Sep 27 2021

Bikes Can Roll Through Stop Signs Under New CA Law

Drivers Need to be Aware Bicyclists May Not Stop at Stop Signs-

Biking organizations, including the California Bicycle Coalition, have successfully urged the legislature to legalize rolling stops for bikes. In August, the California Assembly voted 53 to 11 in favor of A.B. 122, making it legal for bicycle riders to treat stop signs as yield signs.   The Senate approved it August 30 on a bipartisan 31-5 vote.  The Governor has until mid October to sign the bill. 

75 organizations supported the law, with opposition more limited only by the California Highway Patrolmen’s Association and the California Coalition for Children’s Health.

Steve Barrow, program director for the California Coalition for Children’s Health and Safety, told The Coast News that they are strongly opposed to the bill and are urging voters against it.

“We have 500 people killed on bicycle crashes every year in California and we have several thousand that end up in the hospital with severe head injuries,” Barrow said. “The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Insurance Institute and the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia Injury Center, they’ve all done studies on what happened when those people died in a bicycle crash, and a third of them literally were killed when the bicycle rider failed to yield at an intersection.”

Read the complete article here.

Barrow added that for children, the risk is higher because portions of their brains that control their decision-making and impulse control are not yet fully developed.

Idaho, Oregon, Washington, Delaware, and several other states have legalized the bicycle rolling stop.  Cyclists are permitted to treat a stop sign as a yield sign

Read the text of the bill AB 122 here.

Current New York City Bike Rules:

  • Ride in the street, not on the sidewalks (unless rider is age 12 or younger and the bicycle’s wheels are less than 26 inches in diameter).
  • Ride with traffic, not against it.
  • Stop at red lights and stop signs. Obey all traffic signals, signs and pavement markings, and exercise due care to avoid colliding with pedestrians, motor vehicles or other cyclists. At red lights, wait for the green light and/or the bike or pedestrian signal.
  • Go with the walk, unless there’s a bike signal or sign, cross the intersection when the pedestrian signal shows the “walk”.
  • Use marked bike lanes or paths when available, except when making turns or when it is unsafe to do so. If the road is too narrow for a bicycle and a car to travel safely side by side, you have the right to ride in the middle of the travel lane. Bicycling is permitted on all main and local streets throughout the City, even when no designated route exists.
  • Use a white headlight and a red taillight, as well as a bell or horn and reflectors.

Read complete New York City Bike Safety here

4 Responses to “Bikes Can Roll Through Stop Signs Under New CA Law”

  1. Hi, the Governor has not signed AB 122 to my knowledge. The Governor has until October 10th to sign or veto the bill per KPIX on 9/28/21. https://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2021/09/28/ca-lawmakers-legalize-rolling-stops-for-cyclists-bill-awaits-governors-signature/

  2. The problem here is that person will now think while driving they can treat a stop or red light as a yield or maybe I do not have to stop!.
    Denmark the most bicycled country in the world you must stop!

    It is dangerous not to stop!

  3. I also want to add that this law will only apply to cyclists who might forget that they are now driving a VEHICLE! This law is dangerous!!!!

    Even in Denmark cyclist don’t always stop!

  4. My name is Linda Reimel and I am a 71 year old bicycle rider as well as car driver. I urge Governor Newsom to not sign legislation allowing bicycle riders to roll through stop signs and stop lights. A bike is little protection from a car or truck and thus proposed law will result in more bike riders being injured or killed.

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