Florida Cyclists Alert!!!!!

[OakLeaf]

H.B. 971 is on Gov. Crist's desk. It would require cyclists to ride on bike paths and lanes (where they exist), and would also permit golf carts and other motorized vehicles to use bike paths without restriction.

Please call Gov. Crist's office at (850) 488-7146 tomorrow and ask him to veto this bill!

http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/...overnor-crist/

[zoom-zoom]

WTF...that's awful! I hope he is not so stupid as to pass something so poorly thought out.

[annielynn]

I took the time to send an email to governor Crist about this. It is just awful!

[blackhillsbiker]

It's bad policy to mix DUI legislation with cycling legislation. This is crazy!

Deb

[Pedal Wench]

It would require cyclists to ride on bike paths and lanes (where they exist), and would also permit golf carts and other motorized vehicles to use bike paths without restriction.

I thought they already had this law. Twice I've been told by police officers that I needed to get on the path or stay over in the bike lane. First time, the pavement is so broken up I didn't feel safe, and the other time, I was passing another cyclist so I left the lane for a moment.

[channlluv]

I don't know if it will help, but I sent him a long letter:

Hello, Governor Crist,

My name is Roxyanne Young and I am Florida native, although I am currently a resident of San Diego, CA. However, I regularly spend summers with my mother in Palm Coast, over in Flagler County. Last summer while I was there, I helped her pick out and purchase a Jamis Earth Cruiser from a local bike shop, The Bicycle Doctor on US1. She’s in her early 60s and got on a bike for the first time in about 50 years. She enjoys riding around her neighborhood and over the past year it has helped her lose about 80 pounds. She’s in this for both her physical and mental health.

Now, she’s not one of the hard core cyclists who commute or ride in large teams through city streets. She’s a recreational cyclist who enjoys riding around her neighborhood. A neighborhood where there are no sidewalks and no dedicated bike lanes.

When I’m there, I like to ride from her house to the Lehigh Trail and back. There are sidewalks for most of the ride, but not all. There are no sidewalks at all in her actual neighborhood, like I said, and part of the ride requires me to ride a short distance along very busy Belle Terre Parkway. Otherwise I ride on the available sidewalks, which are wide enough to safely share with other riders and the occasional pedestrian, but roughly half of the four-mile ride is on regular city roads with no sidewalks and no dedicated bike lanes. What am I supposed to do?

When my daughter and I are there, we ride with my mother around her neighborhood. Imagine three generations of women out enjoying the beautiful Florida sunshine. It’s a blast and one of the reasons we drive all the way across the country, so my daughter and I can bring our bikes with us for the two-month visit. (My daughter says it’s why she always grows so tall while we’re there – all that sunshine.)

As for those hardcore cyclists who DO use the regular city streets for commuting back and forth to work or school, more power to them! They should be lauded for making an earth-friendly transportation choice, not punished and threatened from people in cars and trucks. If anything, you should be passing bills to stop the harassment these people receive on a regular basis. How about a PSA campaign to educate the public about the benefits of riding bikes as transportation?

There is a lot wrong with this bill. Not only does it place cyclists and pedestrians in danger of mopeds and golf carts riding on the sidewalks, it will allow four-time DUI recipients the opportunity to regain their drivers’ licenses. That’s just nuts.

Please veto this insane bill. You’ll save so many lives if you do.

[OakLeaf]

This was posted in May, and yes, the bill did become law.

Only chance now is repeal. Unlikely...

[channlluv]

Drat. I didn't notice the original post date. I guess they'll just ignore my email. I can't believe stuff like that passes. If only we had lawmakers who actually cared about the good of the people.

Roxy