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City Talk report: “Bicycle Safety in Missoula” The following is a summarization of responses correlating to the last City Talk survey, entitled “Bicycle Safety in Missoula” (written up by Phil Smith, Program Manager for the City of Missoula’s “Bicycle and Pedestrian” program). A complete report of survey responses can be found at the link at the end of this summary. BACKGROUND AND PERCEPTION ABOUT BICYCLE SAFETY Very encouraging balanced responses! (405 respondents in total) Of the 405 total survey respondents, there was an encouraging balance of both motorized and non-motorized travelers: 40% said less than a quarter of their travel in Missoula is by bicycle; 37% said more than half is. The same balance was indicated in how much travel was attributed to motor vehicles: 51% said less than half of their travel is by motor vehicle; 49% said half or more is by motor vehicle. It is apparent that both bicyclists and motorists share the concern of bicycle safety as nearly all respondents (98%) said they are concerned about bicycle safety in Missoula. What seems safe or unsafe about bicycling in Missoula? The survey clearly pointed to actions of drivers as a primary consideration of danger: 4 out of 5 respondents said “inattentive drivers” or “distracted driving (cell phones, eating, etc)” posed a significant danger to bicyclists. Other dangerous driver actions noted include: drivers making a right turn in front of a bicycle (71% of respondents), opening doors in the bicyclist’s path illegally passing other cars on the right making left turns into the bicyclist’s path and running red lights Respondents were asked to identify dangerous bicyclist behaviors in Missoula. Most common were riding at night without lights running stop signs or stop lights not wearing a helmet riding against traffic and not signaling properly Who’s responsible for bicycle safety, and how should it be monitored? 70% said bicycle safety is the responsibility of motorists. 71% said bicycle safety is the responsibility of bicyclists. Interestingly, while nearly 75% of respondents said it is important to wear helmets, high visibility clothing, and use reflectors and lights, only more than half (55%) said it is important or very important for government to require and enforce these safety measures. ---PAGE BREAK--- GOOD BICYCLE BEHAVIOR AND THE LAW Several survey questions asked about the legality or appropriateness of various bicycling behaviors. These questions are addressed below including information on the correct behavior. 25% said it is “always appropriate for bicyclists to ride in car lanes.” These respondents are not correct. The majority had it right; it is not always appropriate for bicyclists to ride in car lanes. This question does not ask if it’s legal – only if it’s appropriate. Appropriate can mean both “safe” as well as “thoughtful.” Here are three examples where it is generally neither safe nor thoughtful to ride in the car lane include: riding on high-speed roadways; riding in lanes other than the right hand lane going in the same direction (unless you are turning left); riding in a car lane when it causes a large line of cars to be slowed down behind you. More than 56% said “no” to the question “Is it legal to ride a bicycle in a car lane when there is a bicycle lane available?” In fact, Montana law does not prohibit bicycle riding in a car lane when there is a bicycle lane available. However, it still may be inappropriate unless you are moving into a correct position to make a left turn, for example. Is it legal to ride a bicycle in groups of 2 or 3 across, thereby blocking some or all of a driving lane? While 91% said no (the correct answer in most cases), Montana law does permit riding 2 abreast (or across) when riding on parts of the roadway set aside for the exclusive use of bicycles, overtaking and passing another bicycle, riding on a paved shoulder or in a parking lane, or riding within a single lane of a road with 2 or more lanes in each direction, so long as they don’t impede traffic any more than they would if riding single file. Should motorists yield to bicyclists in crosswalks if they are walking their bikes? The correct answer is yes, which was given by 98% of the respondents. When bicyclists dismount, they become pedestrians. When entering a crosswalk as such, they have the right of way and motorists must yield. State law also permits riding a bicycle across a crosswalk; however, the bicyclist must yield to pedestrians in all cases. Should bicyclists come to a complete stop when an emergency vehicle is approaching with sirens on? Surprisingly, 4% said no – which is the incorrect answer. By law, bicycles are vehicles (not motor vehicles) and are subject to the same traffic laws as are any other vehicles on the roadway. Question about riding on sidewalks revealed confusion: Can bicyclists legally ride on the sidewalk? City ordinance states that cyclists 14 years and younger may ride on sidewalks; cyclists 15 and older may not; No one can ride on sidewalks in business districts. However, state law says that “when riding on sidewalks, cyclists shall yield to pedestrians” – this clearly means that cyclists are permitted on sidewalks. Since state law supersedes city law in this case, city officials have concluded that riding on sidewalks is permissible so long as cyclists yield to pedestrians. 66% of respondents thought bicyclists were NOT allowed on sidewalks. ---PAGE BREAK--- CONCLUSIONS It is significant that respondents can be characterized as almost equal numbers of bicyclists and motorists. Furthermore, responses clearly indicate concern with both bicyclist and motorist behaviors. Key bicyclist behaviors of concern included failure to comply with traffic laws such as not stopping at stop signs or lights, not signaling when turning, riding the wrong way, and not being visible (especially at night). These behaviors were conveyed strongly – with well more than half the respondents identifying these issues. Key motorist behaviors of concern included inattentive and/or distracted driving (more than 80% of respondents noted this) and violations of traffic laws (right and left turns in front of cyclists, illegally passing other cars on the right, opening the driver door in the path of the cyclist, and running red lights). For the most part, respondents generally knew correct legal behavior for bicyclists, though there was confusion on a couple of questions. The following two correct rules were not understood very well: bicyclists may legally ride in a car lane when a bike lane is available (though this may not be “appropriate”) and that riding bicycles on sidewalks is permissible. These data reinforce the direction the City has been going with bike safety, and inspire the City to do more. The City has focused heavily and will continue its efforts on developing and improving bicycle facilities – a concern of some 60% of respondents. The City has focused on encouraging bicyclists to use lights at night – a concern expressed by some 79% of respondents. Finally, data from this survey will greatly assist the City with its current effort to renew public education on correct, appropriate, and legal bicyclist behavior and motorist behavior relating to bicycles – concerns expressed by a large majority of respondents. For more information on the City of Missoula’s Bicycle and Pedestrian program, please contact Phil Smith at 552-6352 or [EMAIL REDACTED] A COMPLETE REPORT OF SURVEY RESPONSES MAY BE FOUND BY CLICKING HERE: BICYCLE SAFETY IN MISSOULA REPORT