Bicycling and the Law
By Bob Mionske, JD
Wow. This is a book that should come with every bicycle sold. For that matter, it should come with every car sold, and you shouldn’t be allowed to drive until you’ve passed a test based on the book.
Bob Mionske has done a wonderful service to the cycling community with Bicycling and the Law. He lays out, clearly and with undeniable command of the facts, the law governing the rights and responsibilities of cyclists.
It’s important to note that every state — and indeed, nearly every municipality — has its own bicycle laws. Covering every permutation of every law in every city is way beyond the scope of this or any book. Mionske is clear to say “look it up” when you need to do your own research. But he also relies on the fact that many state and local laws are derived from the Uniform Vehicle Code, and therefore many rules and laws are the same in most places. In several sections (for example, the section on helmet use), he provides charts that compare the rules in each state. For example, in New York State, all passengers in bike seats or bike trailers under 5 years old must wear a helmet, and all bicyclists under 14 must wear a helmet. In fact, parents can be charged and fined if their under-age children ride without helmets.
Mionske also dispels quite a few myths or common misconceptions about traffic laws. At a recent dinner, several cyclists were mentioning that drivers in New York State must pass a cyclist by at least 3 feet. That’s not the case. Here in New York, drivers — and cyclists — have a “duty of care,” sometimes called a “duty of due care.” Here’s section 11-504 of the Uniform Vehicle Code, as quoted in Bicycling and the Law:
Notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter or the provisions of any local ordinance, every driver of a vehicle shall exercise due care to avoid colliding with any pedestrian or person propelling a human powered vehicle and shall give an audible signal when necessary, and shall exercise proper precaution upon observing any child or any obviously confused, incapacitated or intoxicated person.
The rule that a person traveling upon a highway has a right to assume that all other persons using the highway will obey the law and that one is not bound to keep a lookout for others who may violate the law applies only to those cases when the automobile is being driven in conformity with the law and not in violation thereof.”
Mionske does an excellent job of clarifying exactly what all that means and giving plenty of real-world examples.
You’ll find a clear and eye-opening discussion of cyclists’ rights to the road. For example, the law says cyclists must ride as far to the right “as practicable,” and Mionske points out that this means something very different from “as practical.” You should ride to the right, but you have complete license to avoid obstacles, whether that means debris, rough pavement or the “door zone” around parked cars. Moreover, if you’re traveling at the speed of traffic — often an easy thing to do in city riding — you have every right to take the lane whether there are obstacles to the right or not.
The book also has a lot of detail about the frequency and nature of various cycling accidents, along with practical suggestions about how to avoid them and what to do if you find yourself in an accident.
If your experience is anything like mine, you’ll also find yourself completely absorbed by Chapter 5: “Cyclist Harassment And What You Can Do About It.” Mionske breaks down the various types of harassment, and asserts that it’s our duty as cyclists to report harassment if we want conditions to change.
I could go on and on about this book. Again, it’s a must-read for every single person who pedals a bike, whether for commuting or recreation. Highly, highly recommended.
