Worried that bicyclists who chat, send messages or listen to music on smartphones are creating a danger, a number of cities have banned cyclists from using hand-held cellphones or texting while riding. And several states prohibit bicyclists from using headphones or earplugs.
The efforts to reduce the risk to cyclists, pedestrians and motorists come as cities are trying to become more bike-friendly, and people increasingly turn to electronic devices to communicate and navigate.
“If they want to share the road, they have to share the responsibility as well,” said Massachusetts state Rep. Steven Howitt, a Republican, who has introduced a bill that would prohibit bicyclists from wearing headphones.
Bicycle advocates say cyclists should use common sense and not use hand-held electronic devices at all when riding. Nor should bikers use headphones if they are distracting. But advocates also say there’s no evidence that such use has resulted in deaths or serious injuries, and question whether creating laws or slapping fines on cyclers makes sense.
“There’s a huge difference between distracted driving that kills someone and distracted biking that doesn’t,” said Peter Wilborn, founder of Bike Law, a network of personal injury lawyers that focuses on cycling issues. “I don’t think we need laws specifically for this.”
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5 comments:
There are laws that cover bicyclist in MD. They are found in the handbook. They think they own the road and weave all over the lane. They also ride 2, 3, 4 wide and not pay attention. In Salisbury they are allowed on 13, which is a safety hazard, Just like allowing Shore Transit to stop on 13, hindering the flow of traffic, instead of a side street. Both are safety Hazards.
Sounds like you have never been to a real city where they have bus stops on main and side streets including 2 lane each direction streets. The bus stops and either you move to the right lane of traffic and go around it or you stop and allow people to get on/off and then proceed forward when the bus does. It is simple.
from the right lane of traffic...
Do you know what annoys me? Cars that don't stop before a stop sign and block the sidewalk path. I hate biking in the road but it is just as dangerous as the sidewalk with all these distracted drivers!!!!
The bike folks need start obeying the rules of the road. They rarely come to a complete stop at a stop sign and slow down and the go through red lights. If it is too dangerous to use a hand held phone in a vehicle and is illegal then it should be the same for bikes.
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