MassBike Continues To Shepherd Vulnerable Road Users Bill Through State House

Last tuesday the Vulnerable Road Users Bill had its first hearing (more info here about the bill), from the MassBike website. I am impressed with this bill, and hope that it will help to continue on the 2009 bike law that MassBike passed. Once cyclists are fully integrated into the law structure it will be much easier to continue to push to make the streets better for cyclists.

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On Tuesday, the Joint Transportation Committee held a public hearing on MassBike’s Vulnerable Road Users Bill. Executive Director David Watson had the opportunity to deliver testimony to the committee, where he described the need to have better laws protecting bicyclists, pedestrians, and other vulnerable users of the road. You can read David’s written testimony here. The committee does not make a decision about the bill on the spot, but expressed interest in learning more about it.

A big thanks to those who came to the hearing and signed in to testify, even though, as feared, the bill was called very late in the day. Even if you couldn’t wait the whole time, by simply signing in, in support of the bill, and submitting your written comments, you sent a strong message to the committee that this bill provides much-needed protection for bicyclists and pedestrians.

It is not too late to submit written testimony. If you or someone close to you has been injured by a motorist while bicycling in Massachusetts, and the motorist was not held accountable, please consider sending an email or letter as explained in our Action Alert.

Now, MassBike will follow up with the Joint Transportation Committee to report the bill favorably and move on to the next step toward making it a law.

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