SooToday.com has witnessed the usual and not unexpected springtime flurry of anti-bicycle hate in response to yesterday's letter to the editor, so we've decided to go right to the source to get the truth.
SooToday.com has witnessed the usual and not unexpected springtime flurry of anti-bicycle hate in response to yesterday's letter to the editor, so we've decided to go right to the source to get the truth.
Apparently, both the cyclists who say they are allowed to take a whole lane and the drivers who say the cyclists must move to the right to be overtaken are correct, according to the Highway Traffic Act.
While SooToday.com does not profess to being expert in the Act, a simple read through seems to indicate that cyclists have the responsibility to move to the right as far as is safely possible to allow a faster moving vehicle to pass safely.
At the same time, faster moving vehicles can only over take the cyclist in a safe manner.
"Every person on a bicycle or motor assisted bicycle who is overtaken by a vehicle or equestrian travelling at a greater speed shall turn out to the right and allow the vehicle or equestrian to pass and the vehicle or equestrian overtaking shall turn out to the left so far as may be necessary to avoid a collision. R.S.O. 1990, c. H.8, s. 148 (6)," says the act.
If there is only one lane and no paved shoulder onto which a cyclist may ride safely, and there is oncoming traffic, the motorist must slow down behind the cyclist until it is safe to pass the cylist.
"No person in charge of a vehicle shall pass or attempt to pass another vehicle going in the same direction on a highway unless the roadway in front of and to the left of the vehicle to be passed is safely free from approaching traffic; and to the left of the vehicle passing or attempting to pass is safely free from overtaking traffic," says the Act.
It also says that, "Every person in charge of a vehicle on a highway meeting a person travelling on a bicycle shall allow the cyclist sufficient room on the roadway to pass."
Contrary to popular belief among cyclist-hating motorists, the Highway Traffic Act does indeed define a bicycle as a vehicle.
"'Vehicle' includes a motor vehicle, trailer, traction engine, farm tractor, road-building machine, bicycle and any vehicle drawn, propelled or driven by any kind of power, including muscular power, but does not include a motorized snow vehicle or a street car; (“véhicule”)," says the Act.
It also says cyclists are not allowed to ride their bikes in pedestrian cross walks, that cyclists must have lights and reflectors on their bikes when they ride on a highway at night or in conditions of poor visibility.
"When on a highway at any time from one-half hour before sunset to one-half hour after sunrise and at any other time when, due to insufficient light or unfavourable atmospheric conditions, persons and vehicles on the highway are not clearly discernible at a distance of 150 metres or less, every motor-assisted bicycle and bicycle (other than a unicycle) shall carry a lighted lamp displaying a white or amber light on its front and a lighted lamp displaying a red light or a reflector approved by the Ministry on its rear, and in addition white reflective material shall be placed on its front forks, and red reflective material covering a surface of not less than 250 millimetres in length and 25 millimetres in width shall be place on its rear," says the Act.
The Act also says bicylces need to have at least one working brake on the rear brake that will allow the braked wheel to skid on flat, dry and clean pavement.
It even covers bicycles for unnecessary noise.
"A person having the control or charge of a motor vehicle shall not sound any bell, horn or other signalling device so as to make an unreasonable noise, and a driver of any motor vehicle shall not permit any unreasonable amount of smoke to escape from the motor vehicle, nor shall the driver at any time cause the motor vehicle to make any unnecessary noise, but this subsection does not apply to a motor vehicle of a municipal fire department while proceeding to a fire or answering a fire alarm call," says the Act.
But it says that, unless a bicycle is motorized and towing an implement of husbandry, it is not considered a slow moving vehicle for purposes of the law.
That means cyclists don't have to stick reflective triangles to their rear ends.
It says cyclists may signal their intention to turn right by extending the right hand and arm horizontally and beyond the right side of the bicycle.
The Act clearly says, several times, that every vehicle passing another must be safe about it.
"Every person in charge of a vehicle on a highway meeting a person travelling on a bicycle shall allow the cyclist sufficient room on the roadway to pass."
"Every person in charge of a vehicle or on horseback on a highway who is overtaking another vehicle or equestrian shall turn out to the left so far as may be necessary to avoid a collision with the vehicle or equestrian overtaken, and the person overtaken is not required to leave more than one-half of the roadway free," says the Act.
The Act does not specifically forbid passengers in a motor vehicle from chucking things at a cyclist but it does have some things to say about littering.
"Every person who throws or deposits or causes to be deposited any glass, nails, tacks or scraps of metal or any rubbish, refuse, waste or litter upon, along or adjacent to a highway, except in receptacles provided for the purpose, is guilty of the offence of littering the highway," says the Act.
It would seem that, throwing rubbish at a cyclist is a bad idea for many reasons, not the least of which is that the person throwing it could be charged with littering if the rubbish fails to stick to they cyclist and falls on the road.
The bottom line is that the intent of the Highway Traffic Act is for all vehicles to share the highways safely.
If this means a motorist waiting a few seconds behind a cyclist on a busy roadway until it is safe to pass, or a cyclist waiting a few seconds for a traffic light to turn green rather than riding across a pedestrian crosswalk, so be it.
When a cyclist is boxed in by motorized traffic in front, behind and to the left and by a curb to the right, he or she has no where else to ride but on the road, a place the Highway Traffic Act says the cyclist has a right to ride.
There will be times motorists will have to give way to the cyclists and no bad behaviour by cyclists in any circumstances is an excuse to abuse or threaten a cyclist on the road.
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