Crawford County, Iowa, bans RAGBRAI

According to a note from Mark Wyatt, Executive Director of the Iowa Bicycle Coalition:

The Iowa Bicycle Coalition has expressed disappointment in the actions of the Crawford County Board of Supervisors who recently banned the Register's Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa (RAGBRAI) or any events of similar nature from occurring on the public roadways. The action was rash, short sighted, and failed to consider not only the consequences, but also the real problems of an unbalanced transportation system designed solely around cars.

Since many of the facts were not made public in court, there have been assumptions published in the articles reporting the incident. What we do know is Crawford County's liability was imposed by their choice to settle the lawsuit. Since the case was not decided in a court, fault remains undecided and precedent does not exist. The lack of a precedence may demonstrate how much of a liability really exists.

Bicyclists killed due to road defects are a rare exception and an exponential number of bicyclists have been killed in Iowa due to crashes with motor vehicles. Rather than banning bicycling events, counties in Iowa should encourage more bicycling. Investments in roadway maintenance, bicycling and walking facilities, and safety education will pay big returns for communities.

What happens from here? The Iowa State Association of Counties has discouraged any more counties from taking the same action as Crawford County did. Many more counties are going on record to say they welcome the ride to their county. There is no doubt we will see some sort of action proposed when the Iowa Legislature convenes on January 14, 2008.

There is also no doubt that Iowa's situation has implications on other rides, bicycle level of service, and liability issues. It is also obvious the issue reaches far beyond Iowa's borders since over 6,000 riders per year live outside Iowa. The Iowa Bicycle Coalition is creating support and encouraging relations with new partners. One of our most important partners will be grassroots cyclists and we will need your support more than ever."

More information at the Iowa Bicycle Coalition web site.

(via the NCBW Newsletter)