In response to the person asking the Southwick Chief of Police to write an article clarifying the laws for cyclists in Massachusetts, a quick read of the law at http://www.mass.gov/legis/bills/senate/185/st02/st02573.htm Will show you that cyclist are allowed, by law, to travel two abreast. The law was written with the safety of cyclists in mind.
I am disturbed by the front-page story in Friday’s paper. A bunch of kids nearly killed someone in a fight over a girl. According to the article four or so teens took offence that another kid was talking to a girl so they kicked and punched him until he was unconscious. The article stated the floor was awash with beer and blood and the victim lay there totally blacked out from repeat kicks to the head and face. When friends tried to drag the lifeless body of the victim out of the house to get him to the hospital for help he began to vomit. This victim could have died from this attack! And what happened to the main attacker? He got probation. That is no penalty at all. A $90.00 fine that doesn’t even cover the court cost and told to get anger management classes. How is this justice? I’m sure this must have cost the court more then the $90 fine. Who pays the medical bills? An insurance company? Why should they have to cover an intentional assault! Why should Southwick police have to bust there butt doing an investigation and spend extra time doing paper work? All I can say is the attacker is very glad I was not the judge. Actually, the “main attacker” who allegedly initiated the assault and the host (who in many cultures would be deemed to be responsible for the safety of guests under his roof) were acquitted by a jury. The only person who was held in any way responsible for the assault was one of two persons who allegedly joined in the attack as the victim was trying to flee.
Good Morning! I would like to respond to a PulseLine entry that was made on Tuesday, November 26, 2013. Since the PulseLine is one that I would consider valid I have no issue responding to the comment. After all, law enforcement officials are not only responsible for enforcing the law but should do their part in educating the public whenever there is a question pertaining to the law. Therefore, I am going to address the writer’s concerns since it was put on my shoulder to save someone’s life. One must realize that moreso today than ever we are seeing people of all ages and from all walks of life riding their bicycles while sharing the roadways with motor vehicles. The mix of motorists and cyclists not only has safety implications but the two create a challenge to our everyday operation on our roadways. We believe that by enforcing the laws that not only govern motor vehicle operators but those that regulate cyclists it will ensure a safe traffic flow with the community. A key point that bicyclists and motorists must realize when sharing our roadways is our laws reflect that bikes must be treated just like motor vehicles. The law indicates that motorists must treat bicyclists in the same manner as other operators using the road. We have found through the years there is a common misconception by drivers that bicyclists shouldn’t share the roadways. With that in mind, it should be noted our laws demonstrate the law pertaining to motor vehicles apply to bicycles. To put it simply, bicyclists must obey all of the rules other drivers must obey. I have noted below some motor vehicle laws that an operator of a motor vehicle should know encountering a bicyclist on the road.
Fail to yield when turning right. When a vehicle overtakes a bicycle proceeding in the same direction, the motorist must not make a right turn unless the vehicle is safely clear of the bicycle.
Fail to yield to on-coming bicyclists when turning left. When a vehicle is turning left, it must yield the right of way to vehicles approaching from the opposite direction, “including a bicycle to the right of approaching vehicles.”
Unsafe overtaking of a bicyclist. If it is not possible to overtake a bike at a safe distance in the same lane, the overtaking vehicle must:
(1) safely use all or part of an adjacent lane, or
(2) wait for a safe opportunity to overtake. A motor vehicle that overtake a bike “shall not return to the right until safely clear of the overtaken bike.”
Opening door near bicyclist. No person shall open the door of a motor vehicle unless it can be done safety without interfering with the movement of bicycles, pedestrians and other traffic.
Approaching a bicyclist. A motorist approaching a bicyclist must slow, pass at a safe distance, and at a reasonable and proper speed.
There are a couple of interesting points that I feel I must mention. The first point is an operator of a motor vehicle can be issued a citation if he or she unnecessarily honks his or her horn while driving directly behind a bicyclist. This type of noise can obviously startle a bicyclist. The second point is the law relates that it is no longer a defense for a motorist who causes an accident with a bicycle that the bike was to the right of vehicular traffic. There are a number of laws that directly regulate bicycle operation in the Commonwealth. In fairness to the motor vehicle operators I am going to mention some of those regulations. Some of those regulations which bicyclists commonly disobey:
Stop Sign and/or Red Light
Failure to yield when entering a roadway or turning left.
Failure to yield to a pedestrian in the crosswalk.
Failure to ride on the correct side of the road. {contrary to popular belief, bicyclists should not ride against traffic, and view themselves as simply another vehicle subject to the rules of the road.}
There are exceptions to the normal rules of the road for bicyclists that specially allow bicyclists to Pass on the right and Ride on sidewalks safety while outside of business districts (unless regulated by local ordinances or by-laws.)
This paragraph addresses the main issue brought forth by the writer. Bicyclists are not required by state law to use bike paths, keep to the right, or ride in single file. Our laws do not limit bicyclists to paths or right edge of the road. The law does relate that all drivers, including bicyclists, are generally to use the right lane. Bicyclists no longer have to ride single file. However, they may not ride more than two (2) abreast and, on a road with more than one lane in the same direction of travel, must stay within the single lane.
In ending, I would like to cover the following two (2) issues pertaining to bicycles:
(1) Bicycles are allowed on all roadways, except on limited access or express highways where signs prohibit bicycles.
(2) Bicyclists must always “facilitate overtaking.” The law mandates that bicyclists move to the right side of the road when necessary to allow a motor vehicle to pass.
There are a number of addition laws related to bicycles which I didn’t cover. They can be found in our Massachusetts General Laws under Chapter 85, 89, 90.
-Chief David Ricardi, Southwick Police Department
