Battle of the Bike Laws

If you're interested in various rules and regulations on riding your bicycle around the area, there was a highly informative correction to a legal Q&A on the subject this week from the Champaign County Bikes bicycle advocacy group:

Guest Commentary | Kepley's column on bike rules misleading
...
Several of us are Licensed Cycling Instructors, and as much as we agree that cyclists have the same rights and duties as car drivers and deserve a hug, we disagree that the law requires cyclists to hug the shoulder of the road. This often puts them dangerously in the gutter or out of view of other road users. We also disagree that bicycling under the influence is legal. This is dangerous for everyone. The usual DUI laws do not apply, but cyclists can be charged with public drunkenness or disorderly conduct.

"Hugging the right curb" is not the law and it is not safe bicycling.

The Illinois Vehicle Code states, "Any person operating a bicycle ... at less than the normal speed of traffic ... shall ride as close as practicable and safe to the right-hand curb or edge of the roadway."

Practicable and safe does not mean hugging the curb. Hugging the curb puts cyclists in a place often strewn with debris like broken glass. In a city setting, it will place the bicyclist in the door zone, the dangerous area next to parked cars where doors often open unpredictably.

"Practicable and safe" generally means riding several feet to the left of the curb or roadway edge where bicyclists are more visible to drivers at intersections, from driveways and even when coming up from behind. We teach riders to stay at least 4 and preferably 5 feet out from parked cars.

Full article here. Original bicycle law Q&A article here. Links to more safety information and the new Illinois laws.