Legislation that would have made it easier for San Francisco bicyclists to roll through stop signs without repercussion was axed by Mayor Ed Lee last week. Lee vetoed the ordinance, previously approved by a 6 to 4 vote, saying it would have prioritized convenience over public safety.
So, why allow bicyclists to go along their merry way instead of obeying traffic laws like everyone else in the first place? Technically, the ordinance would have merely deprioritized these offenses, making them the lowest traffic priority on police officers’ radar. The reason, supporters say, is that it actually enhances public safety by allowing police to focus on the most serious traffic violations, including speeding vehicles.
The so-called “Idaho Stop” law had strong support from the cycling community and was billed as an effort to help the city achieve its goal of zero traffic fatalities by 2024. Now that it’s dead in the water, city officials will simply have to find other, less controversial ways of achieving that aim.
Read more about the mayor’s veto here.
Image Credit: Flickr User 49786859@N08, https://flic.kr/p/9Moq2y via (CC BY 2.0)