Paris Adopts “Idaho Stop” Law

Seems we will finally get some data on a major metropolitan area trying out the Idaho Stop law. I have long been waiting for an area with a lot of traffic to try out something like this.

A new government decree has just authorised cyclists in the French capital to go through red lights, after road safety experts deemed the measure would cut road accidents.

It follows a fierce three-year campaign by cyclists’ associations.

Under the new system, which will be first tested on 15 crossroads in the East of the French capital, cyclists are allowed to turn right or go straight ahead even when the lights are red.

They must, however, make way for pedestrians and incoming traffic on the left and will be held responsible in the event of an accident.

Red and yellow signposts posted on traffic light poles will inform cyclists that they can ignore the lights in designated 30km per hour zones. If judged feasible, the scheme will then be rolled out to 1,700 crossroads in Paris.(via)

This would be applicable to places like New York and Boston, if they find that this doesn’t cause serious problems it could be implemented in other major cities…then again many Boston road users already follow their own “Boston stop” guidelines, so perhaps we do have years of data to draw upon. What do you think? Would Boston streets run red with the blood of a million dead cyclists if we adopted this law here?

Add to Reddit.

Tweet