2011 Legislative update

Yesterday in Atlanta, over 2000 cyclists rode to the capitol to rally for better legislation and better facilities in Georgia. It was the Sixth Annual Georgia Rides to the Capitol put on by Georgia Bikes, and by all accounts it was a huge success: Lt. Governor Casey Cagle on the ride in from Decatur, along with many metro Atlanta mayors and city officials. The rally at the Capitol even featured an appearance by Governor Deal!

So, where are we in the legislative calendar? Georgia Bikes identified 2 priorities during this session which were introduced as HB 101 and HB 180:

HB 101 clarifies multiple areas of traffic code related to bicycling, including defining bike lanes and clearly establishing that bicyclists have the right of way in bike lanes, better defining the right to take the lane when it’s too narrow to share (among other reasons) legalizing the use of a rear red light instead of a reflector as well as the sale of clipless pedals and recumbents.  HB 101 passed the full House of Representatives and has now passed the Senate Public Safety Committee.  Current version is here.  It will next be heard in the Senate Rules Committee and, if reported favorably there, will go to the Senate floor and if successful there, to the Governor’s desk to sign.

HB 180 defines safe passing of a bicycle by a motor vehicle as 3 feet or greater; this is the law now in 19 states though not yet in Georgia.  In the 2011 session, HB 180 made it out of the House Public Safety Committee but did not make it out of the Rules Committee and to the floor before crossover day.  As such, HB 180 will not be considered in the Senate this year, though the current legislature and all the bills introduced but not passed this year can restart the process in 2012 without a reintroduction of the bill.

Savannah Bicycle Campaign will continue to work with Georgia Bikes to ensure that these issues remain at the forefront.  We appreciate all of you who answered the call to contact your legislators to support these measures, and we hope you will continue to do so in the future!  If you have specific legislative concerns that are not being addressed, we want to hear about those too.