BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION AND HOUSING
Senator Jim Beall, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular
Bill No: AB 208 Hearing Date: 7/7/2015
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|Author: |Bigelow |
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|Version: |4/21/2015 |
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|Urgency: |No |Fiscal: |No |
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|Consultant|Erin Riches |
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SUBJECT: Slow-moving vehicles: passing
DIGEST: This bill aims to clarify the slow-moving vehicle
statute.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
1)Prohibits a driver from driving to the left of double solid
parallel yellow or white lines except under very limited
circumstances, such as passing another vehicle or entering a
two-way left-turn lane.
2)Allows a bicyclist to operate on any shoulder of any highway
if not otherwise prohibited by statute or local ordinance.
3)Enacts the Three Feet for Safety Act, which, effective
September 1, 2014, requires the driver of a motor vehicle who
is passing a bicyclist in the same direction on a highway to
pass at a distance of at least three feet between the vehicle
and the bicycle. It also requires the driver, if unable to
provide three feet of passing distance, to slow to a
reasonable speed and to pass only when doing so will not
endanger the bicyclist.
4)Provides that when a slow-moving vehicle, including a
passenger vehicle, has five or more vehicles in line behind it
on a two-lane highway, and passing is unsafe because of
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oncoming traffic or other conditions, it must turn off the
roadway at the nearest safe turnout to allow other vehicles to
pass.
5)Defines a slow-moving vehicle as one which is proceeding
slower than the normal flow of traffic.
6)Defines "roadway" as the portion of a highway that is
improved, designed, or ordinarily used for vehicular travel.
7)Defines "highway" as a way or place, including a street, that
is publicly maintained and open to public use for purposes of
vehicular travel.
This bill aims to clarify the slow-moving vehicle statute by
revising the definition.
COMMENTS:
Purpose. The author states that because the roads of rural
California tend to be very narrow, it is nearly impossible for
drivers to respect the Three Feet for Safety Act. Some two-lane
highways are so narrow that even if a bicyclist is riding on the
shoulder, the motorist is unable to provide three feet of space.
This bill aims to clarify that even if the slow-moving vehicle
is a bicycle, it must pull over to let other vehicles pass if
five or more vehicles are lined up behind it.
Where do I pull off? When this bill was heard in the Assembly,
it replaced the term "roadway" with the broader term "highway."
This language was an attempt to clarify that the Three Feet for
Safety Act applies to a bicyclist riding on the shoulder (which
is included in the definition of "highway" but not in the
definition of "roadway"). The California Association of
Bicycling Organizations (CABO), however, registered opposition
when this bill came to this committee. CABO raised concerns
that the term "highway" technically includes turnouts, meaning
that a bicyclist who is required to move over would be required
to pull off the highway altogether, e.g., into a private
driveway. To remove opposition to this bill, the author will
accept amendments to change "highway" back to "roadway."
What is a slow-moving vehicle? Although the slow-moving vehicle
definition in existing law does not explicitly include bicycles,
existing law makes every person riding a bicycle on a highway
subject to all the provisions applicable to the driver of a
AB 208 (Bigelow) Page 3 of ?
vehicle. Therefore, bicyclists are subject to the slow-moving
vehicle rule. Existing law, however, refers to "a slow-moving
vehicle, including a passenger vehicle," which the author
believes causes confusion as it appears to emphasize buses and
vans. To clarify existing law, the author will accept
amendments to strike the current definition of slow-moving
vehicle and instead require any vehicle proceeding upon the
highway at a speed less than the normal speed of traffic to pull
off the roadway if it has five or more vehicles lined up behind
it.
Related Legislation:
AB 1371 (Bradford, Chapter 331, Statutes of 2013) - established
the Three Feet for Safety Act effective September 1, 2014.
Assembly Votes:
Floor: 78-0
Trans: 16-0
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: No Local:
No
POSITIONS: (Communicated to the committee before noon on
Wednesday,
July 1, 2015.)
SUPPORT:
None received
OPPOSITION:
None received
-- END --
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