Cycling in Waterloo Region

[zanate]

Infuriatingly relevant.

Infuriating and possibly related, but relevant? Anyone who's talking seriously about Idaho stops is not proposing changing the rules about right of way at all. Under such a law, anyone proceeding without right of way is still breaking the law.

I'd be mad too when someone steps or bikes or drives in front of my vehicle when I am moving through an intersection. All of these things have happened to me. None of them stop being illegal or infuriating if we move to a stop-as-yield rule for people on bikes.

Here's a starting point for the topic, including discussions of pros and cons:

The Idaho stop is the common name for a law that allows cyclists to treat a stop sign as a yield sign, and a red light as a stop sign. It first became law in Idaho in 1982, but has not been adopted elsewhere.[1] A limited form of the law called "Stop as Yield", that deals only with stop signs, has expanded to parts of Colorado and been considered in several other states. Advocates argue that current law criminalizes normal cycling behavior, and that the Idaho stop makes cycling easier and safer and places the focus where it should be: on yielding the right-of-way.[2] Opponents think it is less safe because it violates the principles of vehicular cycling and makes cyclists less predictable.

Discuss!