I have had the pleasure of serving on the Connecticut Bicycle & Pedestrian Advisory Board since last summer. A big part of that work goes into creating the annual report to submit to the Governor, which, among other things, details recommendations to the Department of Transportation, legislators, municipalities and others. The full report is available here.
Our very first recommendation to legislators is for the state to pass a Vulnerable User Law.
The law isn't just about providing better protection for pedestrians, cyclists and others who might be struck by a motor vehicle. That alone is important enough since too little happens to a motorist who hits a cyclist or a pedestrian. A message needs to be sent: if you hit someone with your car or truck, you will be punished. That alone will help convince more than a few people to drive a little more cautiously.
But the law also helps with another problem, and the role a Vulnerable User Law (currently SB 336 - though it has appeared under other names over the years) would play to help solve it has been rather underreported.
And that problem is: how do we get more people to choose the bike when they need to go somewhere?
Think about that question the next time you are sitting in traffic. Does every car packed in the line in front of you need to be on the road at that very moment? Probably no. Is the traffic getting worse where you live? Probably yes.
I often ask people I know to be cyclists why they don't ride their bikes for trips to local businesses in downtown Stamford. The answer doesn't have to do with comfort, cargo space or even whether they're worried about messing their hair up by wearing a helmet: it's safety. Simply put, if cyclists felt safer on the roads, they'd cycling on them more - and leave their cars at home.
If you are a motorist who will never, ever ride a bicycle to a local business, please read the following 26 words twice: there will be more parking spaces for you downtown and fewer cars between you and that traffic light if more of your neighbors choose the bike.
And if you still believe roads are just for cars consider this: according to the National Association of Realtors, 73% of home buyers consider the length of their commute to be a major factor in whether or not they want to buy a house. If certain places become notorious for miserable commutes - which, quite frankly, is already happening - you can bet homes will eventually sell for less. If you're a business owner in one of these places, sooner or later you are going to feel it too.
A Vulnerable User Law waves a stick at motorists and will get some of them to pay attention and drive slower when around cyclists and pedestrians. But it also holds out a carrot to cyclists and pedestrians by giving some of them one more reason to leave the car at home to begin with since its a message from the state that says: we will protect you.
On a legislative standpoint, it's a winner. Connecticut: make it law.
Mike Norris is the founder of DIYBIKING.COM, a site dedicated to casual cycling, random builds, and bike travel. He is a member of the Connecticut Bicycle & Pedestrian Advisory Board and owns one 3,300 lb. SUV and 13 1/2 bicycles. This month some of his bicycle-themed artwork is on display at the independent coffee and churro shop Lorca. He lives and works in Stamford and can be reached at connecticutmike@gmail.com
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