Saturday, April 25, 2009

Room to Share?

Is this a wide enough lane to share side by side with overtaking traffic?

If the wrongheaded "vulnerable user" law gets passed here in Texas, this vehicle will be in violation of it if he passes me in either direction while I am riding in my normal lane position.

The version of the law being considered by the Texas legislators says this:


(b) An operator of a motor vehicle passing a vulnerable road user operating on a highway or street shall:

(1) vacate the lane in which the vulnerable road user is located if the highway has two or more marked lanes running in the same direction; or
(2) pass the vulnerable road user at a safe distance.

(c) For the purposes of Subsection (b)(2), the operator is presumed to have failed to comply with Subsection (b)(2) if the distance between the operator ’s vehicle and the vulnerable road user is less than:

(1) three feet if the operator ’s vehicle is a passenger car or light truck; or
(2) six feet if the operator ’s vehicle is a truck other than a light truck or a commercial motor vehicle as defined by Section 522.003.

522.003 DEFINITIONS.

(5) "Commercial motor vehicle" means a motor vehicle or

combination of motor vehicles used to transport passengers or
property that:


(B) has a gross vehicle weight rating of 26,001 or more pounds;



On this road, the one I must ride a minimum of two miles on to get to or from my home, this vehicle cannot comply with this proposed law unless I am crowding the fog line- which I never do! If I am centered in my lane, or as I normally position myself, in the left tire track, this vehicle cannot overtake me lawfully, and it could be argued, he would break the law if he passes me going the other way!

There are other problems with the proposed law, but I will address them one at a time in a later post. Until then, Godspeed to all!






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