Wow, that it awesome and a real victory for Mass. cyclists. Congrats! I know of similar efforts/wins in other states, but nothing of that magnitude. I really hope that can be leveraged to influence all states to re-visit the issue.Originally Posted by sitzmark .
Specific distance - no, but does clarify the requirement not to "cut off after passing". This is the same for motor vehicles too, but is now highlighted for emphasis as it pertains to bicycles. http://www.massbike.org/resourcesnew/bike-law/bike-law-update/
Efforts like that arise from these kinds of discussions where people recognize that most states' car laws are insufficient for ensuring the safe and effective travel of cyclists as well. First the cyclists need to understand where "equal rights" does not work for inequal abilities, and then band together to educate and influence lawmakers. The tendency seems to be in thinking that the current laws aren't broken so there's no need to fix them, while people rightly use their own experience and judgement to safely navigate situations which aren't covered (or rightly ignore the laws in situations where the laws themselves present an unsafe situation) . The problem is that in many cases cyclists come out on the short end of the stick when motorists' experience and judgement fail them. If most cyclists are okay with the laws as written then there will never be enough support for the kind of effort necessary to institute bike law changes.
Originally Posted by sitzmark .
Sometimes you just have to go with your gut.
Absolutely, safety comes first. FWIW, I try to be courteous and follow the laws most of the time as well. My comments here are simply the result of questioning whether there is room for improvement in the current laws which could improve not only the safety of cyclists on the road, but also the harmonious interaction between all road users. It's good discussion.