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BICYCLES AND THE LAWBicyclists Must Mix With Pedestrians On Sidewalks 
by Ray Thomas* A safety education effort, complete with posters containing bicycles with daisies for wheels, free bells and a series of upbeat Burma Shave-like posters ("don't be a silent passer"), was staged recently on Portland's Hawthorne Bridge by P-DOT, the Community Cycling Center, the BTA, Shift, and Green Empowerment. Swanson, Thomas & Coon's Margaret Weddell led a law-office team and Jay Graves from Bike Gallery donated free handle-bar bells to passing bicyclists. Underneath the positive energy contained in this project was the recognition by participants and many pedestrians that bicyclists must take special care when riding on the sidewalks to avoid endangering persons on foot. One problem is that bicyclists travel so much faster than pedestrians and require considerably greater distance to turn and stop. When bicycle traffic is constricted, such as on bridges and other multi-use paths, the inevitable congestion magnifies the impact of the small steering or control mistakes that lead to occasional collisions. Historically, many villages and cities have identified their highest areas of pedestrian density and declared them off limits to bicycles. In Portland, the area within SW Jefferson Street, Naito Parkway, NW Hoyt Street and 13th Avenue are off limits to bicycles except in the Park Blocks and on SW Salmon Street, on bridges and multi-use paths. However, the maximum fine of $500.00, the fact that there are no warning signs defining the boundaries of prohibited areas, and almost universal ignorance and disregard of the law, create an uncertain environment for everyone that guarantees selective and uneven enforcement. While New York City prohibits sidewalk bicyclists over 14 years of age, a new law includes an pedestrian-endangerment provision backed by a $300.00 fine or 20 days in jail and bike impoundment. Physical contact with a pedestrian results in a $600.00 fine or 20 days imprisonment and bike impoundment. While protecting pedestrians from injuries is a laudable goal, in an average year in a huge metropolitan area like New York City, bicycles kill no pedestrians and injure fewer than 200. In the same average year motor vehicles kill 200 pedestrians and injure 11,000. Clearly, the safety hazard associated with bicyclists on sidewalks is more of an annoyance than a high-level, life-threatening risk, at least when compared to motor-vehicle/pedestrian hazards. The law is clear. The law is clear that pedestrians have the right of way on sidewalks and that bicyclists must provide an audible signal when they pass persons on foot. To obtain the same right-of-way over motorized vehicles as pedestrians, bicyclists are limited by the traffic code to "no greater than a walking speed" when passing in front of driveways or entry ways and on crosswalks. Pedestrians, of course, also have the right-of-way in marked or unmarked cross walks and on sidewalks over any motorized vehicle. One problem area is that bicyclists on the roadway sometimes fail to yield to pedestrians attempting to cross roadways in marked and unmarked crosswalks. ORS 811.020 prohibits passing a vehicle stopped at a crosswalk for a pedestrian, but bicyclists frequently disregard this provision (to the consternation of some pedestrians). Further, bicyclists sometimes act as if they believe they are on a higher moral plane than other vehicles and therefore do not really have to stop for pedestrians. Other riders demonstrate their trick riding skills by weaving around clusters of alarmed pedestrians. The Oregon Traffic Code prohibits such behavior. ORS 814.410, "Unsafe Operation of Bicycle On Sidewalk," is violated if a person "[O]perates a bicycle on a sidewalk in a careless manner that endangers or would be likely to endanger any person or property," creating an offense with similar operational language to the better known "Careless Driving offense". Additional Resources The websites for Oregon Cycling (www.oregoncycling.org) and Swanson, Thomas & Coon (www.stc-law.com) each contain references to the book "Pedal Power" and its collection of Oregon statutes. In addition, Part Three of "Pedal Power" collects the city ordinances regulating bicycle operation on sidewalks in about 20 Oregon cities. Conclusion When bicyclists follow the rules, sidewalk bicycle riding can be safe. However, bicyclists sometimes save their worst behavior for the sidewalks and ignore sidewalk riding prohibitions. When bicyclists yield to pedestrians and give an audible signal when passing, the whole mix goes a lot more smoothly and the sidewalk provides an important artery for non-motorized travel. *Ray Thomas is a Portland bike attorney with Swanson, Thomas & Coon. |
