BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION AND HOUSING
Senator Jim Beall, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular
Bill No: AB 28 Hearing Date: 6/16/2015
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|Author: |Chu |
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|Version: |4/22/2015 |
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|Urgency: |No |Fiscal: |Yes |
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|Consultant|Christine Hochmuth |
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SUBJECT: Bicycle safety: rear lights
DIGEST: This bill authorizes the use of a solid or flashing red
light in place of a red reflector on the rear of a bicycle being
operated during darkness.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
1)Places provisions on bicycles operated during darkness. To be
compliant, bicycles must have:
a) A front-facing white light visible from a distance of
300 feet.
b) A rear-facing red reflector visible from a distance of
500 feet.
c) A white or yellow reflector on each pedal, shoe, or
ankle visible from the front and rear of the bicycle from a
distance of 200 feet.
d) A white or yellow reflector on each side forward of the
center of the bicycle and a white or red reflector on each
side to the rear of the center (unless the tires themselves
are reflectorized).
1)Under federal regulations, requires all bicycles sold in the
U.S. to be equipped with reflective devices to permit
recognition and identification under illumination from motor
vehicle headlamps. These reflective devices include front,
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pedal, rear, and side reflectors.
This bill authorizes a red reflector, a solid red light, or a
flashing red light as acceptable for the rear-facing visibility
requirement.
COMMENTS:
1)Purpose of the bill. A recent report from the Governor's
Highway Safety Association found that bicyclist fatalities
increased 16% nationwide between 2010 and 2012. California
had the highest number of fatalities in any state during that
time period, at 338. The report additionally noted that in
2012, nearly 27% of bicyclist deaths nationwide happened at
night, between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m. The author states that the
purpose of this bill is to encourage bicyclists to be as
visible as possible at night, and they believe that allowing
the replacement of a red reflector with a red light works
towards that end.
2)Countermeasures that work. Improving bicyclist conspicuity is
intended to provide motorists more opportunity to see and
avoid collisions with bicyclists. A common contributing factor
for crashes involving bicyclists in the roadway is the failure
of the driver to notice the bicyclist, particularly at night.
New bicycles must be sold with reflectors meeting the Consumer
Product Safety Commission requirements. The reflectors may
improve a bicycle's night-time visibility; however, they are
passive and must be illuminated by motor vehicle lights
approaching from behind. Active bicycle lighting (lighting
that is powered by electricity and that must be turned on
before it starts working) can be critical for the detection of
bicyclists in the path of a motor vehicle, because the
bicyclist may be outside the vehicle's headlight beam until
the last moment.
A 2013 report from the National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration scored active lighting as:
a) Low cost (can be implemented with current staff, perhaps
with training; limited costs for equipment, facilities, and
publicity).
b) High use (more than two-thirds of the states, or a
substantial majority of communities).
c) Medium effectiveness (likely to be effective based on
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balance of evidence from high-quality evaluations or other
sources).
1)Batteries not included. A potential safety hazard could arise
if bicycle operators completely remove their rear reflectors
in exchange for lights. The fail-safe mechanism of the red
reflector as a last line of defense would no longer be
available. Active light failure could occur due to loss of
battery power, theft of the device, or failure of the operator
to turn on the light, and the bicyclist would be left
vulnerable in darkness.
Assembly votes:
Floor: 78-0
Appr: 17-0
Trans: 16-0
RELATED Legislation:
AB 478 (Wolk, Chapter 232, Statutes of 2007) - added sidewalks
and bikeways to the facilities upon which bicycle visibility
equipment during darkness is required. Previously only bicycle
operation during darkness upon a highway was subject to the
visibility requirements.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: Yes
POSITIONS: (Communicated to the committee before noon on
Wednesday,
June 10, 2015.)
SUPPORT:
California Bicycle Coalition
OPPOSITION:
None received
-- END --
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