2012 Will Bring Tougher Safety Rules for Cyclists

 Photo via streetsblog.orgWe've spent a lot of time on this blog bitching about the wars between cyclists and pedestrians. As FiPS writer Ursula once wrote, "Every time I hear about a pedestrian/cyclist accident I think, "How can that be? We're on the same team!" The team of people who feel bullied and oppressed by cars in this city, that is. But then I remember all the times I've been nearly mowed over by a cyclist going the wrong way down a one way street, or disregarding traffic signals entirely to zip through a red light without the slightest regard for those of us on foot."

Earlier this month, there was a massive crackdown on cyclists in Prospect Park. A tipster wrote in, claiming she'd witnessed "9 bikers get tickets within 10 minutes for whizzing past the red light near the lake." This kind of policing on cyclists is likely to increase in the new year. James Vacca, chair of the City Council Transportation Committe, has promised to push through tougher laws for cyclists, and to strictly reinforce the current laws. 

“I get a lot of phone calls and a lot of concerns about rogue bicyclists," Vacca recently told The Post. "Too many bicyclists are going the wrong way on a one-way street. Too many of them are ignoring existing bicycle lanes and driving as they wish, and I think that we have to address that issue."

Under the new bills that Vacca is considering, the Department of Transportation will have to submit installation plans for bike lanes on city roads to Vacca himself. Commercial bikes will require reflective gear and will need to be registered and insured. Delivery cyclists will be required to wear reflective upper body gear, which will have to indicate the business name and an ID number. 

“Because they’re delivering and they’re in a hurry, they sometimes just flout traffic laws," Vacca says. "And we can’t have that."

And what of the speeding cyclists in Prospect Park? Vacca wants to mandate prominent signs that warn cyclists to slow down and yield to pedestrians. I think he's going to need a few cops, tickets at the ready, alongisde those signs to enforce that one, but I guess we'll just have to wait and see. 

[Via the Post]