't be driving on that road or at least driving more cautiously.

    Drivers need to understand, cyclists are on the road to stay. Whether or not you think it's safe for me to ride my bike on the street is not really the issue here. It is only about drivers having some irrational dislike of cyclists. Period. End of story.

    umgopher1 Feb 22, 2012 7:45 PM

  2. Because there is a difference between negligence and criminal negligence. DUI is penalized more severely if a fatality is involved than if it isn't...it's pretty simple.

    But I do agree, as a cyclist I get unbelievably ticked at the minority of cyclists that make the rest of us look bad. When the cyclist is at fault, the motorist should not be at fault. Period. But if the motorist is at fault, can we just crap this..."cyclists have this coming" crap?

    Saxeville Bob Feb 22, 2012 11:03 PM

  3. Cyclists need to understand, Drivers are on the road to stay. Whether or not you think it's safe to ride your bike on the street is not really the issue here. It is only about the cyclists having some irrational dislike for drivers. Period. End of story.

    rubyred Feb 23, 2012 1:44 PM

  4. Cyclists are already ticketed for vehicular offences. It would be redundant.

    Goodgulf Feb 23, 2012 4:07 PM

  5. If an auto driver hits a cyclist who was riding legally, then they have done something illegal.

    Goodgulf Feb 23, 2012 4:08 PM

  6. Is there a law about what color clothing they should wear? If a tree falls over on one of those curves, you should be driving at a sane enough speed that you are able to stop for it in time, regardless of what color the tree's windbreaker is.

    Goodgulf Feb 23, 2012 4:09 PM

  7. Take a drive on a freeway and you find nearly 100% of auto drivers are breaking the speed limit.

    Goodgulf Feb 23, 2012 4:10 PM

  8. In over 20 years of driving I have yet to be slowed down by a cyclist for an entire minute, yet this regularly happens with cars. Really, passing a cyclist safely is so trivially simple it's not even funny.

    Goodgulf Feb 23, 2012 4:35 PM

  9. It's still not safe, or recommended by any cycling safety organizations.

    Goodgulf Feb 23, 2012 4:38 PM

  10. Yes, it's is a right that, effectively, pre-dates the constitution actually (Travel on pubic right-of-ways.). Google "right to travel". SCOTUS has ruled on this.

    Goodgulf Feb 23, 2012 4:40 PM

  11. Actually, yes. Most highways in this country are legal for all people to use. Only certain limited access routes are not allowed pedestrian, cyclist, equestrian, etc. access. There are a whole slew of rules local governments must follow to designate a road limited-access.

    Goodgulf Feb 23, 2012 4:43 PM

  12. Most laws (like this one for instance) are largely in place as a proactive solution. People are more careful when they know there are negative consequences for their harmful actions.

    Goodgulf Feb 23, 2012 4:45 PM

  13. Most laws (like this one for instance) are largely in place as a proactive solution. People are more careful when they know there are negative consequences for their harmful actions.

    Goodgulf Feb 23, 2012 4:45 PM

  14. Is this another person ranting against personal responsibility for drivers? Mark it down as "accident" when somebody goes too fast with the setting sun in their eyes and kills someone, when all they had to do was slow down and keep their @#$)(*& eyes on the @#$)(*& road? Designing roads for only cars was a mistake, but it didn't eradicate the basic human right of free travel. Most drivers have no trouble safely sharing the roads. If you kill somebody, you have killed somebody. That's your carelessness, your responsibility, and their entire family probably hating your guts until long after you're dead. Traffic accidents kill 40,000 people in the US every year, with only a small percentage of those involving bicycles. Is this the kind of bloodshed we should shrug about in the name of freedom from personal responsibility? You call it "just accidents," I call it sloppy driving and negligence. If a person falls asleep at the wheel, crosses the centerline, and kills your whole family on the way to church, is that just an "accident?" Oh well, these things happen. Nobody's responsible. It was an act of God.

    Wake up. Cars don't kill people. Drivers do.

    DannyX Feb 23, 2012 6:23 PM

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