To Stop or Not                    July 18, 2002

In the last newsletter, I made the claim that we all need to be advocates for better biking.  I emphasized being a role model for
novice bike riders, helping them to learn that the safest way to get where you are going on a bike is by being visible, predictable
and legal.

This time I want to address a technical barrier to safe, legal cycling and what we can collectively do about it.

As the Logan area joins the ranks of "Metropolitan Areas", more traffic-sensing stoplights are being installed.  Unfortunately,
those traffic sensors only tend to be good at sensing cars and trucks.  Bicycles and even motorcycles go unnoticed by the
technology.  We have to sit and wait for one of the "big boys" to come along and trip the sensor for us.

One interpretation of the law suggests that we may simply regard those sensors as "nonfunctional" and treat those stoplights as stop
signs, pausing and yielding to any traffic before continuing on our way.  Some suggest that we ride over to the sidewalk and press
the pedestrian button to get a green light.

These are not very satisfactory solutions.  The "nonfunctional" rule still doesn't get us the protection and priority of a green
light, and that may be a significant problem when crossing a major arterial street.  It also gives our actions a "scofflaw"
appearance to nearby motorists. The pedestrian button leaves us in an unsafe lane position to cross the street or turn left.  If
that were a good solution, we wouldn't need sensors at all, but have motorists get out and walk over and push the pedestrian button,
too.

There are some technical solutions available to help us.  Existing sensors can be "tuned" to detect bikes.  Symbols can be painted
on the road to mark the "sweet spot" where bikes are best detected.  Bike-friendly sensor designs eliminate the need for custom
"tuning" and sweet spot marking.  But those bike-friendly designs are only an economical option for new installations.  Now is the
time to requests these new designs.

But one request from a bicyclist is not enough.  We all need to make our requests known.
Contact me for more information about making your request heard by local and state road maintenance departments.  Let's work
together to improve traffic sensors for cyclists.

Bob Bayn
CVV Safety Officer