Utah Bicycle Traps

You've heard of speed traps, but what about bicycle traps?

Five Utah police agencies will be participating in a state-sponsored crackdown on motorists who aren't safely sharing the roads with bicycles. Plainclothes officers will ride bicycles to catch motorists who aren't sharing the road.

Utah averages about 900 bicyclists a year who are injured and often killed by motorists. While this is sadly not an unusually high number in relation to other states, Utah has decided to do something about it.

I really hope that this is a trend that other states will pick up on. I can't count how many times motorists will pass dangerously close to me while riding my bike, even though they have ample room to move over while passing as is required by state law not to mention common sense.

Maybe I should move to Utah.

Here is a link to an audio file of a radio broadcast about the program.

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I think this is good too, for a different reason. People are also threatened and injured by those who ride bicycles on the sidewalk. When you challenge them as to why they are running people down, they always tell you it is way too dangerous to ride in the street.

A 170 pound man on a ten speed frequently rides right through the kids walking home from school near me. Contrary to what he thinks, "Beep Beep", isn't sufficent warning, and he could seriously harm kids if he got tangled up with them.

It's a shame that we go to so much trouble to try and get people to use other forms of transportation to limit pollution and traffic, and then don't care about them enough to make the roads safe for them. I agree it is time to stop paying lip service and really make it possible.

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Baker I have a real problem with that. Sidewalks are for pedestrians, not vehicles. That dolt, and others like him, should be ticketed and forced to attend a cycling safety course.

And I agree, it is a shame states don't do more to encourage alternate transportation like cycling. Cycling is my primary mode of transportation these days.

Roadway projects could easily include cycling lanes with very little added cost, just to name one easy way to help. Safety awareness, share the road programs, and other things would be a big help. So would more active safety related law enforcement instead of sitting parked someplace trying to catch the occassional speeder to enhance revenues.

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