MoBikeFed draft legislative platform for 2008 released

brad-huff-and-capitol-stage5-2007

MoBikeFed's legislative committee has been working hard on legislative issues for the 2008 Missouri General Assembly's session.

MoBikeFed's full legislative platform is here.

Highlights for 2008:

• Bike Month Proclamation (May)
  
• Obtain reliable funding for statewide bicycle and pedestrian programs, promotion of safe practices, and outreach.
  
• Missouri Complete Streets bill (see completestreets.org)
  
• Safe Streets Bill: When unsafe drivers injure or kill bicyclists or pedestrians, current law allows prosecutors to bring charges for trivial traffic infractions or serious (but difficult-to-prove) felony charges. We want to propose an intermediate step that will get unsafe drivers off the road, be easier to prosecute, and have more severe and appropriate penalties than minor traffic infractions.
  
• A proposed "no passing" law will force motorists to pass bicyclists unsafely (or just not pass at all--and how likely is it that drivers will do that?) whenever there is a solid yellow "no passing" line. Before this legislation moves forward we want to change this to make it more bicycle friendly. There are many locations properly marked "no passing" for motor vehicles where it is safe to pass a slower-moving vehicle like a bicycle. The new Missouri passing zone law can and should reflect this reality and should not force or encourage unsafe passing of bicyclists by motorists.
  
• Dead Red law--allowing motorcycles & bicycles to proceed through a red light after waiting a certain period that makes it obvious the motorcycle/bicycle is not triggering the signal. The motorcyclists passed this in 2007 (without including bicyclists). They will be back with it again in 2008 so we might as well join forces & have bicyclists included in the legislation.
  

Previous MoBikeFed Legislative Platform Planks that have become law or policy

• A measure to encourage recreational trails/mountain biking trails in state parks and conservation areas (as proposed by Rep. Sutherland in 2006) passed in 2007
  
• Bike Month resolution 2007
  
• Tour of Missouri Month proclamation & resolution, 2007
  
• "No passing on solid yellow line" law did not move forward in 2007 (we opposed the law as written and proposed a more acceptable compromise--we were happy to see it stalled for now)
  
• Allow right turn signaling with the right arm; allow intermittent signaling when arms/hands are needed to control bicycle, 2005
  
• Regulate bike lane usage, 2005
  
• Clarify that bicyclists riding on the road shoulder is not illegal, 2005
  
• Update the definition of a bicycle to include tricycles and quadracycles, 2005
  
• Safe passing provision for motorists passing bicyclists, 2005
  
• Clutch's Law-increased penalties & driver license points for those who fail to yield right-of-way and cause an accident, 2006
  
• Legislation to address liability concerns of landowners adjacent to trails
  
• Remove law that required bicyclists to ride on path adjacent to road if such a path is available
  
• Improve Missouri's basic bicycle law