Comments on: Cyclist Hit at Commerce and East College Last Thursday Survives

By: Steve

Steve — Tue, 23 Jul 2013 22:45:33 +0000

There has been more than one attempt to pass such a law in Georgia, but they have thus far failed.

By: Bicycle Commuter

Bicycle Commuter — Tue, 23 Jul 2013 21:55:49 +0000

Just to poke the bear a little more let me tell you about what I saw today.

I was in my car at the Scott/N.Decatur intersection heading north. (I was the first car in a long line of cars.) To my surprise I hear a rumble/high pitched motorcycle noise getting closer and closer. I looked around and saw nothing and figured this person would eventually come up on my left to the turn lane. Nope, instead he split the lane and came up right in the middle of the two lanes. Meanwhile one of Decatur’s finest is conducting what appears to be crossing guard training diagonally across the street to my left. The cop looks up and wags their finger and shake their head at the motorcycle guy. When our light turns green he accelerates quickly and moves on. I pass him again before the next green light because he is caught up in traffic again.

Oh and then on S. Columbia I had a women step out in the road as I was approaching with 4 children to cross over to the Marta stop. I was driving well below the speed limit and there was no one behind me. Luckily I saw the situation ahead of me and knew what to expect because I see this ALL the time. I still felt the need to swerve because it was way too close for comfort and when kids are involved no one can predict what they are going to do. I can’t tell you how many times I have seen a mother with a stroller and a toddler in hand sprinting across S. Columbia to reach this bus stop.

Any how, the point is motorists, cyclists, pedestrians, runners, walkers, and motorcyclists (I have been all of these at some point) are capable of breaking the law and making very risky decisions. Accidents will happen and I do my best to avoid/prevent/reduce my risk of being involved in an accident. I hope everyone else does the same. However, I never expect everyone will so I have to be ready to respond appropriately at all times.

By: mrblonde

mrblonde — Tue, 23 Jul 2013 21:22:02 +0000

Ok, I didn’t think the argument was about being respectful to each other, I thought we were trying to clarify for each other what the rules are. Also, not my “logic”, again from the link you posted:

Since the recommended minimum clearance for
passing a bicyclist (at moderate speed) is 3 feet
[Governor’s Office of Highway Safety and Georgia
DOT, Georgia Bike Sense Guide] and the total width
of larger motor vehicles (with extending mirrors) is
commonly 8 feet or more, a lane with less than 14
feet of usable width is usually too narrow for motor
traffic to pass.

Which means that there’s usually not enough room to make the pass on the right hand side, at least not on city streets.

By: Concerned Citizen

Concerned Citizen — Tue, 23 Jul 2013 21:21:43 +0000

John, I think there is some confusion here. Passing on the right, according to the laws quoted above, should be legal for bikers *only* when there is sufficient space for both cars and bikes to be moving, or 18″-24″, or a bike lane.
Which means, and to every driver’s frustration (including mine, and I ride a bike often), if a car had to drive across the center line in order to pass a cyclist, then when sitting at the red light, it is illegal for said cyclist to then pass the car to the right *because there was not sufficient room for two lanes of moving traffic (cyclist and motorist)*. It is only “safe”/possible at the intersection because cars are stopped, and the biker can navigate around them. If traffic were moving, then the biker would not be able to pass unless they were incredibly foolish (and fast). This does not include the obviously unsafe and illegal practice of curbing it.
The law is not clear. After reading it several times, I think I understand now. Thoughts?

By: Jeremy

Jeremy — Tue, 23 Jul 2013 21:18:13 +0000

Unfortunately, our laws treat bicycles just like cars when it’s really unnecessary and unrealistic to expect bikes to come to a complete stop at all stop signs.

To address this reality Idaho amended their stop-sign laws back in the 80s to allow cyclists a rolling stop, effectively treating a stop sign as a yield. We need such a law on the books here in GA!